I have known about this anvil for a few years now. My friend retrieved from the repair shop at the Citadel College. My friend, who at the time delivered freight to the college inquired about it. He said it was sitting over along a wall, and not being used. They were going to toss it out, and he inquired about it. They just ended up giving it to him, he and a couple friends loaded it in about 1975.

I believe it is a hay budden, and cannot see that info on the side. I do see some numbers on the front left foot. It weighs in at 400lbs, face is 22 x 5.75, 34.5" overall length, and base to face is 14". It is in really good shape for it's age. My friend is getting on up in the years, and he knows how fond of it I am.  He has never used it in 40+ years. 

Any info you folks can shed on this anvil would be great.   

I had to crawl around on the floor to get pics of it, as it resides under a table. He said we can get it out for a better look soon. 

   

Yes, that's a Hay Budden, and in remarkable condition. Looks like the solid-steel upper half type as well. I can't read the serial number, but if you can I'm sure someone with a copy of AIA would figure out the year of manufacture. Really incredible anvil.

Sure makes my broken-heel Wilkinson anvil that I've been using for the past year look sad.

Makes one wonder if there's anything similar on the grounds of the Valley Forge Military Academy.

Looks like you have a 1918 or so HB in beautiful shape. The top half should be solid tool steel...no face plate, awesome anvil. Mine is a 1919 150lb 'baby' compared to that one. Great find.

Every Factory, many car repair shops, RR shops,  large institutions, even hospitals used to have anvils as part of their repair and maintenance shops.  My Wife's Great Uncles told me of forging bars to clean the walls of a sugar beet refinery in Kansas, I've talked with the fellow who was an Orthopedic Smith at a hospital in WWII, Seen blacksmithing shops at Prisons, Insane asylums, etc. That's why I tell folks that often cities had higher anvil densities than rural areas!  Most of the anvils I have owned were sourced inside city limits.

For example I saw the ad for an auction at a car repair place that said it had been in the same building since 1918; so I knew that they had a smithy and a wood working shop back then. Yup the old equipment was still there and had been covered in junk over the years.  The anvil went too high for me; but I got a 6" post vise that had been in continual use in the shop.

On 12/5/2019 at 3:47 PM, rustyanchor said:

... The top half should be solid tool steel...no face plate...

Oh my. What would the rebound be on this thing if truly hardened steel for the top half? Never have used one like this and wonder if the feel would be much different.

Not sure how deep the hardening actually goes, but the rebound on mine, if I miss a blow, is shall we say....eye opening.

Or perhaps; "eye closing".

Wonder if that's how the saying "knot head" came to be?

Or, "got your bell rung"?

Since it's from the Citadel, I believe it should be "knob head"

If the first number of that serial number is a "3" it should be 1921. By the way very very nice anvil! It is my dream to get one like that.

that is a 3rd generation Hay Budden. Serial Number starting with A were 3rd gen..   HB,. had 4 generation types.   1st gen, tradtional wrougnt iron with face plate,   2nd, was 2 piece anvil  welded at the waist, with Rhino horn with higher top face,  3rd was Rhino horn with lower face height welded at the waist and 4th gen was solid steel (rare). 


its funny but without a reference it looks like a 100lbs..   hay Budden anvils are my favorite.  

jen, when you say 3rd gen had a lower face height do you mean the height of the face to the top of the cut shelf?

Yes, that seems to be the case..    During the 3rd generation Hay Budden had some labor disputes and some other funkiness within the company and when they came back on the scene the table to face height was different. 

I often wonder what happned that Hay Budden changed directions from Gen 1 to Gen2 with the rhino horn and thinner waist..  I know they used continuous forge welding on the 2 piece bases on Gen 2 and 3..  you can see where the rods were placed and cut..  neat really. 

jen we have a gen 3 like you describe 288 lb  beautiful anvil but she has a 1/8 deep sway in the back .