2/17/2024 0 Comments Peter wright anvil 1 1 5Cast iron is brittle, weak and frankly an awful material to make an anvil from. Finally the worst of all the materials. HOWEVER google that maker yourself just to clarify it. If you are faced with an obviously cast anvil but do not recognise the makers mark, posting it to a Facebook group via your phone (assuming you have a smartphone) will often lead to a quick identification. Notice the raised numbers and makers mark indicating a cast anvil. If the smith has concerns with noise, an anvil made this way would be a good investment.īelow is an image of a Fisher anvil. It is worth noting that this method of construction produced an anvil which doesn’t “ring” and as such are relatively quiet. Fisher face plates were quite hard I believe and are also prone to chipping. Though beware, Vulcan anvils are generally considered poorer quality as they had very thin face plates that were very likely to chip in use. These have a cast iron body with a steel face welded to it producing a perfectly good anvil. Fisher, Badger, Star and Vulcan are the ones I know of though there may be a few more. There are several American makers that constructed anvils in this way. As such it is likely not made by Mousehole.Ĭast iron with welded steel face: (Henceforth called CISF). The above anvil shares all the features of a Mousehole but I don’t see a makers name. A great many makers made anvils with the same features as Mousehole Forge. NOT ALL ENGLISH ANVILS ARE THE “MOUSEHOLE” BRAND. There are too many armchair experts out there who quite frankly have absolutely no clue what they are talking about.Ĭase and point is that there were literally HUNDREDS of forges making anvils in Britain. If you are trying to identify an anvil with no clear markings I would suggest asking the forum or PM me directly. You can also make out the stamp in the picture.Īnother thing to note here is that I often see beginners try to identify anvils for one another on Facebook with some very strong opinions on what the anvil “DEFINITELY” is. Also note the extra handling hole in the feet, this is characteristic of Peter and Henry Wright anvils. Notice the handling holes at the waste and under the base. I’ve inserted an image of a forged anvil. This is where large tongs gripped the body while it was forged.Īnother indication of forged construction is having a stamped makers mark, depressed into the steel rather than raised out of it.Forged wrought iron anvils have two very common “faults” - “delamination” and “sway”. The most obvious is the presence of handling holes at the waste of the anvil and often a handling hole under the base of the anvil. Notable makers include Mousehole Forge, Peter Wright, Hill, Isaac Nash, Henry Wright, Wilkinsons and many others.Īll forged anvils have identifying features that give away their construction. Older anvils had the face plate made up of several different pieces of steel, as steel was harder to make in large sections. The fact that so many survive today is a testament to the quality of their construction methods. There are numerous British and American makers that used this method and it makes a superb anvil. These anvils have a forged wrought iron body with a steel face welded to the top. The oldest construction method of the bunch. ![]() If anyone has issue with me using their image please let me know so I can take it down. If you have an anvil that looks similar to the ones I’ve shown then please post them here so that we can use images from forum members. ![]() All rights go to their respective owners. Some are even better than a “real” anvil for one reason or another.Īlso I’d like to make it very clear that this guide is aimed at newcomers to the craft and not seasoned smiths.Īlso I’d like to note I’ve copied these images from the internet. "Real" anvils are usually very expensive (your location in the world makes a big difference) not to mention relatively rare and hard to find.Īll too often I see posts on forums or Facebook where a new smith has spent all of their spare cash because they “HAD” to have an anvil.Ī large sledge hammer head, a section of rail track mounted vertically (more mass under the hammer) or any large chunk of scrap steel will make a perfectly serviceable anvil. ![]() This is a very long read so go get a nice beverage and settle in - we seem to have a number of folks getting into blacksmithing at the minute and this is a post I wrote out some years ago for another forum that people have found helpful in the past so I thought I'd post it here too.įirst of all I want to make it very clear that if you’re just starting out in blacksmithing you DO NOT NEED a “London Pattern anvil” to start hitting hot metal on. Ok chaps - I can't for the life of me remember if I ever posted this here before so mods please feel to move/ remove as necessary.
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