Lugged hatchet identification / " authentication " ?

I did do some minor grinding on it but was overall as conservative as I felt I could be, though I accidentally removed the majority of the name which really hurts😢. I just had to alleviate some of the abuse this poor little head had suffered.
At least I know what it said, I still have the picture I could possibly print and save , and I never plan on selling it anyways not that I expect it to really be worth all that much.

So here it is.





I pounded back what I could with my 14oz ball peen, took the cordless angle grinder to most of the remaining damage,finished it off with the ball peen, then used a few heavy applications of cold blue to blend in the light steel some.
I will probably slap some on the area and leave it over night to rust a little in the hopes I get a bit more of a matching patina under the rust, it certainly couldn't hurt anything.
I left no obvious grinding marks which I'm happy about, and neither the repair nor damage sticks out like a sore thumb which was my goal.
You can tell if you're holding it, but not from a few feet away.
 
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Square_peg said:
The stamp. Yerkes.

😢
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Yeah, I definitely feel bad about that one.
Especially now after learning the stamp would have Read J.YERKES, and really only part of the J was gone when it arrived.

I first thought " well, half of the stamp was already messed up anyways so it could be worse", but it turns out it was only part of one letter and now it's missing the dot and 90% of all 7 letters😭
I suppose I have learned my lesson, and thankfully I rarely get anything too old or not beat to heck or worn out that I could make the same mistake on.

I have a Sager chemicalaxe that no sager collector would ever want, had a rixford with major wear and a distorted eye, you name it if it used to be something that's currently desirable I'm only lucky enough to wind up with it if it's in a condition that kills it's desirability.


I don't sell things, but sometimes it's nice when you have something others want you know ?
 
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Hickory n steel said:
Yeah, I definitely feel bad about that one.
Especially now after learning the stamp would have Read J.YERKES, and really only part of the J was gone when it arrived.

I first thought " well, half of the stamp was already messed up anyways so it could be worse", but it turns out it was only part of one letter and now it's missing the dot and 90% of all 7 letters😭
I suppose I have learned my lesson, and thankfully I rarely get anything too old or not beat to heck or worn out that I could make the same mistake on.

I have a Sager chemicalaxe that no sager collector would ever want, had a rixford with major wear and a distorted eye, you name it if it used to be something that's currently desirable I'm only lucky enough to wind up with it if it's in a condition that kills it's desirability.


I don't sell things, but sometimes it's nice when you have something others want you know ?
Click to expand...
At least there is another one somewhere. https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/l4067-1864-antique-yerkes-belt-axe-1999191439
l4067-1864-antique-yerkes-belt-axe_1_ee1edbd8051ba7f2b7013c6daaf5697d.jpg
 
Heres my first attempt at a handle for it, all I had to work with was a piece of broken oversized modern DB handle.

The shape is about right, but it came out a bit too skinny.
I probably wont use it, but at least I know I can do a decent job.
I just need to source a piece of wood to use.
I can get a piece of oak, maple , or walnut from Home depot that'll just barely be thick enough but I'm not sure that's the way to go.

This is about what I'm after, but the plan is 12".
 
Hickory n steel said:
Heres my first attempt at a handle for it, all I had to work with was a piece of broken oversized modern DB handle.

The shape is about right, but it came out a bit too skinny.
I probably wont use it, but at least I know I can do a decent job.
I just need to source a piece of wood to use.
I can get a piece of oak, maple , or walnut from Home depot that'll just barely be thick enough but I'm not sure that's the way to go.

This is about what I'm after, but the plan is 12".
Click to expand...
Lowe's sells 60 inch wheelbarrow handles. They are listed as hardwood, so probably they are made of Ash. You can end up with enough wood to make 4, maybe even 5 hatchet, or hammer handles. Just double check the grain. Some are very good, some not so.
 
crbnSteeladdict said:
Lowe's sells 60 inch wheelbarrow handles. They are listed as hardwood, so probably they are made of Ash. You can end up with enough wood to make 4, maybe even 5 hatchet, or hammer handles. Just double check the grain. Some are very good, some not so.
Click to expand...
Maybe HD has them as well, we got a few HD's in the surrounding counties but I don't know about lowes.
 
I decided to go with walnut for the handle because I like it and it's readily available.
The grain is decent, and it should be strong good enough for a 1lb head that I may or may not use on occasion.


Heres my best attempt to make something along the lines of the original.
The eye shape was a bit different to fit a handle to, but I managed and the hang is better than it looks.



Now it just needs some BLO, and I'm thinking a beeswaxed cotton twine grip wrap might be appropriate.
Not unheard of for the era, and the grip could use a tad more thickness.
It's always easy enough to remove if I'm not happy.
 
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I quite like it.
Now it just needs a sheath that might look correct to the period, it is a belt axe after all.
Not that it really has to have one, but I had a thought to potentially display it museum style and if I did It would be cool to have it looking like something an experienced woodsman or trapper of the day was using.
That's just a thought though, it would be more fun to occasionally use it here and there, the 1lb weight us quite nice.
 
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