Made in Sweden anvil

[mudbugone]

I found the following anvil while at the local scrapyard last week looking for items to show the American Pickers film crew when they came to film my stuff last Friday....a 10 hour day!

 

I bought the anvil for $75 and then 700 pounds of railroad rail pieces,3/4" switch plates and 5 cannonballs,..... After I bought the 60's BSA Chopper that was leaned against the back of their building.

 

I think the anvil is a 108 lbs if the stamped numbers indicate weight.

 

The "Star" has a crown in it if that helps to ID it.

 

 Thanks

[Rhettbarnhart]

i have that same anvil :).I posted it on here a while back snd nobody knew what it was.....they are nice anvils

[mudbugone]

I know it rings like a church bell. It's odd no one seems to know what it is or who makes it.

 

Someone online suggested it's rare,but I doubt that... Hopefully someone will be able to ID it----Not that it matters really since it seems to be perfectly usable and let's face it..... that's what it's for... I'll keep looking and let you know if I find info on it.

 

I was given several short very large pieces of big beams today (18-20" sq. & 2-3' long) which will make mounting the anvil as well as a couple of the large switch plates simple.

[Frosty]

Is there anything on the other side? I have a Sodorfors Sorceress #5 which is a 125lb Swedish anvil. Yeah, it rings like a bell, loud clear and piercing, great anvil, my favorite of all time. I can't pin your's down as a Sodorfors but it has the right general shape for their single horn models and I seem to recall hearing about a crown. The chips out of the face is about what I'd expect if a S.odorfors were misused, the faces are dangerously hard, they will chip without much convincing.

 

I'm thinking you done good. I'd sure as heck bring the guys at the scrap yard some donuts and coffee as positive reinforcement, just don't forget to leave your number.

 

Frosty The Lucky.

[Sask Mark]

Page 65 of Anvils in America talks about 'North Star' anvils with those markings.  Mr. Postman believes that one of the major Swedish manufacturers made them.  

[mudbugone]

Maybe this thing IS rare ? http://www.iforgeiron.com/topic/17521-158-lb-swedish-cast-anvil/

I think if I can ID the Star w/ crown inside logo on it I may be better able to ID the actual anvil itself.


Found this...here http://www.fholder.com/Blacksmithing/q&a.htm
Swedish Anvil
Question: I have an anvil that I got from my aunt. The only markings on it are a single star, below that it has “made in sweden” and below that in about 1 inch letters it has the weight, 109 lbs. I don’t have a picture of it that I can get on the net as the markings except for the weight are quite faint. It seems to be one piece with an attached face and rather long horn. Any idea what it might be besides heavy?
—Ed Dunn
Answer: What you have is an anvil made in Sweden, possibly in the 1930’s. Their weight was in pounds, they had a single star with “Made in Sweden” below it. They were advertised as being made from one solid block of Swedish Charcoal Steel, with no face plate to come loose. Don’t have any information as to who manufactured them. There was an ad in the Janney, Sensple, Hill and Company catalog, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 1930 that lists an anvil like yours.
—Fred Holder


This is the only mention of the star with crown stamp other than the above question..

Beautiful 134 lb. Kohlswa Blacksmith Anvil that is in Excellent condition. Swedish made anvils are one of the best anvils ever made anyway This anvil features a nice face, clean edges and an upturned horn. This anvil's face is perfectly flat with just a few use marks. This anvil has an great rebound and nice ring. The anvil is marked with "KOHLSWA, SWEDEN" on one side and the weight mark "134 Lbs." stamped on top of a "Star w Crown inside" and "MADE IN SWEDEN".

That description of the markings pretty much matches the anvil I have---MINUS the Kohlswa,Sweden stamp...

[mudbugone]

Frosty--- I'm gona owe those guys more than doughnuts & coffee...LOL

 

 Look at these... The piece of rail is a foot long...there are 3 two footers and a couple of 3 footers ---several of those 3/4" switch plates--- 5 cannonballs... and the Chopper (plus some other things )

[Frosty]

Don't worry, coffee and donuts goes a long way to maintenence guys, especially if you say good things to them. Ive had good luck with general good PR but I've never scored cannon balls let alone a chopper. <wistful sifh>

 

Frosty the Lucky.

[ThomasPowers]

Note that the cannon balls are most probably ball mill balls and so should retail at scrap rate as a working ball mill produces them worn down to that size by the ton every year.  I often see them touted as cannon balls but if you measure them and compare them to the STANDARDIZED BORE SIZES of American Civil War cannons you find that they won't fit any of them.

 

Now they are coveted by SCA armour makers to make ball stakes from and having a full range of different sizes is the goal of many an armour maker.

 

(Recently I was at a fleamarket in southern NM and a fellow was selling ball mill balls for US$1 a piece, the next row over a fellow was reselling them as cannon balls for US$12 a piece---the same balls and of a size that no cannon in the USA used...)

[mudbugone]

They probably aren't cannonballs even though a Civil War re-enactor examined them and said they were just like the ones in the museum they maintain...

 

I did find the following site in case anyone wants to verify a misc. metal ball rolling around in the shop... LOL..  http://www.civilwarartillery.com/shottables.htm

[andersonville]

I know this is an old thread and I cant see the pics but the anvil described sounds like it may be a "Swedish-American Steel Corp" anvil.