Iv'e never seen one like this before

[jblyttle]

At first glance I thought ice axe, but a second later realized that it was different. The poll is unusual, reminds me of a carpenter adze. Any ideas?

The stamp is W E Barrett Co, an old farming tool company from Rhode Island.

 

[DarthTaco123]

Looks like someone might have cut off the spike?

 

[jblyttle]

Looks like someone might have cut off the spike?

I don't think so, usually those are angled down. It's close, but I think that this was designed for something else. If you google ice harvesting axe you will see that most have no poll and NONE have such a thick heavy poll. The front end of the tool looks the same though.

 

[Double Ott]

Looks like an ice axe with the spike cut of....

[URL=http://s810.photobucket.com/user/doubleott/media/Ice%20axe%20saw%20tongs/iceaxepickaroonsadzesBarkies016.jpg.html][/URL]

[URL=http://s810.photobucket.com/user/doubleott/media/Ice%20axe%20saw%20tongs/iceaxepickaroonsadzesBarkies008.jpg.html][/URL]

Tom

 

[rjdankert]

Underhill ice axes:

 

[Square_peg]

If you google ice harvesting axe you will see that most have no poll and NONE have such a thick heavy poll.

It is an unusually heavy poll for an ice axe.

Underhill ice axes:

That American Pattern has a similarly heavy poll, just not the same shape. JB's is shaped more like an adze poll. But I think it's still a variation on an ice axe.