SC T100's Axe Projects (Pic Heavy)

SC T100 said:
I didn't try, but I'm quite certain it wouldn't take much effort. I'll see if I still have it laying around.
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I threw that one away, but did another recently...it took some effort to pull apart the wedge from the haft, but not a lot.
 
"The Council Tool" and "The Foundling"/"Stumpy"/"Shorty 40"

The 4-lb CT I gave to a family member came back to me. I noticed it was dirty/rusty/dull/needing BLO, so I told them I would spiff it up for them. It's been used as a splitter, and was pretty dirty. So I cleaned it up, gave it a hair popping edge, lightly sanded the haft and gave it a few coats of BLO after scrubbing some rust off. It's the top axe in the below picture. Head was still tight thankfully, and I trimmed the protruding haft a bit to lessen the dirt it gathered before.

I also completely re-did Shorty 40. It was nice the way it was, but I recently ordered a 28" straight handle from House to use on my Norlund Cabin axe (on a whim...the current haft is perfectly fine...I just like the look of Norlunds on a straight handle). Anyway, I looked at Shorty 40 and the proportions were never quite right on that long, curved handle with such a light (3-lb), "Stumpy" head. So, off it came, and on the new handle it went (all heartwood as requested too...thanks House!). I thinned the handle, and the fit was great after some rasping on the eye. I basically turned it into a mish-mash of a "boy's axe XL" and a house axe. I thinned the cheeks a bit as well while I was at it. This little bruiser now feels fantastic (and looks fantastic too, if I do say so myself). I'm super happy with it, and it will be my own lille "fireside friend" as it can limb, chop, and split with the wedge shape and high centerline.

On a side note, I saw a post recently that stated Emerson and Stevens made many axes like this, and some only had the date stamp on the poll. So, maybe it was an Emerson and Stevens with an "H" stamp for a hardware store? Who knows. All I know is that it now feels like this is the way this axe was supposed to be. It's obviously the one on the bottom.


 
SC T100 said:
"The Hammer"

I also finally got around to re-hanging my Plumb half hatchet. I had a beautiful nice new haft from HH, as I wanted it longer than original (it felt too heavy for such a short handle). It was a nice 16 or 18 inch handle all ready to go, and even had a few BLO coats already.



I hung the head, and pounded the wedge, and promptly heard a "pop." Uh oh...I hope I didn't crach the head. Well, I didn't, but this happened.



Welp, what to do? Well, I was wondering if I could make a longer handle...a budget SFA or something. So I grabbed the old, non-original, haft from my Norlund and cut and shaped and fitted my way to this.





We will see how it hold up. I have serious doubts about it's stability, and the eye is so much smaller than the SFA's. I guess I need to get out and try it. I am also wondering if I could have seated it lower. I guess if it comes loose I'll try and rewedge it. I guess we'll see! For the weight, though, this length feels much, much better.
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I re-hung this head on another straight handle just like the one I split before. And yep...I managed to just barely split the new haft too...maybe the heartwood handles are more prone (the new one is heartwood too), but I have had great success with all my other ones. Pics to follow. I plan to leave it, as the split is only at the back of the head, is very minor, and the head is well-wedged. I'll use it and see how it does. I will say that these heavier Plumbs feel much better on a thicker 16" haft like it is now...the balance seems much better.
 
I finally got around to hanging the Boss brand 8-lb maul (made in Japan). I filed out all the chips (so the heel is a little thicker than I'd like), but it has a nice fresh edge now. Should be a good user. I know it looks a little high above the shoulder, but I left it on purpose so I can seat it lower later, and additionally, it makes a nice grip when carrying the maul around (holding the haft at the shoulder just below the head). I managed a nice, solid hang on this one, which was nice after some recent hanging troubles on my other maul!




You can see how it looked originally in this photo as I received it from an estate sale a while back.





 
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I bought an 8 lb. boss maul head about 6 weeks ago. The eye was not round like yours, it was kind of an oval almond shape, so I put a 36" axe handle on it. Did you weight yours before hafting? My 8 LB. head actually weighted 9 1/2 LBS. I used it for 1/2 hr. Saturday and it was quite a workout. I need to haft my 4 LB. legitimus dayton and see how it splits before i tear something.
 
Haha! No I didn't, but I certainly wouldn't want to swing this thing for hours. It's a monster...high centerline too. Anything 4 lbs and over tent to be good splitters in my experience (provided it has a nice wedge shape and/or high centerline).
 
vcbvcbvcb said:
I bought an 8 lb. boss maul head about 6 weeks ago. The eye was not round like yours, it was kind of an oval almond shape, so I put a 36" axe handle on it.
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They make an axe-eye maul haft for that tool. Check the Council website.
 
SC T100 said:
I re-hung this head on another straight handle just like the one I split before. And yep...I managed to just barely split the new haft too...maybe the heartwood handles are more prone (the new one is heartwood too), but I have had great success with all my other ones. Pics to follow. I plan to leave it, as the split is only at the back of the head, is very minor, and the head is well-wedged. I'll use it and see how it does. I will say that these heavier Plumbs feel much better on a thicker 16" haft like it is now...the balance seems much better.
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So here it is...much better.




For the size and weight of the head, this feels much better, and when held at the thinner section below the head, the extra weight and length of the handle make it feel well-balanced for finer work.

New wedge...still needs some additional coats of BLO and some polishing.


Not a great pic, but given the amount of wood I had to remove from the eye to fit, I think I got it as straight as possible.


And I decided I definitely won't be worrying about the small crack...after a dab of super glue forced into the hairline crack and a coat of BLO, you actually can't really even see it...if I didn't know it was there I wouldn't be able to tell. It's definitely going to get run as-is...if it breaks I'll fix it again :)


And for comparison, here it is next to my favorite half-hatchet, my Stanley

 
And here's another view of my newest iteration of Shorty 40, with the thinned cheeks. This thing takes a wicked edge with it's overcoat bit.



 
I know some people may not like to post their not-so-great looking hangs, but I might as well post my failures with my successes, haha!

This is a straight-peen sledge dated 1944 for a family member. The haft was broken, so I re-hung it. This one was very difficult..the eye had a weird bulge in it, combined with the un-balanced nature of this head (the hammer side is significantly heavier then the straight peen side) which made it want to hang VERY closed on the hammer side. It took a LOT of fine wood removal to get it to hang even, along with some hammer persuasion. As the eye was a little strange, and it will be for someone else to use, I wanted to triple-ensure the head will stay in place, so I added a few metal cross wedges. I know, I know, but it actually helped quite a bit with the eye the way it was tapered (I think unevenly). All in all it should make a good solid user. I even used some smaller secondary wood wedges on the underside to prevent moisture from entering the tiny gaps. A few coats of BLO were put on the handle and head, and it should be good to go. If it comes loose or breaks, I'll do it again :)







 
I also have a question for anyone who may be able to help.

I posted this Warren-Teed sledge a while back, and it appears to be on the original handle.



However, the haft has a few of these pin-holes from worms or beetles or whatever likes hickory.



And here on the lower right



My question is, *is this safe to use as-is, or should the haft be replaced before using it?* I have given it some light use splitting some maple with one of my mauls, but nothing too heavy so far.
 
SC T100 said:
So here it is...much better.


For the size and weight of the head, this feels much better, and when held at the thinner section below the head, the extra weight and length of the handle make it feel well-balanced for finer work.

New wedge...still needs some additional coats of BLO and some polishing.
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Looks good with the longer handle. Have you had good luck with wedge grain parallel to the kerf? I was told to run the grain opposite so it compresses less over time.
 
SC T100 said:
I also have a question for anyone who may be able to help.
I posted this Warren-Teed sledge a while back, and it appears to be on the original handle.
My question is, *is this safe to use as-is, or should the haft be replaced before using it?* I have given it some light use splitting some maple with one of my mauls, but nothing too heavy so far.
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A few wormholes are not much to worry over. If its internally eaten enough to be dangerous, It will have a light & hollow feeling to it. Its hard to describe.
Just you know when you feel it. Perhaps compare to a known good haft..
These defects usually break upon impact, so there is minimal chance a head flying away during a swing,
But be aware of any cracking between blows.
 
Square_peg said:
Looks good with the longer handle. Have you had good luck with wedge grain parallel to the kerf? I was told to run the grain opposite so it compresses less over time.
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Thanks! Good question...I'd have to look at all of my re-hangs to see. I honestly didn't even notice it until you mentioned it...I think this is the wedge the handle came with and I didn't think to check it. I haven't had any wedges or heads come loose yet, though my axes see sporadic use as I rotate through them to use them all some. I'll definitely keep an eye on it to see what happens. I'll be camping next month and I plan to bring this one (and a few other, or course). I'll see how it does as a kindling and firewood too.. I knocked it hammer-to-hammer against my 5-lb shipwright's sledge and it stayed tight. I guess I better put it through some paces to see if it holds up!
 
Lieblad said:
A few wormholes are not much to worry over. If its internally eaten enough to be dangerous, It will have a light & hollow feeling to it. Its hard to describe.
Just you know when you feel it. Perhaps compare to a known good haft..
These defects usually break upon impact, so there is minimal chance a head flying away during a swing,
But be aware of any cracking between blows.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info. It feels sturdy, and not overly light compared to a newer handle, so I think I'll run it as is until there's a problem. Thanks!
 
That handle looks fine. A straight haft is preferred if you're going to be using both ends of the maul.
 
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