Axes, Hatchets, Hawks, Choppers, etc

Not everything in the world of cutting tools are for slicing. This section is for non-sword non-slicing things, such as chopping, stabbing, peircing and generaly hacking away. The focus here is on taking a beating rather than edge retenttion axes hatchets hawks machete adze and fro's

So I have an old hatchet head that has the back entirely mushroomed and then has a crack going all the way from the top of the eye to the bottom and this crack entirely parts the axe so it can bend open I am taking it to my trade school to fix it today as it is the last day we can actually weld I cannot get pictures at this time as I spoke to my high school resource officer the previous day and he agreed to keep it in his office until I go to tech before I brought it in i ground the edge down to a quarter inch thick so it won’t be considered a weapon My question is am I going to have to anneal the entire axe before weld this or should I heat it up then weld it while it…

I went to blacksmith in my town to see what he do and to learn new things. He was peening axe like (one will peen sythe) just using heat and great hits of hammer. So i want to share this with you.

Anyone ever forge on a carpenter's hatchet like the one below? What kind of steel is it in general terms? I'd like to reforge it into a spike tomahawk type we see here in the northeast. This would involve drawing out the top hammer section into a long spike. I'd probably try to upset the side with the slit in it to save as much of that material as I can and then grind the remaining bit of the slit flat so I have a smooth side. Then I plan on shaping and drawing out the blade section to the typical shape. Any idea on the quench and heat treat?

Many years before getting into blacksmithing I did a handle reproduction for this authentic axe head dug out of the ground. My customer wanted the handle and axe head to look like it had been found in a dry cave or and old barn. The color of the photos is really off on the handle because of the lighting used, but the star here isn't my handle. Take a look at this axe head. You can really see that the axe body was made from wrought iron and the bit was made of high carbon steel. The maker's mark is really not distinguishable other than to say it's there. I'm guessing this is a French trade style axe, but there may be others with more knowledge about this. I thought …

Can I make axe by welding those together and shaping eye . Would it be good axe? It's leaf spring, it's wedge shaped . I thought to forge weld two parts together. I cut those ends

Tried folding up a large file to get the preform. Works ok good practice forge welding (five I think) but in the end lose too much metal and what’s left is toy sized.

Interesting process from a smith doing hand-forged production work with an unusual wrapped construction. I don’t know that I’ve seen anyone build up the poll by welding in a piece where the back of the eye will be, instead of drawing down the sides of the blank and leaving extra thickness at the back. (There’s no narration, so feel free to mute the repetitive incidental music.)

Hi, I saw a tool online that I would like to make to remove roots from the ground. It's like a lever, a crowbar, and it's used like a spade. I think it's very versatile. Unfortunately, it's very expensive, so I would have to make it with recycled materials. Could you give me some useful advice? Thanks, regards Tool dimensions: Total height 1385mm. Blade width at widest point: 170mm Blade height 245mm Handle: 225mm https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1595/0595/files/Theslammertool_Operating_manual_v4_-_WEB_compressed.pdf?38

I am a weapons collector (not a blacksmith) and a local blacksmith says that he is forging his axe blades and eyes separately and then welding them together at the joint (shown in the attached photo). Is this a no-no?

I have a friend who asked me to make them a hatchet similar to a viking handaxe. I have never made a hatchet or tomahawk so I've been browsing this forum and am curious where people source new steel. I don't really want to make the hatchet from the salvage material I have because I know it's really old leaf springs and I can't vouch for their long-term durability. I have found a few websites that sell S-7 tool steel and one that will sell 4140 steel, but both are round stock 1"-1.5". How painful is it going to be to make a hatchet out of that if I don't have a power hammer or a press? I also don't have any punches, but I do have the steel to make a drift for the eye. Is t…

Hello all, a friend and I are making a pair of axes. This is my first time trying to do this, and I don’t know how to proceed. The eyes are too long, so I was going to try and upset them to make them more round, and then put a drift through them to make them the right size, but the cheeks are very thick. Should I try to thin out the cheeks? And should I do this with a cross pein or fuller, or just the flat hammer face? Also, the transition from the cheeks to the blade of the axe seems too thick to me, but I wonder if thinning out the cheeks would help with that?

is integral the right name? not sure but its made like a full tang knife! anyway, made from 5160 (leaf spring) and all one piece, measuring about 14" overall, 5'' handle, and a head about 3.5'' wide. It averages 1/4'' thick, but the head tapers to the edge and the tang under the cherry bwood scales is tapered in thickness as well. overall was very fun to make and feels very nice to hold

I have been attempting to make a bearded Viking style axe from mild steel with a 80crv2 bit. I have made axes before and I recently completed one of my first ones with a welded in bit. I was working on this one and I do not have pics of the end state… because i salvaged it in other ways… it is still an axe, just not in a form that illustrates the issue. The welding is not the issue… It welds fine, the issue is that I have to take a ton of welding heats to blend the steels together on bit. Should the bit be flush with the split ends of the body for easier welding? The other thing is that when I prepared the bit, I tapered the entire bit …

I just finished up a pipe tomahawk today. I forged it out of a peice of 1inch Dom pipe with ¼inch walls, slit it down the middle and forge welded a 1080 bit. The handle is charred hickory with a damascus smoke plug. I put a sliver of leather between the bowl and the handle to create a better seal.

Hey everyone! I was looking to do a wrapped eye axe with a poll. I was wondering what everyone would recommend for a starting size for the mild steel body, especially the thickness of the steel to start with. Looking to make a 2-2.5lb axe when all is done for a 28” boys axe. Thanks in advance!

What's the best steel for an axe head? Only quench steels, no air hardening. I was thinking 4140 or 5160.

I am going to try to make a fold over leaf spring axe. I have heard that it is VERY difficult to forge weld leaf springs, however on another topic on the forum a guy mentions using a mixture of charcoal and borax and using it as a flux, he called it "Alaska Flux." https://www.iforgeiron.com/topic/44538-how-to-forge-weld-leaf-spring/ I was wondering if it actually works, and if not are there any other tips on how to weld forge leaf springs.

I was messing around yesterday and thought it’d be fun to try a wrapped eye tomahawk. I thought I had it welded up but when I drifted it the weld popped the entire length and only left the very edge welded (I think). I set the weld using a 2ish pound hammer and then really hit it with a 4 pound drill hammer. The top was welded but I barely got the bottom to weld. My question is what did I do wrong with the weld as to have it pop the entire length? Sorry for the blurry picture of the edge itself.

Before I asked my question I'll let you know about my blacksmithing I'm doing it all old school as possible Bellows ran by foot pedal, wood and black coal for fuel. And starting with iron ore and turning it to Steel by adding my own carbon. And what I've been blacksmithing is a bearded axe with the size and weight of a maul. Now you know my metal working I need some advice on wood for handle. I know everyone seems to think hickory is best. I know of bitternut Hickory and Shaggy Bark Hickory both grow within my area but I've also heard of a more dense wood I also grows in my area I use it as my wood fuel Osage orange also referred to as hedge. Now the question is which H…

I've been making axes for several years now and i'm still unable to remove/cover up the weld seam created on the top and bottom of an axe head. I have no problems welding, It's just that pesky seam. Now I can use an gas or electric welder to over the seam but I would love to do it in the forge. I've seen original axe heads from the 17-1800's and they all have a weld seam. Oh, I have no issues welding pattern welded knives. here's what I've tried... rounded swage block, cross peen ect to

Axe making is very rewarding and I think anyone can turn out one without a bunch of tools if you do a wrapped eye. All you need is a bar around a half inch thick at least an inch and a half wide 8 or 9 inches long. Using your anvil corners to start the eye and the poll you will easily see what to do next. This is the easiest forge weld, especially if you can tack weld the bit in place. I say it’s easy because it’s thick and once the bit and the rest of the axe are the same color white for a minuite it will stick! thought I’d share a few pictures of preforms to shoot for. If you want a Viking style with pointed langettes top and bottom they appear as you thin the are…

I’m looking to collaborate with/commission someone to help me convert a hatchet into a carving axe. I have some basic ideas that I’d like to incorporate, and discuss, but am open to any collaborative design input. The goal would be to convert a conventional hatchet head (that I would provide) into a carving axe by reforging the shape of the head, grinding a scandi bevel (thinking 30 deg flat grind) and then heat treating. If anyone is interested in collaborating on this, please let me know. I’m happy to work with anyone who has the equipment and would be excited to learn (don’t be shy to reach out even if you don’t have a lot of experience). Something like this:…

My nephew is about to turn 8 I think I’ll put a little handle on this and give it to him. I made it same as a real one with fire welded bit. Eye got a little thin would have liked a pointed langette