What did you rehang today?

A hand made ball peen from 1958. Apparently my coworkers grandfather gave it to him for Christmas when he was six years old. It had spent the last couple of decades without a handle. I carved this one out of some hedge from the wood pile. Hopefully it holds up.

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A Kelly hatchet from WV, and a Wards Master Quality. Notice the similarities?

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The Kelly and a no name rehung on the handles they came with. The Kelly handle had no kerf only a large metal I shaped wedge. And the Wards waiting on a new handle. I'm debating between a 16" and an 18" if anyone has any pictures of hatchets on longer handles I would appreciate it.

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I'm not sure if this pic will help but the axe on the right is a Plumb "Victory" Boys Axe Head with a recycled handle. The bare head weighed in at 2lb-1.6oz and the total with Hickory is 2lb-13oz even. I started with the OAL at 28", dropped to 25" and finally settled on 23.5". Frankly I didn't like my chances at marrying that head weight to anything under 28" but I was very pleasantly surprised. It's light enough for carrying but has just enough (well, barely) to do good work with trails, etc. Because it's a handy size I enjoy using it for kindling.

Maybe it will give you some perspective on the length versus weight? The double bit to the left is another Plumb Victory but 4oz heavier and a handle around 22"



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I actually did this one a while back, but just took some more photos. Anyway, I found this no name Jersey head at a yard sale, and couldn't pass it up for only $5. It has grooves in the eye, which proved to be the work of the devil.
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I guess this would be considered a 3 1/2 pound head, but it was 3# 6oz according to a scale.

I checked out the local hardware store for a suitable handle, but they were mostly junk modern ones with poor grain and shape. But then, I spied this red painted handle sitting nearby. I brought it up to the counter, and the clerk asked where I found it. I told him it was sitting next to the display of other handles, and he commented that someone must have brought it up out of the basement, because it looked decades old. He even pointed out that the label on it said it was made in "Crossville Tenn.", not TN, so it was made before the postal system switched to using two digit state abbreviations.
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I had a heck of a time getting the head to seat, and ended up causing a split in the base of the handle, which I patched up with glue and a couple screws. I was carefully rasping it as I went, so the handle was not too big; it just didn't want to move with those grooves in the eye trying to dig into the wood. I don't think it's gonna come off.
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I reprofiled the edge and sharpened it up- this steel is quite hard. I already used it to chop a 10"-12" thick mulberry tree that had fallen over the edge of the bean field, and it really throws the chips.
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Here's one I'm currently working on. Dad brought home this little Craftsman pocket axe from an auction, for $4. (he also brought me a nice vintage Plumb scout axe for the same price) The thing is tiny. Someone made a handle for it out of a scrap stick, and it's literally smaller than my pinkie finger, and doesn't fit the eye well. So I went out to Dad's pasture to look over the post pile, and found a big log of hedge wood (Osage Orange) with straight grain. I used my chainsaw to cut out this block, and started shaping it that night with a drawknife and rasps.

On a side note here, I have to say my new Iwasaki carving files are simply amazing, and I highly recommend them to anyone who has a lot of wood to shape. They actually carve faster than a draw knife, but with all the control and versatility of a rasp, so ya don't have to worry about tearing out the grain by going too deep with a blade.

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I also started reprofiling the edge, since it started out more than twice as thick as my Swedish made hatchet. The steel on this thing is very hard for a hatchet- I'd estimate around 57-58 Rockwell; files were about useless on it. I still have a ways to go with the stones, but won't put the final edge on until I have the new handle fitted.

It will be a while before I post any finished pictures. Now that I have the handle roughly shaped, I want to let it dry indoors for a least a month, so I don't have to worry about it loosening up with shrinkage.
 
Good looking Jersey you put together. The handle narrative is cool as well.

I have yet to make my own handle from raw wood. Your handle there for the hatchet still attached to the bolt is really neat. Not familiar with the Iwasaki carving files but interested. Any chance you would take a shot of them?

Nice!
 
the possum said:
Here's one I'm currently working on. Dad brought home this little Craftsman pocket axe from an auction, for $4. (he also brought me a nice vintage Plumb scout axe for the same price) The thing is tiny. Someone made a handle for it out of a scrap stick, and it's literally smaller than my pinkie finger, and doesn't fit the eye well. So I went out to Dad's pasture to look over the post pile, and found a big log of hedge wood (Osage Orange) with straight grain. I used my chainsaw to cut out this block, and started shaping it that night with a drawknife and rasps.

On a side note here, I have to say my new Iwasaki carving files are simply amazing, and I highly recommend them to anyone who has a lot of wood to shape. They actually carve faster than a draw knife, but with all the control and versatility of a rasp, so ya don't have to worry about tearing out the grain by going too deep with a blade.

craftsman_zpsf5c46a14.jpg


I also started reprofiling the edge, since it started out more than twice as thick as my Swedish made hatchet. The steel on this thing is very hard for a hatchet- I'd estimate around 57-58 Rockwell; files were about useless on it. I still have a ways to go with the stones, but won't put the final edge on until I have the new handle fitted.

It will be a while before I post any finished pictures. Now that I have the handle roughly shaped, I want to let it dry indoors for a least a month, so I don't have to worry about it loosening up with shrinkage.
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I have one of the Vaughan mini hatchets, love the thing. Wish I could get my hands on one of the classic Craftsman's but they go for a song on that auction site and I haven't had luck finding any axe heads locally. Nice find and a really nice looking handle. Can't wait to see the finished product.
 
Thanks for the compliments, everyone. I left the block on the end of the handle so I can really lock it down in my vise while working on it, without fear of marring/denting the rest of the handle. I don't have any shortage of hatchets & chopper type knives, so I'm not really sure how this little thing will fit in my carry rotation, but I figure I can teach my daughter some stuff with it (she just turned 10) if nothing else. It's small enough to slip into a coat pocket though, so it might just come along for fun in addition to the other toys now and then. I believe it is the same size as the mini Vaughn sounding hatchet, and I thought about buying one of their replacement handles for it, but I just didn't care for the shape.

I don't have any pics of the Iwasaki carving files, but they can easily be found with some googling. I have never used a tool like these. Each tooth is actually sharp like a knife, and cuts away the wood with almost no pressure; I notice I pay more attention to the grain direction when I'm working it with one of these, so ya almost gotta treat 'em more like a blade than an abrasive. The small amount of Osage Orange I've worked really likes to peel out the grain too deep when worked with sharp blades, unlike other woods. So I was not able to use a drawknife, plane, or carving knife once the shape was starting to get close. At that point I'd have to switch to rasps to prevent grain tear out, and it just took forever. And then, the wood was left with a gouge from every tooth where it bruised the wood. These Iwasaki files don't have that problem since they cut so cleanly. I was working a piece of walnut the other night, and took it straight to sandpaper after light finishing passes with the carving file.

I started out getting their medium cut half round, and discovered it only has teeth on the rounded side, and is so aggressive it's more like a super duper extra coarse farrier's rasp. So then I ordered their fine cut large flat file, which also cuts very aggressively despite the label. I prefer to take it easy and remove material more slowly for fine tuning the shape & truing up symmetry, so I switched to my old regular rasp for the final passes. But after working with the Iwasakis, my other rasps just seem like trash, so I'll probably go ahead and get a smaller extra fine cut Iwasaki next as well. In the end I'll have quite a bit of cash invested in them, but my only regrets are not buying them all at once to save shipping, and not discovering them 20 years ago!
 
Hacked said:
I have one of the Vaughan mini hatchets, love the thing. Wish I could get my hands on one of the classic Craftsman's but they go for a song on that auction site and I haven't had luck finding any axe heads locally. Nice find and a really nice looking handle. Can't wait to see the finished product.
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I have sold a few Craftsman hatchets, at least mine have not sold for any noteworthy price. $20-25 tops?
 
jblyttle said:
I have sold a few Craftsman hatchets, at least mine have not sold for any noteworthy price. $20-25 tops?
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If you happen to get your hands on another that you don't want to hold onto let me know, I'll take it off your hands :D I think its more sellers thinking they have something rare and so they are asking far more then they are really worth. Most of the ones I've seen have been asking $50 + lately and I don't love the little things that much.

And so as to not get too far off topic a DB that I saved from the trash bin. Working on the second edge now and then it will be hung on a thinned out TT handle from Lowes.

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And not one I hung but my little Vaughan, perfect for trips in the mountains where weight is a concern. Is it needed, no. Is it fun, heck yes. With a proper edge its surprising what the little hatchet can do.

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Hacked said:
If you happen to get your hands on another that you don't want to hold onto let me know, I'll take it off your hands :D I think its more sellers thinking they have something rare and so they are asking far more then they are really worth. Most of the ones I've seen have been asking $50 + lately and I don't love the little things that much.
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I do have one, but I can't sell here.

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Yay, a hardware store hatchet with a real hardened edge! Nice handle too.
 
I have just got into axe restoration I love it I made this handle out of oak. I love this hatchet I restored. I used two metal wedges because I was worried about it coming loose.
 
This was my first time hanging an axe or hatch Idk what to seal the grain with I was told not to use varnish I did use some stain. Please give me some advise.
 
Looks good! A few coats of boiled linseed oil would seal it up nicely. Your oil stain no doubt had some linseed in it already.

I like the little 'grapes' logo you put on the handle.
 
Square_peg said:
Looks good! A few coats of boiled linseed oil would seal it up nicely. Your oil stain no doubt had some linseed in it already.

I like the little 'grapes' logo you put on the handle.
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Yeah my last name is Graper. But no I haven't put oil on it. I put some stain on it though and I burned in the logo.
 
Hi

I put a new handle in my Hultafors Agdor yesterday.
The handle is made by Smedbergs Hickory, which actually makes the handles for both Gränsfors and Hults Bruk.
When I bought this axe it had a split in the handle, so they sent me a new one and I got to keep the one with the broken handle so I could hang it!

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