Tradical Posted March 21, 2020 Share Posted March 21, 2020 Hey guys, quick question here as I'm gearing up to buy a new anvil. For a couple years I was hearing al kinds of raves about Peddinghaus anvils being the best of the best, but latley I've been hearing more about Refflinghaus, and how Peddinghaus' quality ahs dropped. My preference right now is to get a Refflinghaus, but for various reasons I'm not sure if that will be a possibility. So my question is; are the rumors I've heard of Peddinghaus' quality dropping true? If I want a top-notch anvil is Peddinghaus still a contender, or is Refflinghaus or another manufacturer the way to go now? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris C Posted March 21, 2020 Share Posted March 21, 2020 Maybe Jennifer will chime in here. She owns/has owned both. Not knowing personally, I'd guess either would serve you well for the rest of your life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted March 21, 2020 Share Posted March 21, 2020 Welcome aboard Tradical, glad to have you. If you put your general location in the header you might discover members living within visiting distance. Networking with other smiths might give you an opportunity to give many different maker's anvils a try. Once an anvil's quality reaches a certain point, better/worse is more personal taste than actual effectiveness. A skilled blacksmith can use almost anything hard, heavy and smooth enough as an effective anvil. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted March 21, 2020 Share Posted March 21, 2020 2 hours ago, Tradical said: is Peddinghaus still a contender, Absolutely, if you buy a new one, it will still be in service when your great grand children inherit it. BTW: welcome aboard... I always suggest this thread to get the best out of the forum and it will help with staying off the moderators radar. READ THIS FIRST Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc1 Posted March 21, 2020 Share Posted March 21, 2020 Hard to say. Refflinghaus is still the same it always was. Peddinghaus was taken over by Ridgid. If that makes a difference or not is anyone's guess. Having said that, it is easy to find bad reviews on line for Peddinghaus and hard to find one bad for Refflinghaus. Plus, it seems the the seller of Peddy in the US has old data from before Ridgid took over. It that has any real meaning ... again ... who knows? My guess ... (wild guess) is that Peddinghaus produces a dud anvil from time to time, so it is really potluck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tradical Posted March 22, 2020 Author Share Posted March 22, 2020 3 hours ago, Marc1 said: Plus, it seems the the seller of Peddy in the US has old data from before Ridgid took over. Who IS the seller of peddinghaus in the US? Also, thanks to everyone for the kind welcome. I anticipate I'll be here a lot in years to come. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 The Home Depot will order one for you as will "probably" anyone who carries Rigid tools. I saw a lot of folk assuming that because a large manufacturer bought Peddinghaus the quality was going to go down. I don't believe they changed manufacturer the tools are just being sold under another name. You have to watch for some folk who believe "traditional" is the ONLY true. . . (Pick a craft) ad any change is inferior. Don't let them fool you, lots of new fangled things work better but be even more careful you don't fall into that kind of "Traditional is the only REAL" thinking. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rojo Pedro Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 Not sure but I think there are 2 Peddinghaus branded anvils Pieh tool carries the peddinghaus, supposedly dropped forged in the same foundry as kanca anvils - Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlpservicesinc Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 Peddinghaus is owned by Emerson tool which is a mega tool Corp.. Mega.. It's like 15 huge brands all under 1 roof. They Rebranded them as their Rigid brand.. Rigid tools have a lifetime warranty against defects... and is Rigid Peddinghaus. I bought mine from zoro tools with a hefty discount new. It arrived in good shape and again with a super hard face.. Super hard.. 60Rc would be my guess. The finish on the forgings was lack luster where just a few years ago the fit and finish was stellar.. The hardie hole is drilled crooked at the bottom and it looks like they tried to drill it from both sides and just said forget it.. Maybe quitting time or something.. the corner had to be radiused more because the bevel that put in at the factory was uneven.. In other words they removed more material from some spots then other.. I would not hesitate to buy another one but there have been different stories and one guy bought a knock off and posted it as an original. That one was cast in India and was a total sham. My Peddinghaus is harder than my Refflinghaus.. One aspect I do not like about the Peddinghaus is how much rebound it has.. I end up chasing forging projects all over the face.. LOL.. I think it's a combination stand and anvil. the Refflinghaus is guaranteed to be: 150-year old Design, proven over time (Quality anvils since 1886) Main Face/Horns Guaranteed to be at least HRC 59 (difficult to file) Highest Rebound in the market at over 90% Chip resistant edges Extremely Tough Steel Throughout Consistent Quality Very Thick steel under hardy and pritchel holes. Hardy hole next to round horn (normally handiest and safest) Fine Finish on Face and Horns. Flat bottoms. I really like the Refflinghaus but they are more expensive.. Its hard for sure. Rebound is about 94% everywhere it's supposed to be hardened to a depth of 1".. Substantial to say the least. I don't think it's 59Hrc but pretty close. It really does seem that all anvils today are softer than they were 100years ago.. I think liability is the reason.. Refflinghaus is only producing a very small number of the south german pattern 460's with side shelf anvils a year, so there is a waiting list.. I waited nearly 5 years.. 4 years seriously and the last few years I wouldn't leave the guy alone calling, emailing nearly every few weeks.. I wanted the 460 South German with side horn and they are just not making many. I would have no problems buying a Refflinghaus again and think the extra cost was worth it. And the seller/ USA distributor was excellent. Is excellent. Nice guy and was/is a smith. The story behind him becoming involved was neat too. I really like a narrow face to weight ratio with about 4.25 to 4.5 about max.. this for 460lbs is only 5" wide.. It is the narrowest anvil in this weigth class i could find currently for sale.. the fit and finish is amazing. On par with the older Peddinghaus anvils and really a well done job.. You can see they are metal workers and take pride and modern MFG methods employed. it's cast steel. 460, 330 and 240 I think but the 330 has a wider face than the 460. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlpservicesinc Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 there is a video of the 275 Model 12 spinning ontop of the Refflinghaus in one of the videos on the YT channel. It's funny because most people just think it's like an 80lbs or something.. I thought it was super fun.. the anvil on the right is a 275lbs. Not a 240. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Williams Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 I bought a Rigid Peddinghaus Model 12 on sale from PlumbersSupply around 6 years ago. It is a spectacular anvil with a hard face. I agree with Jennifer that the fit and finish are lacking. The chamfers were somewhat rough and the hardy hole was not broached all the way to the bottom. However, the non-full-depth broach has only been in the way once so far and it is an easy fix once I am sufficiently motivated to modify the hole to square full depth. I would buy it again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlpservicesinc Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 Chris W. Sounds like mine was not a fluke then. Mine has the same exact finish in the hardie hole. I have a pet peeve and dislike anyone doing any finish work on an anvil that is new and I will be buying. Peddinghaus uses a drill bit to counter sink the hardie hole and it messes with me. Why not just leave it alone after broaching. Let the new owner dress the anvil themselves just like in the old days. A new sharp mill file will skate on the metal at the hardie hole. It's that hard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc1 Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 21 hours ago, Tradical said: Who IS the seller of peddinghaus in the US? i was referring to a reseller who has a website mentioning old technical data from before the take over. Since that name has been edited out from Jenny's comprehensive response, I will not name it. Must be anathema or something. The fact remains that Ridgid negative reviews are easy to find, not so for Refflinghaus. Reffy is a family business that has been into making anvils for over 100 years. I exchanged emails with one of the family members in charge of sales, since we don't have a representative in Australia. They seem very accommodating and friendly. Having said that, i am of the impression that the negative reviews for Peddinghaus come most likely from poor quality control and that the anvils are fine anvils ...if you don't have the bad luck to get one less than perfect. A problem with large companies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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