I recently became interested in all this stuff and came across an anvil. It looks like a Hay Budden 125 pounds. It's fairly beat up. I dug it out of an old garage/workshop like I was on "American Pickers". It looks like the serial number is 19685. Could someone help me with the age of this thing and offer any tips for cleaning it up? I started using a wire brush on it but that's about it. I just got the thing home and I'm super excited. 

 

Any help would be amazing!

 

Joe

congrats on your new anvil! if it is real grungy you can try wd40 and a wire brush on an angle grinder. of course don't ever use a grinding disk, that is one  of the fastest ways to ruin it. can we have a few pics? that would be very helpful in giving ID and dating. 

It's only had a quick brushing so far with a little oil. 

Measurements are:

10.5 in tall 

22 3/4 in long

3 5/8 in wide at top

 

Base is 9 x 7 3/4 inches

Thanks for the help!

 

That anvil is in almost pristine condition, not beat up at all.

It looked worse before I started cleaning it up. I'm new to this whole thing and wasn't sure what was going on with it. 

that anvil is in superb shape. worth a grand easy in some places. 

That's the craziest thing I've heard in a while. All it cost me was an hour of hard labor and tetanus shot!

I have no intentions of selling it. Just curious to learn more about it's history. I believe it was used at the PS&N rail station in Angelica, NY in the early 1900s.

S/N 19685 would make it 1895. As said above it is in great condition! Make a stand and put it to use. Probably has been sitting for quite a while.

I intend to do just that! I'm researching how to build a small (portable) forge for my backyard. I need to be able to move it into my shed when not in use. Thank  you so much for that information!

 

I'm very new to this stuff, is this a forged steel anvil? It doesn't appear to have a face plate. 

If the s/n is correct and doesnt have an A in front then it will be w wrouht iron body with a faceplate forge welded on. An A in front would make it 1919 which would be a steel upper half and wrought iron base.

Depending on how much time the workers took on the final finishing forging the plate and the joint at the waist could be difficult to see. Finish the wire brush cleaning see what shows up.

The anvil should have a good ring either way when tapped with a hammer.

I'll do some more cleaning tomorrow. I really appreciate all the help today! I can't wait to get started! 

 

Omg. She's beautiful. Not beat up at all. I have anvil envy now along with others I suppose. Your lucky. Count your stars.  Nice anvil. You will never find one in that condition ever again unless you pay 10 dollars a pound or more. Enjoy her and put her to work. 

 

Welcome aboard Joe, glad to have you. That is one beautiful old lady. I hope you're using a 90* disk grinder with a steel cup brush on it. NO GRINDING PLEASE!!! Wire brushing it by hand would be a big job of work and it's perfectly okay to use power tools. I LOVE my power tools. 

A little hot steel and hammer work will shine up her face nicely and keep her young. 

Take a look through the anvil section on Iforge and check out the anvil stands. I like my steel tripod stands but there are lots of good ways to mount an anvil so don't get in a hurry.

Heck same advice for every aspect of the craft, don't get in a hurry. You already have a dream anvil so no need to move quick on a lead before someone else buys it.

One of the Iforge gang just missed out on a very nice anvil because he took time to ask our opinions. 

Frosty The Lucky.

You have a beautiful anvil there! Like Frosty said, NO GRINDING! Just the wire brush and some WD40 .. and give her some work to do!

Would a wire brush attachment on my cordless drill work? Should I use a fine or coarse brush? Thanks so much for all the help guys. The community here is amazing!

A cordless drill brush should be okay. Fine or coarse all depends on your preferences. Some people like to brush it all the way to the bare steel. I would personally go on the light brushing side. It takes a long time to get a patina as nice as what most older anvils have. If you brush it off, you will just have to accept the challenge of fighting rust.

Can you help me selecting lottery tickets This is a really nice find. If she were mine. I would not do any more cleaning, instead I would put on some nice finish, boiled lineseed oil or some kind of wax. Patina is easy to destroy and difficult to get back. It is an old lady and you do not want to embarrasing her by making her naked. As already pointed out. Use her and the top surface will shine.