My first Pipe-Hawk

A

akmike

Joined
Sep 2, 2006
Messages
8
I just discovered this forum and thought I would post a picture of my first pipe-hawk, the oil is still drying on it. I know that a blued blade may not be traditional but I did not like the way the browning I had looked.

DSC_0011.jpg
 
Thanks to all for the kind words. I used Brownell’s Oxpho Blue, I heated the head hot enough I could still touch it and used 0000 steel wool to apply it. I think it goes well with the ebony plug and mouth piece.
 
Beautiful job. Can you use it to smoke? Looks like a user!
I like the blued effect. Nice even look to it.
 
Yeah, how does it smoke? :) I really like the lines of it, but I might be concerned that I'd break off the ebony plug the first time I hit the dirt or swinging through smaller branches. Does the plug also have a condensor on it?
 
It should smoke just fine, I have not smoked in over twenty years but might give it a try before I send it off. I built this for a friend who has limited use of his hands so I built a big plug so he could grasp it. The more I look at the blued head the more I’m beginning to like it, I may make myself a new one with a blued head.

hawk.jpg
 
Awsome job Mike! I really like it alot. Nothing wrong with bluing, it helps give it an aged look and anything that will cut down on the corrosion potential should be used.

What techniques did you use on the bowl?
 
Great job all around . I am seeing more and more nice woods for handles . This was obviously not meant to be thrown . I could not throw one with such a nice finish on the wood either .

I think one day I will have to build up my woodworking skills and make as nice a handle as that . Maybe I would have one handle for show and one handle for throw .
 
Hello to all. I just bought a hand forged pipe tomahawk head and I need to put a handle on it. I have ruined two hickory handles trying to drill them. How can I do this with success or could someone recommend a reputable person who can supply hickory or other suitable using handles pre drilled. Thanks so much.
 
Track of the Wolf also offers a fully drilled hickory handle, found at the bottom of the page here. I have no experience with theirs.
 
Thanks so much for the tips. I knew it would be tough but I'm not getting it right somehow. I had a 12 " bit an a drill press but had runout on the side about 2/3 from being all the way through. I wonder if I am trying to go too fast and pushing to hard. Anyway thanks again.
 
akmike-

Is this the head you started out with?
0305big.jpg


Did you get it from R E Davis co? I ask because I'm thinking about getting a head from them myself, but am wondering what kind of steel they're made from.

How did you harden yours? How well did it respond to hardening? In this other thread here it sounds like they're either made from 4140 or 8620. I wanna make sure which it is before I try buying.
 
nessmuke said:
Thanks so much for the tips. I knew it would be tough but I'm not getting it right somehow. I had a 12 " bit an a drill press but had runout on the side about 2/3 from being all the way through. I wonder if I am trying to go too fast and pushing to hard. Anyway thanks again.
Click to expand...

12" bits have alot of flex to them. When I bored my pipe hawk handle I used a 4" bit to make a guide hole. The guide hole will help to stabilize the 12" bit. You also have to clear the flutes about every 1/2" of depth. As soon as the flutes plug then it will take the path of least resistance which is never straight. Plugged flutes will also over heat your bit. That is why it took me almost an hour to bore out 12" of handle. Every 1/2" I had to unlock the lathe tailstock, pull the bit out, clear the flutes, re-advance the bit, lock the tailstock and drill another 1/2. For 12" of hole that is 24 cycles.

I am very much into sole authorship (doing it all yourself) but there are some things that it just does not make sense to DIY it. I may just buy a pre-drilled pipe hawk handle for the next one.
 
the possum said:
akmike-

Is this the head you started out with?
0305big.jpg


Did you get it from R E Davis co? I ask because I'm thinking about getting a head from them myself, but am wondering what kind of steel they're made from.

How did you harden yours? How well did it respond to hardening? In this other thread here it sounds like they're either made from 4140 or 8620. I wanna make sure which it is before I try buying.
Click to expand...

Holy Cow! The last I saw of this tread it was disappearing out the bottom. Yes, that’s the head I started with and I did no heat treating or sharpening of it. I built this for a friend who is wheelchair bound and has no feeling in his legs and not very good use of his hands. The thought of a razor sharp hawk was not a pretty picture so I filed it flat dull, more of a ceremonial gift between friends.

After I forget how much work went into this one I may do another for myself and like you would like to know more about the steel and what can be done with it.
 
My thanks to B. Finnigan for the excellent tips. Everything that you described happened to me, jammed flutes, overheating, runout ... I figured that I was pushing to fast. Impatience is truly the mark of an amateur!
I have cut and am drying another small hickory tree to use for handles and will give this process a try in the next month or so. If that fails I guess that I will buy some predrilled ones. I am trying to see if I could go by Hawkins knife to look at the grains that he has available. I would love to build one with a show handle and also a working handle.
 
B Finnigan said:
You also have to clear the flutes about every 1/2" of depth. As soon as the flutes plug then it will take the path of least resistance which is never straight. Plugged flutes will also over heat your bit. That is why it took me almost an hour to bore out 12" of handle. Every 1/2" I had to unlock the lathe tailstock, pull the bit out, clear the flutes, re-advance the bit, lock the tailstock and drill another 1/2. For 12" of hole that is 24 cycles.
Click to expand...

Plugged flutes will also get your bit stuck solid as a rock, as the material that gets cut has no place to go except pressing tight against the sides of the hole. I also keep a piece of wax handy, and touch it to the bit as lubricant, which makes things go easier.

When I know I'll have to clear the bit often, I do not take everything apart every time. I am not recommending this method to others as there is some danger involved, but it works for me. Once I get the hole started straight & true with a short bit, I put the longer bit in my drill press and swing the stage out of the way. Then I just hold the workpiece in my hands and carefully press it up into the drill bit while it's turning. This gives me a good feel for how things are going, and I can just take it off to clear the chips without ever shutting down. I don't lock the bit down extremely tight with the key thingie; I just cinch it down by hand so if things get stuck, the bit will slip in the collet and not jerk the workpiece out of my hands. I would not use this method on things that have sharp edges or projections that could snag on skin or clothing in the event of a jam. And my drill press is set on a fairly slow speed.
 
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