How much is fair for 2nd hand anvil?

[ausfire]

Here are a couple of pics from a swap meet at Bendigo, Victoria. I thought these prices ($AU) were a bit on the high side, given the condition of these anvils.

[Gergely]

Well, I'm no anvil whiz at all, but that 2400 au$ seems to be a bit pricey. Although the anvil itself looks really nice.

 

Let's see what the experts are going to say.

 

Bests

Gergely

[njanvilman]

You have to fill us in the US as to the conversion rate for au$ to US $.   We could better weigh in.  Are anvils very hard to come by in that part of the world?

[the iron dwarf]

will depend on the quality, availability, size but I think it is high like the seller is hoping for someone with a lot of money and little idea of their worth, half that is probably nearer if they are top end anvils ( guessing it is close to 2 $aus to our pound, I usually estimate $us as 1.5 to our pound )

[Loneforge]

1 Aus $ = .88 US$ so I'd agree on the pricey part.....But if there are no anvils around he likely will get what he's asking. Sad but true.

[VaughnT]

Just because it's old doesn't mean that it should lose value or gain value because it's all in the condition, not the age.  That $2400 anvil appears to be in as-new condition: the horn has no dings or gouges, and all the edges of the face look free of any chips.  What would it cost to buy a brand-new anvil today?  In the US, new anvils in that size start at $5/lb and go up from there.

 

The second anvil you pictured has some serious chipping around the edges, but appears otherwise in decent condition.  It's value wouldn't be nearly as high per pound as the $2400 anvil.  If the chipping didn't extend so far into the face proper, the value would have been even higher, imo.

[Steve Sells]

cant really use the prices form the states for Oz prices,  shipping adds a lot to Oz prices for smithing gear.

[Fatfudd]

Customs also kills any shipping to that part of the world. They'll add between 60 and 80% customs fees on top of the price listed in the shipment. I shipped some stake anvils to a 

friend in New Zealand which had a value listed as $400 and customs hit him for $240. Bummer

[ausfire]

 

You have to fill us in the US as to the conversion rate for au$ to US $.   We could better weigh in.  Are anvils very hard to come by in that part of the world?

 
Yes, about 88c U.S. at the moment. And anvils are pretty hard to find here, I guess like everywhere. I know that many were scrapped and melted for the war effort and so many were just dozed into holes (along with lovely old steam engines and stationary engines) on rural properties. I've heard stories from people that come to my demos about how they used to have a big anvil but .....Some would make you cry.
And BTW, I do not approve of these clowns who get enjoyment out of lining up two lovely anvils base to base, filling the void with black powder and blowing them sky high. If you don't know what I mean check it out on You-tube. Vandalism.