Let's see your axes

[B Halverson]

One of my favorite subspecies of tools are the Plumb handled tools that have the screw wedge, which I think was used from a point in the roaring 20s and discontinued as WWII was breaking out. This hatchet belonged to a very old friend of my sister who's property I was touring. It was still in use at the time, but I asked about it and was able to procure it. I thought it was special because it showed as much use as it could and still function as a hatchet, and also it had it's original screw wedge and probably what is left of it's original handle. Yes I will keep it exactly the way it is in the photos;

 

[Outlawmws]

Wow, that one has been through it!

 

[Beerhippie]

Here's a real vintage axe for you all:


Foto-/medieafdelingen, Moesgård

Found in an archeological excavation at Alken Enge, Denmark, it's about 2,000 years old--and in better shape than some 20th century axes I've found!

 

[cody1325]

Here's a real vintage axe for you all:


Foto-/medieafdelingen, Moesgård

Found in an archeological excavation at Alken Enge, Denmark, it's about 2,000 years old--and in better shape than some 20th century axes I've bought!

My beater Collins boy's axe has more pitting than that! And it's maybe 70.

 

[B Halverson]

No, here is a real vintage axe, not found in a dig, but just sitting in a pile of junk in an old house in my town;

 

[SRU1436]

One of my favorite subspecies of tools are the Plumb handled tools that have the screw wedge, which I think was used from a point in the roaring 20s and discontinued as WWII was breaking out. This hatchet belonged to a very old friend of my sister who's property I was touring. It was still in use at the time, but I asked about it and was able to procure it. I thought it was special because it showed as much use as it could and still function as a hatchet, and also it had it's original screw wedge and probably what is left of it's original handle. Yes I will keep it exactly the way it is in the photos;

Wow, I never knew those screw wedges existed. Fascinating

 

[B Halverson]

Wow, I never knew those screw wedges existed. Fascinating

Yes, Plumb used them in a few different handled tools, I have some hammers and other hatchets with the screw wedges. I am not sure what all they were used in, I have never seen a full sized Plumb axe with one, just the smaller one-hand tools.

 

[GRN96WS6]

I read this as exes.......oops

 

[SRU1436]

Yes, Plumb used them in a few different handled tools, I have some hammers and other hatchets with the screw wedges. I am not sure what all they were used in, I have never seen a full sized Plumb axe with one, just the smaller one-hand tools.

That’s cool, I have a few Plumb axes and they didn’t have screw wedges. Either newer (still old) axes or at some point in time the wedge or handle was replaced.

 

[john.k]

There are Plumb axes made in Oz too...nothing to do with the US maker ..........I have several ,most likely from WW2 surplus ,as they are still army green.

 

[B Halverson]

That’s cool, I have a few Plumb axes and they didn’t have screw wedges. Either newer (still old) axes or at some point in time the wedge or handle was replaced.

It is possible to date a Plumb hatchet, axe or hammer head very accurately by the style of the logo stamped into it's head, at least for the USA-made tools. Having an original handle and wedging system is a bonus though that helps. I think it was in the early 50s that Plumb started using the "permabond" where you look at the top of the tool eye and it is filled with a plastic material. As I said the screw wedge was used from the 1920s up to about WWII, in the 1940s plain wood wedging was used, and before the screw wedge standard wedging was also used but of course Plumb tools that old had different stamps than the 1940s tools, often with a ship's anchor as part of their logo and Fayette Plumb's signature or name. I am positive that Bladeforums has it all spelled out.

 

[B Halverson]

Here is an old Plumb half-hatchet with it's original screw-wedge, wedging and handle. Notice the cross-pattern to the wedging used with the screw wedge, very unique. also I like the logo Plumb used insome of the Screw-wedge era, some of them are very detailed and fancy compared to earlier or later ones.

 

[Outlawmws]

Found in an archeological excavation at Alken Enge, Denmark, it's about 2,000 years old--and in better shape than some 20th century axes I've found!

Unbelievable that the wood is intact. did it land in a bog and get mummified?

 

[Beerhippie]

Unbelievable that the wood is intact. did it land in a bog and get mummified?

Yep. Bogs are such a reducing environment, they actually make native iron--bog iron was one of the first sources of iron to start the iron age.

As for where this was found, it was a bog lake that someone threw the remains from a battle a year or two before into. Hundreds of them. Life was nasty, brutal and short back then--the good old days.

 

[B Halverson]

I cut down a tree in my yard a while back that was a nuisance and some oddball species I did not know. I was cutting it up and splitting it and stacking it by the road for people who wanted it for firewood but one nice log I decided to hew into a beam. I used nothing but an old Kelly Flint-Edge single-bit that my wife bought at a local estate sale for $2 that was in really nice original condition. I ended up using the beam as part of a fence around a garden.

 

[Outlawmws]

I ended up using the beam as part of a fence around a garden.

Very cool! I bet that was a bit of a workout!

 

[Provincial]

I have some sections of beams from a bridge that was built around 1900. They are Douglas Fir 12x12's and were hand hewn on site from trees harvested at the site. You can clearly see where they made witness marks with a crosscut saw to guide the broadaxe cuts.

I pulled these out of the creek downstream from the bridge site the summer after it collapsed, and have them stored under cover using "stickers" to keep them from deteriorating further.

 

[B Halverson]

Very cool! I bet that was a bit of a workout!

Sure it is, but swinging an axe is always so much fun you never think of it that way. Even when I was a kid and my father made me split wood all summer long until my hands bled I enjoyed it.

 

[B Halverson]

I have some sections of beams from a bridge that was built around 1900. They are Douglas Fir 12x12's and were hand hewn on site from trees harvested at the site. You can clearly see where they made witness marks with a crosscut saw to guide the broadaxe cuts.

I pulled these out of the creek downstream from the bridge site the summer after it collapsed, and have them stored under cover using "stickers" to keep them from deteriorating further.

I imagine for a lot of settlers having more than one axe was an impossible luxury. Was that Thoreau who went and lived by a small lake and with just one axe made a home and everything he needed to live? I don't think most people ever had a saw until into the industrial era. An axe may be the king of tools in that regard and in some respects if you look what it can do, maybe not everything well, but darn near everything.

 

[Josh Dekubber]

Picked up a couple old axes today for cheep.
Fulton No.4
and
Collins

 

[ctuai]

Picked up another hatchet and realized I had a collection... 3's a collection right ? I also included my navy pilot's survival knife as celebration of deciding to make it a keeper.

Schrade Walden MIL-K-8662 (AER) Pilot Survival Knife 1953-1957 144-L Parkerized; True Temper Flint Edge; Plumb Boy Scout; Shapleigh Diamond Edge PA-08?​

 

[ctuai]

Just hafted my Collins, Hudson Bay pattern axe with a 19" straight/miners handle from Beaver Tooth. I like the norse look. Goofed around with the finish and the hickory did well with the gel stain (coffee) and the dark brown Briwax finish.

Haven't had a chance to work with it, but the Hudson Bay pattern has certain evocative note for us Canadian's abroad.



Here it is with my Kelly Hand Made.


Sunk it pretty square.

 

[Josh Dekubber]

Very cool!

 

[ctuai]

Just hafted my Collins, Hudson Bay pattern axe with a 19" straight/miners handle from Beaver Tooth. I like the norse look. Goofed around with the finish and the hickory did well with the gel stain (coffee) and the dark brown Briwax finish.

Haven't had a chance to work with it, but the Hudson Bay pattern has certain evocative note for us Canadian's abroad.



Here it is with my Kelly Hand Made.


Sunk it pretty square.

Cut up some 6" thick maple rounds into kindling and it was totally fun. Never used a hudson bay before and the power is definitely in top edge and diminishes in power and control as you strike past center, which makes sense given its shape. The 19" straight handle with both hands provides good control at full strike. Ready to haul it up the St. Lawrence.

and knocked out a sheath

 

[Josh Dekubber]

Today I Cleaned up my Collins 3 1/2 &
Fulton No. 4
Put them up for sale and they sold immediately.

 

[Beerhippie]

Today I Cleaned up my Collins 3 1/2 &
Fulton No. 4
Put them up for sale and they sold immediately.

I've been informed that you've ruined the collector's value of those by cleaning them up

 

[Josh Dekubber]

I've been informed that you've ruined the collector's value of those by cleaning them up

All good I made my money

 

[Outlawmws]

Nice work Josh, I like the Collin's stylin'.

 

[Josh Dekubber]

Nice work Josh, I like the Collin's stylin'.

Thanks!
These are my new ones to take out and beat on. They seem to review well so we'll see how they do.

 

[crguy]

Today I Cleaned up my Collins 3 1/2 &
Fulton No. 4
Put them up for sale and they sold immediately.

I know several serious axe collectors, and not one of them would be happy with either of those.

 

[four.cycle]

I've been informed that you've ruined the collector's value of those by cleaning them up

All good I made my money

Funny thing....

Several years ago I saw a listing for an old Gellman "Polly" wrench that an ebay seller had gussied up a bit.
My first thought was "Nobody in their right mind is going to pay that price for that wrench after what that guy did to it."
He had several other pieces he'd reworked in the same fashion: completely over-the-top stuff - mirror finish.

They all sold at auction for ridiculous money.

One man's trash....

 

[Josh Dekubber]

I know several serious axe collectors, and not one of them would be happy with either of those.

Well I guess there's a lot of non serious axe collectors around where I live and if I can easily turn five times profit or more with little effort I'll do it again. To each their own.
No disrespect
If I ruin any more axes for resale/financial gain I'll try to remember not to post them on here. I'm not trying to offend anyone.

 

[Outlawmws]

If I ruin any more axes for resale/financial gain I'll try to remember not to post them on here.

Post away, we like seeing tools restored to usefulness.

 

[crguy]

Funny thing....

Several years ago I saw a listing for an old Gellman "Polly" wrench that an ebay seller had gussied up a bit.
My first thought was "Nobody in their right mind is going to pay that price for that wrench after what that guy did to it."
He had several other pieces he'd reworked in the same fashion: completely over-the-top stuff - mirror finish.

They all sold at auction for ridiculous money.

One man's trash....

Funny thing....

Several years ago I saw a listing for an old Gellman "Polly" wrench that an ebay seller had gussied up a bit.
My first thought was "Nobody in their right mind is going to pay that price for that wrench after what that guy did to it."
He had several other pieces he'd reworked in the same fashion: completely over-the-top stuff - mirror finish.

They all sold at auction for ridiculous money.

One man's trash....

People that pay good money for stuff like that will learn the hard way. P. T. Barnum had a saying that fits.

 

[Provincial]

They have a saying at the equipment auction: "Paint is worth a thousand dollars a gallon."

 

[Outlawmws]

Hmmm, so tell me CR, your little hot rod in your avatar; completely stock? Never been repainted? All its hard won "Patina" intact?

How about the wood working machines you like to fix up? All as-found? Rust is intact?

 

[crguy]

Hmmm, so tell me CR, your little hot rod in your avatar; completely stock? Never been repainted? All its hard won "Patina" intact?

How about the wood working machines you like to fix up? All as-found? Rust is intact?

Collectible axes and hot rods have nothing in common that I can think of. None of my stuff has rust on it after I own it for a while. You may not understand the differences.

 

[Outlawmws]

Collectible axes and hot rods have nothing in common that I can think of. None of my stuff has rust on it after I own it for a while. You may not understand the differences.

I think its you that is not understanding the difference here. None of these things are "artifacts" the way something in an archaeological dig might be. They are just old tools; often neglected and abused, and removing rust that does not belong there does nothing to reduce its value, and can in fact increase its value, if that cleanup reveals markings otherwise not visible under the rust.

IMO your "serious axe collectors" are misapplying the concepts of preservation.

 

[2oolhound]

This is an interesting discussion. I'm seeing 3 categories of axe aficionados here.
1 - Collectors who have a keen interest in all aspects of a tool
2 - Collectors who see tools as a financial investment
3 - End users who want to put the tool back to use

I see #'s 1 + 2 as often being one and the same or a category with many overlapping ideals. However I think money often has the effect of hiding or over shadowing the true value or importance of things on the planet. As a #3 myself I was disgruntled anytime I was out bid on a tool I wanted or a collector had too high a price on a tool I wanted and so had little respect for collectors. After being on GJ for over 10 years I've been amazed at the level of knowledge and depth of research invested into tools here and so have gained a new respect and appreciation for the serious collectors here. Bravo to you serious collectors here, I enjoy reading your posts and learning these details. That said as a #3 I'll always polish an ax or chisel to a mirror finish because I know it will cut deeper than a tool covered in rust or pock marks and it will not bind in the wood. I suppose there is a limit to the amount of dollar value a tool has before I'll let it take precedence over a tools' usefulness to me but when I come across a tool at an affordable price I'll be polishing it up to it's peak usefulness and put it in my working tools arsenal.

To each his own

PS: just had a thought, remember when denim manufacturers washed jeans with rocks to make them look old? Called them "Stone Washed". Cabinet makers did similar by splashing paint on new furniture to try to make them look "antique". Isn't it good that they don't do that with tools.

 

[crguy]

This is an interesting discussion. I'm seeing 3 categories of axe aficionados here.
1 - Collectors who have a keen interest in all aspects of a tool
2 - Collectors who see tools as a financial investment
3 - End users who want to put the tool back to use

I see #'s 1 + 2 as often being one and the same or a category with many overlapping ideals. However I think money often has the effect of hiding or over shadowing the true value or importance of things on the planet. As a #3 myself I was disgruntled anytime I was out bid on a tool I wanted or a collector had too high a price on a tool I wanted and so had little respect for collectors. After being on GJ for over 10 years I've been amazed at the level of knowledge and depth of research invested into tools here and so have gained a new respect and appreciation for the serious collectors here. Bravo to you serious collectors here, I enjoy reading your posts and learning these details. That said as a #3 I'll always polish an ax or chisel to a mirror finish because I know it will cut deeper than a tool covered in rust or pock marks and it will not bind in the wood. I suppose there is a limit to the amount of dollar value a tool has before I'll let it take precedence over a tools' usefulness to me but when I come across a tool at an affordable price I'll be polishing it up to it's peak usefulness and put it in my working tools arsenal.

To each his own

PS: just had a thought, remember when denim manufacturers washed jeans with rocks to make them look old? Called them "Stone Washed". Cabinet makers did similar by splashing paint on new furniture to try to make them look "antique". Isn't it good that they don't do that with tools.

I would add that what I call "serious collectors" are those that work to find and preserve tools in as close to new original condition as possible. No overcleaning, buffing, repairing, modifying, etc., etc.