Rafter (TT KW FE)

C

CedarEater

Joined
Aug 31, 2012
Messages
390
Looks like I am on a roll. I have another True Temper Kelly Works Flint Edge.

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This one is a 5lb rafting axe or at least that what is stamped on the poll.

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Years ago I posted this one in the What Did You Sharpen Today? thread. The fact that the poll on this was not hardened was discussed there. Way back when I gave it a vinegar bath I could clearly make out the hardening line on the bit but nothing on the poll.

I finally got around to hanging this one on another of my old Hardwick's purchases. Its a Tennessee Hickory straight haft that I purchased for $9.79. Of course it needed to be thinned down so thats what I did, gave it a vinegar and steel wool solution bath, hung it with a white oak wedge and gave it a few coats of straight BLO.

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At 35" for the overall length this one is going to be my new splitter.
 
CedarEater said:
The fact that the poll on this was not hardened was discussed there. Way back when I gave it a vinegar bath I could clearly make out the hardening line on the bit but nothing on the poll.
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Correction:
Ooop! That is incorrect. It was a Cedar pattern that I found around the same time as this that has the unhardenened poll. This rafting axe most likely has a hardened poll. It doesn't look like it has struck anything nor been struck by anything.
 
VERY NICE! good job. excellent hang!

I have the same head, but hung on a 28" straight handle.



works good as a fallers axe, but wouldn't want to use it as a designated splitter. too thin in the bit and get's stuck too much for some of the wood around here at least. maybe if I was farther north or out west it would do ok.
 
Alocksly said:
I'm still on the lookout for a rafting pattern. I may take a trash head and file some crosshatches in the poll and see if I can harden it meantimes.
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If you do that then be sure to select an axe with thick eye walls. Thin walls will moosh. And I suggest a premium 1080 axe rather than a homeowner 1060 axe. ;)
 
are you sure that plumb is a rafting axe? if so someone must have pounded the pi$$ out of it to make it mushroom like that. I've never seen a rafting axe with poll damage. Having said that.... I have seen a sledgehammer that was mushroomed out worse that than, so I guess it's possible - but not sure how the heck they did it. I've pounded on 8lb mauls with sledges with extreme force with no effect at all.
 
FLINT77 said:
are you sure that plumb is a rafting axe? if so someone must have pounded the pi$$ out of it to make it mushroom like that. I've never seen a rafting axe with poll damage. Having said that.... I have seen a sledgehammer that was mushroomed out worse that than, so I guess it's possible - but not sure how the heck they did it. I've pounded on 8lb mauls with sledges with extreme force with no effect at all.
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Hi. Are you referring to my post, wth the Kelly Works and Collins?
 
Yeah, the collins with the beat up poll. I was just observing that rafting axes have hardened polls and generally don't receive damage like unhardened polls do - but I also acknowledged that it could be possible.
 
FLINT77 said:
Yeah, the collins with the beat up poll. I was just observing that rafting axes have hardened polls and generally don't receive damage like unhardened polls do - but I also acknowledged that it could be possible.
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Totally and great point to discuss.

The Collins has chamfered corners to the pole and chipping damgage about equal to the minor shrooming over.

The pole and sweeping pattern do not lend themselves to fall into a Michigan type or Dayton-esq patterns but i could be missing something quite easily.

I am assuming some that a rafting pattern pole will take the abuse but will also exhibit one or both the chip from the hardened pole, and the bit of shroom over from the repeating nature and subsequent softening to fall over the pole.

I have never worked a rafting pattern axe, so i do not have any first hand knowledge.

Perhaps someone here had a Collins rafting pattern to compare?
If so, post it up 🪓😎👍
 
Duriensbane said:
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Whiskey River 28in Fallers with i think an Oak wedge. Would have seated it farther down but I was running out of space for the wedge and our bandsaw at work isn't all that thick so I had to use what kerf I had.
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Looks Great! Was that the A or B grade fallers?

Coincidentally i just hung this Walters today on the 28 Fallere from Whisky River

WARNING: Not A Rafting Pattern 😎

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I brought to down to 26¾" from the 28". I did cut the kerf deeper, however i do not bottom the wedge out.

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It is an A Grade but seeing how there are some wicked looking sap/heartwood peices in B grade i might try getting a few of those. But ill admit, i love their handles, hands down some of the best if not the best on the market.
 
Duriensbane said:
It is an A Grade but seeing how there are some wicked looking sap/heartwood peices in B grade i might try getting a few of those. But ill admit, i love their handles, hands down some of the best if not the best on the market.
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I agree, i do like the Heritage series. I like both A and B grades, plus the wedges
 
Yeah, Whisky River is getting some nice handles lately. I recently got a pair of Grade A 32s. They're pretty nice.

Duriensbane, your axe would look so much better if you dropped it down onto the shoulder of the haft. It's a mistake lots of us made at first.

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