Let's see your yard sale/flea market finds

Hey Pullrich, is the Collins marked with military marks, it's a great find. I have seen quite a few Collins machetes but never that model. Is the handle broken?

Best regards

Robin
 
It has "US" stamped on it, "legitimus", and a hand bearing a hammer pushing out of a crown. Nothing that cries out MILITARY to me but what do I know.

Handle is all busted and wrapped in tape. I like the form of the blade, clean taper like a scimitar, and the spine is thick at the handle but thins as you get to the tip.
 
pullrich said:
Just a reflection on the Mora (probably of my pointy head). I'll have some fun making a new handle for the machete, something I've never done before.
Click to expand...

That will be fun. Any ideas what you'll use for handle material? I think desert ironwood would look awesome with that patina.

Matt
 
M3mphis said:
Any ideas what you'll use for handle material? I think desert ironwood would look awesome with that patina.
Click to expand...

Nothing well-thought-out yet. Thinking about a 2-hand handle or hand and a half. It'll be my first handle so it's going to be a mess and so maybe I dont want to ruin anything fancy. Maybe just grab something common in the pacific northwest, like vine maple. Wonder if that would work? You can find some small yew way back in the woods, too. Otherwise the common things are cedar, douglas fir, spruce, hemlock, none of which strike me as good handle material but who's to say.
 
pullrich said:
...I dont want to ruin anything fancy...
Click to expand...

An old wooden baseball bat, preferably broken and otherwise unusable, should work. The well-dried ash is a classic handle material and won't have the cracking potential of wild wood.
 
pullrich said:
Nothing well-thought-out yet. Thinking about a 2-hand handle or hand and a half. It'll be my first handle so it's going to be a mess and so maybe I dont want to ruin anything fancy. Maybe just grab something common in the pacific northwest, like vine maple. Wonder if that would work? You can find some small yew way back in the woods, too. Otherwise the common things are cedar, douglas fir, spruce, hemlock, none of which strike me as good handle material but who's to say.
Click to expand...
Hi Pullrich
Just a suggestion. I've done a couple of big choppers (redone) with heavy leather slabs and it works very well to reduce vibration when chopping. I think you've seen the handle on one of them but if you want I can repost here. I used two layers of boot sole leather on each side.
Thought i'd just go ahead and post them. Ones a Buffalo skinner, the other a big chopper, both with leather slab handles.
Best regards

Robin

5146463834_d66162a1a9.jpg
[/url][/IMG]
4467373120_f06c16fb3c.jpg
[/url][/IMG]
 
Last edited:
Great ideas, thanks. An old bat would be the way to go if I want to make it a 2-hander. Boot sole leather if I want to preserve the original contours of the handle. I'll keep my eyes open for leather-soled boots at garage sales. Seems like most are rubber soled these days.
 
If there's such a thing as a shoe repair shop near you you could probably pick up a small piece. Tandys sometimes has heavy scrap.

Regards

Robin
 
Very nice! Robin, do you mind teaching us (me) how you glue the slabs to the blade and to each other (in the case of having two slabs on each side)?

Thanks, Matt.
 
M3mphis said:
Very nice! Robin, do you mind teaching us (me) how you glue the slabs to the blade and to each other (in the case of having two slabs on each side)?

Thanks, Matt.
Click to expand...

Hey Matt
On the Bufallo skinner I glued and clamped the two pieces (per side) together with hi quallity contact cement, on the big chopper I used epoxy to join the side pieces, on bloth I epoxied the slabs to the tang and clamped them. I have a pocket knife that I have used daily for 5 years that is rehandled with leather and epoxied to the liners and never come loose with no pins holding it. Works very well, kind of softish on the hands and gets rid of most of the vibration when chopping with the big chopper.

Best regards

Robin
 
My flea market find from a couple of weeks ago,

vice2.jpg


It is missing the spring, I'll have to make one but it works good and weighs 225# thanks to the rail road track its welded on. Traded a little skinner made from a file for it......Randy
 
Last edited:
Thats a real nice pole vice Randy, great score. If you get a chance to look through this months Blade mag there's a great article on making a RR track anvil.

Best regards

Robin
 
This past weekend I hit a flea market and a local antique dealer I know quite well. 8 double bit axes, 7 hatchets, a combo crow bar stamped arm and hammer, and a broad axe. 4 potato forks, and 5 gas cans. Good haul overall. My home pc is down, so I will post pics when I can. Best part is I only duplicated one axe in the collection, and have now topped the 200 count. Also met a gentleman that has a terrific history of the Warren Axe Company, and can't wait to share and exchange some knowledge with him.

See you all later - and happy hunting.
 
Check out what I found today in suburbia. I'm so stoked. I'll need some more parts, I guess.

DSC00675.JPG

1
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top