V-day present (3rd 0f 3 finished)

C

CedarEater

Joined
Aug 31, 2012
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390
So, yesterday my woman walked out onto the porch and found a gift type bag sitting on the porch. There were a couple t-shirts in it and these.


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Turns out my mom did a quick and stealthy visit and left the bag on the porch as a happy V-day present.


These axes came from my parents neighbor Rusty that lives on the lake they live on. I had asked her about any old rusty axes that she may have laying around the garage or sheds awhile back. I guess these are what she came up with.

These would have been here husband Doug's tools and he was quite a character. I remember he would rip around the lake at 6am in this little wooden race preped hydroplane on mornings after others on the lake had stayed up all night raising hell. This loud a$$ boat was usually fired up right after a canon blast to get everyones attention. Guess it was morning payback for those with hangovers and I can remember a time or two where I wanted to swim over in the dark and pull the plug to sink that little boat. Glad I didn't because as I grew older we all developed a love for that old goat. He was a good man and is missed dearly on the lake.

I will post periodically here as I get around to rehabing these. I kinda like the Craftsman.

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I can't find markings on the other two. I think the boys axe will go in the trunk of my woman's car once its finished.
 
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I finally got around to cleaning up the boys axe and double bit.

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They are now ready for new hafts to be made.
 
I cleaned up the half hatchet head last night. The fine wire cup brush revealed a partial stamp that looks like "--een City" with the first two letters illegible. The file revealed relatively soft steel on the bit and poll. However, I was happy with how it cleaned up.




I got inspired to make a handle for it today for some reason. Probably because I had a piece of madrona lying around that resembled a hammer handle already (hewn and shaped out of a branch for practice during the winter). Now, it wasn't the most "choice" piece of wood but I figured it would do fine on a not so "choice" hatchet. I also didn't use any sand paper on the handle and just gave it a light coat of BLO.




It was fun using some of the tools I inherited from my brother-in-law's father's windsor chair making tool collection. I even inherited his shaving horse. Now I have a shaving horse that I can use to finish making my shaving horse. Anyway, here are the tools I used today to shape this handle.




I am happy with how it turned out and hope it will hold up to some light pounding and splitting around the campsite. It had no problem splitting a chunk of douglas fir lumber, infact, I had a hard time getting it to stick in a piece without either falling out or splitting it outright.




Time to start wishing up some wood for the double bit and boys axes.
 
I managed to get motivated over the weekend and made a new haft for the no name boys axe head. There was some beech wood kicking around the shop that was long enough for this haft so I decided to go with it. I used my dad's old boys axe's haft as a template for this one. I really like that haft and wanted something like it on this axe so this haft got a pointed fawn's foot.



Here is the obligatory alignment/growth ring shot.




And a head shot.





Peruvian black walnut wedge shot.




This haft feels good in the hand and I think the couple coats of BLO give this beech wood a beautiful color.




All in all I think this little axe will make for a nice car axe and will be stored in the trunk of my woman's car. It's my hope that Doug would approve of the new life his boy's axe is about to have.

 
Great thread.

I would love to get my hands on a bunch of wood working tools!
 
That is fantastic. You have some serious woodworking skills. I get weak in the knees when I see a nice fawns foot like that.
 
The double bit haft and 3rd of 3 is finished.

I cleaned it up with a fine cup brush which left I nice black patina. After filing the bits clean and sharpening it I decided this one needed something interesting. This Craftsman double bit head made me think of the Tom Waits song 'Murder in a Red Barn' with the following lyrics:

'Cause there's nothin' strange
About an axe with bloodstains in the barn

There's always some killin'
You got to do around the farm
Murder in a red barn


The haft was made from a piece of air dried ash. After fitting it I used aniline dye to get the color I was after. I then hung it and put 3 or 4 coats of BLO on it followed by 3 coats of tung oil.




The left over ash was used to make the wedge.




Upon seeing this axe finished my niece said "That looks like murder." Mission accomplished.





All three of Doug's old axes have now been cleaned up, hafted and are ready for use. The boys axe will go in the trunk of my woman's car. The Craftsman will eventually get a banana grind on one of the bits. Here they are.

 
Thanks everyone. I am really happy with how the boys axe (had ridges in the eye, Kelly?) and the Craftsman double bit turned out. The aniline die was fun to work with. I think with some experimentation one could get a relatively vintage look on a brand new haft. I am fresh out of rusty old axe heads to play with now so that will have to wait until more come my way.
 
All are beautiful, but the boy's axe is really a winner. I didn't see the ridges, but the overall shape and geometry in one of the photos above told me it was quality, stamp or not.
 
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