What did you rehang today?

[Agent_H]

Thanks Square Peg!

Would you use spokeshaves, both round and flat bottom to octagalize a conventional haft?

Kerry, I know you addressed your question to Square_peg but a well set up flat spoke shave can do a lot of the work for you. Getting your spokeshave very sharp, finding and keeping the right depth on it can be harder than hanging your axe though.

I don’t have a rounded one so I can’t speak to that but if it’s rounded then I imagine that it might not get the flats you want.

Files alone can get the flats, a burnished scraper can help clean them up and “sharpen” the edges if you want them “sharp”.
I like the feel of the flats but soften the edges somewhat for use.

 

[Old Axeman]

I have a lot of spoke shaves- flat, round, convex, concave, adjustable radius, etc. 95% of my spoke shave work is done with only the flat bottoms.

 

[Square_peg]

I've done it a lot of ways, spoke shaves, rasps and scrapers, power tools. They all work. The spoke shave leaves the cleanest sharpest lines. They look best - nice faceted edges. Power tools are obviously fastest. Good sharp rasps are surprisingly fast. So it depends on what you've got and what you want to accomplish.

If I'm starting with a Tennessee Hickory handle I'll probably start with power tools because they come so fat to start with. With House they come closer to shape and it's not bad finishing them with hand tools. But in general I like TH better because their wood is so good.

And I've seen a resurgence in Link (Seymour) handles. It's not unusual to find a pretty good link handle at my local hardware store. Decent shape, decent wood. If you find a good one then it's not much effort to finish it with hand tools.

If you don't have spoke shaves you can still do very well with an inexpensive wood scraper like a Red Devil. And lots of wood workers swear by scraping with a piece of heavy broken glass.

 

[jmarston]

Thanks. We really like to see the different approaches taken around the world, with locally-sourced materials, and using local traditions, to basically reach the same end goal.

Sorry for the delay, Moonw. Things have been very busy. I live off the grid up in the Yukon and this time of year is very dark. No internet at home either so I snapped these axe photos on my lunch break at work. The first photo is the birch staves freshly harvested. The handle is 24" long, carved with an axe, drawknife, spoke shave and pocket knife. Turned out a little lumpy where the grain curled. I will need some more practice carving there.The wedge is spruce I had gleaned from my kindling and whittled down. I wanted to do this one with no power tools whatsoever. Well I guess I used a chainsaw to fell the birch but everything afterwards was machine free. Maybe my next batch of staves. This one has seen some use already and I plan on I think being my main trap line axe this year. After using it, I picked up my Gransfors SFA and it feels like and unwieldy club compared to this axe. Time will tell as to how birch will hold up but the photo from the top of the eye shows how tightly the grain is packed.

 

[Kerry W]

Kerry, I know you addressed your question to Square_peg but a well set up flat spoke shave can do a lot of the work for you. Getting your spokeshave very sharp, finding and keeping the right depth on it can be harder than hanging your axe though.

I don’t have a rounded one so I can’t speak to that but if it’s rounded then I imagine that it might not get the flats you want.

Files alone can get the flats, a burnished scraper can help clean them up and “sharpen” the edges if you want them “sharp”.
I like the feel of the flats but soften the edges somewhat for use.

I have a lot of spoke shaves- flat, round, convex, concave, adjustable radius, etc. 95% of my spoke shave work is done with only the flat bottoms.

I've done it a lot of ways, spoke shaves, rasps and scrapers, power tools. They all work. The spoke shave leaves the cleanest sharpest lines. They look best - nice faceted edges. Power tools are obviously fastest. Good sharp rasps are surprisingly fast. So it depends on what you've got and what you want to accomplish.

If I'm starting with a Tennessee Hickory handle I'll probably start with power tools because they come so fat to start with. With House they come closer to shape and it's not bad finishing them with hand tools. But in general I like TH better because their wood is so good.

And I've seen a resurgence in Link (Seymour) handles. It's not unusual to find a pretty good link handle at my local hardware store. Decent shape, decent wood. If you find a good one then it's not much effort to finish it with hand tools.

If you don't have spoke shaves you can still do very well with an inexpensive wood scraper like a Red Devil. And lots of wood workers swear by scraping with a piece of heavy broken glass.

I appreciate all of your reply’s.

I don’t currently have a spokeshave, but I believe I would like to try one out. If there is any particular make or model you folks recommend I would be interested in hearing what you think. So far I have hung two axes and I am working on another one now. I am in no hurry and enjoy the process as much as the finished goods. So, I am fine with a slow means to an end. I bought several House Handles, so that’s what I will work with for now. I will certainly check out Tennessee Hickory and Link.

I do have yet another question. I bought a Connecticut head from jblyttle off of eBay and the eye is longer then the tongue of any haft I have. I haven’t been able to find a haft with eye dimensions similar to the geometry of the Connie. Can I just fill the gap with the wedge? Should I try cross wedging? What do you guys do?

 

[Fmont]

Sorry for the delay, Moonw. Things have been very busy. I live off the grid up in the Yukon and this time of year is very dark. No internet at home either so I snapped these axe photos on my lunch break at work."

Living the life I'm saving up for, more or less!

That a duck tolling retriever?

 

[Yankee Josh]

I appreciate all of your reply’s.

I don’t currently have a spokeshave, but I believe I would like to try one out. If there is any particular make or model you folks recommend I would be interested in hearing what you think. So far I have hung two axes and I am working on another one now. I am in no hurry and enjoy the process as much as the finished goods. So, I am fine with a slow means to an end. I bought several House Handles, so that’s what I will work with for now. I will certainly check out Tennessee Hickory and Link.

I do have yet another question. I bought a Connecticut head from jblyttle off of eBay and the eye is longer then the tongue of any haft I have. I haven’t been able to find a haft with eye dimensions similar to the geometry of the Connie. Can I just fill the gap with the wedge? Should I try cross wedging? What do you guys do?

You didn't quote me, nor ask my opinion. But you'll run into that quite a bit. Especially with older hand made axe heads. I usually center the wood in the eye and then, as you mentioned, make sure your wedge is plenty tight and drive it home. I really wish companies would just leave the tongues bigger. I guess they are thinking most want an easier hang rather than a good one. And i bet most of the time they're right!
I've a couple that had truly cavernous eyes and I've actually driven and glued in some filler pieces to fill out the back of the eye. I haven't used them to much but they've held up just fine with what use they have had. Looking forward to seeing that connie hung!

 

[jmarston]

Living the life I'm saving up for, more or less!

That a duck tolling retriever?

I would encourage anyone to try it! I would also encourage anyone who wants to try to rent a place for a year or two to see if they are truly up for it. My wife and I dove right in and, while it is extremely rewarding, it is a very raw existence. In ways you will only realize once you are in it. Your victories and experiencing the intricacies and beauties of nature in a new way are amazing. When hardships come, everything is on you. A couple of weeks ago, a husband came back to his wife and 10 month old daughter killed by a grizzly. A very rare occurrence but it makes you ask yourself some hard questions, especially if you have kids. The first year is very romantic as you experience the way the land changes and this can be deceiving. It is not for everyone. But I can honestly say I love it and I would really struggle to go back to normal North American living. PM me if you have any questions at all regarding getting started, tips, clarifications or whatever! Don't want to derail this thread.

He is! A Nova Scotia Duck toller mixed with Boder Collie. Best dog I have ever had.

 

[Square_peg]

I don’t currently have a spokeshave, but I believe I would like to try one out. If there is any particular make or model you folks recommend I would be interested in hearing what you think.

The Stanley 151 is what most people would choose for shaving an axe handle. Many of us here have one. There are a fair number of them out on the used tool market. Lee Valley markets some nice new versions by other makers. There are also some cheap knock-offs being sold which have a bad reputation but I haven't used one. These work the length of the haft well but you'll need something else to carve out the little finger hook on the swell. A 151 can't get in there enough. Half round rasp plus some scraping or sanding will be in order.

 

[garry3]

I appreciate all of your reply’s.

I don’t currently have a spokeshave, but I believe I would like to try one out. If there is any particular make or model you folks recommend I would be interested in hearing what you think. So far I have hung two axes and I am working on another one now. I am in no hurry and enjoy the process as much as the finished goods. So, I am fine with a slow means to an end. I bought several House Handles, so that’s what I will work with for now. I will certainly check out Tennessee Hickory and Link.

I do have yet another question. I bought a Connecticut head from jblyttle off of eBay and the eye is longer then the tongue of any haft I have. I haven’t been able to find a haft with eye dimensions similar to the geometry of the Connie. Can I just fill the gap with the wedge? Should I try cross wedging? What do you guys do?

It's hard to say what you are dealing with without a picture. It's pretty normal to have plenty of room at the top of the eye that is filled by a full length wedge though.

 

[Moonw]

Sorry for the delay, Moonw. Things have been very busy. I live off the grid up in the Yukon and this time of year is very dark. No internet at home either so I snapped these axe photos on my lunch break at work. The first photo is the birch staves freshly harvested. The handle is 24" long, carved with an axe, drawknife, spoke shave and pocket knife. Turned out a little lumpy where the grain curled. I will need some more practice carving there.The wedge is spruce I had gleaned from my kindling and whittled down. I wanted to do this one with no power tools whatsoever. Well I guess I used a chainsaw to fell the birch but everything afterwards was machine free. Maybe my next batch of staves. This one has seen some use already and I plan on I think being my main trap line axe this year. After using it, I picked up my Gransfors SFA and it feels like and unwieldy club compared to this axe. Time will tell as to how birch will hold up but the photo from the top of the eye shows how tightly the grain is packed.

I only recalled today that I had asked a question in this thread; and voila, here was the answer !

Thank you, I appreciate all the details (especially since posting it involves more effort on your part than for us living in more "domesticated" parts of the world). You've done a fine work with that handle.

 

[Nbrackett]

Wards boys axe on 19” house axe handle.

 

[garry3]

Wards boys axe on 19” house axe handle.

Nice job. I love them boys axes on hatchet handles.

 

[Nbrackett]

Nice job. I love them boys axes on hatchet handles.

Thanks! I have 19”, 25” and 28” boys axe handles but felt it fit better with this one.

 

[Old Axeman]

Spokeshaves- out of all I have I grab these three flat bottom the most-for rough and general work I grab my Stanley 151 with a Lee Valley replacement blade in their PM-V11 steel ($25.90); for fine work I grab my Lie-Nielsen small bronze #SP-F; for switch grain I grab my grandfathers Stanley #62 reversible.

 

[Kerry W]

You didn't quote me, nor ask my opinion. But you'll run into that quite a bit. Especially with older hand made axe heads. I usually center the wood in the eye and then, as you mentioned, make sure your wedge is plenty tight and drive it home. I really wish companies would just leave the eye bigger. I guess they are thinking most want an easier hang rather than a good one. And i bet most of the time they're right!
I've a couple that had truly cavernous eyes and I've actually driven and glued in some filler pieces finished with his to fill out the back of the eye. I haven't used them to much but they've held up just fine with what use they have had. Looking forward to seeing that connie hung!

I appreciate your response, without a lot of experience in this arena I am eager to hear what the folks who have actually done it have to say.

What I have seen of the House Handles I have is a bit of inconsistency. If I found one with the least amount of slop front to back do you think cross wedging is an option?

I am working on an axe for a friend at work and I’m pretty slow at this, but when I am finished with his, the Connie is next. I think it’s very cool.

 

[Kerry W]

The Stanley 151 is what most people would choose for shaving an axe handle. Many of us here have one. There are a fair number of them out on the used tool market. Lee Valley markets some nice new versions by other makers. There are also some cheap knock-offs being sold which have a bad reputation but I haven't used one. These work the length of the haft well but you'll need something else to carve out the little finger hook on the swell. A 151 can't get in there enough. Half round rasp plus some scraping or sanding will be in order.

Thanks Square_peg. For starters I’m going to look for a 151. I started using a blade from an old jointer yesterday and was pretty impressed by the control I had and it left a fairly decent finish.

 

[Kerry W]

It's hard to say what you are dealing with without a picture. It's pretty normal to have plenty of room at the top of the eye that is filled by a full length wedge though.

I will shoot a photo for further review. Good idea.

 

[Kerry W]

Spokeshaves- out of all I have I grab these three flat bottom the most-for rough and general work I grab my Stanley 151 with a Lee Valley replacement blade in their PM-V11 steel ($25.90); for fine work I grab my Lie-Nielsen small bronze #SP-F; for switch grain I grab my grandfathers Stanley #62 reversible.

Thanks for the information Old Axeman. I think I will start looking for a 151.

 

[Kerry W]

I finished hanging this yesterday. I’m not really sure what this pattern of axe is. The handle is re-purposed from a hammer. The top was split so I shortened it about a half an inch.