Axe ID'd, now clean

Dirtbiker

Dirtbiker

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Jul 2, 2010
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This is marked with Plumb 5. I bought it hoping it is a rafting pattern. It does have fully beveled edges and shows no mushrooming so I'm hoping it is.

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I'm thinking a 36" straight handle. Not sure as I've never hung an axe before but I've seen a few members projects here and I'm guessing that's the way to go.
 

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I believe I overpaid for it but it has no pitting and only seems to have light blade wear. With a quality handle it should be a fantastic tool.

Anyone guess as to the age? I have zero clue but I understand they haven't been made in quite a while (40 years)
 
Plumb's are really hard to date due to the simple fact that the rectangle plumb logo was used pretty much throughout their entire existence in the 20th century. It was registered in 1920 as a TM, and was used until the 80's I believe, yours appears to be pre-60 just judging off the overall quality. The 5 is more than likely the weight.
 
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The axe catalog from the 1960s that Square_peg provided earlier (link below) has Plumb "Construction Axes" in 4# and 5# options, and they look like the typical rafting axes, with beveled and hardened polls.

From page 6 of the catalog:

True Temper Flint Edge Construction Axe... designed and built for heavy work... specially heat-treated and tempered so it can be used as a maul... head weight 4 pounds...

Plumb Construction Axe... specially designed for mine and highway work. Has broad hardened head to withstand pounding... A maul and axe combined in one tool... head weight 4 pounds or 5 pounds...

These cost about 50% more than the comparable axes without a hardened poll.

Square_peg said:
I recently received a Seattle Hardware catalog from sometime in the late 60's. I haven't figured out exactly what year yet. Still, it's fun to look at their offerings and prices...

There are 9 pages of axes and hatchets. I've scanned them into a single pdf file.

http://cedarriverforge.com/Photo-index/Tools/Seattle Hardware catalog pages/Axes Prices.pdf
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Yep, it looks like a construction axe. It has a black finish but no ribs in the eye. I've got it in a vinegar bath right now. I'll start looking for a handle right away.
 
After vinegar bath, it came out really clean. Thankfully the poll shows up as hardened. Going to order a handle in the next few days.

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Thanks to JBLyttle I have one of these too (hardened poll) but in cedar pattern. The head is black painted and stamped Plumb 3 2 (3 lb 2 oz?). Handle is OEM and is Plumb wine colour and conventional curved without a clipped foot. I do believe that a straight handle would be just the ticket for something like this, though!
 
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Dirtbiker said:
This is marked with Plumb 5. I bought it hoping it is a rafting pattern. It does have fully beveled edges and shows no mushrooming so I'm hoping it is.

View attachment 559190

I'm thinking a 36" straight handle. Not sure as I've never hung an axe before but I've seen a few members projects here and I'm guessing that's the way to go.
Click to expand...


Great axe. Congrats on finding one of the finest axes you'll ever own. I'd go with a straight handle for sure. Length determined by use. If it will be a splitter then go 36". For a chopping/bucking axe length to suit the user. For a mining axe go short like 24". Plumb sold them in 24", 30" and 36" lengths and possibly others.


Dirtbiker said:
I believe I overpaid for it but it has no pitting and only seems to have light blade wear. .......

Anyone guess as to the age? I have zero clue but I understand they haven't been made in quite a while (40 years)
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I'd guess 1940 to 1970. The bit still has the visible signs of the original banana grind. The 2 Plumb rafters I have with that grind both came with Permabond handles which dates them at 1957 or later. When you remove the old haft check for any remaining epoxy in the eye. That will mark its earliest date for sure.
 
Square_peg said:
I'd guess 1940 to 1970. The bit still has the visible signs of the original banana grind. The 2 Plumb rafters I have with that grind both came with Permabond handles which dates them at 1957 or later. When you remove the old haft check for any remaining epoxy in the eye. That will mark its earliest date for sure.
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What am I looking for when I remove the old handle stump?
 
Dirtbiker said:
What am I looking for when I remove the old handle stump?
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Seems Plumb began fitting/finishing the haft in the eye with a durable red epoxy (called permabond) beginning in around 1959 and carried this on until their doors closed in the 80s. To date the head you're looking for evidence of this when you remove the handle pieces.
 
Good eye Steve. The June 55 ad is for fiberglass handled hammers set with 'permabond'. Presumably ordinary wedges (whether wood or plastic) weren't adaptable to lock glass hafts. Plumb must have experimented quite a bit with this bonding agent and decided not that long after (57, 58, 59?) to start using it to secure wooden handles. Certainly epoxy eyes are a useful method for determining the age of Plumb tools since someone else here suggested Plumb used Permabond right until the end of their making axes in the 1980s.
 
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Boy you are a veritable walking encyclopedia Steve! OK so now that Permabond has been nailed down to being introduced by Plumb in around 1955 (1956 for sure!) when did they start and stop with the screw adjustable wedge arrangement? Quintons double and my construction Plumb have conventional wedges, and both hafts are OEM.
 
Dirtbiker said:
Nope, none of that. That makes it newer or older?
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It could be older or it could be that a previous owner cleaned it out well during rehandling. Having cleaned one of these out my guess is that some epoxy would have remained unless someone was especially diligent in cleaning it out for no apparent reason. I would lean toward this being an older axe - 1956 or earlier.
 
300Six said:
...now that Permabond has been nailed down to being introduced by Plumb in around 1955 (1956 for sure!) when did they start and stop with the screw adjustable wedge arrangement? ...
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The adjustable screw wedge is called the Plumb Take-up Wedge, and was patented on August 15, 1922, as mentioned in this 1922 ad for the Improved Plumb Scout Axe (hatchet).

The use of two of these screws in full-sized axes is mentioned in the 1929 Axe Manual of Peter McLaren. He advocates re-using the two screw wedges when re-hafting the axe (page 30).

It's not clear when exactly Plumb stopped using the screw wedges. It appears that Plumb's advertisements for scout axes stopped mentioning the screw wedges after 1942.
 
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