Axe restoration using a riffler to hang the head

The week before the boys go to school we took a little camping trip.

came in late to work and then had the day to do some striking tool restoration.

when getting the head to fit on as perfect as possible one needs to make sure not to take off too much material. the more wood touching the inner eye of the head the better the hang and the more reliable the final product will be.

to do this i use a riffler (a small rasp). this allows me to take of material in a more controlled manner.

here is a quick 4 photo shot of one of many trial fittings i do before the head gets all the way on. i am happening to show this toward the end of the fitting.

first i seat the head. i do tap with a mallet, it will not just slide on.

after on as far as it goes i remove the head and look for the rub marks. here it can be seen by the blackish marks. these are the spots that will have to be riffle filed down.

also there is a distinct line that will have to be taken down to for the next trial fitting to go deeper into the eye. 

here the eye wood looks after riffling. 

now ready for another trial fitting. 

used a mallet again with the trial fitting to get a better seat. 

two more fittings and this collins pack hatchet is ready for the wedge.

Field notes and a chronodex per work day

An essential part of me is being capable.

not wanting to disappoint myself, on all work days i make a "chronodex" (that i keep in my back pocket field notes booklet) to visually organize my time. 

with this i can see if i really do have any blocks of time i can work on a project. 

different blocks of time afford different opportunities depending on my current project list. 

lots of project going on simultaneously means i can do something no matter how much time i have.

making a chronodex only takes a few minutes.  just enough time to organize the days potential.

the more ornate the timepiece the longer i needed to think something through.

today i had something on my mind.

i am very keen to this visual organizer

the inner ring = midnight to 9a then 9p to midnight

the outer ring = noon to 9p then 9a to noon.

this may seem odd at first but the outer ring is to represent the more functioning parts of the day 

9a to 9p.

red is my sleep time and the pencil blocks is work or obligations.

blank are the opportunities to make something.

Sanding axe and hatchet handles

One of the steps before hanging any tool is to sand the handle down.

hickory is by far my favorite wood to use on all of my striking tools. one of the characteristics is the fibers can have some texture to them. this creates a friction on the hand and leaves channels that the paint can flow under the masking tape (leaving tributaries of color).

depending on the handle some take more sanding than others.

here is a slightly more extreme case of before and after sanding

a slightly more extreme case to show the before and after necessity of sanding tool handles.

a sanded handle will perform better in the hand and show off the grain of the wood so much better.

Axe restoration and cutting wedges

When hanging axe or hatchet heads attention to the quality of the wedge should be taken in to consideration.

I do use some stock wedges, but i find that if i do buy a handle that has a wedge with it, it may not be suitable for the eye that it is to be inserted into. 

in that case, just make it.

today i hung 4 hatchets and 1 double bit and found myself needing to make 4 wedges.

i rough cut a 1"x4" board and then cut that in half.

axe restoration cutting wedges

after sawing in half i make quick work of the shaping on a bench sander.

with the shape cut, sanded and sized i rough the surface (with a flat rifler) to increase the surface area and opens up the wood to better absorb the wood glue that will help it swell before curing. this will tighten the fit.

axe restoration hand cut wedge shaped and then roughed.

Length of shower

A one beer shower

and 

what a great shower it was.

colorado's great divide brewery's "claymore scotch ale":

this is a beer where the nose has the exact traits as the taste.

smell and taste = big malt with caramel and roasted barley.

7.7% octane

Zenith double bit restoration

This Zenith has been great to work with and i am starting to see some progress on re-establishing a proper bit to cheek transition.

kicking up the metal fines as i work on removing the hollow grind the past owner put on this Zenith double bit

the previous owner had put a sort of hollow grind on both sides of the primary bevel. reminds me of what some people do to their chisels. anyway, the thought of it on an axe doesn't sit well with me.

not only does a trough in the middle of a bevel look awkward it will do nothing to reduce the resistance because 3/8" into the cheek is the elevated portion again.

At over 4 pounds this double bit has a good weight to it without being a burden.

Mushroom poll on axe or hatchet

There is a lot of subjective advice out there and one should always way out their references, but here is a set in stone piece for all: please never use your axe or hatchet's poll as a sledge, hammer 

or wedge (when one uses another sledge to pound the back of the axe through).

mushrooming is a symptom of pounding on the back of a hatchet or axe.

the exception to this rule are axes/hatchets that have special tempered polls made for striking.

unfortunately, the vast majority of polls are not tempered to give or take impact.

not only does the impact show on the curled burr that forms but also denting on the poll surface itself.

the good news is that mushrooming does not mean the end of the tool, although it is a serious red flag.

if there is evident mushrooming then the eye must be checked for 

deforming (sagging on one side or the other) or cracks coming from the eye.

if these are there then the can no longer be trusted as functional.

but

if there are no other defects then the mushroom has to be controlled with filing.

it pains me to do this because it is a reminder to poor use/abuse, but other than that the tool is still in perfect to use. 

getting the tool back to work is a way to reverse its history and start afresh.