What did you rehang today?

Curt Hal · Mar 25, 2019

Thanks, A17. I don’t like to use metal wedges because they potentially introduce cracks in the wood. I put them into the poplar wedge because I had seen it done elsewhere. Normally, if I used them at all, I would put them in diagonally, or use round wedges.

phantomknives · Mar 26, 2019

i got this fulton a few months ago, just waitin for a good handle and it finally came. also i'm getting my forge set up again so i fixed up my hot cut chisel i bought nearly a year ago

muleman77 · Mar 27, 2019

On a 26" Tennessee hickory

Compared to the 5 pound version

Square_peg · Mar 27, 2019

Nice to see a 4-pound waffle. Seems like a very good candidate for a fellers axe.

muleman77 · Mar 27, 2019

It does seem right. The 5 pounder is on it's original 25" handle. I'll leave it alone for sentimental reasons but I don't like the feel of that setup as much as the 4 lb.

Blue Sasquatch · Mar 27, 2019

In early 1914 a small group of entrepreneurs met to discuss an exciting discovery "a new bronze hard enough to cut steel." On june 6th 1914, the inventor August Littman joined with other entrepreneurs to form the American Metal Products Company. The trademark selected was a diamond and the alloy was made through a secret process known only to a select few.

Vintage AMPCO head restored on a hickory stick. Axe meets OSHA, NFPA and MSHA requirements for use where flammable vapors, liquids, dusts or residues are present. This non sparking axe performs safely and exceptionally in most volatile environments.

Still in business today, the new models cost a pretty penny.
https://www.grainger.com/category/t...ting-wedges?brandName=AMPCO&filters=brandName

Maine20 · Mar 27, 2019

1955 3.5 lbs Emerson Stevens, probably original 29” handle. It’s definitely not perfect but I am glad to have it. I haven’t done anything to the edge yet.

W temperer’s stamp

The top of the toung was in rough shape, but it ended up taking a wedge well.

What’s left of the stamp. I believe it originally said: E. & S. MFG CO.

Handle has significant runout. I don’t need another user so this may just stay on the wall.

Agent_H · Mar 27, 2019

I really like the looks of those older Maine makers - that is a very nice looking axe. 29” might be short for some jobs but I’ve got a old Jersey pattern that needed work from JB that I put on a 28” and I’ve found it’s a very handy general purpose size.

I was trolling several axe haunts here on the coast yesterday and found only swamping patterns.

Square_peg · Mar 27, 2019

Blue Sasquatch said:
In early 1914 a small group of entrepreneurs met to discuss an exciting discovery "a new bronze hard enough to cut steel." On june 6th 1914, the inventor August Littman joined with other entrepreneurs to form the American Metal Products Company. The trademark selected was a diamond and the alloy was made through a secret process known only to a select few.

Vintage AMPCO head restored on a hickory stick. Axe meets OSHA, NFPA and MSHA requirements for use where flammable vapors, liquids, dusts or residues are present. This non sparking axe performs safely and exceptionally in most volatile environments.

Still in business today, the new models cost a pretty penny.
https://www.grainger.com/category/t...ting-wedges?brandName=AMPCO&filters=brandName

Looks great! What a cool find.

Just a reminder to the forum, some bronze tools can create toxic dust when abraded on a grinder or with a sander. Know what you have and take the necessary precautions.

Fmont · Mar 27, 2019

muleman, that's awesome. I have been and will always be looking for a hard poll Plumb rafting, especially with the waffled poll. I don't have one, can't find one (not well over $100).

Curt Hal · Mar 27, 2019

Maine20 said:
1955 3.5 lbs Emerson Stevens, probably original 29” handle. It’s definitely not perfect but I am glad to have it. I haven’t done anything to the edge yet.

W temperer’s stamp

The top of the toung was in rough shape, but it ended up taking a wedge well.

What’s left of the stamp. I believe it originally said: E. & S. MFG CO.

Handle has significant runout. I don’t need another user so this may just stay on the wall.

I just discovered that I have an Emerson Stevens. The W stamp is on the underside just like yours. Where yours says 55, mine just has the number 3. Any ideas what year that might indicate?

jblyttle · Mar 27, 2019

Maine20 said:
1955 3.5 lbs Emerson Stevens, probably original 29” handle. It’s definitely not perfect but I am glad to have it. I haven’t done anything to the edge yet.

W temperer’s stamp

The top of the toung was in rough shape, but it ended up taking a wedge well.

What’s left of the stamp. I believe it originally said: E. & S. MFG CO.

Handle has significant runout. I don’t need another user so this may just stay on the wall.

Great condition, nice handle.

jblyttle · Mar 27, 2019

This is an axe 1.5 years in the making. The head I got for $5 at Brimfield in May of 2017, and that same summer I was able to procure a 4 foot fresh cut hickory log. I don't know the subspecies. I spit it into blanks, sealed the ends and let them dry for several months. I began shaping this one late in the year, and made the mistake of leaving the rough shaping too thick. It didn't have any negative effect on the wood, it just made final shaping with hand tools a labor. I would put a little work into it here and there, and the piece continued to dry in my basement. Today I finally felt motivated to finish it, although the head still needs a little work. The final product has a 2.25 pound head on a 23" handle- total weight is 2lb 14.5oz. Never mind the vodka, it is long gone...

IMG_20170519_192723 by Justin Lyttle, on Flickr

IMG_20170524_205915 by Justin Lyttle, on Flickr

IMG_20170602_094554 by Justin Lyttle, on Flickr

IMG_20190327_184518 by Justin Lyttle, on Flickr

IMG_20190327_184408 by Justin Lyttle, on Flickr

IMG_20190327_184421 by Justin Lyttle, on Flickr

IMG_20190327_184428 by Justin Lyttle, on Flickr

IMG_20190327_184457 by Justin Lyttle, on Flickr

IMG_20190327_184540 by Justin Lyttle, on Flickr

IMG_20190327_184503 by Justin Lyttle, on Flickr

Fmont · Mar 27, 2019

That's sweet. I've been doing the same thing with a haft: a little here, a little there over months and months. This is just the kick in the nads I needed to get'r finished up!

Agent_H · Mar 27, 2019

Fmont said:
That's sweet. I've been doing the same thing with a haft: a little here, a little there over months and months. This is just the kick in the nads I needed to get'r finished up!

A little here and there is sometimes how the best ones come about.

Maine20 · Mar 28, 2019

Curt Hal said:
I just discovered that I have an Emerson Stevens. The W stamp is on the underside just like yours. Where yours says 55, mine just has the number 3. Any ideas what year that might indicate?

I would guess it is most likely 43 or 53 but I guess it depends on how long this person tempered axes for E&S.

Another possibility is that it’s a Marsh and sons (another Oakland Maine maker). They sometimes used a M stamp that looks a lot like yours. They also used a weight stamp in the same place as your 3. What is the weight of your head?

Just a possibility, either way it’s a cool Maine head.

ithinkverydeeply · Mar 28, 2019

Just received a couple of hand shaved White Birch wedges from @Yankee Josh and couldn’t wait to use one so I rehung that 5lb Flinty. I needed a nice fat one for the old 34” handle and it worked perfectly. I only cut off about 1/8” with the coping saw afterwards. Again here I drove slivers of dark hardwood into the voids where the metal wedges had been.

Before:

After:

Cheers!

DB_Cruiser · Mar 29, 2019

ithinkverydeeply said:
Again here I drove slivers of dark hardwood into the voids where the metal wedges had been.

I did something similar on my TT cruiser, but I actually used some T-88 epoxy to bond some hickory slivers into the worst of the cracks prior to re-installing the haft and wedging it. It worked out really well and I was pleased to have a solid hang. Keeping the head and original haft together is just special. Nice job!

ithinkverydeeply · Mar 29, 2019

Ah of course, repairing it first!

DB_Cruiser · Mar 29, 2019

I debated the epoxy vs driving in after the hang. I really wanted to avoid the epoxy, but the haft had some cracks that got close to the shoulder. Since I was planning on it being a user, I decided that the epoxy was worth it, as I could not only use it to bond a little extra wood in there, but I could also get some into the cracks and fill those voids to hopefully add some strength. I figured that if it didn't work out, I would just get a new haft. But it did and it is a sweet axe in tight places. I've used it a lot and it's holding up perfectly.