vintage throwing hatchet?

G

gben

Joined
Nov 26, 2014
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A couple of people recently told me that this odd double hatchet was made for throwing, the idea had never occurred to me.


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Could be. It looks cast and cheaply made. Could have been marketed as a throwing toy. Is it oval eye?
 
It is certainly an oddball. Maybe someday I will trip over it in an old tool catalog. Without removing the paint I can not really say much about how it was made, and I don't think I should remove the paint in case it is original to the tool.

If it is cast it certainly would have been less expensive to manufacture. I do not know if being cast is a disadvantage though, as one of the most famous hammer manufacturers in history, Maydole, used cast steel to make their hammers for many years and they held up brilliantly. That said I am sure a forging can be made stronger than a casting as long as it is done properly, which is not always the case as it is very easy to find cracked axe heads laying about, especially Plumb brand.
 
Kinda has the look of a prop or toy to me. For throwing might be a good guess too. I don't throw my axes and hatchets (not so good for edge retention I hear) but I could see where the red paint would help when trying to track & tweak throwing axe rotation.
 
I don't know but it looks sort of heavy and blunt for a throwing axe. Plus I would think a shorter handle would be more balanced and more likely to stick the head. Strictly a guess. I've never seen an axe specifically made for throwing up close. Maybe for opening crates?
 
Looks like a double bit tomahawk thingy to me. Many older hawks seem to be cast. The only thing that throws me off is the pin. It's best to let the handle slip rather than break on a throwing axe. Could be result of user or part of using a non tomahawk style handle/eye. It looks reversible, too. To me, the handle looks a little shorter than most throwing axes.

Note, most hawks used for throwing are sharpened just enough to stick. Any thinner and the edge gets beat up.
 
gben said:
I do not know if being cast is a disadvantage though, as one of the most famous hammer manufacturers in history, Maydole, used cast steel to make their hammers for many years and they held up brilliantly. That said I am sure a forging can be made stronger than a casting as long as it is done properly, which is not always the case as it is very easy to find cracked axe heads laying about, especially Plumb brand.
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"Cast Steel" stamped on a tool doesn't necessarily mean it was manufactured in a casting process. Cast steel was axtually a type of steel.. Like O1 or 1095 today. It was one of the first crucible steels and was top of the line in the day.

Also, you find more cracked plumbs than others?
 
This is behind the desk in my boss' office.



Throwing axe? Still trying to get him to part with it. It has a Tuatahi marked sheath. No markings that I saw on the head itself.

Sorry about the picture- he took the picture and I cropped my goofy mug out of it.
 
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Agent_H said:
This is behind the desk in my boss' office.



Throwing axe? Still trying to get him to part with it. It has a Tuatahi marked sheath. No markings that I saw on the head itself.

Sorry about the picture- he took the picture and I cropped my goofy mug out of it.
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That looks like a throwing axe. Wide bits that would stick the axe over a larger arc of impact.
 
=BG_Farmer;15670000The only thing that throws me off is the pin.
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It is not a pin, it is just a depression. Thanks to olybears for the insight into the "cast steel" mark found on so many old tools. I will have to read up on that.
 
gben said:
It is not a pin, it is just a depression. Thanks to olybears for the insight into the "cast steel" mark found on so many old tools. I will have to read up on that.
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Maybe as a guide if a pin is desired?

Just to clarify, "cast steel" is like olybears says, but I did mean that many small throwing axes were/are cast in molds.

I have never seen a double bit tomahawk at rendezvous, but it looks more like that than the bigger double bit throwing axes.
 
gben said:
What does that mean? I am not familiar with the phrase "rendezevous" in relation to axes and hatchets.
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People dressing up like long hunters and/or trappers camping and carrying on, usually muzzleloaders and throwing axe competitions. Only place I've ever seen more than a couple of folks throwing tomahawks. I didn't even know there were supposedly other uses for hawks until I got online.
 
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