My Grandpa's Handaxe

Magicman · September 26, 2020, 03:31:13 PM

OK, so it was not really his, but it is exactly like his was. He always called it a "handaxe" so I will too. His handaxe was his pride and joy, but after he died his "stuff" wasn't properly looked out for and his axe went somewhere?? I Googled, found this one, and decided that it needed a home.

It was listed as: Vintage Craftsman Broad Head Single Beveled Edge Hewing Axe.
OK so it is just "stuff" but this is an item that I intend to use, just like he did. smiley_chop

Old Greenhorn · September 26, 2020, 05:30:09 PM

I keep my eyes peeled for one of those in every junk box, yard sale, and auction I go to.I would really love to have one for hewing work. There are a lot of things you just can't do with a standard beveled ax. You have yourself a beaut there. Those things don't go cheap these days, hard to find in any usable condition unless the seller is VERY proud of it. Nice find, I bet you paid a good buck for it.

doc henderson · September 26, 2020, 05:38:09 PM

Might need a leather loop on your apron belt. smiley_chop

samandothers · September 26, 2020, 10:25:11 PM

In the picture/avatar to the left of this post is my dad with a small axe he carried whenever we'd go out walking. I was a small head similar to the one he had in WWII. The handle was short but not as short as a hatchet. Vines, thistles and the like did not stand a chance! My older brother has it.

kantuckid · September 27, 2020, 09:40:41 AM

I have a hatchet more like 50 yrs old/bought as new and German made, that I carried on my KS-Kaw River trapline in a leather belt sheath I made.
I agree on the handaxe vs. hatchet name.
My Grandfathers (My Dad's side & from same MO county as Jesse James-he was born in Ozarks 1889) blade tool that I still use is a drawknife, obviously made by a blacksmith as the cutting edge is inlaid by hammer welding technique. it peeled all my homes 300 ea., wall logs both sides and never missed a beat.

Bruno of NH · September 27, 2020, 09:58:33 AM

Nice find Mr Lynn,
Old axes are a hot item these days

kantuckid · October 06, 2020, 05:50:54 PM

As I was hanging my 48" level on a nail in the shop recently I realized that next nail over, I also have a "carpenters hatchet" from my Grandpa. They have a hammer head on one end, blade with a nail notch on the other.

Don P · October 06, 2020, 06:08:04 PM

That sounds like what I grew up calling a rigging ax. A crew boss of mine used to frame with one. He misstepped off the second floor on a job down near New London after a long drought, baked hard clay. When I got down to him all I saw was the handle sticking out from under him and my mind went to the worst but luckily it was flat under him. His leg was a whole nuther story.

alan gage · October 06, 2020, 08:41:12 PM

Quote from: Don P on October 06, 2020, 06:08:04 PM
A crew boss of mine used to frame with one. He misstepped off the second floor on a job down near New London after a long drought, baked hard clay.

I was told a supposedly true first hand story from someone who was framing a house and one of the guys fell from 3 stories up. He landed flat on his belly in a small area where the homeowner had left the hose running and created a mud hole. Said they guy was unharmed but almost suffocated before they got him pulled out.
Alan

SwampDonkey · October 23, 2020, 02:37:00 AM

Great old axe.

A conversation with the ND hermit about his Isaiah Blood broad axe. ;)

Isaiah Blood broad axe - YouTube

Tom King · October 23, 2020, 11:53:17 AM

also called a "Broad Hatchet". I keep a pair of them, with the bevels facing different directions.

Those old Craftsman ones were probably made by Plumb, which is a very good one.

Magicman · October 24, 2020, 08:53:57 AM

I reset the handle but nothing else yet. Sawing has me busy. :-\

Al_Smith · October 24, 2020, 04:03:59 PM

Those hammer head long handled hatchets were called a riggers axes .I've seen framers drive a 16 D nail in about two swings .Those guys would make two of me .--BTW they were not what you might call "finish carpenters " but they certainly could nail prefab apartments together in a hurry .

Magicman · October 28, 2020, 11:54:11 AM

I am going to declare this project complete.

The handle is reset, it's sharp, and the head is flipped because I wanted the bevel on the opposite side. It won't be hung on a nail to gather dust because I intend to use it.

EDIT: I intended to add that the poll is mushroomed a bit but I decided to leave it as it is.

doc henderson · October 28, 2020, 04:04:15 PM

what a legacy. I think it is an honor that you own it, and it honors your grandpa that his axe is respected, refurbished, and will live on.

Texas Ranger · October 28, 2020, 05:44:43 PM

this posting had me looking at my grandfathers edged tools, all carpentry, roofing and such. I have three generations of tools, proud of my heritage.

samandothers · October 28, 2020, 10:45:26 PM

Lookin sharp!

Don P · October 29, 2020, 10:36:15 PM

FWIW, I think that would be called a Kent pattern. I walked by the kindling box by the wood cookstove in the farm museum the other day, looked down and there was the spitting image of yours.

Brad_bb · November 18, 2020, 07:54:22 PM

I use a Gransfors Bruks 1900. Would this be called right hand or left hand?

Walnut Beast · November 18, 2020, 08:04:47 PM

That's a really good one 👍

woodworker9 · November 19, 2020, 11:04:28 AM

Nice. I have one just like it. Mine is a Plumb. It was my father in laws axe. He taught me a lot about the trades, as he was a home builder/carpenter. I cherish the tools I have that were his. Someday, they will be passed down to my son and grandson.

SwampDonkey · December 14, 2020, 06:20:24 PM

Judging by the way dad looked after hand tools, they are either on a rock pile or in the dirt. Dad had a habit of leaving a tool where it was last used. The workers on the potato harvester always got a kick when an old wrench came up on the conveyor belt with the spuds. :D Hmmm, a tool on a rock pile. Well..........On a rock pile because potato harvesters have a rock dumpster which is dumped in the field in piles where a rock picker machine picks them and dumps them on a pile off site. ;D

Remle · December 27, 2020, 02:38:56 PM

Quote from: Brad_bb on November 18, 2020, 07:54:22 PM
I use a Gransfors Bruks 1900. Would this be called right hand or left hand?

Brad
Based on it's position on the timber, I would say it's a right hand axe. If you hold it in front of you, facing away, with the handle down the bevel should be on the right side and flat on the left. Left hand axes would have the bevel on the left and flat on the right holding it in the same position.