I have seen videos of the ax being spit and HC inserted. I also have seen where a small folded over piece of HC was put over the front edge. Has anyone tried both?

Don't forget but welds and lap welds too!

Most books show it as spitting the body and forging a steel insert for the edge.  Ironically most of the old axes and hatchets I have (thanks to a friend who metal detect) are done the oposite.   The steel bit looks to be v'd over the body and welded.  I've done this before and it does work. 

Wrap around(?) hawks and axes (not sure of the proper term; wrapping a flat piece around a mandrel or drift and welding the two sides together) are a good candidate for adding a HC bit to also

I've heard those called "wrap and weld" axes.

 

I would think the technique would differ depending on your purpose.  If you're making a brand new axe, it makes more sense to sandwich the HC bit material in between the softer body, but if you're re-steeling an axe, and don't want to split the body, then making the V with the HC would be less fussing around.

The 3x's I've forge welded a HC bit into hawks, one I split and the other two were wrapped around a RR spike end that'd been squared off as seen in this picture.

 

 

 

I think Maille maker has the right of it in that it's easier to split and insert on a axe preform than on a finished and worn axe.  Though that video on the old axe business did use the wrap method...

On another forum and on youtube I've seen the outer HC wrap method on new axes. My opinion is if I'm going to the trouble of making an axe, I'd want to be able to use it until it's all ground and honed away.

However I do have an issue with internal HC in an axe, and especially those that have been tempered by drawing color. I would think these became softer and softer as you wear it.

Then we have the single bevel (hewing and log cabin) axe with HC on one side and mild on the other.

One of my adzes has a pad of HC on the back of most of the workiking end it's less than 1/8" thick and was a factory made item.  My broad axe has a strip of HC welded on the edge

 

Some of my old chisels have a steel layer all the way along the back.  (Ohio fleamarkets have a lot of *OLD* tools...

I was just going to ask if anyone did a single-sided HC layer...good timing

Seems like that'd be a fine approach on a broad axe intended for hewing timbers.  Lots of chisels and plane blades were made that way.

 

I really don't know about others.