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My first hewing lesson

Started by Brad_bb, July 16, 2018, 07:23:20 PM

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Brad_bb

FF member Rooster stopped by last Thursday to give me a little hewing lesson.  I knew he'd don't a bit in the last few years and asked him for some help.  I had just purchased a Granfors single bevel right hand hewing axe/hatchet.  I need to hew 20 6x6 beams 9 feet long on 3 sides.  The 4th side is milled. 

I am cheating a bit by milling the log first.  We started by milling 1 inch over per side, but after doing it determined that 1/2 inch over size would work fine and less work.  

He demonstrated on the first few feet, and then I took over and finished it out.  We scored it with the felling axe, then came back with the broad axe.  We are intending to make a video or a few in the near future.


 



 

 

 
Anything someone can design, I can sure figure out how to fix!
If I say it\\\\\\\'s going to take so long, multiply that by at least 3!

Dave Shepard

Looks good, at least on this small screen.  :D I saw to exact size and hew the mill marks off. 
Wood-Mizer LT40HDD51-WR Wireless, Kubota L48, Honda Rincon 650, TJ208 G-S, and a 60"LogRite!

btulloh

Looks good.  I think it would look better if you started with the round log though. :D  

That's easy for me to say when you're swingin' the axe. ;D
HM126

knowslittle

Looks good to me.
Hope you do the videos. . as I have the same axe and little knowledge of how to go about using it well.

sterling08

That is great Brad! I would love to try hewing at some point as well.

When you are all finished hewing, it would be nice if you would provide your thoughts on the preferred size and weight broad axe. Since there are so many broad axe choices, it would be nice to know what your feedback is before purchasing one for myself.

Brad_bb

Anything someone can design, I can sure figure out how to fix!
If I say it\\\\\\\'s going to take so long, multiply that by at least 3!

fishfighter

That made me super tired just watching. :o

YellowHammer

That's nice.  On a lark I bought broadaxe some time ago and decided that since I had so many customers asking for old hand hewn mantels, I'd just do it myself.  Well, it took me a week of about 30 minutes a day which was about all I could take, and I had puny 8x8 x6 foot butternut done, a too big pile of chips, and sold the mantle within a week for a good price.  Since then I hung the axe on the wall and I hadn't made another.  This thread is inspiring me to do it again.  I like the sawhorses.  Should save my back.  

I like the idea of roughing it out with the mill.  
YellowHammerisms:

Take steps to save steps.

If it won't roll, its not a log; it's still a tree.  Sawmills cut logs, not trees.

Kiln drying wood: When the cookies are burned, they're burned, and you can't fix them.

Sawing is fun for the first couple million boards.

Be smarter than the sawdust

Dave Shepard

Fake hewing, or fewing, if done right, will give an authentic finish. If you saw to size and just take the saw marks off, it can go fairly fast. 6"x8"x16'6" white pine was under an hour for four sides,  IIRC.
Wood-Mizer LT40HDD51-WR Wireless, Kubota L48, Honda Rincon 650, TJ208 G-S, and a 60"LogRite!

YellowHammer

Good info, I started from a log and since I knew nothing about hewing other than videos and this site, it's not a surprise it took me forever.  Plus my felling axe was an old yellow handled plastic polished head that I've had for a very long time.  

So comparing fewing with hewing, it did give The customers a little more wow factor when I said it came from a log by hand.  On the other hand, it gave me a more of a "Whew" tired factor.  :D I don't know if fewing would effect final price the customer would be willing to pay.   

My ultimate goal is to build a hand hewn timber frame, but I need a lot more skill and practice.  
YellowHammerisms:

Take steps to save steps.

If it won't roll, its not a log; it's still a tree.  Sawmills cut logs, not trees.

Kiln drying wood: When the cookies are burned, they're burned, and you can't fix them.

Sawing is fun for the first couple million boards.

Be smarter than the sawdust

Brad_bb

Were your ears burning Robert?  If you listen close, you are mentioned a couple times in that video. Don't get tired yet.  It wasn't at all as bad as i thought it would be.  Not having experience, I had a lot of preconceived notions of the difficulty level and worries about my back.  I can say that it was not bad at all.  Once Rooster showed me the technique, which is more than just the steps of scoring and hewing, but the body positioning, and details of the hewing part, it was much easier than I had thought.  I will be detailing what he showed me in another video in a couple weeks(I've got to go mill onsite for a week and a half before I can video some more hewing).  Once he explained the theory and what I'm supposed to be doing with the hewing axe, it was so much easier.  We milled the timber 1/2 inch oversize per side. We found that it makes for a good amount to score with the felling/chopping axe.  He was using a the council tool su jersey axe for chop and hewing.  He modified the bevel to a low angle super sharp so it really bites in with little effort.  It's harder to hew with a double bevel axe like that - takes more experience.  I was using my collins chopping axe, and a Gransfors 1900 hewing axe.  It has a lot more of a curved bit which I like, and it's a single bevel.  Single bevel acts like a plane so when you strike it rides along the already hewn surface and bites the unhewn wood to take it off at the same level.  Single bevel helps you keep your hewing straight and in the same plane. Detail video of the mechanics of hewing to come...
Anything someone can design, I can sure figure out how to fix!
If I say it\\\\\\\'s going to take so long, multiply that by at least 3!

YellowHammer

I'm looking forward to the videos.  
YellowHammerisms:

Take steps to save steps.

If it won't roll, its not a log; it's still a tree.  Sawmills cut logs, not trees.

Kiln drying wood: When the cookies are burned, they're burned, and you can't fix them.

Sawing is fun for the first couple million boards.

Be smarter than the sawdust

badger1

Where did you source the "Granfors single bevel right hand hewing axe"

Tough to find someplace that sells them? I ordered my forrest axe a year or so ago out of a place in Ely, MN. They had one in stock, other sources showed a 3 month wait time for backorder on that axe alone. 
Contact me via PM, willing to help with projects for more experience
1986 Woodmizer LT30, STIHL MS261C, 1997 Dodge 2500 CUMMINS

Brad_bb

I think the only authorized dealer in the us is forestry suppliers. Here's a link to their page.  You have to specify the grind. This hewer is expensive as far as axes go, but it's important to find one that is most comfortable to you.  I like this one over all the other ones, old and new, Rooster brought for me to try.
Double Bevel Grind Gransfor... | Forestry Suppliers, Inc.
Anything someone can design, I can sure figure out how to fix!
If I say it\\\\\\\'s going to take so long, multiply that by at least 3!

Dave Shepard

Highland Woodworking has GB axes, but as mentioned,  some are hard to get. I'd like a single bevel.  I don't care for the double bevel. 
Wood-Mizer LT40HDD51-WR Wireless, Kubota L48, Honda Rincon 650, TJ208 G-S, and a 60"LogRite!

badger1

Quote from: Brad_bb on July 21, 2018, 09:07:30 AM
I think the only authorized dealer in the us is forestry suppliers. Here's a link to their page.  You have to specify the grind. This hewer is expensive as far as axes go, but it's important to find one that is most comfortable to you.  I like this one over all the other ones, old and new, Rooster brought for me to try.
Double Bevel Grind Gransfor... | Forestry Suppliers, Inc.
Thanks I'll keep an eye out, I checked the place I ordered my other GB from and they only carry the two models..
Interesting that there doesnt appear to be all that many providers in that space, not many making them unless they are custom jobs, although to be honest I dont know that there is a tremendous market for them..
$330 for GB and $500 for the other one seems steep to me, although my other GB was $135 i think and it was a piece of artwork when it arrived, I almost hated to use it! Get what you pay for ofocurse. 
Contact me via PM, willing to help with projects for more experience
1986 Woodmizer LT30, STIHL MS261C, 1997 Dodge 2500 CUMMINS

samandothers

Enjoyed the video and watching the process.  I think I'd hit my leg trying to mimic Rooster's motions as he removed the chips from the side.

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