[Closed] I think my axe might be too sharp...

.

Damn, I was hoping for pics of a severed foot 🙁

It'll slice paper

It should

It'll slice paper

Yeah but can you shave with it?

What did you use to blacken it? I'm restoring two old axes at the minute and they are disgustingly shiny. Was considering oil/quenching but it seems like a dirty big fuss.

What did you use to blacken it?

Can never be too sharp.

You'll not cut the paper like that. Use the sharp bit.

Cardboard harp for a junior school project.

It was nearly as tall as my daughter at the time, a full octave of elastic strings that were properly tuned and a large hollow box base to give it a bit of volume.

Ever other child made a shaker or 'guitar' made from elastic bands stretched over a shoe box. Harp was too large to display with the other pupils efforts. 😳 😆

What are your tales of going a bit far with something?

I met a woman in a shop. We’ve been married 14 years this June 🙂

@stevied , what kind of place do you work at? Or what's in your blackening tank?

What are your tales of going a bit far with something

Using an axe to break up an old sofa of mine, swinging it a bit too hard so that it went right through it and into my shin.

what kind of place do you work at?

Jimjam, don't get it too hot and lose the temper. I've read you can oil blue safely using the oven but haven't tried it. I'm considering a soak in tea for a hatchet I'm restoring, saw buckin' Billy on you tube try it and the finish looked nice.

For STW, I'm disappointed you didn't forge it yourself... which reminds me, I really ought to sharpen mine properly...

It should

Not for making kindling it shouldn't!

Mine's blunt as boots, works fine!

neilnevill - Member

Jimjam, don't get it too hot and lose the temper. I've read you can oil blue safely using the oven but haven't tried it. I'm considering a soak in tea for a hatchet I'm restoring, saw buckin' Billy on you tube try it and the finish looked nice.

Yeah Neil, that's another reason I don't want to use that method (although it does look like fun). I saw Buckin' Billy doing the tea method too so I'll probably give that a go, but I have a pair of smedbergs handles on the way so I better get on with it. It takes a few weeks doesn't it?

Yeah I think so, think Billy had his brew on for a week.

I've read you are ok up to somewhere over 400F and that is hot enough to oil season cast iron so should do for the axe. Wipe of oil then oven for 30 mins at 180-200, repeat.

Whatcha doing? I got sent an unmarked but likely Scandinavian 700g hatchet/small axe head. Think I'll practice a few things on a cheapo eBay hardwood handle (blowtorch to blacken the grain, more hanging practice, may make an overstrike guard)

At which point does "touching" become inappropriate?

For the blacking you can use rust converter, active ingredient is usually Tannic acid, so has an etching effect.

neilnevill - Member

Whatcha doing? I got sent an unmarked but likely Scandinavian 700g hatchet/small axe head. Think I'll practice a few things on a cheapo eBay hardwood handle (blowtorch to blacken the grain, more hanging practice, may make an overstrike guard)

I'm refurbishing these....

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Both belonged to my Grandfathers. I can't discern a name on the big felling axe, it appears to be about 4 1/2lbs. I intend to put a short(ish) handle on it and use it for punding in wedges when I'm felling and just as a general purpose work axe. Better than it gathering dust. I'm reprofiling the edge with a file. Slow work. It was in terrible shape to start with.

The little hatchet was given to me by the other grandfather and he taught me how to split kindling with it when I was about 4. Times have changed. Anyway I assumed it was lost , but found it in my sisters garage last year in a very sorry state so I bought her a new hatchet and took that one. They were both in horrible shape, I wish I'd taken photos of them before I started working on them.

I got sent an unmarked but likely Scandinavian 700g hatchet/small axe head. Think I'll practice a few things on a cheapo eBay hardwood handle (blowtorch to blacken the grain, more hanging practice, may make an overstrike guard)

Long time since I've hung an axe so I'll probably balls these up too. I'm considering making an overstrike collar for my Husqvarna splitting axe but tbh electical tape and mastick work fine, although it looks ugly.

I was thinking abs waste pipe might make a good guard. It's tough, impact resistant, softens with heat so should be shapeable and it's easy to cut and file. Although a tin guard looks far nicer.

I like that felling axe particular, looks big.

I thought the active ingredient in most rust removers was phosphoric acid, the iron phosphate is the black stuff left behind.

You can blacken steel using hot apple vinegar, I treated a carbon steel Opinel knife blade, to give it a patination before using it. Worked quite well.

If you are on Instagram, you might enjoy this guy's feed. He restores classic axes and does a bit of trail maintenance with them in New Hampshire.

https://www.instagram.com/cooperhill

neilnevill - Member

I was thinking abs waste pipe might make a good guard. It's tough, impact resistant, softens with heat so should be shapeable and it's easy to cut and file. Although a tin guard looks far nicer.

What kind of wall thickness would it have and how would you secure it from rattling around? Let us know what you decide and post pics or start a thread about it either way.

I like that felling axe particular, looks big.

Yeah it's huge. I have a hankering for a Gransfors American felling axe (even more for a Hults Bruk Arvika) but then I probably wouldn't want to bang wedges with it, and that axe head would still be sitting there. I'll probably still want those other axes when I'm done anyway.

mcmoonter - Member

If you are on Instagram, you might enjoy this guy's feed. He restores classic axes and does a bit of trail maintenance with them in New Hampshire.

https://www.instagram.com/cooperhill

Will check him out, thanks.

My thought was 32mm solvent weld waste pipe, which is abs, it's a couple of mm thick. For large handles you may be super lucky and after warming the pipe just slide it over the haft, getting it to deform and fit.... But that would be too good. Assuming the pipe is too large, slit it, warm and deform, then clamp and glue in place, or maybe a couple of small screws, or drill a set of holes either side of the split and lace it up.

Count, have you any more info on the cider vinegar method please?

My axe head is only lightly/surface rusted but I'd like to remove that and patina it and do it without removing the remnants of blue paint that remain (and suggest it's Scandinavian origin)

I think [i]my[/i] axe is too shark...
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Am I doing it right? 😀

neilnevill - Member

My thought was 32mm solvent weld waste pipe, which is abs, it's a couple of mm thick. For large handles you may be super lucky and after warming the pipe just slide it over the haft, getting it to deform and fit....

Interesting. Definitely sounds like it would be worth a try.

Brick acid takes rust off nicely. Then grease it.

Artisan axe restoration tips?
We have reached Peak Singletrack.
Where do we go from here?

stwhannah - Member

Artisan axe restoration tips?
We have reached Peak Singletrack.
Where do we go from here?

I think peak STW is probably buying a giant artisan restored axe from the chap in Mcmoonter's link then keeping it in your £200 store bought log shed beside your kiln dried firewood, perhaps stroking the axe occasionally of an evening, when you go out to get wood for the stove.

After stroking and oiling the shaft you put the axe back down again, pick up your hand made wine glass and twirl then ends of your well oiled moustache and consider whether an A6 Avant or a T5 should be your next vehicle.

Just sayin.

twirl then ends of your well oiled moustache

You all have moustaches? Dammit, that’s all my fantasy scenarios ruined.

You all have moustaches? Dammit, that’s all my fantasy scenarios ruined

Oh hells yes!

My handles arrived today. Unfortunately one of them was the wrong model, I ordered a 29" curved handle and a 13" curved but the 29" handle which arrived was straight. Happily I contacted Woodsmith Experience and they told me to keep the straight handle and are sending me the one I had initially ordered FOC. Great service and very happy with that as it'll be a handy spare.

Also I offered the handle up to the little hatchet and it feels amazing. It honestly might be my favorite tool when finished. So the handle is soaking in tea now, can't wait to get it it finished and hung. The bigger felling axe head still needs work to get it looking good but I'm excited to get it finished too.

I've got some new handles to fit so a couple of non-fancy heads, after I broke the original ones.

I have the steel wedges etc.

Any tips on how to do it?

Presumably shave down the head end so it just squeezes in to the head. Do I pre split the end? Do I soak it in fair trade yak milk?

Mary Hinge - Member

I've got some new handles to fit so a couple of non-fancy heads, after I broke the original ones.

I have the steel wedges etc.

Any tips on how to do it?

Presumably shave down the head end so it just squeezes in to the head. Do I pre split the end? Do I soak it in fair trade yak milk?

Yes you'll need to cut a kerf in the handle if it doesn't have one already, and you'll need a wooden wedge in addition to a steel pin or wedge. You'll probably want a wooden mallet or deadblow hammer, a chisel or decent knife, lots of sand paper and a vice would handy.

Beyond that youtube tutorials are probably the best way to go as it's a fairly repetitive rinse, repeat process and I certainly don't feel qualified to speak on it. When you are done you will want to oil the handle in some way, linseed oil is the consensus best oil to use.

Count, have you any more info on the cider vinegar method please?

Some of you may like to see this

I've watched that at least once before and almost got sucked into watching the whole thing again. Something oddly therapuetic about watching people make axes.

Jimjam, I presume you meant your head is in the tea.... Not the handle?

When fitting handles take your time, keep filing, fitting, and filing some more. You want as much wood in contact, and as tight as possible before you drive the wedge. I've only done one so far but seemed to get it pretty tight without taking an age. I glued my wood wedge but lots don't, that way if the handle shrinks and loosens the wedge can be driven further. If you use a stepped steel wedge as well then the glue isn't necessary.

Blo, lots of it, will finish the handle nicely.

neilnevill - Member

Jimjam, I presume you meant your head is in the tea.... Not the handle?

Aye. I was so excited to get the handles I was obviously confused. The bowl with the head and the tea has turned totally black now. I don't want to cut the process short but I can't wait - the wee handle feels beautiful.

Blo, lots of it, will finish the handle nicely.

I've been thinking about this a lot recently. A few years ago I bought boiled linseed oil from Homebase or B&Q. It smelled lovely, dried in quickly and left my Gransfors Bruks handles looking great. Recently I had been treating my handles with raw linseed oil and wanted to buy some more boiled stuff, just for that darker colour but the stuff I got from screwfix smells like bleach and doesn't really seem to work well on the handles.

After a little research and some youtubing I am led to believe that modern boiled linseed oil is just linseed oil with chemical drying agents added and can be quite toxic. Now, it wasn't that many years ago that I bough my last batch of BLO but it smelled exactly like raw linseed oil and did a great job. I'd certainly welcome any leads as to where I can buy nice, non chemical BLO in the UK or Ireland otherwise I think I'll be sticking to raw linseed oil or flax oil from now on as it genuinely seems like a nice oil to use and from what I can discern is non toxic.

Bump. In case anyone is interested, my axe head blackening in tea hasn't gone great. The untouched parts of the head that had surface rust are completely jet black but the rest of the head (which I had cleaned up) has only darkened slightly. It's not bad looking, it's a nice looking little head anyway, but I would prefer it was properly black so I might try a different method.

I'm considering starting a general axe modifying/restoration thread as I have three lined up, this thread might do, or is the title and the op too vague?.

girl showed me this at work

I believe you are right about modern blo. Raw lo will polimerise, it just takes a little longer. Longer can be good, it means more time for the liquid oil to penetrate deeply.

I have a bottle of old blo, smells great.

Oh dear re the tea. Try the warm vinegar etch?

I was thinking Oak is full of tannins and hence iron stains it....a load of Oak saw chips in a stew of tea and vinegar.... That won't smell great.

http://www.wood-finishes-direct.com//search-site?q=linseed&search_submit=

Try these guys. Normally give really good advice and there's always someone in the office that seem to have an answer for *any question.

(*That is related to wood finishes)