New anvil, new smith.

[Tyler H]

Hi there! I just bought an anvil over the past weekend and I was wondering if Anyone has any information about the state of the anvil and maybe if I can go ahead and start forging on it or if it needs some repairing before I can do so. From what I can tell it’s a 1907 Fisher. The eagle if there was one is certainly gone from the pitting. The guy I bought it from said it was buried in sand out in Louisiana. I haven’t put it on a scale or been able to find a weight marking but I’m assuming it weighs somewhere in 300 lbs range. It’s about 29” long and 14” tall. I’ve already put it through a 12 hr electrolysis with a weak lye solution just to get some of the rust off which did pretty well as you can see from the original picture on the stand but I don’t want to go any further without some good advice on what to do next. Thanks and cheers.

[Irondragon Forge ClayWorks]

Welcome aboard... I wish you could have seen this before buying it and certainly hope you didn't pay the asking price..

The only way to repair that anvil is by this method and it will cost about as much as a new anvil...sorry.

Robb Gunther and Karl Schuler's Anvil Repair Process - Anvils, Swage Blocks, and Mandrels - I Forge Iron

[Goods]

Might go over the face and horn with a wire wheel and see how it cleans up. It looks pretty rough from the pictures, but maybe it will clean up better than I think. Just make sure to use full PPE. Though wires can get you in a hurry!

David

[George N. M.]

Dear Tyler,

I'm afraid that what you have acquired is what is known as an ASO, an "Anvil Shaped Object"  which is more suited to use as a boat anchor than something upon which to forge hot iron.  If you paid more than scrap value for it you have just paid tuition for a lesson in what not to spend your money on before you know what is a good and a bad deal.  Yes, it can be brought to a point where it is usable but as Irondragon has pointed out it involves a lot of time and resources.  You have my sympathy.  I might have done the same when starting out but I was more fortunate.

"By hammer and hand all arts do stand."

[Branding Iron]

Personally I’d take a twisted wire cup brush and clean her up.  She’ll look better and you’ll feel better.  Yes, you overpaid, but scrap price is a bit harsh.  Should be a lot better than what many start on and you won’t feel too bad about those missed hits.  Post a pic when it’s mounted.

[Marc1]

When not in the best shape, that is a real anvil, not an ASO by any stretch of the imagination. 

Clean it up with a wire wheel and use it as it is,  a better one will come along soon enough if you really want one.

Don't get discouraged by patronising answers, it is just the unfortunate nature of some places on the internet. 

A lot of people can only dream about an anvil that size. I would try to dig. some more history if at all possible. Buried in the sand in Louisiana sounds real interesting.

I bought a bunch of tongs at a flea market, fished out of the Manly harbour by a diver. They all have those deep pits like your anvil, but work well despite them. 

Keep in touch and show us what you can do. Most people here never show their handy work work, only grammatical prowess. 

 

[Glenn]

It is your anvil, put it to use.  No one is going to ask what brand anvil the widget was made on, only what price you ask for that widget.

[Tyler H]

Thanks for all the advice! I’m not one to give up on something when it looks bad so I’m going to clean it up best I can and see what I can do on it. I’ll update you with progress as it comes.

[JHCC]

Standard advice for anvil cleanup is to avoid grinding the surface, as it's much easier to remove metal than it is to put it back on. However, in this case, I would consider a little light cleanup with a flap disk, if only to get an area that's a smooth backing for your final finishing blows. The good thing about having that chip out of the edge is that you can see how thick the steel face is.

By the way, I had an aunt who lived in Los Banos for many, many years until her death a couple of years ago. Interesting town.