Don A

Like Phil said... I sprinkle it under the rose bushes.

I know a guy who has a PVC tube strapped to the lower side of a Gold Wing motorcyle to carry a Brown Bess musket to reenactments. I'll have to suggest the fins and nose cone to him. I'd say that Alaskans are more ammused than shaken up. Imagine driving that rig through California.

I have made some of the two-piece tools, but instead of drilling a big block and then cutting it, I took two blocks of equal size and matched them flat to flat; square and even, then clamped it up tight. I then stuck a couple small tack welds on either end, then removed the clamps. I center punched it right in the joint line on the top and then drilled through. After getting any springs or angle pieces attached, you knock the tacks off and your two halves are free. As stated above, ease the edges, because they will be sharp.

Wesley, That is a really neat video. I seriously think that would make a good teaching medium. Not necessarily for beginners, but once you understand the basic process, you can watch the piece materialize before your eyes. Real-time step-by-step videos are good, but they are either incredibly long or they omit parts of the process. Here you can watch the iron move with every blow. I don't know; maybe it's one of those right-brain / left-brain things, but this just seems to make sense to me. Oh, and by the way, good forging. Don

That looks really good. Natural and functional.

John, If you enjoy the quest for doing this yourself, that is great. Plenty of good advice given so far. However, if you find that your time, material, and trouble are worth more than $20, you can order 'em pre-drilled from Dunlap: http://www.dunlapwoodcrafts.com/TomahawkHandles.php

Neil, What it really comes down to is that there is no period correct eye protection, except to blink with good timing ;) Check out all of the old industrial b&w YouTubes from the early 20th century. Still not much PPE to be found. If eye protection is more important than an accurate portrayal, use whatever you would normally use. Some of the above examples are pretty cool, but that site you volunteer for might rather you would just use a pair of clear side-shield glasses than to leads folks to believe that there is some historic precedence for safety glasses in 1812. This will depend completely on the standards of the management of the site you're working for. I've seen folks wearing those little purple tinted glasses for "period" sunglasses, when in fact, I believe those were originally prescribed for syphilis patients. B)

I had to twist some 1" by hand not long ago. I normally twist 1/2" or less at what I would call a decent orange heat. I was straining my guts out on the 1". I went back into the forge and let it come up to a bright yellow heat and then I could move it. It was still tough, but it would move. Great hint on the tube, John. I'll definitely be trying that soon.

For a beginner, too many heats can give you trouble as well, especially with some of the A-36 hot-rolled steel. I've notice this in making forks and things that reqiure a thin neck on a long piece. I believe that, ultimately, it is a combination of all the above. So I'll second what Rich said.

Undoubtedly one of the coolest videos I have seen. Thanks for sharing it.

Very nice. I have just finished my first san mai effort, and it has given me much greater respect for those who are good at it. Good work.

Here's where I get mine; http://www.dunlapwoodcrafts.com/TomahawkHandles.php Their tear-drop handles closely match my drift.

How about all them horns and heels ole' Sherman broke off our anvils when he marched through the South?

JE That is one way to look at it, but here's my take: My time is money. I work a 40hr week just to get to come home and do this stuff. I have figured out how to make a decent knife and some decent iron work, but I'm still terribly slow. I have a page-long list of stuff that I have promised out... all of it paying work. Now, I can wait for a deal on a decent grinder and, for the $$$ I made on a couple knives, I can buy it and be done. The time I would be spending on a grinder build can now be used in the forge and in the shop. And hopefully, one of these days, I'll move up another notch, sell a couple better knives, sell my Griz to a needy smith, and buy myself a KMG. I'm not saying that I wouldn't love to scratch build a grinder, but there's only 24 hours in each day, and only a small portion of that can be used in the shop. Spending some money on some tools is my way of stretching it out a bit.

It's hard to tell from your pictures, but it does appear that you have some decent technique, but your application lacks a lot to be desired. Now, I mean this as constructive criticism, so I'm not telling you anything that I haven't been told over the years. First of all, rebar is OK for hammer practice or to make hooks for a garden shed, but it is of little worth for anything that is going to be seen or used in a historical context. Get some good steel. I'm not sure what you mean by "frontier steel", but you can find evidence of fine steel and fine blades before 1000AD. "Old" doesn’t imply "crappy". If a long hunter or trapper had invested the equivalent of a year’s wages in a musket or a rifle, I doubt he would have carried a blade that would be classified as slightly better than a prison shank. The flintlock gun began to fade from use around 1820 with the advent of the percussion cap. It is from this period forward, through the Civil War and into the early 20th century that more of the "home-spun" knives and implements begin to appear. So yes, you can find some rough and cobbled stuff from the "frontier" period, but that was usually of necessity. If you are truly interested in this type of stuff, do your homework. Learn to forge and learn your history. If you're not 100% proud of what you've just finished, throw it in the do-over bucket and start over. Be your own harshest critic, and work until you can satisfy yourself. I often steal this from a source I have long since forgotten: "pursue perfection; settle for excellence". Don... still in pursuit; still haven't settled

That looks realy good for a first go. Your eye and the weld look good from here, and that's the hard part (to me, anyway). I would suggest that you next work on getting more spread across the edge end and establish a more "hawk-like"profile. It helps to start with the iron body forged to look like a flat-topped bow tie before you wrap it. Then, you leave plenty of meat at the edge for welding and after your weld is set, you can use your cross pien parallel to the body of the axe and then flatten the ridges smooth. Your looking to make it kinda like a fan with a circular spread. And keep it flat across the top of the profile. Did you have any trouble getting the 5160 to weld? I've heard it can be rough. Good work. Stay at it. Don

I got the ceramic platten at USA Knifemaker Supply

Went from this: To this: To this: This was a first for me and I've been mighty pleased with it so far.

Good score. Does it have a pritchel hole (round) or just the hardy (square)? I've got one very similar.

Congratulations! Beautiful, amazing work. Honor well deserved.

Welcome to the addiction, and good first effort. Any "first" is better than nothing. "First" means you've quit talking and thinking about it and have started doing it. Now, if you're serious, find some good instruction. Get with some local smiths and learn. Ask around this forum... I'm sure threre are some smiths and groups in the Vegas area. Books are good if they are good books. Iforge is a good place to get recommendations. There is some excellet stuff on YouTube, but there is a ton of junk. Be discerning. At best you can learn wrong information; at worst you can get hurt. Any idiot can post a video, and many have. Again, Iforge is a good place to check references. You'll find that some of our regulars on here have posted some great YouTubes. Good luck and stay at it.

Angle grinder with flat sanding discs in varying grits can do some good, clean work. But like everything else, it takes a lot of practice to get the touch. I heard a man say once concerning building wooden bows "what you can ruin in 10 minutes with a hand tool you can ruin in 10 seconds with a power tool". This applies to blades as well. Draw filing is good to learn. It teaches blade geometry and patience all at the same time.

NIce looking work. Good job.

That is a really good looking blade... nice piece of antler too. Now, if you really want critique, I'll offer this: It looks like you were on the way to a top-notch knife until the very end and then you rushed it. A nice bolster area treatment would have really put this one over the top. Pewter would look great, but simply rounding the antler and having a neat pin job would be good. I must confess, when I first started down the path of "making my own", I used artificial sinew on everything, but now I hate it. It is strong, but the best it will ever look is "artificial". Plus, I'm not a big fan of hiding good handle material under hide and leather and such. But that's one man's opinion; there might be a thousand others who love that wrap-handle treatment. All that said, it's still a fine looking piece. Great job on the pattern weld. And kudos on getting a good weld with 5160... I've heard it can be tough.

Just remember, when forge welding, that the high carbon stuff needs a lower welding temp than mild. If you're used to coming out with mild at "high yellow, nearly white & almost sparking", you'll be burning the W-1. Should stick good though, if you get the heat right.