Upon entering a property in the vicinity of a house in the country which my wife and I recently bought for the purposes of retirement we discovered a veritable trove of goodies worthy of capturing on digital imagery and sharing with the folk of iforgeiron.

Man what a gold mine !! Any chance you can get your hands on any of that great stuff ? 

Have you talked to the property owner yet?

Frosty The Lucky.

xxxx xxxx That is unbelievable. I wish you luck in obtaining all those lovely goodies!

Wow.  It's a graveyard of immortal steel.

I have indeed met and spoken to the owner. When I enquired as to the possibility of ownership of some of the stuff changing hands, he just looked at me with a quizzical expression and didn,t even bother to answer.

Also there but not pictured are two 750 lbs swage blocks, a 500 pound Peter Wright anvil, 4 Brooks anvils between 190 and 300lbs, a power hammer of about 250 pound tup weight, about 400 assorted tongs, numerous other smaller anvils, work tables 4 or 5 meters long by 25mm (1 inch) thick and a plethora of other stuff that would cause many members of this site to palpitate.

That's too bad! Hopefully he uses some of it rather than just letting it rust! That's some pretty unbelievable gear.

If the current owner will to allow you to become a care taker of some of that stuff, offer him use of the equipment at any time you are home.

Or ask if he would like to adopt a slightly older child such as yourself. (grin)

Love that riveted band on the anvil stump!

Too bad you can't buy the stuff, but at least the environment is conducive to outdoor storage and the stuff doesn't look to be in too bad a shape.   Keep a keen eye on the obituaries and maybe you'll have better luck at the estate sale.

Keeping an eye on the obituaries is a great idea.

But, may I suggest not waiting for an estate sale, but, swooping in soon after his demise, and offering the next of kin a fair price to take it off their hands.

It also may to your benefit to be on friendly terms with the bloke. He might change his mind and sell.

SLAG.

I see potential for stunning photography 

In its current untouched beauty 

I had to buy a second mop to take care of all the drool I was making.  Wow--with just those few pictures, everywhere you look there is something interesting to see.  Even that wooden work block in the foreground of the first photo has an interesting forged binding.

Anyone know if the table for the post-vice is a factory table designed specifically for the vice rather than something done after the fact?  I'd be interested in seeing a better photo of what was done there or an original ad showing one.

Pirate treasure...from Blackbeardsmith the pirate.

7 hours ago, paradox1559 said:

I see potential for stunning photography 

In its current untouched beauty 

Undoubtedly, as a bit of a hack photographer, the next time I am there I will do just as you suggest.

7 hours ago, Kozzy said:

I had to buy a second mop to take care of all the drool I was making.  Wow--with just those few pictures, everywhere you look there is something interesting to see.  Even that wooden work block in the foreground of the first photo has an interesting forged binding.

Anyone know if the table for the post-vice is a factory table designed specifically for the vice rather than something done after the fact?  I'd be interested in seeing a better photo of what was done there or an original ad showing one.

Pirate treasure...from Blackbeardsmith the pirate.

I am of the opinion that the table to the vice is original. I recall seeing another post vice with the same table near to the one shown in the picture.

1 hour ago, kevan said:

as a bit of a hack photographer ,  ,  , 

The difference between a photographer and a good photographer is not the amount of photos you take, but the amount of photos you throw away, keeping only the good ones for others to see. (grin)

Take as many photos as the digital card will allow. Use the camera to record everything, then move in close for the details. You never know if this is your last opportunity to take photos, or if you see something in the background that will become of interest to you at a later date. Digital is cheap, so take lots of photos while you have the opportunity. 

 

Kozzy: like this? Sold by Matchless Antiques a while back.

10 hours ago, Glenn said:

The difference between a photographer and a good photographer is not the amount of photos you take, but the amount of photos you throw away, keeping only the good ones for others to see. (grin)

Take as many photos as the digital card will allow. Use the camera to record everything, then move in close for the details. You never know if this is your last opportunity to take photos, or if you see something in the background that will become of interest to you at a later date. Digital is cheap, so take lots of photos while you have the opportunity. 

 

Sage advise Glenn. It is always good practise to delete the rubbish and file the good.

9 hours ago, John McPherson said:

Kozzy: like this? Sold by Matchless Antiques a while back.

Thanks--looks similar.  I've been paying attention to the several threads on independent mounts for post vices and it looks like an interesting option.  Nothing there that one couldn't easily do  with a plasma cutter to emulate the old school version.

Found an old Wilkinson ad (1904) with the vise and table combo in question.

I see Wilkinson called them Black Staple Vises, well those anyway. I wonder how many other things they were called. Anybody?

I call them "post" or "leg" vises. now I see "Staple" vise.

Frosty The Lucky.

Three levels of quality for anvils and vises: Black (or rough as-forged finish), Bright (or polished finish) or Best Warranted.