take a look at this choice anvil for sale on Craigslist for just $240.00 !!

A great beginner's anvil; they have just priced it US$200 over what it should go for

They just changed the description.  A couple hours ago it was "120lbs with some damage. Good condition."  Now it's 80lbs and not being referred to as good.

Nevermind, I was remebering the wrong one.  I was thinking of this one.

 

"Large 120lb anvil. Part of it is missing. Someone must have cut it off with a torch. It's still in good condition (see pics). It stands 11" tall, 16" nose to back. The top is 4" wide and 8" long. Check out the pics and call me with any questions. $325 OBO. CALLS ONLY!"

I got a good  pretty good 150 pound old english anvil for that price. But for a beginner that's not a bad deal

wow, that's quite something!

                                                                                                               Littleblacksmith

I just saw one on Craigslist with the heel broken off 2/3 of the way through the hardy hole.  The poster described it as "a small chip out of the back of the anvil".  Then he proceeded to ask big money for it.  These are many levels more pitiful.  Got my sights on what looks to be a thick 5-6" post vice though.  The poster is asking $45 because the bar for the handle is missing.

Not that I want it but I'm curious about the original anvil posted. It looks like it was used for a long time for a specific purpose rather than just abused. At first I thought bending shoes but now I don't think so. That anvil has a story to it, probably a boring one of only one job though. 

9 hours ago, Ranchmanben said:

Not that I want it but I'm curious about the original anvil posted. It looks like it was used for a long time for a specific purpose rather than just abused. At first I thought bending shoes but now I don't think so. That anvil has a story to it, probably a boring one of only one job though. 

Either it was heavily modified for a particular use or used as a pivot point for a winch cable!  Does that little ledge on the feet ID it as a Peter Wright?

Here's one on CL near here.  70 pounds and asking $80 FIRM.  They DO however disclose that the horn is missing. 

6 minutes ago, WNC Goater said:

Here's one on CL near here.  70 pounds and asking $80 FIRM.  They DO however disclose that the horn is missing. 

That's actually not a bad little anvil, if the rebound is decent. Sure, the face is messy, but that should smooth out with work. At that price, if I needed a travel anvil, I would jump all over that.

12 hours ago, Lou L said:

I just saw one on Craigslist with the heel broken off 2/3 of the way through the hardy hole.  The poster described it as "a small chip out of the back of the anvil".  Then he proceeded to ask big money for it.  These are many levels more pitiful.  Got my sights on what looks to be a thick 5-6" post vice though.  The poster is asking $45 because the bar for the handle is missing.

Ugh i wish i had your luck with post vices. I've been really lucky with anvils but i've been searching craigslist and hit lots of old barn / estate sales looking for one. The cheapest i've run across so far is 200 for a decent post vice. This is the one big thing that i'm really missing right now in my setup

I have an anvil missing the entire heel but with a good face and decent horn. I paid US$40 for it to a farrier. Paying top used price for a badly damaged anvil is not a good deal IMNSHO!

Now that hornless one I'd snatch up and rebuild into a medieval looking anvil for medieval demo's!  Might try refacing it the old way. Doesn't look like the remaining face plate is thick enough to do much work on it.

5 hours ago, brickman said:

Ugh i wish i had your luck with post vices. I've been really lucky with anvils but i've been searching craigslist and hit lots of old barn / estate sales looking for one. The cheapest i've run across so far is 200 for a decent post vice. This is the one big thing that i'm really missing right now in my setup

this one just sold here at a small local on-line auction yesterday for $81.62 after tax's and fees .. probably should have bid on it but passed... 

The OP's pics look like the rare and highly sought after platypus anvil! Surprised the owner isn't asking more! LOL

5 hours ago, Lars_ said:

Those anvils are really not worth the money. It's better to put the money aside and wait or just safe up some more for a brand new anvil. 

I think we all agree .. just having some fun showing what people are advertising they have for sale !!

And warning off new folks that just because they are priced like that doesn't mean they should sell at that price.

5 hours ago, ThomasPowers said:

just because they are priced like that doesn't mean they should sell at that price.

But Thomas they are "One of a Kind Antique"  must make them really valuable.   Asking and receiving are often Far Apart. 

or an anvil is worth $10. a lb because "it's 100 years old!" ..........

Back when I lived in Ohio, I was able to use my old Geology degree by picking up a piece of gravel with a fossil in it and tell such dealers that this piece was A unique and B a MILLION TIMES OLDER and I was willing to trade it straight for their Unique Old Tool.

Never had any takers but unique and old are not necessary positive things when looking for tools to use. In fact for equipment I ask how much they are cutting the prices as unique items cost much much more to work on as there are no "parts donors" and you have to pay a machinist or founder to make replacement parts.

(It amuses me to see how many "priceless antiques" are actually the cheapest grade of stuff offered in the 1908 Sears Roebuck catalog and sold by the thousands in the day...)

1 hour ago, Scrambler82 said:

Wondering how this anvil came to be in this condition ?

Ah, exactly my thought as well, knowing the history would be interesting but long lost in the Dust Bin of Time.   

How do you think you will look after a couple hundred years of hard use?

quite a few of us look like we have had a couple of hundred years of hard use

I think I will be tossed in the back of the shed way before I get in even 100 years of hard work!

" Rare Badger anvil - $750 

condition: good 
make / manufacturer: Badger 
model name / number: #6 
size / dimensions: 60lb 

Vintage 60 lb anvil with original patina. Small piece of heel is missing. Chisel marks on faceplate."

Unfortunately no pictures of this rare anvil in GOOD condition. lol 

My take on that ad:  "Rare Ford Pinto for sale, in good condition, one fender mangled in wreck, hail damage on body; priced at only 6 times the proper price"   

Ran across a bridge anvil in surprisingly good face condition, ANTIQUE BRIDGE ANVIL - $1500, as they were used for reforging cable tool drillbits and often were a "consumable" in the oilpatch.  However I am quite happy with my US$300 one as I'm a user and not a collector.  They are not that rare in the old oil patch I have seen a number in OH, PA, OK, TX and even found one sitting in the desert here in NM. The one referenced above was made by the Oil Well Supply Co of Pittsburgh PA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5wrGNUsKao

also

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=isgu8I1lFtA

Shows a bridge anvil in use during dressing a cable tool drill but by hand---very nice striking with sledgehammers at full extension!