Can This Axe Head Be Repaired?

[Ray Settanta]

The corner has been broken off.

 

[Square_peg]

Yes and no.

A good blacksmith could forge weld some additional metal onto that corner and then re-heat treat the axe. But unless you can do that yourself it is prohibitively expensive.

If you tried grinding it back you'd likely grind past the hardened edge and wind up with scrap metal. It's a shame really, 'cause big old masting axes like that are hard to come by. Maybe just display it as is.

 

[G-pig]

If you soak it in vinegar you might well be able to see how far back the steel was hardened. You can get away with a pretty curved edge on this type of axe, so re profiling might be an option.

 

[Knifein]

Why would you even want to repair this? Not worth the hassle in my opinion.

 

[Square_peg]

How many masting axes do you have, Knifein?

 

[Coloradoman24]

Oh wow that sucks but like what G pig said soak it in viniger to see if it is a laminated steel or one piece and how far back the temper is but I bet you can cut the bit off and reshape the edge, it will take some weight off the cheek side but I bet that will make the balance better. She's a beauty at that.

 

[richard thurman]

why can't you use it like that??

 

[Square_peg]

why can't you use it like that??

That's what G was getting at. Just sharpen it and use it. Big ol' axe. It'll hew.

 

[sintro]

Just sharpen it and use it. I don't think it will impede the function of the axe hardly, just look like you abuse your axe

 

[JSMcustoms]

I agree, it can't really be repaired, but there's nothing wrong with simply sharpening it up and using that axe head as is.

 

[chuxwan]

What would cause it to break like that in the first place? The temper might be ruined up the whole edge already.

 

[CedarEater]

Its quite possible someone threw it in a fire to burn the handle out of it.

 

[halfaxe]

It could have been used in really cold weather on frozen wood. I've found a couple old axe heads damaged like that. I never messed with them other than hanging them on the shed wall.

 

[Ernest DuBois]

If it is a masting axe that says to me that it has a single beveled cutting edge, then I imagine a strap construction with a laid on bit and if that's so, grinding it down and laying on a new piece of good steel is a matter of course which any good tool blacksmith should be willing to do without making a high price for the work. If the axe has any particular value to you, I would get it fixed in that case.

E.DB.

 

[Square_peg]

The few masting axes I've seen have all been double-beveled.

The crack is probably due to a combination of a less than perfect heat treat and then striking a hard object with a cold axe.

 

[G-pig]

Most of them New England pattern axes were double beveled, with the corners of the cutting edges curled off to keep it from tearing out.

Double bevels hew pretty nicely

[video=youtube;OSc5DdvslV8]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OSc5DdvslV8[/video]

 

[killa_concept]

As the others have suggested, you could vinegar bath it to see where the temper line is... even if it goes beyond the ding though, that's a LOT of steel you'd have to remove to true it up and the bit might be too thick back that far, making it a bad profile that might not work too well.

You could, as others have suggested, just haft and use it as is. But since there's no point in my posting if I'm just going to mimic what others have said, I'll suggest something a bit more out of the box. Perhaps you could redo it in the below manner (sorry for the crude MS paint edit) with a dremel and cutoff wheels? I know not everyone has access to bigger power tools, but IMO there's no excuse for people to not have a dremel and drill. It's also mostly a cosmetic fix since you'd still be losing a good 1" or so on the cutting face...

 

[Stubai]

I have seen these type of axes break in this manner. Usually such a 'trauma' comes from missing an intended target and hitting a rock or other very hard object. As has been said more than a few times, it boils down to whether you really want to spend the money to have a smith repair it.

You could just reprofile the blade and use it as it. Back in the day, many of these were just filed off and put back into service. On smaller chips/breaks, I have used a belt sander to put them into working order. The short answer is that it probably is not worth fixing, but it can, with great effort and expense, be accomplished in the hand of a master smith.

 

[Square_peg]

I'll suggest something a bit more out of the box. Perhaps you could redo it in the below manner (sorry for the crude MS paint edit) with a dremel and cutoff wheels?

Best suggestion yet.

 

[Ernest DuBois]

Funny, I was today squaring up some timbers with another kind of double beveled timber axe and come in to see this video with some very correct technique on here. Nice close to the ground working there, whoever you may be.

E.DB.