Itsnick Posted December 11, 2023 Share Posted December 11, 2023 I searched but could not find much info. Does anyone here have any experience with the Dtx brand name anvils sold through blacksmithsdepot? All I’ve been able to come up with is that they are made in China? sorry if this isn’t in the right location, I did not see a better suited sub forum. thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted December 11, 2023 Share Posted December 11, 2023 Did you contact "Blacksmithdepot"? I'm afraid that's the best I can do for you right now. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Itsnick Posted December 11, 2023 Author Share Posted December 11, 2023 Looking for the forums opinion. Not the opinion of the people selling them. It is surely biased. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chaz7795 Posted December 13, 2023 Share Posted December 13, 2023 Nick, I did contact Blacksmiths Depot, and talked to David Kanye as I too very much like the design and was thinking of possibly getting one in the spring. David told me he thought they were as good as any new anvils made, and their hardness was very comparable to Refflinghaus anvils that they had tested. There is very little info on Facebook, I also found a little on instagram. I believe he said they hadn’t been for sale in the US for very long so there’s not much on them yet. He did tell me they were produced by the same company that produce B&W and BSL anvils. All the pics I’ve seen show a very good quality casting. I am very interested, so if you dig up any info I would be interested in hearing about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Itsnick Posted December 18, 2023 Author Share Posted December 18, 2023 I decided to go ahead and purchase their 120kg model. I haven’t had it long, but in comparison to my old brooks I really like it. Rebound is excellent, seems plenty hard though I don’t have Rockwell files to check. Finishing is plenty good enough for me. It came milled smooth and flat. The only thing that will take some getting used to is the hardy hole location, as I am a lefty and prefer the horn to my left. I knew that going into it though, so no surprises or anything. It’s quiet, didn’t ring much on its own but I have it bedded in silicone so even less so now. All in all I’d say I agree, it’s as good or better than any anvil I’ve worked on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlatLiner Posted December 19, 2023 Share Posted December 19, 2023 Nice looking anvil. Let us know how she performes after forging in her awhile. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goods Posted December 19, 2023 Share Posted December 19, 2023 Itsnick, is the round horn level with/on the same plane as the face of the anvil? I’d really like to get my hands on a south German pattern like that… but I’m not sure I like the transition from the round horn to the edges. Keep it fun, David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Itsnick Posted December 19, 2023 Author Share Posted December 19, 2023 Yes, it is more or less in the same plane. I don’t find it to be an issue at all. Here’s a couple more pictures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlatLiner Posted December 19, 2023 Share Posted December 19, 2023 I like the transition from the face to the horn. It allows you to radius the transition as you want. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Itsnick Posted December 19, 2023 Author Share Posted December 19, 2023 My thought was that little angled spot at the transition just gives me yet another shape to work steel into if I so choose. Much of this craft breaks down to different shapes, the more you have at your disposal the better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goods Posted December 19, 2023 Share Posted December 19, 2023 Flatliner, I think you miss understood to shape I’m not sure about. I think I’d rather have this area radiused. That would give different radiuses to work with. Of course, the shape it is now may offer interesting opportunities I haven’t thought of. I guess I’m a little biased, chasing after the Refflinghaus South German pattern for a couple years now. Itsnick, all in all, put the beauty to work and let up know what you think! Keep it fun, David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlatLiner Posted December 19, 2023 Share Posted December 19, 2023 That is exactly what I was getting at Goods. I like the transition from the horn to the face on south German style anvils because you can radius the transition as little or as much as you want to give you different radiuses to work with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chaz7795 Posted December 20, 2023 Share Posted December 20, 2023 Wow, that’s a pretty sharp looking anvil. I must say I’m quite envious. That’s the size I’m hoping to get in the spring, glad to hear it has good rebound. What does the hardy hole actually measure? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Itsnick Posted December 25, 2023 Author Share Posted December 25, 2023 It’s just under 1”. I say that because 1” square hot rolled will not fit from the factory… but JUST barely not. A couple minutes at the grinder is all it would take. My hardy tools from my previous anvil fit with just a little slop. All hardies are slightly different in my experience so I kind of expected that. I use it every day, it’s held up just fine so far with the exception of one errant hammer blow hitting on the corner at an angle (corner of hammer hitting corner of anvil…Brent Bailey hammer, not sure what he hardens them to). Left a nice little dent which looked like the start of a chip (I could catch my nail on it). A few seconds with the angle grinder got it out of there no worse for wear. Hurt though, like getting a scratch on a new car… I haven’t rounded the edges much yet as I’m still figuring out where I’d like different radiuses to be. I basically just took the sharp edge off everything. Possible this exacerbated the situation. The horn is perfectly conical and as it happens almost exactly the same size as my holland anvil hardy mandrel. It’s not overly sharp, the smallest it gets is maybe 3/4”. I’ll probably make a hardy tool for more intricate things. the indent in the casting on the far side (side with shelf) is kind of annoying the infrequent times I use the side of the anvil. I’ve learned to work around it. upsetting block works as intended. May require some clean up, it has the same sand casted finish as the rest of the anvil aside the face. I’m not worried about it. Overall, happy with the purchase and look forward to many years use out of the thing. -Nick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George N. M. Posted December 25, 2023 Share Posted December 25, 2023 Nick, if 1" hardy shanks are barely too large for the hardy hole I would think about filing out the hardy hole a bit larger. Once that is done every hardy tool will fit rather than having to grind down every hardy tool. It's kind of a pig of a job, enlarging a square hole, but once it is done it is done. You might carefully use a power tool like a rotary file or a metal cutting blade in a reciprocating saw to do a lot of the work but you'll need the control of a file in the corners and the last finish bit. "By hammer and hand all arts do stand." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Itsnick Posted December 25, 2023 Author Share Posted December 25, 2023 George, a fine suggestion. However, I usually make my hardy tools from larger stock under the press anyway. Rarely do I weld a shank to something so it really doesn’t bother me that much. But I agree, it would be a pig of a job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted December 25, 2023 Share Posted December 25, 2023 Beautiful anvil Nick. That first ding sure smarts doesn't it? Don't worry, it's just a bit of character, she'll develop more. I've never used that pattern anvil, I wonder if anyone in the club has one. I think I'd miss a step, I use mine all the time. Be fun to find out. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Itsnick Posted December 26, 2023 Author Share Posted December 26, 2023 Frosty, I rarely used the step on my old London pattern so I wouldn’t know to miss it. I’m sure a simple hardy block could work just the same. I find the addition of a tapered heel and side shelf to be well worth the loss. I don’t know where you call home, but if you happen to be close by (Maryland) you’re welcome to come take it for a spin. -Nick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted December 27, 2023 Share Posted December 27, 2023 A block bottom tool ads extra steps while you're losing heat. Most often I upset into the step to dress up freshly cut stock, if I had to change bottom tools I'd have to take the stock back to the forge. That's not to say upsetting with a bottom tool is a bad idea, I often upset vertically into a swage. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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