I ended up winning an eBay auction for three heads. All plumb. One Boy Scout hatchet, one axe head and one "U.S. 1945". The goal was to buy these for every day use so aesthetics doesn't matter that much. The Boy Scout head is in the worst condition (but I'm perfectly fine with it and would have been happy if all three were in that condition). The bit is ground poorly and the poll has been hammered on a bunch but its solid and can be sorted with some TLC.
The axe head and the 1945 hatchet head are in what I think is very good condition; much better than I was expecting. The bit profiles are good, polls are square and not hammered much, and the cheeks are not rusted or pitted very much at all. But... The axe head has a crack on the leading edge of the eye that is about 1/8" deep that goes the entire length of the eye. The US 1945 head has a smaller crack about 1/8" deep that looks to go only about 1/2"-3/4" down the eye from the top of the head down about one-third of the leading edge of the eye.
I forget the exact price, about $35-40 for all three. The seller is very willing to issue a refund, etc. and has been very easy to talk to/work with. As I'm new to this stuff, could you guys please look at the photos and tell me if the axe and hatchet heads are safe to use? I'm not interested in repairing them however I'd go right back out and start looking for another US-1940's issue hatchet head and lighter plumb axe head so if they are safe and won't be an issue, I'm wondering if I should just keep these and deal vs. return. Thanks.
The axe head and the 1945 hatchet head are in what I think is very good condition; much better than I was expecting. The bit profiles are good, polls are square and not hammered much, and the cheeks are not rusted or pitted very much at all. But... The axe head has a crack on the leading edge of the eye that is about 1/8" deep that goes the entire length of the eye. The US 1945 head has a smaller crack about 1/8" deep that looks to go only about 1/2"-3/4" down the eye from the top of the head down about one-third of the leading edge of the eye.
I forget the exact price, about $35-40 for all three. The seller is very willing to issue a refund, etc. and has been very easy to talk to/work with. As I'm new to this stuff, could you guys please look at the photos and tell me if the axe and hatchet heads are safe to use? I'm not interested in repairing them however I'd go right back out and start looking for another US-1940's issue hatchet head and lighter plumb axe head so if they are safe and won't be an issue, I'm wondering if I should just keep these and deal vs. return. Thanks.
