novacane Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 I recently found an individual who is selling a soderfors sweden 103# anvil in really nice shape. I am looking to purchase as my first anvil to begin basic blacksmithing. He has owned it in an auto shop for the past 40 years and is asking $300. Is this a fair price? Any input on what to look for would be helpful. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VaughnT Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 Well, a Soderfors is a very good brand of anvil, so don't fret that you'll be getting a pig in a poke! Smaller anvils go for a better price because they are easier to move. As a beginner, you would be well-served by a hundred-pound anvil. Secured to a heavy/stable stand, that little lady will do anything and everything you could reasonably want. If you have cash in hand, you might be able to talk him down to $2/lb, but if the condition of the anvil is like new (not bugger'd edges or repairs to the working parts) his near $3/lb price isn't bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 Price is location dependent; where I used to live that would be a quite high price. Where I live now, a bit stiff but not totally ridiculous depending on condition and *both* places are in the USA! Where you live I haven't a clue---were those Singapore dollars, Canadian dollars, Australian dollars,...? Is the face clean and does not look like it's been ground on thinning the hardened section, edges intact and show no signs of welding repairs. Does the horn look good? I bought a post vise from an auto repair place that had been in business in the same location since 1918, 6" vise and it had been well hammered on---looked like and Arts & Crafts movement piece with a peened surface; the rest of the smithing stuff they had buried under junk in the corners but the postvise had been used for 80 years+! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
novacane Posted August 23, 2012 Author Share Posted August 23, 2012 Thanks for the input! Here are a couple of pics of the anvil. What do you think? He is firm on the price and I am in Florida by the way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
novacane Posted August 23, 2012 Author Share Posted August 23, 2012 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 That looks like very good condition from what I can see. Do you have the cash and are you willing to spend it on that? It's not a bragging price by any means but not totally out of the question. How much do you need an anvil? Perhaps better to get one fast and make money using it then to wait till whenever not making *anything*. Is their any tooling or scrap metal he could add as "boot" Note that a small anvil is quite handy even if you later upgrade to a monster, (My shop anvil is a 515# one, my travel anvil for the last 29 years is 93#...) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VaughnT Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 Yea, you really need to jump on that anvil. That's a cast steel anvil from a reputable maker, and it's in As-New condition. Even if the price is a bit high by some standards, it's not ridiculous for an anvil of that size and quality. Figure also, that the stump it's on would set you back time and money to reproduce. It's a perfect size for a working anvil, not too big to become a pain to move and not too small to limit what you can forge on it. You could easily work on that anvil for the next hundred years and never feel yourself shorted. That's not to say you won't buy a bigger anvil in the future, but that there's always a need for a small anvil in a blacksmith's shop! Go get it before he changes his mind! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VaughnT Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 Double-up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
novacane Posted August 23, 2012 Author Share Posted August 23, 2012 Thanks for everyone's input! So this is in what appears to be good shape? I am just getting into smithing and currently make my money welding! Any tips on testing it? I have read to ping it or drop a steel ball bearing and it should bounce 70% of the dropped height? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VaughnT Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 That's right. Drop a ball bearing from 10" and measure how high back up it bounces. Being a cast steel anvil, it should ring like a bell when you tap on it with a hammer. And, yea, that's in really really really good shape. Stop typing on the computer and go get it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fe-Wood Posted August 24, 2012 Share Posted August 24, 2012 When you do the bounce test, (steel ball bearing, measured 10" from the bottom of the ball, bigger is better 1" dia. is best) you should get 80-90% or 8-9"rebound on that anvil. I say buy it! You will not be disapointed!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fatfudd Posted August 24, 2012 Share Posted August 24, 2012 you are getting lots of good advise but your dilemma will always be finding as good(quality) an anvil at any time in the future. I would suggest that $300 is a very reasonable price for a decent anvil. You may not see another of that quality for months or years, and again there maybe two next week for a somewhat cheaper price. That being said I have been looking at anvils for years and always regretted that first one I could have picked up because I thought he was asking $50 too much. I waited at least 2 years before I found a similar anvil for the same price. Just get it and don't sweat the small stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Dean Posted August 24, 2012 Share Posted August 24, 2012 ya mean you STILL don't have it???! whatchawaitin4? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nonjic Posted September 1, 2012 Share Posted September 1, 2012 Rolls Royce piece of kit that! If you buy it you will smile every time you use it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIGGUNDOCTOR Posted September 2, 2012 Share Posted September 2, 2012 I have a 306# Sodefors that I bought at a machine shop auction for $200 back in the 80's. NIce anvil, but it does ring more than my 260# Fisher. If you are forging at home you will need to deaden the ring so the neighbors stay happy, and wear hearing protection. Tinnitus sucks! There are many ways to deaden the ring, and they can be found by searching the site. $3 a pound is way more than the $1 a pound I have averaged, but if you can afford it, and feel comfortable with the price, get it. It really doesn't matter what others have paid, what matters is do you want it, and can you afford it? It is a good quality item, and will hold its value. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VaughnT Posted September 2, 2012 Share Posted September 2, 2012 Well, what happened? No after-action report has been filed, and I'm feeling a bit verklempt! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pulsepushthepopulace Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 ha ha, I just posted this in the first come-first serve, not knowing this thread existed... Had I the disposable income, I would get it. Nice to know a fellow IFI member is a FL local... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VaughnT Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 PPtP, don't feel bad. Apparently he hasn't jumped on it, so it's fair game! If I was closer, I'd sure think about grabbing it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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