I have an old trenton 200 lb anvil ser#215547. Can anyone tell me how old it is? Or is it a good one to start out with?

It's a great one to start out with and taken care of it will outlast you. I hope you have read about not grinding, milling or welding on the hardened face. Someone with a copy of AIA will undoubtedly be along to give you a date range.

BTW... Welcome to IFI. Have you read this yet? READ THIS FIRST it will help you get the best out of the forum.

Welcome aboard Jeff, glad to have you. If you'll put your general location in the header you might be surprised how many members live within visiting distance.

Yeah, a 200 lb. Trenton is a fine anvil to get started with and heck leave to your Grandkids when you retire. It's a fine size and appears to be in excellent, almost mint condition. You'll want to build it a better stand, the jogs in the legs on that one will reduce it's effectiveness. You want it as solidly connected to the ground as possible. 

I highly recommend you remove the oil bottles BEFORE you lay yellow hot steel in it. 

How'd you luck into that beauty? She looks brand new that might even be the original paint.

Frosty The Lucky.

The paint reminds me of Navy grey.

The paint was a question. I see a lot of anvils on line look like a cast iron skillet. Is this a good option to make an anvil look nicer?

Very nice looking Trenton from what I can see.

It's your anvil,but I think the old paint is fine. 

Look Nicer is a subjective judgement.  I prefer an anvil to show it's history over the wire brushed and BLO look myself.  I don't recall ever gussying up an anvil in that manner.  I would rather spend the time becoming a better smith than having prettier anvils!

Unless you're going to use it for an ornament attractive doesn't mean diddly, it's a TOOL use it. The whole thing about blacksmith tools need to be bare metal is urban myth. Most tool manufacturers painted their products and would happily paint them any color you wanted to pay for. Champion was most often painted black but red was  common. I can't recall which manufacturer painted their blacksmithing tools green.

A customer oh say the US Navy specified battle ship gray and they bought enough they didn't pay extra. Neither did Sears. Manufacturers happily stamped company or vendor names and logos on tools. You don't think Sears made Craftsman do you?

It's your anvil to do with what you wish and I'll defend your right. Stripping the paint just isn't going to make it a better tool.

Frosty The Lucky.

Thank you for all your input. I agree leave the gray lady gray. I’m looking forward to using it to play with making knifes and other beginner stuff. Before that it was in my horse barn and my farrier used it when he came to shoe the hay burners. I almost sold it once or twice.

I believe your Trenton may have been a Navy anvil at one time. I'm surprised that someone with a copy of AIA hasn't dated it yet. I found another thread that a Trenton ser# 217515 was dated to 1947-1948 so yours is earlier than that probably around 1945 or so.

https://www.iforgeiron.com/topic/46237-trenton-anvil-looking-for-mfg-date/

 

Thanks for that info Iron Dragon. That’s what I thought Early 1940s.

My late father was in the Navy during World War II. I didn’t get the anvil from him but he was one hell of a machinist. I quest I better get to work building a history wth this anvil. 

 

 

I assume that was a joke as making knives is not a beginner project!

Did I forget to suggest you put your general location in the header so members close enough to visit might offer to? A lot of information is location specific as well and heck I never know if I might want to drop in for lunch when I'm traveling, I need to keep my options open you know. 

Check out the "show me your anvil stands" section for ideas. I prefer a steel tripod myself but that's me. 

Knives as a beginner project probably wasn't a joke Thomas but we'll bring him around to reality gently eh? That anvil would make a nice finish work anvil suitable to blades. After the skills sets grow into it. 

Frosty The Lucky.

I am not saying that making knifes is a beginning skill to forge. I watch a lot of shows where they make incredible products with incredible skills that I’m sure I will never possess at my age. To clarify I’m going to start by forging spent files and tinker with them for awhile study the trade. 

High carbon steel is harder to learn to forge on; why not learn on mild or A-36?  (which is also cheaper...) When you have developed hammer control and temperature control and metal moving shills move into the HC alloys.

Great suggestions thank you.

What no typo comments?  Skills not Shills.

To be honest, I've been reading Charles's postings and my eyes saw Shills but my mind read Skills.

Sorry, my mind is in the Cambrian right now. I'm anomalocurious you know. I'll try and pay closer attention to your spelling from now on. 

Frosty The Lucky.

Frosty; tracing your ancestry back to a protoplasmal primordial atomic globule?

Well . . . D-U-H! 

Frosty The Lucky.