Hi all,
Bear with me as I'm between paychecks and haven't sprung for the paid membership yet. Also I am quite new to this forum and the hobby in general.
http://s749.photobucket.com/user/DIYordie1/library/?sort=3&page=1
Here are some photobucket pics of a hatchet I've acquired. I don't have any history on it, which is part of why I'm posting here. The PLUMB rectangle logo is plain and not accompanied by anything. This makes it difficult for me to find anything online about what year this one might be from. The yesteryear tools website although helpful, doesn't say much about Plumb hatchets. I've found online that many folks have said that the rectangle has moved around over time but with no specifics. I did learn a little bit about the permabonding process and as far as I can tell, this hatchet doesn't have it, but I might be missing it. You can see in the pics there is one spec of red near the base of the head. You can also see a little bit of the wood from inside the eye after I gently bumped the head up. This head also appears to have been coated with a black at some point. Not sure if they ever came from the factory like that. There might also be a clue in the logo that the handle is stamped with. See photo, it says TESTED PLUMB ...(indiscernible).
Reason two for posting: I think leaving it as-is wasn't an option give the heavy rust in some areas. Feel free to critique or weigh in on ANY part in my process for restoring it, especially if I am doing something egregious to this poor thing:
1. Fortunately, I don't feel I have to separate the head from the handle. I am leaving them together throughout the process.
2. Light touch with a wire wheel (really kept it away from the bit to avoid ruining the temper). I am going to build an electrolysis bucket this spring, but like I said I wanted to keep the two parts together for this project.
3. Work Corners with a file to fix any nicks or gouges. I ended up re profiling the butt altogether and giving it a slight bevel on either side due to some deep impact marks that were present on one side. I also took the file to the upper corner near the logo due to heavy corrosion. I really had to dance around the logo and be careful not to profile the area too much. You can see this step in one of the pics. I also was able to get rid of the mill marks that were really apparent on the very top of the axe looking down at the eye.
4. Free hand sanding in the following progression: 60 - 80 - 100. Once I reached 100, I really began to take the sanding just front-to-back to get a more polished look. Honestly I could stop here, but I would like to step up at least to 120 then I'm undecided (input here is welcome)
5. Still to come - hand sanding the handle. Probably in the same progression as above, maybe minus 60 grit. Then wipe down with linseed oil. Does anyone have anything else they do here besides oil that might give me a better result/durability?
6. Still to come - bump the head back down towards the shoulder. Stand the hatchet up and keep linseed oil in the eye to soak into the wood for a few days and hopefully tighten it up enough for future use. There is not much play, what you can see in the pic is about as far up as it would go. (again, input here welcome!)
7. Still to come - Re-profile the bit. You can see it has a couple of small chips at the very top. Also, I feel that the bit is not rounded enough for good deep cutting. How far back can I go before I start to get to softer metal? You can see the temper line really well in one of the pics. Is it tempered all the way through all the way back to that point or is it really just the outer mm or two? I know newbie question
Hopefully this post meets the eyes of someone who know knows the age of this thing (although I haven't made it very easy!) and has restored them
Thanks for reading!
Bear with me as I'm between paychecks and haven't sprung for the paid membership yet. Also I am quite new to this forum and the hobby in general.
http://s749.photobucket.com/user/DIYordie1/library/?sort=3&page=1
Here are some photobucket pics of a hatchet I've acquired. I don't have any history on it, which is part of why I'm posting here. The PLUMB rectangle logo is plain and not accompanied by anything. This makes it difficult for me to find anything online about what year this one might be from. The yesteryear tools website although helpful, doesn't say much about Plumb hatchets. I've found online that many folks have said that the rectangle has moved around over time but with no specifics. I did learn a little bit about the permabonding process and as far as I can tell, this hatchet doesn't have it, but I might be missing it. You can see in the pics there is one spec of red near the base of the head. You can also see a little bit of the wood from inside the eye after I gently bumped the head up. This head also appears to have been coated with a black at some point. Not sure if they ever came from the factory like that. There might also be a clue in the logo that the handle is stamped with. See photo, it says TESTED PLUMB ...(indiscernible).
Reason two for posting: I think leaving it as-is wasn't an option give the heavy rust in some areas. Feel free to critique or weigh in on ANY part in my process for restoring it, especially if I am doing something egregious to this poor thing:
1. Fortunately, I don't feel I have to separate the head from the handle. I am leaving them together throughout the process.
2. Light touch with a wire wheel (really kept it away from the bit to avoid ruining the temper). I am going to build an electrolysis bucket this spring, but like I said I wanted to keep the two parts together for this project.
3. Work Corners with a file to fix any nicks or gouges. I ended up re profiling the butt altogether and giving it a slight bevel on either side due to some deep impact marks that were present on one side. I also took the file to the upper corner near the logo due to heavy corrosion. I really had to dance around the logo and be careful not to profile the area too much. You can see this step in one of the pics. I also was able to get rid of the mill marks that were really apparent on the very top of the axe looking down at the eye.
4. Free hand sanding in the following progression: 60 - 80 - 100. Once I reached 100, I really began to take the sanding just front-to-back to get a more polished look. Honestly I could stop here, but I would like to step up at least to 120 then I'm undecided (input here is welcome)
5. Still to come - hand sanding the handle. Probably in the same progression as above, maybe minus 60 grit. Then wipe down with linseed oil. Does anyone have anything else they do here besides oil that might give me a better result/durability?
6. Still to come - bump the head back down towards the shoulder. Stand the hatchet up and keep linseed oil in the eye to soak into the wood for a few days and hopefully tighten it up enough for future use. There is not much play, what you can see in the pic is about as far up as it would go. (again, input here welcome!)
7. Still to come - Re-profile the bit. You can see it has a couple of small chips at the very top. Also, I feel that the bit is not rounded enough for good deep cutting. How far back can I go before I start to get to softer metal? You can see the temper line really well in one of the pics. Is it tempered all the way through all the way back to that point or is it really just the outer mm or two? I know newbie question
Hopefully this post meets the eyes of someone who know knows the age of this thing (although I haven't made it very easy!) and has restored them
Thanks for reading!