Novice96 Posted November 2, 2016 Share Posted November 2, 2016 I am looking to buy my first real anvil i have been through 2 harbor freight peices of garbage that both broke in the same place they were 15lb anvils. i found a real one at a pawn shop they say it is 150lbs i believe anyways. the guy on the phone said with "the labor it took to unload" and they want 450 for it. it is rusted and i have not been able to test it. i know that is not helpful but inyour honest opinion is it worth even trying to persue? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fatfudd Posted November 3, 2016 Share Posted November 3, 2016 As you have found out, getting a real anvil is hard. We can't tell you a particular direction until you have had a chance to test the anvil and see its condition. If its in good shape, with a good rebound, and actually weighs 150lbs then depending on where you live $450 probably isn't outrageous. If you put your location in your header you might be surprised how many smiths live near you and can help you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobody Special Posted November 3, 2016 Share Posted November 3, 2016 It may or may not be worth that. I probably wouldn't bother with one they wouldn't let me check for rebound and weight, and the labor bit of unloading it is well, words I can't use on here, but it's roughly mud colored, related to the south end of a northbound horse, and good for the crops. Agree that a decent one that size might well be worth that, and that pics and location would help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Novice96 Posted November 3, 2016 Author Share Posted November 3, 2016 If i end up going back i will be sure to test it and get a picture of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turbo7 Posted November 3, 2016 Share Posted November 3, 2016 Well worth going for a look mate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Novice96 Posted November 4, 2016 Author Share Posted November 4, 2016 Okay which test is better. the berring or the hammer? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stan Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 10 minutes ago, Novice96 said: Okay which test is better. the berring or the hammer? Both test achieve the same objective, anvil face rebound , but the ball bearing is probably more actuate method to gauge rebound. A small hammer is also useful to check for delamination and problems of the face plate on older style wrought iron anvils . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Novice96 Posted November 4, 2016 Author Share Posted November 4, 2016 Alright because of it being a pawn shop i have no idea how much they will let me get away with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 If you do the ball bearing test correctly it gives you a hard number that can then be compared with later trials on different anvils. It can also tell you if you are looking at an outlier as there are lists of results out on the web for various brands---so if it's a Peter Wright and you get a 37% bounce you *know* that that's one to be avoided! The hammer works the more experience you have but it's more a "seems off" than a hard fast number. The hammer may be easier to get allowed as most folks know about the "ring test"-----even wanting to use it on anvils that Don't Ring! (Fishers, Vulcans, etc) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kozzy Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 For Idaho, that is a reasonable price for a good anvil--maybe even a little low for these days. That means your task is to determine whether it's actually a good anvil or not. As other's have said, ball bearing test is the best tell--but you need the hammer test also around the face to make sure that it's not delaminated anywhere if it has a welded plate or internal cracks if it's cast steel. Cast iron as you found out is a total loser. What corner of Idaho are you hiding in? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Novice96 Posted November 5, 2016 Author Share Posted November 5, 2016 Alright now as far as the forge. i have a tin can one made out of a coffee can and plaster of paris. looking to upscale. did you guys buy the propane or map or even acedeline kit one? or did you make your own. coal, charcoal or gas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 5, 2016 Share Posted November 5, 2016 Well my first one I built out of an old farmhouse dry sink and fueled with charcoal; bought a couple of old cast iron forges, rectangular, built several coal forges and attended 2 propane forge building workshops and built a blown and a NA propane forge at them and built several more as needed. Once or twice a year I generally build a forged based on ones of the viking eras. I am very down on forges using plaster of paris---what were they thinking! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Novice96 Posted November 5, 2016 Author Share Posted November 5, 2016 Mine worked pretty well for small wrech tomahawks, but i am starting my first knife (the one that broke both anvils now using a 55lb one of the same brand, all i could afford to continue for now.) a kukri cause they are legal to carry and i want to make a knife to carry. and it is not doing so good haha. wont be able to quench it or anything with this forge. but am hoping when it is time i can have a bigger forge for that stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 5, 2016 Share Posted November 5, 2016 I object to your wording; if it was a 55# HF cast iron ASO it cost several times more than a great anvil made from a piece of steel. May I commend to your attention: http://www.marco-borromei.com/fork.html for example. I had around an 80 pound broken knuckle off a RR car that made a great anvil and was free and I gave it away when I moved. The issue is not with your budget; it's with not recognizing the anvils found all around us and falling for the canard that a london pattern anvil is what one should be using even if made from Cast Iron. (Now there are great anvils that use cast iron as *part* of their construction; but they do have properly heat treated steel faces: see Fisher and to a lesser extent Vulcan anvils) If you were nearby I could show you where to get a nice chunk of steel 4"x4"x8" for about US$16 that would still be usable as an anvil for your great grandkids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Novice96 Posted November 5, 2016 Author Share Posted November 5, 2016 55lb anvil for $54. less than a dollar a pound. No wait. it was discounted because of the broken one it was $47 Plus i do not have a welder and things like that to make one. and local machine shops like to charge quite a bit. been there before whencwe tried to get a simple patch job done on a trailer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John McPherson Posted November 5, 2016 Share Posted November 5, 2016 Newbs of the world gather 'round, Uncle John is going to lay some knowledge down on you. You are missing the point of the whole ASO market. You are buying something for a dollar a pound that is only worth pennies. If you keep going back to the same junk import stores when (not if) they break, then you have never bought a real anvil, and dollars per pound is how real, usable anvils are valued. Instead, you have repeatedly thrown your money away on lumps of cast iron that are shaped to look anvilish, but are instead trash made for the sole purpose of separating the gullible from their money. One definition of insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly, and expecting different results. Out of the kindness of their hearts, some folks here have tried to educate you, to show you that it is not the shape of the object, but the material that it is made of. If you reject it and make excuses, on your own head be it. Don't ask for advise if you don't want to take it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted November 5, 2016 Share Posted November 5, 2016 Preach, Uncle John! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tubalcain2 Posted November 5, 2016 Share Posted November 5, 2016 very well said. London pattern anvils are nice, but not necessary. non cast-iron anvils are necessary. the in between? rr track, hydraulic pistons, tractor weights, and the list goes on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
notownkid Posted November 5, 2016 Share Posted November 5, 2016 23 hours ago, Novice96 said: Alright because of it being a pawn shop i have no idea how much they will let me get away with If they don't let you test it walk away, it's like buying a used car/truck no test drive no sale. It appears you are experienced in buying Junk ones from HF so it's time to go uptown on a decent anvil and they aren't cheap. Good Luck. Pawn Shop, first time I have heard that one, can about picture someone pushing an anvil in a wheelbarrow through the door. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Novice96 Posted November 5, 2016 Author Share Posted November 5, 2016 not making excuses. stating facts. if i can get one to continue working for 47 untill the money is availible to buy the one from the pawn shop what is the problem? i will take asvice when the time comes and the resources are there. when this post was made iwas actually going to wait till next month and buy the other one IF it was any good. but while taking the broken one back they asked if i would like to go up a size, at a discount, to hold me over until i buy a better one cashiers words not mine. i have gone around looking for other things to use and my search came up empty because i do not have access to a welder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted November 5, 2016 Share Posted November 5, 2016 On 11/3/2016 at 11:10 PM, Novice96 said: Okay which test is better. the berring or the hammer? Well, a ball bearing is easier to carry in your pocket, and dropping it on the anvil is less likely to freak out shopkeepers than hitting with a hammer. 2 minutes ago, Novice96 said: i have gone around looking for other things to use and my search came up empty because i do not have access to a welder. You don't need a welder; depending on what you're using for an improvised anvil, you can spike it to a stump, strap it to a post, bury one end in the ground, bolt it to a wooden stand, etc, etc, etc. Don't think about what you can't do with what you don't have; think about what you can do with what you do have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John McPherson Posted November 5, 2016 Share Posted November 5, 2016 Nobody had a welder 100+ years ago, less than 1% have one now. And when you do acquire one, then you still need the knowledge to use it. It is not magic. Why don't you give us a list of what you do have, or have access to? Then we can give you some positive feedback. Do what you can, with what you have available now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 6, 2016 Share Posted November 6, 2016 May I suggest not complaining of lack of funds and then saying you have thrown away three times the cost of a decent anvil buying a cast iron piece of trash. You could buy an 80 pound piece of steel to use as an anvil for US$16 at the local scrapyard down here. You don't need a welder you can use it as it sits! The link I provided to the fork lift tine anvil, they didn't own a welder they paid $25 to have someone else weld a free, (scrounged) piece of steel to another piece of steel and ended up with a 120# Steel anvil. So $47 for an ASO vs $25 for a anvil that will last generations. Can you explain how that's a good idea? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Novice96 Posted November 6, 2016 Author Share Posted November 6, 2016 Thanks for the help guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
51 Papy Posted November 6, 2016 Share Posted November 6, 2016 Novice Your missing the boat! There's got to be scrap yards, road construction places (Cat dealer), fab shops and so on. I have anvil envy as much as everyone else. I'm working on 24" of backhoe hammer bit. $0.00. Base is scrap plywood and 2x4's $0.00 I don't have more than $20.00 in grinding disks in it. These guys are trying to get you in on a shoestring budget. I'm in sales so walking in and talking is no problem. Never been in the repair shop before walked out with the bit, and a friend! That was the fourth shop I visited. Point is you either spend the money or put in the time, or both. For my shop a "real" anvil is going to wait until I find a smokin deal because I really like my post anvil. There is a lot of posts about where to find non London pattern anvils. At your age (guessing by your profile) you are unstoppable! Go for it!!!! Respectfully Papy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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