Functionality of patterns?

[PhilipWimberly]

I suppose some of (most of?) the patterns happened simply because blacksmiths forged what they saw in their own regions. I can also see that different names apply to the same patterns and that not all Daytons, for example, are identical. But is there anywhere to read about the work that was done with functionally-specific patterns? i.e. the hardened poll on rafter was job-specific and understanding the job would help me pick out a shorter handle on a restoration.
A Maine wedge (and half-wedge) seem obvious, but I wonder if I'm right to assume it was designed for splitting and I wonder why that would be regionally-specific.
What are a Jersey's (and others) lugs for? Why does a Connie have a tapered poll? Why is a Puget Sound (and a Peeler or Swamper) so long and narrow? Or Turpentine? A Cedar pattern in Texas (there are cedars everywhere and how does that pattern help?) and Hudson Bay both seem very specific. A felling axe would seem to be defined only by the bit and the handle, but it is it's own pattern. How about bevels and phantoms?
...and more and more and more...

This site ( https://www.exploringaxehistory.com/singlebitaxepatterns ) does more than any other I've found at answering some of this, but I'm certain these patterns would not have survived unless something very practical was being achieved by them. The jobs were too damned hard for aesthetics and marketing. (With a wink to Kelly's ridges and Sager's chemicals...)

I guess some of this is lost to history and I bet not everyone would have even agreed at the time, but I'd sure like to hang these right and use them for jobs appropriate to their design if I can.
Related: I'd also really appreciate learning about the kinds of errors in naming/identifying that have happened now that there are so many new collectors. i.e. Saddle seems to equal Cruiser now. Peeler often equals Puget Sound. And others -- did they always?

 

[FortyTwoBlades]

It really comes down to a matter of how you're allocating the force of the blows and to what end. Just as in starting with a certain amount of clay to make a model, a certain weight of steel is being used to make a given head, and how you distribute that finite amount of material matters. How broad or narrow the bit is, how much energy goes into penetration vs. chip popping, bit clearance, bearing surface against the handle, and so on and so forth. Many of the variables will be interconnected or sometimes opposed, and regional variations are a COMBINATION of the optimization for the context of intended use AND the method of production used to realize that optimization, which leads to a particular final form.

 

[garry3]

I suppose some of (most of?) the patterns happened simply because blacksmiths forged what they saw in their own regions. I can also see that different names apply to the same patterns and that not all Daytons, for example, are identical. But is there anywhere to read about the work that was done with functionally-specific patterns? i.e. the hardened poll on rafter was job-specific and understanding the job would help me pick out a shorter handle on a restoration.
A Maine wedge (and half-wedge) seem obvious, but I wonder if I'm right to assume it was designed for splitting and I wonder why that would be regionally-specific.
What are a Jersey's (and others) lugs for? Why does a Connie have a tapered poll? Why is a Puget Sound (and a Peeler or Swamper) so long and narrow? Or Turpentine? A Cedar pattern in Texas (there are cedars everywhere and how does that pattern help?) and Hudson Bay both seem very specific. A felling axe would seem to be defined only by the bit and the handle, but it is it's own pattern. How about bevels and phantoms?
...and more and more and more...

This site ( https://www.exploringaxehistory.com/singlebitaxepatterns ) does more than any other I've found at answering some of this, but I'm certain these patterns would not have survived unless something very practical was being achieved by them. The jobs were too damned hard for aesthetics and marketing. (With a wink to Kelly's ridges and Sager's chemicals...)

I guess some of this is lost to history and I bet not everyone would have even agreed at the time, but I'd sure like to hang these right and use them for jobs appropriate to their design if I can.
Related: I'd also really appreciate learning about the kinds of errors in naming/identifying that have happened now that there are so many new collectors. i.e. Saddle seems to equal Cruiser now. Peeler often equals Puget Sound. And others -- did they always?

Why would you listen to anyone that can't identify axe patterns?