Chris C Posted September 21, 2019 Share Posted September 21, 2019 Just returned from a week's vacation in Branson, MO. Stumbled onto Gary Mulkey, a bladesmith who has a shop at Shepard of The Hills. He really makes some nice Damascus knives. Anyway, I popped the question.........did he know anyone who might have an anvil for sale. He just smiled and said they are awfully hard to come by. He just sold the 140# Haybudden he'd been using for the past 40 years for $6/pound. But only sold it because he'd bought a 400# Trenton in practically unused condition....................................for 50 cents a pound. He laughed while I practically puked in his shop. Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daswulf Posted September 22, 2019 Share Posted September 22, 2019 Talk to everyone. The real deals aren't online, or not for long at all. People are watching that stuff like hawks, some if not many to resell for much more. The deals are through people Not on the internet or trying that rout. The deals are from word of mouth, person to person. It's not usually an instant thing. Unless you're super lucky the good deals come from lots of asking around and often unthought of or unusual places. Till then keep working with an improvised anvil to build your skills. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris C Posted September 22, 2019 Author Share Posted September 22, 2019 Well, while it's nuttin' fancy, my little 50# Vulcan isn't an improvised anvil. But on this trip, I had my pockets stuffed with money and asked everyone I could start a conversation with if they knew of anyone with an anvil. Only response I got the entire trip was from Gary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daswulf Posted September 22, 2019 Share Posted September 22, 2019 Patience. Build skills more than worrying about the anvil. But still talk to everyone. you could put all the money you make selling items into an anvil fund and you'll be surprised. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris C Posted September 22, 2019 Author Share Posted September 22, 2019 Patience is a virtue.................of which I have very little! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daswulf Posted September 22, 2019 Share Posted September 22, 2019 In life and especially this kind of hobby or business, patience is something you learn one way or another. Or you give up. Failures and delays happen. Often you have to keep trying, practicing, perfecting. I don't have my "ultimate" anvil yet, and others do. One day. I don't fret it. I know I'll get it one day. And honestly I could have bought it new by now if I'd have saved every penny I've made off my current anvil. Usually all that goes to family and taxes lol. Still my @135# anvil has never failed me yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted September 22, 2019 Share Posted September 22, 2019 Patience is simply acceptance of a current reality that will only change in time. Will getting frustrated change anything? Is there anything that you can right now do that you aren't doing? No? Then let it be. Time changes all things, but only in good time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pnut Posted September 22, 2019 Share Posted September 22, 2019 (edited) Look at the bright side Chris, you still have one more anvil than a lot of folks. I'd be more than happy to take that fifty pound Vulcan off your hands Pnut Also you have the cash to spend on an anvil so you're halfway there. Just imagine the heartbreak of finding an anvil but not having the money to buy it.. I saw a 175# PW for 350usd. I had the cash but it was earmarked for something else. Edited September 22, 2019 by pnut Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris C Posted September 22, 2019 Author Share Posted September 22, 2019 Actually, other than waiting for something I want, I've the patience of Job. But being OCD, waiting for something to show up, like the anvil, my patience breaks down. Since my little Vulcan came from the family business, my brother says if/when I find one for my blacksmithing, he wants the Vulcan "just 'cause". So I can't sell or trade it..............you might say it's "borrowed" even though it's been in my possession for the past 22 years. I have a lead on an anvil, but won't be able to go see if it's still available until Tuesday. Will just have to wait and see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pnut Posted September 22, 2019 Share Posted September 22, 2019 Have you made contact with the seller? pnut Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris C Posted September 22, 2019 Author Share Posted September 22, 2019 Nope.................can't. Has to be eye-to-eye. Just going on a hunch............no more. You might call it a "wing and a prayer" trip. Will have to put my patience in gear! Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pnut Posted September 22, 2019 Share Posted September 22, 2019 Well, best of luck to you. I hope it works out. Pnut Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris C Posted September 22, 2019 Author Share Posted September 22, 2019 Thanks, Pnut, I do too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted September 22, 2019 Share Posted September 22, 2019 A wing and prayer has worked out for me many times. A little back story. For years I had wanted a Hatfield muzzleloading rifle but they are sort of rare and every one I found was priced out of my range. Then one day I found two on an auction site. A 45 cal flintlock and a 54 cal percussion. No one had bid on them so I put in a bid and won both. They needed some work which I was able to do and they became my favorites. At that time there was an officer working at my department that fell in love with the 54 cal percussion rifle and tried to talk me out of it over the course of several years. Well when I retired he was promoted to Lt. (my position), so I gave it to him as a promotion present. Made both of our days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris C Posted September 22, 2019 Author Share Posted September 22, 2019 Indeed, I bet it did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MC Hammer Posted September 22, 2019 Share Posted September 22, 2019 I think waiting makes it all the sweeter. When it finally does come your way you appreciate it all the more. I know a guy that was interesting in smithing and he was casually looking for an anvil. Within a few weeks he picked up two at barn sales, but you know what he's not even using them and I think he just doesn't appreciate what he found so easily. Mine took over a year to find and then there's all the work of cleaning it up and getting it on a stump. I sure appreciate that anvil. I doubt I would have if someone had just given it to me randomly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris C Posted September 22, 2019 Author Share Posted September 22, 2019 I bet you do appreciate it, MC. To be honest, I've only been looking for about 6 months, so guess I should quit complaining. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigb Posted September 23, 2019 Share Posted September 23, 2019 I lucked out on my A&H, it was a yard sale and the people let me in the night before. I bought the anvil for full asking price of $2.50/lb and a bunch of other stuff. Went back the following morning for more stuff and waited till the advertised 7:00 AM start time, when I walked in there were two guys looking for the anvil. It was easy to see they were dealers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris C Posted September 23, 2019 Author Share Posted September 23, 2019 Glad you beat'em to it. Made me grin, to say the least. Sorry, but "dealers" irritate me. I know Capitalism is what it's all about, but dang-it, when someone is looking for an anvil to truly use and not just make a profit on it doesn't seem fair for someone with a pocket full of money to snap the candy right out of your mouth. Happy for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIGGUNDOCTOR Posted September 23, 2019 Share Posted September 23, 2019 Chris, what about just buying a new anvil? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris C Posted September 23, 2019 Author Share Posted September 23, 2019 Don't have that kind of money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIGGUNDOCTOR Posted September 23, 2019 Share Posted September 23, 2019 Chris, how much is the anvil you want to get? I come across "free" money fairly often as I am a scrounger at my deepest core. When I worked at the commercial bakery they dumpstered the white 55 gallon poly drums the mineral oil came in, and they emptied one about every three days. I would grab the empty as it came up (I even got the guys to hold them for me if they emptied it during days when I was not there), give the outside a quick pressure wash, then toss it in the back seat of the car to take home. I sold around 40 of them at $10 each (because everyone else wants $15-$30 each) to be used for horse feeders, barrel racing practice, desert guzzler, water storage, garbage cans, and the local police officers got 6 to use for barricade practice at their range. Matter of fact I just got contacted for another 6, and luckily still have a few here. Where I work now they are piling up the empty blue poly drums they get now after switching from the steel drums-that they also gave away. I need to find out what their plans are for the poly drums, as the metal ones they would set outside for the taking. They also empty around 20 FIBC bags (Super Sacks) a day and toss those as well. I gave some to a friend because they pay $25 for them at the feed store when they get critter feed. I am looking at these as well, not only for selling, but a home project as well - think gabion / Hesco barrier walls for a shop space. Another item they toss are inflatable dunnage bags, but unfortunately they slice these to remove them instead of just opening the valve. I need to figure out a workaround on those so they can get the job done quickly without destroying them. I am also trying to find the person to find out what happens with the waste beeswax. I also hit garage sales, and a small thrift store in the hood that gets some great items from the casinos and other businesses. Many items I buy to flip, like the copper fire extinguisher , and the Schwinn Bantam bicycle (girl's version of the Stingray), but I don't limit myself to bigger items. I have sold a few BUMBO foam booster seats for $10 - $15 that I paid $2 for. It all ads up. I do it mostly to pay for gas (75 mile commute each way), lunches, and more yard sale items.... The thrift store recently produced two used refrigerated display cases with the curved glass fronts and a stainless US Range commercial griddle/stove/oven combo. They gave the cases to me and I got the stove for $40 because they had so much furniture coming in, and they needed the space The cases new are $13,000 each and are a higher end manufacturer, but around here they are $1,500 used in great shape due to the proliferation of used food equipment. I got those three items for myself, not to flip, but they are worth more than the $40 price tag, and the $30 in fuel it took to go get them. Smokers can save $2,000+ a year just by quitting. Stop eating out and bank that money instead. You can make a better sandwich then Subway for a $1 in materials instead of paying some kid to lay paper thin triangles on a roll for $7. Skip the bar, and drink at home. Why pay $4 for a beer when a six pack is $6. Although bars do have some health benefits ; socializing is shown to be beneficial , as well as moderate alcohol consumption, but I wonder if it is offset by the secondhand smoke..... Do you really need cable TV, or the fastest internet connection plan? I killed my TV over 10 years ago and don't miss it. I have the basic $55 unlimited ATT cell phone plan and the $46 ZTE phone, and it does what it needs to do. I bought a 98 Saturn wagon for $2,500 and it paid for itself in fuel savings over my Cummins 3500 in 6 months - 40mpg compared to 18-20 mpg during the really high fuel price period. The Saturn was also cheap to insure, and maintain-great car that I wish I had kept. I know all of these may not apply , but they show you have options for funding the anvil you WANT to get. It all gets down to priorities. Can you, or are you willing to sacrifice in one area to have the anvil you WANT to get? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris C Posted September 23, 2019 Author Share Posted September 23, 2019 Wow, all my problems solved. I don't drink. Don't smoke. Never buy a cup of coffee at Starbucks. Never stop at the gas station for a Dr. Pepper. Don't have Cable TV. My vehicles are all paid for. Have the minimum cost landline at home. Am on Consumer Cellulars cheapest plan. Only eat out once a week when I take my wife on our weekly date. I'm really pretty frugal. I have the money set aside that I'm willing to spend on an anvil. Don't plan on spending more..............and certainly am not going to buy a new one. But thanks for the suggestions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIGGUNDOCTOR Posted September 24, 2019 Share Posted September 24, 2019 OK Chris, you are on the right path then. But, keep your eyes open for those free money items as you go about your day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris C Posted September 24, 2019 Author Share Posted September 24, 2019 Got it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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