Irontrader Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 I've had this farrier anvil for a number of years. It has some markings on it but they are not clear so I really don't know who made it and if it is a desirable anvil or not. It is around 200lbs, but I have not weighed it. It does havew 188 stamped on the side so it may be 188lbs. I'll try to weigh it some time. Overall length of the anvil is right at 34". I have two photos uploaded that you can look at if you woulld like although these are rather large photos. No shown in the photos, but on opposite side of the anvil is 08 or 03 cast into the metal. Wondering if it could be for 1908 or 1903. The first photo is an overall view of the anvil. The second photo is a close up of the markings on the side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irontrader Posted July 31, 2008 Author Share Posted July 31, 2008 Okay... I think I've identified it myself. I took another close look at the markings on the side, see the anvil2.jpg photo listed in the first posting. It is not clear, but you can make out HAY pretty well at the top and parts of Manufacturing across the middle, and parts of Brooklynn at the bottom. Leads me to belive it is a 188 lb Hay Budden anvil. If so, any idea on what its value would be? I'd like to get a good blacksmith anvil rather than having a farrier anvil. I did weigh it with the bathroom scales and it is 188 lbs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 (edited) From your pictures I would say it's a Hay-Buden with the "Brooklyn NY" being just barely visible on the lower part. 188 is of course the weight in pounds---made in USA. I onced owned a 198# Hay-Buden swell horned farriers anvil myself. As for price; here in the USA it's be worth about twice as much where I live now than where I used to live. Not knowing where you live I'd hate to put a price on it when it could be off by that much. I also can't tell the condition very well. Anyway somewhere between US$1 and US$3 a pound is probably a good range. Edited July 31, 2008 by ThomasPowers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1860cooper Posted August 1, 2008 Share Posted August 1, 2008 For the record, I work with Photoshop for a living, and I can isolate and modify colors we can't even see, so that the end result is details we wouldn't normally catch. I was able to do the below with your picture. If I could get it in a raw or tif format I could do better. Looks like it only serves to reinforce what you figured out already. If people have hard ones to read, if they can take the right picture, by all means send them my way. I love this kind of thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted August 1, 2008 Share Posted August 1, 2008 1860cooper; I may have to take you up on that. I have an old anvil that has half my last name stamped on it and I'd kinda like to know if it had the other half as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1860cooper Posted August 1, 2008 Share Posted August 1, 2008 Just figure out what formats your cameras support (I assume its digital), I can take anything but different formats store and compress information differently, some are lossy and some aren't. The best picture is one with some cross-lighting contrast, and different colored light. This could mean putting it near an open door and letting sunlight (blue) hit it one way, and the indoor lights (yellow or green) hitting it the other. Avoid making hotspots with flash. The more of the full spectrum of light you can capture the better, but when in doubt, go brighter. BTW I found the rest of the letters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted August 1, 2008 Share Posted August 1, 2008 (edited) You de MAN 1860cooper! I caught the Hay and part of Brooklyn but you brought it out like a fresh tattoo. I'm going to stop suggesting folk take a rubbing and refer them to you. Thanks. Irontrader: Is there something wrong with this particular anvil? There's the swell for pulling clips, (don't know the name, I'm no farrier) is it a problem? I don't see anything that'd keep me from doing everything I can do on my london patterns now. Just curious, Frosty Edited August 1, 2008 by Frosty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irontrader Posted August 1, 2008 Author Share Posted August 1, 2008 Frosty, I'm no farrier as well. It has a side clip or whatever it is called which can be seen in the first photo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Browne Posted August 1, 2008 Share Posted August 1, 2008 I'd have to agree. If I had a 188lb anvil that was in good nick there is no way I could justify selling it and getting another to do the same job. Unless you re into forging REALLY heavy iron. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted August 1, 2008 Share Posted August 1, 2008 Frosty, I'm no farrier as well. It has a side clip or whatever it is called which can be seen in the first photo. What I'm wondering is why you want to replace this one with one only a little different? The clip table or whatever it's called being the only difference I see. I have run into tools where a seemingly small thing like that made then unusable for what we needed it for but not an anvil. I just don't understand. Frosty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted August 1, 2008 Share Posted August 1, 2008 My 198# HB swell horned farrier's anvil had a very narrow face---about half as wide or less as you would expect for an anvil that size. Great for working shoes but not so good for knives. I traded it in on a deal that got me a renaissance styled stake anvil and some other stuff I could use as I had another PW anvil that worked for what I needed better. I'm trying hard not to be a hoarder! Like those people you read about in the paper---"little old man found in house with 67 anvils and 112 post vises---social services called in....". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted August 1, 2008 Share Posted August 1, 2008 (edited) That makes sense, I wouldn't want a face any narrower than my anvils already have. There are times narrow is handy but I have alternatives available. You're okay so long as when social services shows up your anvils aren't waist deep in FE-Cs. Either way you can't really hold it against social services, it is their job to give you a leg up on your vices. :o Frosty Edited August 1, 2008 by Frosty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Caradoc Posted August 1, 2008 Share Posted August 1, 2008 or waist deep in rust with the vices legs bent or broken Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irontrader Posted August 1, 2008 Author Share Posted August 1, 2008 Frosty, I got the H-B farrier anvil years ago and have never even set it up. It basically sits on a block of wood a few inches thick in a corner of my shop. Kept thinking I needed to cut a stump to make it usable, but just never got around to it. Also got a hand crank forge a couple years ago but that also has set in another part of the barn. I'm getting a bit more serious about actually getting it set up and have always thought I'd rather have a typical blacksmith anvil rather than the farrier anvil. No particular reason as I'm not experienced, but think a wider face like on regular anvils would be more practical to have than a farrier anvil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted August 1, 2008 Share Posted August 1, 2008 Iron Carbides are bad?--- FeC's---but I like knifemaking with higher than eutectic carbon contents! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted August 1, 2008 Share Posted August 1, 2008 No no, not FeCs, Fe-Cs. No carbides, just plain iron scat. Frosty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted August 1, 2008 Share Posted August 1, 2008 Frosty, I got the H-B farrier anvil years ago and have never even set it up. It basically sits on a block of wood a few inches thick in a corner of my shop. Kept thinking I needed to cut a stump to make it usable, but just never got around to it. Also got a hand crank forge a couple years ago but that also has set in another part of the barn. I'm getting a bit more serious about actually getting it set up and have always thought I'd rather have a typical blacksmith anvil rather than the farrier anvil. No particular reason as I'm not experienced, but think a wider face like on regular anvils would be more practical to have than a farrier anvil. A wider anvil probably is more practical in general use. On the other hand you have this one sitting there, might as well use it till you find the "right" one. The worst things that can happen would be: One, you hone your skills. Two, if you decide to sell the buyer will see it set up and in use and obviously worth more. Three, working on or with something less than ideal makes working on the right things much easier. Your skills will advance more quickly after a certain basic level is reached. Frosty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quenchcrack Posted August 1, 2008 Share Posted August 1, 2008 Cooper, wonder if you can put "Kolswa" on my old Russian POS with that gadget? Make it worth your time..... Hee Hee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1860cooper Posted August 1, 2008 Share Posted August 1, 2008 LOL. Ummm... no. I've done stranger things though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Dean Posted August 1, 2008 Share Posted August 1, 2008 I have to agree with Frosty on this....USE IT!! Either a stump or fab a stand for it. And for the blower, come on man, to quote my mother: "What do you want, egg in your beer?" (really don't know what that means but..) There is a long thread on this exact subject, blowers. Wether to use an electric blower or hand cranked one. I was supprised to see those that prefer the hand crank of the electric. Mine is hand cranked and I have an old Buffalo electric available just haven't hooked it up, and now I may not. Cooper, I have an old Sony camera that uses the 3.5"floppy disc (hey guys quit laughing!!) and wondering if you can read pictures from that. It is the camera I use for the pictures in my gallery. You do realize you may have loaded your wagon, right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1860cooper Posted August 1, 2008 Share Posted August 1, 2008 I'm not laughing, I'm gasping for breath. Those things were old 5 years ago. My phone takes higher rez pictures! (true fact) Umm... you could try sending some pics and we can just see what happens. Or do you have any friends that have something newer than a steam powered digital camera? I mean... wow... that would be sub 1 megapixel and really something between 3 and 10 megapixels is normal. A floppy holds 1.44 MB... even if one picture took the whole floppy, that's still 1.44 MB... many cameras take pictures that are 3-5 MB apiece. Do I know I'm loading my wagon... yeah... and its not like I have all the time in the world, but like I said, this kind of thing is fun to me. You can e-mail pics to jonathandevine at yahoo dot com. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philip in china Posted August 2, 2008 Share Posted August 2, 2008 Could be worth seeing if you can find a farriers website. Maybe somewhere is a farrier with a blacksmithing anvil he wants to trade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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