Techniques to extend the life of an axe

Park Swan said:
I later remembered that one of these axes met its demise by another friend at a different time, of course I wasn't there, who was driving some metal object with poll with enough force to crack the head entirely.
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Are you still friends? ;)

Realize that this is coming from someone that still has work to do convincing his wife to never cut with a knife on anything ceramic :).
 
300Six said:
As you say most folks discover the limitations of axes the hard way! The two things one should never even contemplate doing with a conventional limbing or chopping axe: 1) use the poll as a hammer on hard objects and 2) strike earth or ground with the blade.
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1) is something I didn't know from the get-go, even having used other tools for a long time; guess most folks just assume something as substantial as an ax is nearly indestructible. Far from true, I see this kind of damage most often when I'm looking for heads at the flea market...more often than worn down bits. So, a necessary addition to this list. I guess as long as metal hardness is an abstract concept, this will happen. I just had the common sense to use a hammer for a hammer's work.

As for 2) well...I cringe every time when in almost any historical movie/documentary I witness the obligatory "throw the sword after fight" or "stick it in the ground" scene. (I'm weird, I know.)
 
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Square_peg said:
This bears repeating. And it's one of the reasons that the edge should be set with the file. It's easier to control the figure this way. Leaving the heel and toe a little thick will help them last longer. How many old axes have we seen with worn out toes? Make it a little tougher.
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I "discovered" this instinctively, better said rationalized that more support would be needed there; it's what I do with the tip of every big knife.
 
Agent_H said:
Sometimes this means spending some time working out damage and working on the surrounding bit to blend it in to not only match what you removed but also have the grind angle you want run the whole length of the edge. You can get a wicked profile and edge evenly across the tool and still leave the toe and heel a little thick. Not dull of course but blend a good profile into the ends but leave a little more meat intact.
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Can someone post a picture or illustration of this to give me a little better understanding?
 
Pokerchip said:
Can someone post a picture or illustration of this to give me a little better understanding?
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I can try :)


This was a Jersey head that had a chunk taken out of the bit above the heel. It was a kind of jagged half-moon. Leaving it wouldn’t have kept the axe from cutting but not taking care of it would leave a weak spot in the edge.

I do not have a picture of the original damage but this first one shows about halfway through filing it out. The damage is pretty much worked out but the rest of the bit needs to be brought back to it make the same grind run the length of the blade. I guess I was trying to say that sometimes chips beget chips if they aren’t taken care of. Small ones maybe less so but they do create an uneven area that might be prone to more damage in that same area.



This is what I ended up with. It maybe isn’t prize worthy but note the grind doesn’t fall to the tips of the toe or heel as thin as the center. I wasn’t thinking show and tell with this one but I did think it was worth saving – no maker’s mark but stamped 3 ½ at the poll on the reverse side.




Rickoff pushes the edge back past the chips and reprofiles a hewing hatchet here in this thread:


http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/s...y/page5?highlight=What+did+you+sharpen+today?

This is an example of taking off the edge cleanly before reprofiling:
Square_peg said:
Bit.jpg
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Filing and axe.
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/1418233-Filing-an-axe
 
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As others have mentioned, a lot of it comes down to not hitting stuff that will damage the edge, matching the bit geometry to the kind of cutting you're doing, and ironing out damage in the least consumptive manner that's reasonable for the performance you require out of the tool. An overly thick edge won't cut worth beans, though, so it's a matter of gauging the qualities of the steel and how thin you can take it without causing it to become too prone to damage in your intended context of use. In extreme cold, warm the bit before use either with body heat or by some slow chopping to start. In axes with pronounced corners on the heel and toe, leave the edge at the corners a little thicker to toughen them up if you'll be chopping in situations prone to causing chipping.
 
DeadboxHero said:
The best technique Ive found is just using the axe with skill and maintain its condition with proper knowledge and maintenance.

Then edge chiping and handle breaking is a user error thing :P

I find the best way to extend the life of any axe is to hide them from my friends :P hahaha
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THIS ^!

Also saves you from worrying they might chop off a body part if the bit jumps out of a cut...

Realistically, the number one factor in longevity is to plan your cuts, every one. Might not always hit right where you're aiming, but have a plan. Make sure there's enough space for the cut so you're not beating the bottom of the notch the last few hits. Work around knots, keep it dry when not in use, protect the blade in transit. Touch it up often.
 
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