It followed me home (Part 2)

Old Axeman said:
quinton- people hang axes with horizontal grain hafts ?
I will bet you it gets a vertical grain haft.
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Some of us idiots who had never heard of, or read the manual do.:) I'd bet you would see in a different light were you to put a riven, white, air dried horizontal hickory haft to the grindstone like, I and a few others have. My offer still stands, Bernie. I'll send you stave or finished haft.
 
chevy-the center hatchet is not a flooring hatchet, it is a broad hatchet. It is set up for a right handed person. You hold the stick to be hewn to size on the block, in your left hand, score it to the line and hew off the waste holding the hatchet in your right hand. There are illistrations of this in "The Use of Hand Woodworking Tools" by Leo P. McDonnell, 1962 Delmar Publishers. Look at pages 169-173. Your broad hatchet could be reversed on the haft for a left hander to use. The true flooring hatchet could only ever be used by a right hander, making the flooring hatchet unique among American style hatchets. The only other American hatchet I ever ran across that could not be reversed, or did not have a knife edge, was a extremely rare single bevel claw hatchet, set up of course for a right hander.
 
chevyguy72 said:
A day late but these are my findings from the weekend. . .
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chevyguy72 said:
Thanks Gary. The plumb hatchet is in the middle of the top row if that makes sense. The one with the broad/hewing axe shape to it. It only has one beveled edge, possibly some type of flooring hatchet I suppose. . .
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Old Axeman said:
chevy-the center hatchet is not a flooring hatchet, it is a broad hatchet. . .
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1938 ad with Plumb hatchets for illustration / comparison:
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Bob
 
Bob to the best of your knowledge did the flooring hatchets come with right hand or left hand bevels like this one? Marked PLUMB USA crappy pic sorry.
P4150086.jpg P4150087.jpg
 
I know this hatchet bevel thing is confusing. It does not help that some of the drawings in the catalog are reversed. On a broad axe the bevel is on the right side for a right hander. For a broad hatchet or a flooring hatchet the bevel is also on the right side. I know it seems like a right side bevel on the hatchet seems like it is set up for a left hander, but it is not so, because of the way you use it. Reread my post, you hold the stick that you want hew the edge off of in your left hand and the hatchet in your right hand. Dont over think this, try it and you will understand. In 60+ years of using these hatchets everyday for work I have never seen a factory set up broad or flooring hatchet for a left hander. I looked, I am a left hander. I learned to switch to right hand as need be- skill saws , chain saw, etc.
 
Thanks Axeman, I knew that hewing hatchets came in right and lefts but the catalog pic threw me, I've been a carpenter and wood worker since 73 in Philadelphia and got to work on many old houses lots of history there.

PS I keep a PDF copy "Of an Axe To Grind" on my desk top for reference. Thanks again for your knowledge and your effort.

Rick
 
Rickoff, thanks, and keep going with historic hand tools and historic buildings. I plan to leave this life with a axe or hatchet in my hand while hewing a stick of wood.
 
Old Axeman said:
. . . On a broad axe the bevel is on the right side for a right hander. For a broad hatchet or a flooring hatchet the bevel is also on the right side. . .
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It seems to me that the single bevel broad axe or broad hatchet heads that were made symmetrical have no right or left bevel. They can be used left or right depending on which side of the eye the handle is inserted in.

Here is one that followed me home. The handle came with it, some kind of homemade thing of unknown (to me) wood. It is a single bevel and the head is symmetrical, including the eye.
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LAFAYETTE CAST STEEL?
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Example from the internet:
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http://www.motherbedford.com/Museum609.htm

Bob
 
My Fayette R. Plumb hewing hatchet had a removable wedge system for reversing the head for either hand use. I actually destroyed it, before I knew what it was when I rehung the head on the original haft. Live and learn.:o
 
That's a beauty Bob. I have never seen that stamp. Looks like a real well made axe from a little known maker.
 
Bob, yes, the American broad axe as well as the American broad hatchet can be hung for either right or left hand use by reversing the handle. When the they are hung with the bevel on your right, when you hold it, that is hung for right hand use. But the flooring hatchet can not be hung for a left hander. Nice broad axe you have there. It may be the camera angle but the bevel looks too steep.
 
That is quite a find Bob! I'm goofing around with one right now but it isn't marked nor in good condition.

That looks like terrific piece of old steel you acquired. I'm happy just knowing you have it.

Great photos as well.
 
rjdankert said:
...I'm still trying to track the maker down.
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In case you haven't seen this yet, an old auction listing for a LAFAYETTE CAST STEEL axe that reportedly was found at Lafayette, Indiana. So that could confirm (and perhaps partially explain) the Lafayette stamp.

[Item #] 88. LAFAYETTE (Indiana?) Broad Ax Found in Lafayette, Indiana, this old veteran is marked
“LAFAYETTE – CAST STEEL”. Weathered old handle may be original. Light pitting all over,
8” edge and 26” overall. An interesting ax. G [50-100].
 
Well, this is it, what I have managed to pick over the last 5 days. It is not as epic as I was planing on, as I was planning on 22 additional quality axes (which still may work out), but not bad.




 
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