Question about anvil for a newbie

ComeTakeEm

ComeTakeEm

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Hey guys, I am in the very beginning for trying to get into the art of smithing. I’m looking around for tools to get started at the moment and am just starting to learn. I have an opportunity to pick up a 127 Lb. Hay Budden for $600. Can anyone tell me if this is a good price for this anvil in this condition? Thanks so
much in advance for your words of wisdom!
https://imgur.com/a/NVlFefw
 
I use the same anvil. It is a good forging anvil. Howeven the price is a bit high, IMHO for what I see in the photo. Clearer photos would help.
Your photo shows some edge wear. I would offer the fellow $500 at most. If the top is swayed and uneven, offer $400.
I can't see the face well enough, but if you get it, you might need the top milled by a machine shop to flatten it a bit. This will cost you between $50 and $100.

You can buy a brand-new117# Atlas Graham anvil for less than $600: These are great bladesmithing anvils. I helped design and test them.

» Graham Anvil – 117 Lbs 4150 steel – ETA 6-1-23

Named after Graham, Atlas' big brother, this is everything I could think to put in an anvil. Cast AISI 4140 steel Medium frequency induction heated for a surface hardening to 6mm Round and S...
www.atlasknife.com www.atlasknife.com
 
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith said:
I use the same anvil. It is a good forging anvil. Howeven the price is a bit high, IMHO for what I see in the photo. Clearer photos would help.
Your photo shows some edge wear. I would offer the fellow $500 at most. If the top is swayed and uneven, offer $400.
I can't see the face well enough, but if you get it, you might need the top milled by a machine shop to flatten it a bit. This will cost you between $50 and $100.

You can buy a brand-new117# Atlas Graham anvil for less than $600: These are great bladesmithing anvils. I helped design and test them.

» Graham Anvil – 117 Lbs 4150 steel – ETA 6-1-23

Named after Graham, Atlas' big brother, this is everything I could think to put in an anvil. Cast AISI 4140 steel Medium frequency induction heated for a surface hardening to 6mm Round and S...
www.atlasknife.com www.atlasknife.com
Click to expand...
Thanks so much!
 
I'd also suggest leaving the face alone, except for minor clean-up. Milling the face on antique anvils is an "iffy" proposition. Depending on the age of the Hay Budden, it could be three piece construction - a two piece body with a hardened top plate (pre 1908) or, a two piece (post 1908) - two piece body with the face being hardened. I've heard that the hardened face on the later anvils is only about 1/8" deep. Mill too much off of either and the softer steel body will give way under heavy hammer blows causing the face to sway.
Saludos
J
 
I'd second Stacy's recommendation for an Atlas Graham anvil. I have one, and though I haven't owned another anvil I can't say that I've found myself wishing for anything different for my skill level and type of work that I do with it. The mass is distributed exactly as it should for a smaller anvil that punches above it's weight class. The horn is conical, which is way more practical to me than other horn geometries. If it was MADE IN USA it'd be perfect, but I can begrudgingly look the other way for a well-designed and well-executed product. Looks like they won't be available until fall, but if you have the patience Atlas makes nice stuff.
 
I just placed an order with Atlas for their new Alec anvil. It's 78 lbs, so larger than the Atlas but smaller than the Graham. It has a horn similar to the Graham and has some of the same swage-block features built into its base.

I haven't seen any advertising for the new model. I exchanged emails with the owner and he said at the time he had sold 6 already, out of 56 he had on hand. That was one of the things that made me pull the trigger -- the way things are these days I didn't want to be out of luck if they sold out.

» Alec Anvil – 78 lbs

<h2><strong>Material: AISI 4140 steel(not cast iron)</strong></h2> The Atlas Anvil is specifically engineered for bladesmiths. This anvil is raw, unpainted steel. Leave it ...
www.atlasknife.com www.atlasknife.com
 
Tuhlmann said:
I'd second Stacy's recommendation for an Atlas Graham anvil. I have one, and though I haven't owned another anvil I can't say that I've found myself wishing for anything different for my skill level and type of work that I do with it. The mass is distributed exactly as it should for a smaller anvil that punches above it's weight class. The horn is conical, which is way more practical to me than other horn geometries. If it was MADE IN USA it'd be perfect, but I can begrudgingly look the other way for a well-designed and well-executed product. Looks like they won't be available until fall, but if you have the patience Atlas makes nice stuff.
Click to expand...
True, not made in USA, but we are Veteran owned and operated.
 
I know these anvils from the first sketch to the delivered product. It took time to get it right ... and the quality of the product shows it.
It is USA designed, USA tested, USA marketed/distributed, and made for the USA knifemakers. It is a USA family business (and longtime forum member). It isn't a Chinese anvil imported and sold by a US distributor. It is a USA anvil cast in a Chinese foundry.

I'll tell you guys a bit about Charles I don't think most people know.
A decade or so ago we had this young computer geek get on Bladeforums. He was an OK guy, maybe a bit OCD, but who here isn't.
He was really interested in knives, and we chatted a lot. I made a post about going to Ashokan, and this fellow sign up to go. Now Ashokan isn't for newbies - it is a seasoned knifemaker seminar - but everyone is welcome. So, Charles comes and follows me around, chatting about knifemaking and such. He was full of ideas. I don't know if he learned much about knifemaking, but after the event was over, he goes back to Iowa (where the heck is Iowa anyway?) and starts playing with knifemaking. He ... well let's just politely say ... wasn't getting very far. Then he starts playing with forge design. His geek-fu kicks in and he starts studying BTU/cu.in., gas feed ratios, and venturi design, etc. Before long he designs a decent little forge with a bulletproof simple burner. The first ones were a bit rough, but he just kept improving them. To his credit, every improvement he made, he would offer to a previous customer at cost, and occasionally for free. This led to bigger and better forges., and more and more customers. He had other ideas, and this led him to the conundrum most knifemakers come to - Where to get a decent anvil for a decent price. He learned that few anvils are made for knifemaking. He also realized most folks pay way too much for an old beat-up farm anvil. After some discussion with a few well-seasoned knifemakers he designed a simple mid-weight anvil that worked like one twice its weight. Now he has other weights available, with features not found on any anvil made that I know of. His swage base is a stroke of genius. From what I hear, other good things are coming.
Today, he makes the most affordable good quality forges and anvils on the market. Customer service and advice is always available. His only problem is keeping the products in stock. He has brought is a bunch of Con-Ex boxes to deal with that issue. I'm proud to say I know him and recommend his products to any knifemaker ...newbie or seasoned smith.

When the new shop is finally fully running, I may order a 117# Graham Anvil for the hot shop anvil and leave the 160# 100-year-old hay Budden in the smithy. The very first Atlas 65# Anvil production model (after several improvements and modifications) now sits on the workbench and gets used often for bench work.
 
I feel that I have to comment again to make it very clear since I seem to have struck a nerve.

I gave a very positive and very honest recommendation for Charles’ anvil. Nothing in my recommendation was false, nor should it be considered a slight or insult towards the anvil or the company. It is however a fact, and one that was important to me as I looked for my first anvil, so I consider it a relevant factor. It may be an important factor for others, too. For me, all the other positive features of the anvil and the company overruled my dislike of it being cast in China. I also own several other Atlas USA MADE products, and I look to Atlas first. That doesn’t change the fact that a business choice was made to cast these in China. I don’t care for that choice, but I don’t know the details, nor do I need to know. It is simply a disappointing symptom of our economy. I do really like the anvil, and as I said it would be “perfect” to me if it was cast stateside instead. My review, my recommendation, my opinions.

I stand by my honest & factual comments, and I stand by my objective and factual (very positive) review of the Atlas Graham 117. YMMV.
 
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