Small anvils and values

[Farmall]

There's a 60 pound fisher on Ebay......at $3 a pound. I know the 20 Pound Kohlwasa was over $500. Was wondering at what point an anvil becomes "small" and the value begins to increase exponentially? I have seen a bunch of anvils in the 100-150 pound range, not too many less than 100. I am thinking that more 80 pound anvils were made than 60, which were than the 40 which were more than the 20 pound anvils. What do you all think? (I realize those eith 300, 400, or larger anvils will say a 150 pounder is "small") I realize the value is driven by what someone will pay, but it seems like the value is driven by the exceptions - i.e., in this case, very large or very small anvils, so I was wondering what everyone considered was a "small" anvil and thus worth more. I am talking about what are generally considered the better anvils, like Fsher, Hay-Budden, Trenton, Peter Wright, Mousehole Forge, etc. .

[ThomasPowers]

For me the "toy" anvils start at about 25# and down.

[Mark Emig]

Beauty and value are in the eye of the beholder-or those with the cash.

[MLMartin]

The little anvil price seems to really just be driven by people that like to collect little anvils, and specifically anvil brands that are high quality. I rarely see all the 20 pound cast iron anvils sell for much of anything. Although the cast iron anvil-vices something sell for a lot.

 

Its just something that people collect. Its like the old oil cans from the early 1900s. What use does anyone have for a 1920 oil can? Some people just see them as art.

 

I acquired a colonial leg vise with a blown out screw box and destroyed mount. It is pretty much useless as is. But I am going to repair it just because to me it is art! 

 

I would love to buy one of Tom Latanes little anvils! They are grand art. But I am a poor young smith without the deep pockets of many anvil collectors 

[Timothy Miller]

Because they are cool.

[VaughnT]

I'd say that anything under 50# is "small" and really not worth my time.  I might buy one if it was as-new or really cheap, but I'm not on the look out for something in that size range because you're getting into the territory of any large chunk of steel that can also be used as an anvil.  Why buy a 20# london-pattern anvil when I can buy a 20# sledge hammer that will work perfectly as a post anvil?

 

Anvils north of the 50# mark are serviceable anvils that can be used for general beginner smithing of all types, and they are, again to me, more valuable.  If it goes north of 150#, the value starts diminishing because they are harder to move and would require serious shipping costs.

 

This isn't to say that I would walk away from a 300# anvil, but that I would take all the factors into consideration.  They are a bear to move around the shop, and unless I can drive to pick it up, the costs of having it shipped can really drive the price up.  A 300# anvil is not measurably "better" than a 120# anvil that is very solidly mounted, so....

[101 H-B]

There you have it, views vary, each valid.

 

My observation is that although small anvils appeal to some collectors, how many have turned up, scarcity, is even more important in determining value. A 60 lb. anvil isn't that rare, although more 75 to 150 lb. were sold to every family farm over the last 200 years.

 

Combine scarcity and made by a real anvil maker, as your list, and price really goes up: only about six ~10 lb. Hay-Buddens are widely known about, they bring 4 figures. Fishers turn up more often, so prices aren't nearly as high. I haven't heard of any that small from Trenton. Condition counts also. Go another step, country of origin: here in the U.S., an anvil made by Hay-Budden will bring more than a Mouse Hole and most Peter Wrights.

 

There's been a very interesting, and still ongoing evolution of availability/awareness/value driven by the increasing use of the internet over the last 10+ years. This pertains to all vintage/antique markets: car parts, coins, anything. While we've learned there are more out there than we could find locally before ebay and Craigslist, we have to compete in a global marketplace with everyone at all levels of income, so prices overall remain strong.

 

Anyone using the internet for a period of time has come a long way through the learning curve and found their place in the marketplace, that is, a better focus of what they're looking for within their budget. Now prices for a rare anvil, of any size, in outstanding excellent condition, will bring many times higher than the same sized anvil with chipped edges. It is as likely to be a user as a collector buying at that high price if it is 100+ lb. size.

 

For anvils, 50 lb. is certainly an important threshold. For most users they start becoming too small, most likely why less were make, now making old anvils that size more scarce and desirable to collectors. 30 lb. is an even more important threshold as there are even fewer, so it goes with 20 lb., 10 .. as long as there aren't many of them, they will bring a premium.

 

Another factor is basic supply and demand: how many buyers are there for something, no matter how rare? Once the buyers or collectors are satisfied, prices soften. Or take out a couple of the top buyers and prices come down noticeably. We've seen this with anvils, as there are not that many stepping up to buy Tim Kris's collection of European historical anvils.

 

I'll stop here ... like Tim said, small anvils "are cool"