JimAlbertson Posted June 18, 2017 Share Posted June 18, 2017 My Grandpa recently passed away and I was lucky enough to receive his anvil from my dad. It had some grime and a few layers of peeling paint so I took a wire wheel to it and uncovered some markings that interested me, which led me to this site. If anyone can help me understand what they all mean it would be greatly appreciated. The last two pictures are on the bottom of the anvil.one looks like T8 and the other looks like it could be upside down maybe ?2?22. Oops...Somehow my last picture ended up as the first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njanvilman Posted June 19, 2017 Share Posted June 19, 2017 210427 is the serial number, indicating it was forged in 1914. It looks like 144 under the name, indicating the weight. The 4 is thought to be in inspectors number stamp. The 024 is thought to be the steel batch used. Those are the number that are significant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoName Posted June 19, 2017 Share Posted June 19, 2017 Hey Jim, Looks like it could be a Plowmakers anvil. Would you please post a picture of the whole anvil. Thanks N.N.F. Beautiful, Manchester, Michigan. USA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted June 19, 2017 Share Posted June 19, 2017 25 minutes ago, NoName said: Looks like it could be a Plowmakers anvil. So it does. Good eye. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlpservicesinc Posted June 19, 2017 Share Posted June 19, 2017 What are the pictures with the circles in it? One number is the serial number, the other is the inspectors number an the other is supposed to be material batch number.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted June 19, 2017 Share Posted June 19, 2017 Welcome aboard Jim, glad to have you, hope you'll stick around and take up the craft. If you'll put your general location in the header you might be surprised how many of the Iforge gang live within visiting distance. Please don't take a grinder to it, a wire brush is a good thing but grinders tend to do more damage than good. It's a high quality anvil and a good size, heavy enough to do serious work but light enough to move around. We'd really like a better look at her general condition. If you can light it from the side in the pics they'll show more detail. Highlights from lights on steel tend to wash out details. A nice shot from each side, one downwards of the top, not straight down but a downward angle. a shot or two of each end and a look at the bottom. All angle pics of anvil and other blacksmith equipment and tools is like porn for us and it excites up to think someone new is getting into the craft. It's addictive for an all good reason. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimAlbertson Posted June 19, 2017 Author Share Posted June 19, 2017 Here are some more pictures. My 11 y/o son has been watching "Forged in Fire" on tv and has already looked up videos on ways to build a home forge. He's ready to put a hammer to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted June 19, 2017 Share Posted June 19, 2017 @NoName called it: plowmaker's anvil. Take a look at the threads for the 55 forge and JABOD forge here on IFI. Very reliable, low-cost way to get a fire going and start heating metal. There are also some good threads about working with kids; pay special attention to safety! (Pro tip: the forum's native search function is quirky. You'll get better results from using the search engine of your choice and including "iforgeiron.com" as one of your keywords. Good luck!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimAlbertson Posted June 19, 2017 Author Share Posted June 19, 2017 15 hours ago, njanvilman said: 210427 is the serial number, indicating it was forged in 1914. It looks like 144 under the name, indicating the weight. The 4 is thought to be in inspectors number stamp. The 024 is thought to be the steel batch used. Those are the number that are significant. 14 hours ago, NoName said: Hey Jim, Looks like it could be a Plowmakers anvil. Would you please post a picture of the whole anvil. Thanks N.N.F. Beautiful, Manchester, Michigan. USA 7 minutes ago, JHCC said: @NoName called it: plowmaker's anvil. Take a look at the threads for the 55 forge and JABOD forge here on IFI. Very reliable, low-cost way to get a fire going and start heating metal. There are also some good threads about working with kids; pay special attention to safety! (Pro tip: the forum's native search function is quirky. You'll get better results from using the search engine of your choice and including "iforgeiron.com" as one of your keywords. Good luck!) Thanks to everyone for the information. Having spent years in genealogy, finding out the history of things has become an every day (in my wife's words) addiction. Now to build the boy a forge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted June 19, 2017 Share Posted June 19, 2017 You might think about joining the Blacksmith Organization of Arkansas (BOA). You are in the River Valley Chapter's area and not too far from our NW chapter. Great bunch of folks to learn from. Our last meeting there were two youngsters that got to beat on some hot metal. Our website is a little out of date but you can get the idea. http://blacksmithsofarkansas.org/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimAlbertson Posted June 21, 2017 Author Share Posted June 21, 2017 @JHCC I just finished your (picture heavy) JABOD forge build thread, and I think that would be an ideal first forge to tackle with my boy. I have everything to build it in the (hoarder corners) around my shop and clay at the river. Hopefully my honey-dos won't take up the entire weekend so we can get started. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted June 21, 2017 Share Posted June 21, 2017 If you're using clay, try to mix in a good portion (say, half) of sand and/or ashes. Pure clay shrinks too much and sticks to clinker like nobody's business. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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