dudewithhammer Posted January 15, 2022 Share Posted January 15, 2022 Hey guys, I have an anvil that I've had for a while that I plan on moving along but not really sure how to come up with a fair value. It's a Columbian cast steel anvil, abt 74-75#. They were made until 1925 after which they switched to imports. It's attached to a base that was built out of framing beams that came from the Lartigue House ca.1832. Sherman's officers spent the night in the house on their march thru SC. The tree rings on the bottom are over 100 years so the wood the stand is made of was growing in the early 1700s. Together it makes somewhat of a unique item and can't decide what's fair. Anvil and stand weigh 196#. Any thoughts are appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TWISTEDWILLOW Posted January 15, 2022 Share Posted January 15, 2022 Howdy from eastern Oklahoma! And welcome to the forum! that’s a pretty cool background story on the stand! as far as pricing it, Columbian made a pretty good anvil and yours looks to be in decent usable shape, im not sure what the going rate is in SC but here I normally pick up anvils around $2 a pound, I think Frosty said up in Alaska he’s seen $6-8 a pound cause used anvils are fewer up there then here, id say somewhere in the middle at $4-$6 would be fair but again I don’t know your local going rates, now that all being said a collector would probably pay more for the history then a blacksmith will, Sorry I’m not much help, maybe someone on here from your area can chime in with a better idea of your local prices! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rojo Pedro Posted January 15, 2022 Share Posted January 15, 2022 A lot depends on where you are but here in the desert southwest, an anvil in good condition would get around $4 or more. looks in very good shape- good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted January 15, 2022 Share Posted January 15, 2022 Most of the folks I know are buying anvils to use and so don't care much about anything past the 74-75# cast steel Columbian which was made post ACW in Cleveland Ohio. If the stand is not the correct height for the user it will need to be modified or replaced. The age of the wood in the stand doesn't do anything for me as a user. I've got 100+ year old mining timber stands, used horse trailer floor oak stands, stands I built from my Parents pergola. Been smithing 41 years and never counted the rings in the stand. I'd suggest contacting the local ABANA affiliate as they may have a better idea about local prices and perhaps have someone where the back story might help the price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dudewithhammer Posted January 15, 2022 Author Share Posted January 15, 2022 Very valid points from all, thank you for the quick responses everyone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TWISTEDWILLOW Posted January 15, 2022 Share Posted January 15, 2022 Just curious, why you wanna sell it? because you know….. you could use it! you could make stuff on it! and sell the stuff you make to make money! to buy more blacksmithing stuff! it’s a viscous cycle! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIGGUNDOCTOR Posted January 16, 2022 Share Posted January 16, 2022 TW , I prefer to be more fluid in my work, and not as viscous..... Spelling Nazis can be vicious... DWH - the anvil is fairly small, and has some condition issues (edges) from what I can see in the pictures, so I would not expect top dollar. Say around $3 , or $225. A good general shop anvil size is 125#-175# in my opinion. The stand would have to be modified for me, as I hate chains wrapped around an anvil waist. As to the source of the wood, do you have any provenance? The wood may be more valuable to a wood worker than a smith. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 Viscous Cycle; try heating it up a bit like we do with vegetable oils when quenching to lower the viscosity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TWISTEDWILLOW Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 18 hours ago, BIGGUNDOCTOR said: viscous..... Spelling Nazis can be vicious... lol, y’all’s just lucky my smarter than me phone corrects most of what I type to something legible! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 Unfortunately my laptop wants to "correct" my posting to stuff I never intended! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TWISTEDWILLOW Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 Lol, that’s a good alibi Thomas! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 TW you do NOT want to hear what the voices in my head are saying and I try to filter it before it gets to my fingers... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 Even if the voices aren't real, they have some really good ideas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TWISTEDWILLOW Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 56 minutes ago, ThomasPowers said: TW you do NOT want to hear what the voices in my head are saying Lol, I’ve heard it all before… well my voices anyways not yours Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted January 18, 2022 Share Posted January 18, 2022 IDFCW: but where can you get that much antimatter on a Sunday evening? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted January 19, 2022 Share Posted January 19, 2022 I ask my wife because she is always saying itdontmatter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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