COTS Project Thread

From very limited experience trying to drift an eye into a hammer head all I can say is, man doing it right certainly requires practice and skill. With the right drift, and using the folding technique, then I can at least see how a blacksmith could hold the tool out in front of himself while on the drift to "see" the correct angle. Plus, I figure unless it is wildly open or closed, then it's no big deal anyway.[/QUOTE]

Uff...The drifting can go wrong in about 18 different ways,starting from an uneven heat,and including(but not limited to:Lack of striker(forging "one-armed" is historically unprecedented);lack of a form-fitting bottom-tool/bolster(for anything with the top line in any way curvacious it needs support+a recess accurately fitting the drift);and so on...Most 18-19th c.c. American axes were made in a very organised environment,the tooling and process well worked-out;something often missing from a one-horse smithy of a loner,who forges many different types of tools and objects...In other words-specialisation.It came early to the axe-making.And stayed....
 
cityofthesouth said:
hoffman_axe1 by city_ofthe_south, on Flickr
On this side you can see just a little chunk of heartwood at the shoulder - kind of a nice effect IMO.
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That is an absolute masterpiece. Artwork meets practicality.
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jake pogg said:
Cityofthesouth,try this link here:https://yadi.sk/i/ec3rATPGe4n6d

(if it loads for you,AND you're not frightened by the formulae therein,then "...you're a better man than I,Gunga Din!"...:)

I can help with translation,but the Russian of that study is not the problem,it's the Algebra,and i'm powerless there...

It has loaded for me,will try to look over the info myself tonight,it's been a while since i've looked in that crazy article....
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The link works for me ... I'll have to put google translate to the test! Oh and math, forget it, I always hated it.
 
I've just asked a buddy of mine who's good at this algebra crap if it's doable,he said that it is,and actually not very complicated.But:It's an equation that needs to be gotten down to only one variable,and there's at least one problem with this.
The entire deal hinges on having to start with a Point of Balance,for the head(i don't have the PDF open right now,but i think that it's designated as 0).
From which point a line is drawn through the Point of Percussion on the cutting edge,et c.
Well,the axe head then must be unhandled,first,but more importantly-can it be found definitively?
And if that point is only approx.,then does it make any sense to go into such precise math,starting from an eye-ball value?.....
 
jake pogg said:
I've just asked a buddy of mine who's good at this algebra crap if it's doable,he said that it is,and actually not very complicated.But:It's an equation that needs to be gotten down to only one variable,and there's at least one problem with this.
The entire deal hinges on having to start with a Point of Balance,for the head(i don't have the PDF open right now,but i think that it's designated as 0).
From which point a line is drawn through the Point of Percussion on the cutting edge,et c.
Well,the axe head then must be unhandled,first,but more importantly-can it be found definitively?
And if that point is only approx.,then does it make any sense to go into such precise math,starting from an eye-ball value?.....
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Yeah I think the eyeball method works well and in the days when people made a living swinging an axe, I'm guessing they found the sweet spot without much math.

Old Axeman said:
COTS, you do very nice haft work.
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Thanks!
 
I've reached the end of the road on this project - the True Temper Michigan. I think it was a 3-1/2 pounder but I didn't weigh it. Can you say straight grain? Went for something a little different with the stain, the pictures kind of exaggerate the color but ya know, gotta have pretty pictures. Otherwise, same story, different day. I am always amused by the differences in the eyes even among those from the same manufacturer - this one was small.

TTmichigan4 by city_ofthe_south, on Flickr

TTmichigan3 by city_ofthe_south, on Flickr

truetemper_hoffman_axes2 by city_ofthe_south, on Flickr

truetemper_hoffman_axes1 by city_ofthe_south, on Flickr

Waive goodbye to this lot.
 
You're creating such sensual-looking handles that they've become works of art! Down comes the girlie calendar and up go wall pegs for displaying a COTS hang.
 
cityofthesouth said:
I've reached the end of the road on this project - the True Temper Michigan. I think it was a 3-1/2 pounder but I didn't weigh it. Can you say straight grain? Went for something a little different with the stain, the pictures kind of exaggerate the color but ya know, gotta have pretty pictures. Otherwise, same story, different day. I am always amused by the differences in the eyes even among those from the same manufacturer - this one was small.

TTmichigan4 by city_ofthe_south, on Flickr

TTmichigan3 by city_ofthe_south, on Flickr

truetemper_hoffman_axes2 by city_ofthe_south, on Flickr

truetemper_hoffman_axes1 by city_ofthe_south, on Flickr

Waive goodbye to this lot.
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WOW ! just WOW! that Collins Michigan on that handle is the nicest looking axe I've ever seen. If I had just won the lottery I'd offer you 250$ for it:D
 
300Six said:
You're creating such sensual-looking handles that they've become works of art! Down comes the girlie calendar and up go wall pegs for displaying a COTS hang.
Click to expand...

You know, now that you mention it, maybe that's what curved handles are really all about! Ha! BTW that thread awhile back with the laminated handles - what you said got me to thinking about laminating on the shoulder and swell. Now I am wanting to give it a try, see how it holds up.

Hickory n steel said:
WOW ! just WOW! that Collins Michigan on that handle is the nicest looking axe I've ever seen. If I had just won the lottery I'd offer you 250$ for it:D
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Haha, thanks!

SC T100 said:
Gorgeous hafts. Did these come from the first-pass blanks you picked up from HH?
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These are the board blanks from a couple pages back. The first pass handles can get you the curves more or less, and the shoulder, but not the swell. Although there is enough swell on them to recreate vintage handles - minus the point on the fawns foot. You'll notice all my first pass handles are "clipped" except for the 28". It appears that House uses a wholly different pattern for the 28s.
 
I made a knife shaped thing from a coil spring. Heat treat was easy, edge retention has been good after a small mountain of cardboard cutting. I've just been beating on it to see where it needs improvement. Really excited to make something more involved but just keep telling myself there isn't much point in making a nice looking knife if it can't hold an edge. Obviously my grinding leaves a lot to be desired but practice makes perfect. At least I took the first step anyway.

testknife by city_ofthe_south, on Flickr
 
cityofthesouth said:
I made a knife shaped thing from a coil spring. Heat treat was easy, edge retention has been good after a small mountain of cardboard cutting. I've just been beating on it to see where it needs improvement. Really excited to make something more involved but just keep telling myself there isn't much point in making a nice looking knife if it can't hold an edge. Obviously my grinding leaves a lot to be desired but practice makes perfect. At least I took the first step anyway.

testknife by city_ofthe_south, on Flickr
Click to expand...

I see nothing wrong with those grinds for a beater knife . Is that an epoxy chord wrap ? The knife looks primitive and rustic but functional at the same time, I like it :thumbup:
 
Square_peg said:
It's fun ain't it? What type of forge are you using?
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It is fun. A lot of fun. I forget where the forge came from - my brother bought it, but it's just a small propane knife forge.

Hickory n steel said:
I see nothing wrong with those grinds for a beater knife . Is that an epoxy chord wrap ? The knife looks primitive and rustic but functional at the same time, I like it :thumbup:
Click to expand...

Thanks. I figure if I'm going to forge it, it should look like it, otherwise I might as well just grind some stock and just use the forge to heat treat. Yeah I just wrapped some jute around it with epoxy between each layer.
 
cityofthesouth said:
BTW that thread awhile back with the laminated handles - what you said got me to thinking about laminating on the shoulder and swell. Now I am wanting to give it a try, see how it holds up.
Click to expand...

When Garant Tools of Quebec started making axe handles 7/8 - 15/16 inch thick in the 1990s I was appalled. The shoulder and butt were seriously affected aesthetically and comfort-wise but it did enable these guys to manufacture 3 handles for every 3 inch board thickness over making 2 handles out of that same board the old way. I rather doubt it affected the strength. The swell width is for grip and the thick shoulder is a durable and convenient freebie because of the initial thickness of the blank. Laminating a piece of 3/16- 1/4 inch material on both sides of a 3/4 inch dressed blank at the butt and shoulder does give free rein to be generous with shaping, and very stingy with the actual haft.

bulletin%20board%20and%20axes%20003%20Large_zpsj5whszgx.jpg
 
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