Can't even make a WAG but the period and shape look somewhat like a
Mousehole from around 1820 to 1830 (especially as there is no pritchel
hole). Can you see any junction lines where the horn, heel or feet
were welded on the anvil?
I've seen an early advertisement for Mouseholes where they had the
hardy hole toward the horn end (Soho and Enginesmith style) but the
table looks different than yours.
dennis
in nca
There appears to be a seam in the face itself. The body looks kinda like
it was patted out of clay, no distinct seams. Hmmm... I'll have to look
again at the horn. It's in Maine, I'm in Massachusetts, I see it a few
times a year.
It's hard to see in the photos but if the seam cuts across the face it
may be an indicator the anvil was built in the times before larger
pieces of hardened steel were available.
An odd thing, though, is there appear to be no handeling holes visible
on this anvil which would usually indicate it was cast rather than
forged which would rule out not only Mousehole but many other early
anvils as well. In Richard Postman's book, Anvils in America, he says
Fisher, Vulcan, Badger, Southern Crescent, Samson or American Star were
the only cast anvils produced with a steel faceplate.
I'd suggest you might inspect the anvil for other indications of it's
construction. Is it cast iron? Cast steel? Is the top really a
seperate material than the base? Are there any holes visible on the
anvil body or base? Is the horn "sharp" on it's underside?
This looks like a very interesting piece. You might consider
contacting Mr. Postman to see what he might say.
dennis
in nca
GD! that's a solid chunk of steel.
Anvils are really expensive in Oz (old an new), I'll qualify that...
decent anvils are really expensive in Oz.
We get heaps of cheapie 20 pounders, but nothing decent under AUD $1500 :-(
Looks effective though.
Regards Charles
Carl wrote:
There is one on eBay "about 350 pounds" with a 'buy it now' price of $450,
its in Tassie though, but its a nice place for a holiday. Just search on
anvil.
Dain
Don't feel too bad, there. The situation is pretty much the same in the
northern hemisphere.
This maybe should be a new thread: I just ran across an archived
discussion on refacing anvils with welding rod. The discussion mentioned
specific types of rod to put a new steel layer on the face of an old
anvil. The layer comes out Rc 40-50, apparently. Seems that might be a
good treatment for a cheap Chinese cast iron doorstop.
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