Alton

Alton was the younger of the two grandfathers.

farming at the gateway to the sandhills.

Hammer

Tools of choice: my go to hammer. 

better depth of head, especially when using for outdoor construction.

 the sides have milled surfaces that can be used for tight spots.

the steep claw is aggressive for removing jacked-up nails or other fasteners.

Findley's hatchets II

Received an 18" white hickory handle. good grain and shape. 

had to reduce the diameter of the eye and the helve's shoulder (reducing the shoulder diameter makes it look more proportional). 

the head still needs to be hung.

the new handle laying next to the older one. looks more balanced and definitely feels more balanced. Handles can be too long: however my preference is that a bit longer is better than too short. better leverage, better reach and less fatigue. if one needs more control just choke up on the handle.

Cabinet

A cabinet that was ineligible for reclaim. 

 5 foot flames from this little cabinet. rocket ship effect.

Hair & grain

The similarities between Frances' hair

                          and harvest ready grain.

Findley's hatchets

From the Findley are two great hatchets: one is a Wards, the other is a Hackett Diamond. both are brilliant hatchets from his family's past. it has been great fun working on these Americans. both of these are to be in the hands of the next generation, gifts to outdoorsmen: used and relied on.

both are and will be treated differently. 

the Wards here is to be brought back to an earlier age where the new bearer (a nephew) will make his great grandfather's hatchet age as he did. this is the original patina. the tool itself was well taken care of.

testing the temper, this is a very functional tool.

with a bit of work the initial polish shows good shine and the cutting edge angle was tightened up.

a sharper angle will give this tool better cut and more function. 

the Hackett is of an older era (older that the Wards) and was one of those real treats to work with. after all it was in the hands of great great grandfather. from the patina to the old school modifications, this tool read to me like a real sense of reality (a "give it a fix so i can get back to work" feel). with this in mind, we wanted to do less shine and more leave it as it is look. 

had to remove the older handle. i did save the handle and the eye hardware so Findley could use them for later. i do try at not letting anything go to waste, especially if they have some significance from the past. 

this hatchet shown NO use of modern grinders, so i was not worried about the temper. in fact, his hand filing was so obvious i could see a slight curve in the file marks. just like words on a page i could actually read the movements of his great grands sharpening technique, right down to the direction his hand favored when applying pressure to the file. good book.

this hatchet was about leaving a bit of the past; therefore some of the patina. there was some rust, so oil and some hand rubbing reduced its impact. for a bit of show, the hatchet's steel was removed to show it in a more original state. this photo does not do it justice, GREAT steel and great shine.

this cutting edge was also tightened up. 

both hatchets need a final polish (mostly the Wards) and cutting edge hone. as well as re-handling( i have had to order some new Tennessee hickory handles for these) and flash.

Treasure chests

The two older boys get double walled treasure chests. made heavy to take more of a beating. i will have to find some more materials to make one for the youngest. 

made from wine crates, trim & furniture remnants.

 using the whole buffalo.