Plattner Posted March 25, 2020 Share Posted March 25, 2020 Hey people I'm new to the site, I have encountered a interesting offer about an anvil but I don't know if it will be of good use, so I came here to get te opinion of better know people. The only info I have on this thing is that supposedly is made from steel, weights 100 lbs, has this weird baseless design and has aprox. 50 years of use, it has been offered to me for about 500$ but I dont really know if it's a good idea to buy it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted March 25, 2020 Share Posted March 25, 2020 Classic design used in France and Spain; not knowing where you are at it's hard to say if that is a good deal or not; are those Canadian or Australian dollars? I'd look into how to do the ball bearing test and the ring test as they will show the quality/state of that anvil. It's kind of high for me if that is US$5/pound; but I'm a known cheapskate. Can you make a counter offer? That pattern is still being made; you may want to search on Acciaio anvils to see new examples, we had a thread on one here: https://www.iforgeiron.com/topic/61199-66-lb-chinese-acciaio-anvil-unboxing-and-testing/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plattner Posted March 25, 2020 Author Share Posted March 25, 2020 Thanks for the info its a quick conversion from Mexican pesos to USD, I cannot counter offer and I haven't asked for a ball bearing test Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted March 25, 2020 Share Posted March 25, 2020 Mexico would be understandable as that design was used in areas colonized from Spain as well. If it's for sale in Mexico I would say it was WAY overpriced! When I was working on the border they sometimes turned up pretty cheap. If you are just getting started smithing you may want to look at the "Improvised Anvils" thread: https://www.iforgeiron.com/topic/52308-a-collection-of-improvised-anvils/ Why pay US$5 a pound when US 20 cents a pound will get you started! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plattner Posted March 25, 2020 Author Share Posted March 25, 2020 Well, so it will be more advisable to custom cut a large chunk of mild steel ? I think I can get around 300lb for about 200$ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted March 25, 2020 Share Posted March 25, 2020 Why custom cut a chunk of steel rather than just use a found chunk? Spending more money will NOT make you a better smith! Spending time smithing will! The London pattern anvil is around 300 years old; using a cube of metal is around 3000 years old. So what is an anvil supposed to look like? Here's a picture of my "Y1K" anvil turned on it's side. (Actually earlier than Y1K as it's based on one in a Roman Museum, Bath England; but I use it as it's similar to a viking era one centuries later, Hylestad Stave Church door carvings and very much like ones used on the Camino Real out here in Spanish Colonial times, El Camino Real Museum; or on the east coast of the USA during the French and Indian War, Jymm Hoffman--personal communication.) Need a horn? Make one! Have to have a hardy hole? Find one! Now if that "pig" anvil was US$200 (and *was* 100 pounds) I'd buy it just to have an example; however I'd have been happy to have this one when I got started---for $25: http://www.marco-borromei.com/fork.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plattner Posted March 25, 2020 Author Share Posted March 25, 2020 Well I didn't explain myself well I have been smithing for almost two years and I wanted to update my ASO that's why I consider to cut a block to a certain shape or to obtain an anvil Something like this colonial anvil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted March 25, 2020 Share Posted March 25, 2020 Welcome aboard Plattner... have you read this yet? READ THIS FIRST It will help you with tips like editing your profile to show location and many others some of which will help in staying off the moderators radar. If you have a heavy equipment repair place near by you might check with them because heavy equipment is made of anvils and the counter weights are usually cheap. We picked up this 110 pounder for $35 U.S. and it works for anything we want to do on it and we still use it even though we have 3 London pattern anvils. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted March 26, 2020 Share Posted March 26, 2020 I've been smithing for 39 years and I still use the Y1K anvils and made the two stake anvils I showed. Now if you need a certain design for reasons of greater authenticity go for it! (I've been involved in several re-enactment groups and know the urge to get it right in my portrayal...) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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