A Two Steel Head ??

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Downwindtracker2

Joined
Mar 20, 2019
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Last night I dug out my copy of Leonard Lee's The Complete Guide to Sharpening. This trip into axes has been more than worth while.After reading his section on axes, I decided to finish up my sharpening on my hewing hatchet, a no-name Plumb ??. I dulled another, this time a new made in USA Nicholson file on the bevel, no more facets and it's exactly 25 degrees. This rehab of a $10 axe is getting expensive. Then on to the pitted flat side with the 6x48 belt sander and a new 80 grit belt. . The pits weren't that deep, so I wasn't taking that much. I exposed a line in the metal maybe 3/4" from my new edge. I wouldn't have expected that in a modern tool. From a manufacturing point , a single steel head would be easier to make. Straight cheeks and epoxy Permabond, what are we looking at? a '70s tool?. I'm not too impressed.
 
Are you putting pressure on the file in the back stroke? Files only cut one way and the only thing I can think that would ruin a file that fast, unless it's really bad, is from pushing in the wrong direction and ruining the file that way. Or does it just need cleaned from the file shavings?

The line could simply be a HT line also. But, dual metal heads aren't unheard of. However, differential heat treat achieves much of the same affect of a tough body with harder edge for edge retention.
 
I'm a retired millwright. In England they are called fitters. You know the tool we use to correct the mistakes that machinists make, a file. There are no machinists on my Christmas card list. If they over hardened something like 1080 steel, that would do a number on a file. Maybe that's why it's a no-name ? A reject. I know you can dip a tool in acid to show off the tempering line, but I've never bothered.

At that level of hardness, it's waterstones. I brushed against lightly it, I now am wearing a bandaid on my finger, chuckle. It off to equipment dealer for a sheath. We still have logging around here.
 
There's many an old/older tool around that is just plain harder than USA Nicholson...(alas and alack,as i'm also a file-poor bloke...:(
As far as 6"x48",them things are unfortunately only as good as the Balls they have;cause if one can't bear down on the work to keep all the abrasive good and engaged,then the new belt instantly becomes not-so-new...:(...(beware of heat build-up then,or soon you can use any china file on that edge:).
An axe has an awfully large surface,that flat back side especially of course,and not many grinders will plow that up Effectively...A better bet would be an abrasive cup for masonry,on a big-arse angle grinder...(one can even station a buddy with a teapot pouring a steady stream onto the blade).

Bi-metallism,yeah,it never really went away,and maybe even coming back(often in a form of brazing the carbide-type material to the edge,but industry does forge-welding in a pretty slick manner nowadays,all nice and automated...(band-saw blades,et c.).

Sounds like you got it,anyway,so just loose thoughts here.
Personally,i don't believe in "temper lines".I'd say it's just a good old diffusion-welded blade material.
My own bench hatchet has a layed-on edge,and is also beyond any file i own in hardness...(all my drawknives too,a file won't touch them).
Best of luck in any case,sounds like a neat little side-axe.
 
Downwindtracker2 said:
Last night I dug out my copy of Leonard Lee's The Complete Guide to Sharpening. This trip into axes has been more than worth while.After reading his section on axes, I decided to finish up my sharpening on my hewing hatchet, a no-name Plumb ??. I dulled another, this time a new made in USA Nicholson file on the bevel, no more facets and it's exactly 25 degrees. This rehab of a $10 axe is getting expensive. Then on to the pitted flat side with the 6x48 belt sander and a new 80 grit belt. . The pits weren't that deep, so I wasn't taking that much. I exposed a line in the metal maybe 3/4" from my new edge. I wouldn't have expected that in a modern tool. From a manufacturing point , a single steel head would be easier to make. Straight cheeks and epoxy Permabond, what are we looking at? a '70s tool?. I'm not too impressed.
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A lot of those were two piece heads and sometimes three for the poll. The welded ones had steel welded to the flat side only, it will usually appear half way up the bevel or so.
 
That sounds like a newer Plumb or Plumb clone. Some of the later Plumbs came with stickers and no stamp. It's probably a single piece of steel and I do believe in temper lines (though I respect Jake Pogg's opinion tremendously).

Even a high quality file must be used cautiously or it will be ruined.
 
On the 6"x48"/9" , it's BusyBee , a Grizzly sold in Canada, made in Taiwan. Outside of the very pathetic table, I don't have any complaints. Next time I'm in the machine shop supply I'll pick up a blue zirconium belt for this sort of stuff.

Stanley used laminated plane irons for a couple of years in the late '30s, a couple have passed my way. You really do see the two steels on the bevel. This line on the back looks like a bad weld. Hope it holds.

The handle looked like it had moved, I figured I would have to replace it when I bought it. I tried to move it by thumping the handle end on a piece of plywood, it didn't move. Then I tried very seriously, it still didn't move. Someone had hammered one of the side cheeks. He left some nasty tracks. I guess it worked, it's solid.

After correcting the bevel, 25 degrees, and grinding out the pits, I sharpened with a 1000 grit water stone. I cheatted a little on the back flattening, I have a 1 or 2 degree back bevel. Then power stropped with Lee Valley green compound. Wiping the wax off, I nicked a piece out of my thumb. This axe is dangerous. This really needs a sheath.

On more humorous note, the sheath . I tried to find one that would fit at a forest and garden equipment dealer. We found one that would almost fit . His comment, "We don't sell sheaths , we sell sheath kits."
It was interesting looking at new axes, Hult Bruks and Granfors . A HB Five Star $169 Canadian. At home , it looks like I could make the sheath work. I still had copper plated rivets, I bought them in a hardware store many years ago ! but no washers. Since I was going into town, I live in the suburbs, I'll stop by a tack store and get some. Back ordered, image a tack store without rivets, how do you fix harnesses ? They didn't even have leather pieces. They had lots of cowboy boots though.
 
Downwindtracker2 said:
After correcting the bevel, 25 degrees,
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Is this 25 coming from Leonard Lee? Would you like to post up how it is holding once you put it to work? I only ask since recently fixing up another side axe myself, maintaining the bevel angle as it was, probably even under that 25. Right off the sharpening bench it crumbled like glass along the entire edge length. Back to the grind stone coming away with a bevel at 31 degrees, as measured with a gauge this time, and she holds up just fine. Of course this is another axe with other variables to contend with, still it'd be interesting for my part hearing how your 25 behaves.
 
Yes, as was my sharpening technique , directly from the book. As best I could follow the instructions, my wife will tell you I'm a little limited there. I really know little about axes, but with a hand axe, the term I learned over 40 years ago, it's really just a swinging plane or chisel. Once I thought about it in those terms, the same rules should apply. With chisels , some will hold their edge at 25,others you would have to go to as much as 35. I'm thinking about some current, within the last 20 years, Buck Bro. Those black and yellow clones of the Stanley #60 with the beat on me end caps. They fold at 25 in plywood. I'm phasing those ones out with old Stanleys as I find them.

I just tried it on some dried Douglas fir, it held it's edge and left polished wood. I found it difficult to control, I'm certainly not getting shavings like with a plane. That could be the operator's age and skill level. It works forehand and backhand equally well. It was easily worth all the effort.

I've heard of gunsmiths who rough carved gunstocks with them.BTW.
 
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You wrote earlier of the slight rounding or back bevel so the angle of your swings will reflect this which is fine though it will add to the tendency of the edge to be drawn into the cut. Your technique will compensate for this but it makes it more likely you get chips in place of shavings.
 
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When you can measure the back in acres , I just got a little lazy and only did the edge. Maybe < 1 degree. Nothing like putting a back bevel on a Bailey plane to get a low angle for tricky grain. At the fleamarket today , I was talking to a guy with an axe, he got a 4 1/2 HB for $15. It just needs cleaning and sharpening ! I missed that one.
 
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