Looking to buy first anvil... Opinions/Advice needed!

[Drew Riley]

Hey guys,
Wanted to get some opinions on an anvil I'm looking at. Pictures aren't too great, but hopefully they tell enough.

It's an old Peter Wright wraught iron anvil that weights bout 213 lbs.

Guy is asking about $400. Is this a good price? Looks like the corners are a little chewed up in spots, but overall, it could be worse I suppose.

Is the price too high? Should I hold out for a cleaner face?

Any advice for a first time anvil buyer is appreciated...

 

[BossDog]

The pictures are too small to make much out.
PeterWrights are good anvils. I have a 116lb one myself.
3 bucks a pound is about as cheap as anvils go for now days so the price is pretty good. Some anvils have been through fires and gone soft. You can't tell by looking so you need to check rebound. Drop a 1" steel bearing from about a foot on the face, it should bounce back about 10" or more.

 

[Doug Lester]

I would say that the weight and price are good. Actually you could pay $400 for a piece of junk out of China or Mexico with milling marks on the face and have it smaller to boot. If you think that you can do without a hardy hole and a horn you could contact Old World Anvils and see what they would charge for a 4X4X12" piece of hardened 4140 to use as a post anvil. You will have most of the mass under the work as opposed to half, or less, with a European pattern anvil. Whatever, get a good anvil. I used to be a little dismissive of how important as good anvil of adequate weight is but once I got an 87lb block of steel and saw how much better I move steel with it I've changed my tune. That block is fairly dead and has no ring but it's so much more effecient than the 110lb cheap cast steel anvil that I had been working on. It makes me wish that I had gone to OWA to see if I could get that block of hardened steel.

Doug

 

[McClellan Made Blades]

I think you need to keep looking, while the price per pound is a good price, the face and overall condition doesn't look too good, IMHO! The best advice I got when I was shopping for an anvil, was to buy the very best I could afford, the longer I waited the more $$$ I saved for the purchase, it's a one time purchase, and will last several lifetimes. Mine is a Hay Budden, 240#, made in 1894! The face is almost dead perfect....well, it was before I got it! Even with my wild hammering ways, it is still in great shape. I picked this one up for $500, I wouldn't sell it for less that $1200, mainly because they are so hard to find down South for some reason. I don't have any plans on selling mine, as I use it everytime I do any kind of work in the shop. Be paitent, keep looking, and saving as much as you can, it will pay off in the long run, Rex

 

[VaughnT]

I'd buy that anvil in a skinny minute. At less than $2/lb, it's a great deal as long as the rebound is good. Tap the entire face with a hammer to listen for dead spots. Look carefully for any cracks that might not be caught with a cursory glance.

If it all checks out, you should snatch it up and not think twice about it.

Yea, the edges look a bit rough, but that's not a problem for 99% of the blacksmithing you might do. The faceplate looks very flat, so if all you're doing is making knife blades on the thing, you have a great workstation for it. You can always dress the edges to make them a more uniform radius once you see what you need for the work you do. Chances of needing that are very slim, though.

Or, worst case scenario, you decide that it's too much for you and sell it to someone else for $3/lb. You make a profit on the sale and get to use it in the meantime!