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After I got this thing out of the vinegar, the metal feels very rough and porous - even in sports that were under this black paint that was on it.
Kelly Axe Manufacturing Thread
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After I got this thing out of the vinegar, the metal feels very rough and porous - even in sports that were under this black paint that was on it.
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If we could see the top or bottom of the axe we might tell.
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Cheap mass produced steel was invented in the 1850s and it wasn't long after axe for forged as single pieces.
I know it's worn I just question if it's worn that bad to be a temper line. I have never seen a True Temper with an inserted bit. I won't say they don't exist though.
Any way I was going to mention to you that if it is a all steel head you can go over it with a cup brush on an angle grinder and it will turn it back to a real nice satin black color. I do that a lot on real rusty heads that will kick up a lot dust. It doesn't work on the soft body two piece heads though.
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Inserted bits were pretty common into the early 20th century. Not because high carbon steel was scarce so much it was harder to work. Inserted bits were phased out in the 20th century for overlaid bits which persisted at some factories into the 1960s. Other makers like Plumb shifted to one piece axes earlier. I think Plumb started in the 1920s.
Easier forming the head with the two piece steel especially with the lighter water-powered hammers used around 1900. When the factories invested in the more powerful drop-forge hammers, the one piece steel axes became standard. It was labor saving probably more than actual axe improvement.
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Here is the temper line on my Kelly vulcan.
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This is as close as I can get with my crappy camera phone. I am going to invest in a nice digital camera one of these days. I took pics of both sides, top and bottom.
Thanks for the pictures Charles. It's a one piece steel axe. It's almost out of hardened steel.
Nice find and an unusual stamp.:thumbup:
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Thanks. I hope I can finally get a date on this thing - even a ballpark year. Like I said, I have found all sorts of "True Temper Lippincott" axes but they all say "Kelly Works" or "Kelly Iron Works" on them.
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Did you search yesteryear tools?
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This is right. and judging by the thinness of the bit it has not been filed excessively. It just had a shallow temper from the factory. Being a one piece axe bodes well for the steel in the eye and the poll.
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Yeah as much as I could. I couldn't find a section for True Temper that wasn't related to Kelly.
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Got to go deeper down the rabbit hole
http://www.yesteryearstools.com/Yesteryears Tools/American Fork & Hoe Co..html
True Temper brand was Batcheller & Sons co. They became part of American fork and hoe who bought Kelly in 1930.
http://www.yesteryearstools.com/Yesteryears Tools/American Fork & Hoe Co..html
True Temper brand was Batcheller & Sons co. They became part of American fork and hoe who bought Kelly in 1930.
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I just came into possession one of these. Single Bit and just says:
TRUE TEMPER
LIPPINCOTT
To recap some information posted previously, American Fork & Hoe owned the True Temper brand before they bought Kelly Axe in 1930. There were TRUE TEMPER Kelly Perfect axes advertised in the 1930s. There were some TRUE TEMPER axes (with no mention of Kelly) advertised in the early 1940s.
YesteryearsTools says, "In order to facilitate the acceptance of the [1930] company changeover, the American Fork & Hoe Co. operated their axe division under the name of the Kelly Axe & Tool Works. A slight difference initially, but gradually many the brand names were combined with the name True Temper. Others were discontinued or shelved. By 1949 the entire American Fork & Hoe Co. became known as True Temper and they reincorporated under that name. "
Perhaps this "True Temper Lippincott" was made during the early 1940s (along with the well-documented axes being sold as True Temper during the early 1940s without reference to Kelly, with similar-looking stampings).
When did they start stamping "Kelly Works" on axes? Perhaps they started stamping "Kelly Works" after the corporation name changed to "True Temper" in 1949. This journal from 1953 refers to the "True Temper Corporation, Kelly Works, Charleston, W. Va.", and states that
"The Kelly Works is the largest axe and hoe factory in the world."
So, my speculation would be that the "True Temper Lippencott" axe (with no mention of Kelly Works) was from the early 1940s or earlier (but no earlier than 1930).
That quantity produced steel incidentally became less expensive via Henry Bessemer's 1856-patented process shouldn't nonchalantly be referred to as 'cheap mass produced steel'. That global technology revolution allowed industry, commerce and militaries to begin to exploit and harness the hitherto unaffordable/unattainable properties of steel. It's only natural that innovative axe makers such a Plumb could envision better and more durable axes being the outcome of switching over from labour intensive steel insert bits in wrought iron heads over to steel forging.
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Sorry to have trivialized one of the historical turning points in metallurgy.
To recap some information posted previously, American Fork & Hoe owned the True Temper brand before they bought Kelly Axe in 1930. There were TRUE TEMPER Kelly Perfect axes advertised in the 1930s. There were some TRUE TEMPER axes (with no mention of Kelly) advertised in the early 1940s.
YesteryearsTools says, "In order to facilitate the acceptance of the [1930] company changeover, the American Fork & Hoe Co. operated their axe division under the name of the Kelly Axe & Tool Works. A slight difference initially, but gradually many the brand names were combined with the name True Temper. Others were discontinued or shelved. By 1949 the entire American Fork & Hoe Co. became known as True Temper and they reincorporated under that name. "
Perhaps this "True Temper Lippincott" was made during the early 1940s (along with the well-documented axes being sold as True Temper during the early 1940s without reference to Kelly, with similar-looking stampings).
When did they start stamping "Kelly Works" on axes? Perhaps they started stamping "Kelly Works" after the corporation name changed to "True Temper" in 1949. This journal from 1953 refers to the "True Temper Corporation, Kelly Works, Charleston, W. Va.", and states that
"The Kelly Works is the largest axe and hoe factory in the world."
So, my speculation would be that the "True Temper Lippencott" axe (with no mention of Kelly Works) was from the early 1940s or earlier (but no earlier than 1930).
Slippery slope to date a axe by whats not on it. I can't say that its not with out some merit though. At least up to the more modern True Tempers.
If a guy was to look for proof it might be through researching the pulaski. Not sure how many times the government specifications have changed for the tool. I can say that I have three different True Temper pulaski's and thats differences in the head, not stamps.
Right off hand I don't remember having one of the older smaller style True Temper pulaski's with out "Kelly The Worlds Finest" stamped on it. But I have not been paying that much attention...
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Yeah, I was just speculating. Online, I've seen some "US"-stamped True Tempers with "Kelly Works" also stamped, and they were said to be WWII axes, but I haven't seen any evidence presented that ruled out them being post-WWII military issue.