The hammer is a 200 pound Bradley. The s/n is 1376 under the 200# nameplate. It is in excelent condition with all the pulleys mounts and what looks like the original motor and perfect looking pulleys and brake. The place where the dies sit and the dies are in good condition as well. Until today it was unverified. Even if I couldn't use it or get it set up I could sell it for cost couldnt I? I took pictures but I couldn't figure how to pull them from my phone.

First thing to consider....do you have the power available that the hammer requires? Don't laugh...I had a friend who purchased a Bradley, got it home, then realized he didn't have enough power in his shop to run it! Secondly, you've already mentioned the foundation. I'm pulling this out of memory, so I might be a little off, but I believe that hammer recommends a concrete, rebar reinforced base that extends 12" beyond the footprint of the hammer, with a 3 foot minimum depth...and recommends 4' depth.

My personal opinion on any running power hammer.....it's money in the bank. You might have to wait/search for the "right" buyer, but it will sell. I'm not as up to date on Bradley hammers, but 6K seems a tad on the high side....if it were me, I would see how long it sits there, and play it by ear. Experience has taught me that with large equipment/tools, the longer it takes up room at the sellers place, the easier it is to negotiate price! <img src=' http://www.americanbladesmith.com/ipboard/public/style_emoticons//smile.gi f' class='bbc_emoticon' alt=':)' />

Thanks for the help Ed. Just gotta convince my better half.

I'd love to see some photos if you have them.

Ed gave great advice as usual.

Keep in mind condition can be everything. I went to a swapmeet once and saw two 50# Little Giants sitting close to each other at two different vendor's areas. One was only $1500, the other one was $3500. Seems like an easy choice right? Save $2000!

But it wasn't so simple. The cheap one was CLAPPED OUT... it had a cracked dovetail on the anvil, it was missing the dies, it had no motor; the spring, toggle arms, and pins all needed to be replaced.

The more expensive one had no cracks, fresh babbit, a new spring and adjustable toggle arms, a fairly new 2hp Leeson motor, new 4140 dies....

By the time you bought the $1500 hammer and made it like the $3500 hammer... you'd have a $4500 hammer (with a crack in a spot that you DON'T WANT a crack).

Just something to think about.

edited to say: I know you said it's in great condition, but with hammers sometimes there's a major problem that isn't as easy to spot as a crack in the frame.

Iv'e worked with a 200# bradley for years, It's a great hammer. If you don't have 3 phase power you can get a single phase 7.5 hp motor for it, just check the speeds and puly sizes. It had a 40" deep foundation. I think 6k is a little too much, I think we paid about $3,500 for it. But if it's in good condition its worth at least 5k.

Thanks David,

I think I'm gonna wait and see on the hammer. Now after my first hammer-in I'm gonna shift my focus to fit and finish instead of Damascus. It was an eye opener. Harvey Dean, Johnny Stout, and Rick Dunkerley, nuff said.