I picked up this anvil today and am curious if someone can tell me who makes it. I'm new to the page and the mobile page has me confused. It says "solid wrought" in a circular pattern and 112. It needs some tlc but I'm very happy with my first anvil purchase. Thank you in advance.

                  Vinny.

If my math is correct, the hundredweight of 112 should equal 142 lbs or roughly 60 kg. 

I cannot help with identifying the anvil, but I can say that it is a fine looking one which should serve you well. Based on the way the one side chipped, it appears to have a steel face. How is the rebound?

Scrambler

One assumes that a previous owner modified it with that groove to fit their own needs. 

I was also thinking it was a Peter Wright but wanted to ask in here where there's way more knowledgeable people than my self or anyone I know. I had already figured out the weight was 142lbs so you guys are correct for what it's original weight was. As for the groove in the horn shelf it either looks like someone was cutting material with a grinder and cut through or someone was hammering some sort of triangular or angle point down because the side that is deeper on the edge it is pushed out like the top of a chisel or punch. I hope that last explanation of mine made sense. I don't have a ball bearing right now so I can't give a percentage of rebound but it feels to be pretty good. It has a pretty good ring and no sound of having hollow spots to me anyway. At Scrambler82 where do you see the remains of the word "patent" maybe if it's pointed out to me I'll be able to see it. I've never been very good with seeing words, names, or brands on worn out tools. I have also added my location to my profile.

Peter Wright has my vote. In picture #2 you can see the classic "solid wrought" circle.

C-1ToolSteel thank you for your input. That's exactly what had me thinking it was a PW.

I'm gonna say it's definatly a Peter Wright. I hit it with a wire wheel today and the word patent is basically clear and you can see part of the w and t in Wright.

Re: the groove on the saddle, I'm guessing that a previous owner ground or chiseled it in for some purpose of his own. People did modify their anvils occasionally, usually if there was some kind of specialized work that was a major part of their trade. The groove is on the wrought iron saddle rather than the hardened steel face, so even if it was originally quite neat, it was probably distorted by later hard use.

9 minutes ago, JHCC said:

Re: the groove on the saddle, I'm guessing that a previous owner ground or chiseled it in for some purpose of his own. People did modify their anvils occasionally, usually if there was some kind of specialized work that was a major part of their trade. The groove is on the wrought iron saddle rather than the hardened steel face, so even if it was originally quite neat, it was probably distorted by later hard use.

That makes alot of sense to me as well. I don't think anyone will ever truly know what it was for. Now one other question I have is what rod to use for repairs? I've searched on the site and found 1 write up that says 7018 1/8" for the base or build up and then mg740 for finishing up on the face or where work will be done due to its rockwell hardness. I can't find even on line a place that sells the mg740 rod. Can someone tell me another good rod to use for finishing where the face needs fixing as shown above?

Why the need to fix it? It looks like it might be a good place to give life and character to leaves or put the v in v bit tongs.

I have used the MG 740 welding rods for the top layer on an anvil repair for my go to anvil in the shop - I bought the rods from Messer Welding in Wisconsin - expensive but worth it. You want an impact resistant rod vs. a hard surfacing rod like most ppl wreck there anvils with. I rebuilt an anvil at a fellow blacksmiths shop in Nebraska (Jr has since passed away) but still remembered in the past forums. These are the rods he used to repair many many anvils in his time.

MG 740

• Medium hardness build-up alloy for most steels.
• Economical, general purpose alloy providing high compression strength and impact wear, with moderate abrasion resistance.
• Ideal as a buffer layer for harder overlays.
• Deposits are machinable and can be forged.
• Oxy-acetylene torch cuttable deposits.
• For uses such as: rope winches, truck wheels, roll ends, tractor pads, couplings and brake drums.

As we are looking for R55-65 hardness is also a factor, but as sharp edges are the enemy of good forging it's a moot point, after a years work with that anvil, smoothing out a few of the worst chips is all that's needed. 

Consider the groove in the horn as an added design feature. I'm sure somewhere down the road you'll find some great use's for it.

20 minutes ago, jeremy k said:

 

I have used the MG 740 welding rods for the top layer on an anvil repair

 

Okay, but this would be for a repair in the softer wrought iron of the saddle. Would MG 740 rods still be appropriate?

I did 3 passes around the perimeter of the face and many years later the edges are still as is the day I repaired them, as Jr said " as you use those areas, they will work hard by themselves".

I first want to thank absolutely everybody for their input and advice on what to do. I'm probably going to leave the groove in the saddle because after what was stated above about being able to use it for the V grooves on tongs that was a great idea and I can probably get other uses out of it as well. And as for the chipping on the face basically the only reason I wanted to fix it was to keep it basically from getting any worse being that I am still fairly new to the craft I'm going to inevitably miss her and I just don't want to make what's there any worse. That's basically why I wanted to fix the chipping on the edge. When I wire wheel that the more I did the more my smile went closer to each ear because the more I did the more letters came out from other words so by the time I got done I had basically answered the question that I asked of the type of anvil. But this being my first post I want to say that everybody that has chimed in two help me have been absolutely amazing guys and I appreciate everything.

1 minute ago, Vincent Heid said:

When I wire wheel that the more I did the more my smile went closer to each ear because the more I did the more letters came out from other words so by the time I got done I had basically answered the question that I asked of the type of anvil.

Let's have some pictures!

53 minutes ago, JHCC said:

Let's have some pictures!

I posted the one I was talking about being able to read more and more. Some one above has better eyes than my self because they said he can almost read Peter which I can only make out maybe 1 or 2 letters

I'm going to do a much better job cleaning it tomorrow and will post pictures after a good brushing. I forge outside and what would you guys recommend to use for keeping it looking either just cleaned or I've thought about using stove polish on the body(seen that here someplace). The face im not worried about because it will be used and that will keep the rust off the face. 

It's a tool meant to last generations.  It will never look "just cleaned" if it is used properly.  I have used automatic transmission fluid on mine in the past to protect it.  Reality is, though, that it should never look clean because it does messy work.  Apply some ATF and then use it.  You know its pedigree and weight.  Now you need to know its angles, curves and hard spots so you can maximize its use.  Trust me...you will love it looking messy!

15 hours ago, Lou L said:

It's a tool meant to last generations.  It will never look "just cleaned" if it is used properly.  I have used automatic transmission fluid on mine in the past to protect it.  Reality is, though, that it should never look clean because it does messy work.  Apply some ATF and then use it.  You know its pedigree and weight.  Now you need to know its angles, curves and hard spots so you can maximize its use.  Trust me...you will love it looking messy!

I don't mean the face I just basically meant I want to keep the body and feet from getting as rusty as it is now again. I will try the ATF thank you. 

Giving it a coat will help...but the sides and feet are going to get ugly on you too!  It feels good, though, putting that coat of oil on your fresh anvil.

4 hours ago, Lou L said:

Giving it a coat will help...but the sides and feet are going to get ugly on you too!  It feels good, though, putting that coat of oil on your fresh anvil.

Thanks Lou L. It's more or less for piece of mind in that I'm trying to take good care of it so that I can do my part to make sure it lasts for another 100+ years.

Trust me, I understand.  On days I can't use it I still visit and give it one tap with a hammer just as a reminder to both of us.  Anvil love is an illness.

Don't believe Lou, he's a trickster! Anvil love is NOT an illness, it's a goodness!

If you wire brush the rust off and get that fine old lady shined up my favorite finish is carnuba paste wax. It's the stuff they use on bowling alleys, you know the stuff they need to sand off to strip. Yes? Apply to an anvil about fresh cup of coffee warm and it'll penetrate any nooks and crannies and set hard and tough when it cools. The brand I like is "Trewax" but I hear good things about "Bowling Alley Wax." The stuff is also great finish for iron work.

Frosty The Lucky.

Oh, anvil love is definitely a thing. I met mine when I was 15 and she was about 150, and we've been together ever since. 

6 hours ago, Frosty said:

If you wire brush the rust off and get that fine old lady shined up my favorite finish is carnuba paste wax. It's the stuff they use on bowling alleys, you know the stuff they need to sand off to strip. Yes? Apply to an anvil about fresh cup of coffee warm and it'll penetrate any nooks and crannies and set hard and tough when it cools. The brand I like is "Trewax" but I hear good things about "Bowling Alley Wax." The stuff is also great finish for iron work.

"Bowling Alley Wax" is made by Johnson; another good paste wax is the "Special Dark" from Minwax. Apply after a long smithing session, when the anvil is nice and warm!