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I Forge Iron

Want to buy this but don't know what to offer


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Hello new to the Forum. I recently found this William Foster 1836 Anvil. Has 1 * 15 on one side and William ??ster  1836 then V or W then I or T.  Story is guy found this and salvaged it from the York River west of Yorktown Virginia. He then had it as Lawn Art for 20 years. He came home one day and someone had carried it 20 feet and dropped it. So he chained it to his shed foundation so no one could steal it. Now I freed it from its chains and want to buy it. I have never bought a Anvil and want to be fair. He has other tools and equipment that I want to buy also so don't want to xxxx him off by not offering him enough for it. Also haven't weighed it yet. My guess is 100-125. I picked it up but not something I want to do very often. Thanks for reading this long post and any information you guys can provide.

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Value can vary greatly depending on location.This is an international forum, so......

It weighs 127# by the markings on the side 1=112# + 15# total 127#

Just because it is old does not mean it is gold. Anvils don't get an age premium until yoiu get back into the 1700's or older.

How is the rebound? Are those cracks in the face? I cannot make them out very well in the picture.

Does it sound like it is delaminating anywhere when tapped with a hammer?

As to a fair deal, has he mentioned anything as to price? What other tools does he have? You may just want to make a package deal instead of one at a time. Talk with him a bit, and just hash out a price that you both can agree on. You need a price that you can afford comfortably, and if that price is agreeable to him then you have a deal. Personally I have not had to pay more than about a dollar a pound, but others are ecstatic to pay $3+ a pound. It doesn't matter what others pay, what matters is what YOU pay. Everyone's tool budget is different, so what is a good deal for someone else may not be the deal for you. Now, that anvil is not pristine, and has had some use/abuse, but will it work for what you want to do? You can buy a brand new 125# JHM anvil for under $700, and I have been seeing people ask more for a used beat up anvil. If you are just getting started think about how much you want to invest into just one tool. At $3 a pound you are looking at close to $400. I can outfit an entire smithy ( forge, vise, anvil, tongs, etc) for less than half of that. The anvil may not be a London pattern like that one, but it will be an effective anvil. Soooooooooo, all I am trying to say is check the anvil out for rebound by either dropping a ball bearing onto it from 10" and see how far it bounces back, or letting a hammer drop onto it to see how far it bounces back-do not swing the hammer, just loosen you grip so it free falls as it pivots in your hand. The higher the better 70%-90% is good. If that is good, and it is in a price range that you can afford, get it.

 

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Thanks for the info. It is located in Richmond VA since it seems where it is located changes value. Someone asked what other tools he had. Several sets of tongs and then several hand forged hand tools, axes, adze, a buck board seat. So will work on making a package deal

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Note that the weight markings are in the CWT system (used on old english anvils)  given 3 markings the left most is times 112 pounds (hundredweights), the middle is x 28 pounds and can only be 0-3 (quarter hundredweights)  and the rightmost is residual pounds and can only be 0-27

So given 2  sets of markings we are missing the central one.  Easiest way to figure it out is to put it on a bathroom scale and realize that the weight stamps can be a couple of pounds off---as can be a bathroom scale.

If those rust marks on the face are NOT telegraphing cracks then it's in decent shape; the horn is not an issues as I advise blunt horns and bickerns for the hardy anyway.  Check for ring---also a check for hidden cracks and rebound---see ball bearing test---a test for possible loss of face hardness due to structure fires.  If all check out ok then $2 a pound would be a decent price in your area; however the owner may want much more!  

Unfortunately anvils are not considered *old* until they are in the pre-pritchel hole range (pre 1820s and into pre 1800---"Colonial anvils" here in the USA)  Most sellers don't understand that many if not most of use are using 100+ year old equipment on a common basis I have a hammer that is probably over 200 years old I still use.  When I used to run into fleamarket dealers wanting outrageous prices for something because it's old, I used to pick up a piece of limestone gravel with a fossil in it and tell them that this was a million times older than what they were selling but I'd trade them even for it! They never agreed; but perhaps they realized that *old* does not necessarily mean "valuable"...

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Thanks for the info. It is located in Richmond VA since it seems where it is located changes value. Someone asked what other tools he had. Several sets of tongs and then several hand forged hand tools, axes, adze, a buck board seat. So will work on making a package deal

And update we came to a price. I am going to clean it up a little and put it in my antique shop next week.

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I would love to get into metal work. I may just clean it up coat it with some CLP and stick it in the corner. My thing is if I can get it to someone who wants it and can immediately start using it I may. I am a cop in the suburbs with enough hobbies my wife would crap furry kittens if I told her I was going to build a forge. Plus my neighbors may not enjoy the ringing. My mother has a antique shop and we also have a booth at a event called Field Days of the past which is a cool event with steam engines, old farm equipment and antique tools. I may hold onto it until then. Just wire brush it and coat it in oil or crisco (what I use on my old cast iron cauldrons). I love Antiques and have a lot but hate to waste this one if someone really wants to put it back in service. Hey half the fun is the hunt and the research and learning. 

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22 minutes ago, ThomasPowers said:

well I've mentioned the tests to discern between a user and a fireplace weight

I am going to pick it up tomorrow probably. I did take a ball bearing and got a good bounce off of it. Not knowledgeable enough to tell you any more than that unfortunately. If nothing else I have a conversation piece with a cool story behind it if I decide to keep it. Thank you to everyone who shared their knowledge and taught me more in a day than I would have got from weeks of research on my own.

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