- Joined
- May 19, 2009
- Messages
- 1,161
So a little bit of backstory first. My 86 year old grandfather is one of the few people I know who lives in a relatively large city and yet still gathers firewood to burn in his fireplace. He hunts around looking for pallets and other such items to dismantle with a bow saw, hammer and a hatchet. Needless to say, he jokes around about being an urban hunter/gather and about the funny looks he gets from sheeple who are (if they even engage in the practice) more used to burning duraflame logs or, at best, those overpriced bundles of quick-burning wood not fit for anything past kindling. As much as I'd like to rant about how disconnected people have gotten from essentials like food and warmth, that's the topic for another discussion...
This last christmas eve, my small family gathered at my grandparents for dinner and afterward, we sat around the fireplace chatting it up. As I was throwing a few chunks of wood onto the fire, I noticed my grandfather's hatchet leaning up near the pile of wood. It was in very dire shape: the head was dangerously loose, the handle severely cracked and held together with duct tape, the edge dull and the poll mushroomed over. I thought to myself "he could really use a new axe!". Now, I'd probably seen this axe countless times before and gave it no heed, but my recently gained interest in axes prompted me to inspect further....
Picking it up, I noticed the markings: "Sandvik, Sweden" on one side and "0.6 / 1 1/4" (the weight) on the other. Now I didn't have my laptop with me to do any searching around, but just based on it's origin, I knew this axe would probably be of higher quality than anything you could pick up at the hardware store these days...
Speaking to him about the axe, he said he hadn't replaced it since it's been serving him well and he'd become rather attached to it. He apparently has had it for quite a long time and it was originally a gift from his sister-in-law who had recently passed away. I then told him that he probably shouldn't be replacing it as it's hard to find decent quality axes for a good price these days. I then mentioned that I would be glad to fix it up for him, to which he responded with "sounds like a good christmas gift!"
So here it is, with some friends to keep it company until I find some time to work on it:
On the to-do list is to get the old handle off, grind off the mushroomed sections of the poll, strip the remnants of paint off, sand it lightly, patina it in vinegar for some added rust resistance, resharpen the edge and then pick up a new handle to hang it. Oh, and I'll also be making a basic leather sheath. Hopefully I can find some free time to work on it soon here! :thumbup:
This last christmas eve, my small family gathered at my grandparents for dinner and afterward, we sat around the fireplace chatting it up. As I was throwing a few chunks of wood onto the fire, I noticed my grandfather's hatchet leaning up near the pile of wood. It was in very dire shape: the head was dangerously loose, the handle severely cracked and held together with duct tape, the edge dull and the poll mushroomed over. I thought to myself "he could really use a new axe!". Now, I'd probably seen this axe countless times before and gave it no heed, but my recently gained interest in axes prompted me to inspect further....
Picking it up, I noticed the markings: "Sandvik, Sweden" on one side and "0.6 / 1 1/4" (the weight) on the other. Now I didn't have my laptop with me to do any searching around, but just based on it's origin, I knew this axe would probably be of higher quality than anything you could pick up at the hardware store these days...
Speaking to him about the axe, he said he hadn't replaced it since it's been serving him well and he'd become rather attached to it. He apparently has had it for quite a long time and it was originally a gift from his sister-in-law who had recently passed away. I then told him that he probably shouldn't be replacing it as it's hard to find decent quality axes for a good price these days. I then mentioned that I would be glad to fix it up for him, to which he responded with "sounds like a good christmas gift!"
So here it is, with some friends to keep it company until I find some time to work on it:
On the to-do list is to get the old handle off, grind off the mushroomed sections of the poll, strip the remnants of paint off, sand it lightly, patina it in vinegar for some added rust resistance, resharpen the edge and then pick up a new handle to hang it. Oh, and I'll also be making a basic leather sheath. Hopefully I can find some free time to work on it soon here! :thumbup:
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