A Steel

I've been looking for a decent, large anvil for ages - an anvil is worth its weight in gold when you're mucking about with car bodywork - especially on a car where certain panels and repair sections can be impossible to find.

A lot of the ones on Facebook are antiques and people charge in excess of £400 for a 1cwt (51kg) one, and they're so lumpy and bumpy that they're not suitable for metalwork use.  Modern ones of the same weight are more plentiful, but you still won't get change from £250. Some people sell tiny ones of 5kg for jewellery making and want over £150.

So you can imagine my pleasure at finding this 50kg one just outside of Cheltenham for £130 - a steel (steal?).... Oh, never mind.

This one is Chinese and Chinese anvils don't have that much of a reputation, as they tend to be a bit on the soft side, but it's not as if I'll be using it professionally on a daily basis.

As you can see from the image above, it already has a few dents. I'll probably grind it flat at some stage.

The anvil's shape has changed over time. Today, anvils come in a wide range of shapes and sizes tailored to specific tasks in blacksmithing, metalworking, and other trades. 

While modern tools have replaced some traditional uses of the anvil, it remains an iconic tool in blacksmithing and metalworking, valued for both its historical significance and practical utility.

It has features like the horn, flat face, Hardie hole, and Pritchel hole. Influenced by local needs and available materials led to distinct regional designs. The standard anvil of today is the London pattern, which has its roots in the 18th century and was honed in the Industrial Revolution.

The horn is especially useful for bashing steel into curves (or making horseshoes) and there are inserts you can obtain for the Hardie holes that act like an English Wheel.

The bloke I got it from had a hobby of making high quality chef knives, but was getting rid of all his equipment due to a house move - I could have had a forge for a song, but it would mean building yet another shed.