ede Posted February 10, 2018 Share Posted February 10, 2018 The eye is not smooth like a drift has went through, in fact it is rough with a noticeable protrubance, almost in the shape of a whale. The surface has very rough texture caused by pitting or forging/scale. I would like to avoid taking a grinder to this using the spart test. Could this be wrought with a tool steel edge? This is a shipbuilders adze with no identifiable makers mark. Thanks Handle appears to be much newer but fits perfectly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted February 11, 2018 Share Posted February 11, 2018 Definitely forged and not cast and yes it has a steeled edge---shows clearly in third picture. Soaking it for a week in vinegar would show it even more clearly but would destroy that lovely patina. It has seen a lot of rusting giving it that rough pitted look; but NOT CAST! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ede Posted February 11, 2018 Author Share Posted February 11, 2018 Thanks, Thomas. It was the very rough eye that had me second guessing. I actually like that rough pitted look! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc1 Posted February 11, 2018 Share Posted February 11, 2018 Forged for sure. I have one like it bought at a flea market. Most of those are in peoples garden because folks don't know the difference from a hoe and pitted beyond recognition. Try making something with it. Work a log into a square beam and use it in your man cave You will have to sharpen it though and make sure you use strong leather boots. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ausfire Posted February 11, 2018 Share Posted February 11, 2018 4 hours ago, Marc1 said: You will have to sharpen it though and make sure you use strong leather boots. Yep. Or stand in 12 gallon drums while you adze the log! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted February 11, 2018 Share Posted February 11, 2018 A few years back, some of the students from the college where I work participated in a project to rebuild some timber-framed synagogues in Poland that had been destroyed in the Holocaust. The photos in the alumni magazine showed them wearing baseball catchers’ leg guards (covering the knees, shins, and ankles) while using broad axes to square up the timbers. Struck me as a good idea, and certainly much cheaper than surgery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted February 11, 2018 Share Posted February 11, 2018 The inside of the eye being rough is quite common when people have left a handle in it and in a damp place where the handle rotted out in contact with the inside of the eye---keep moisture in contact with the metal. Now for a worse pitting I have seen several axes left in abandoned smoke house where the coarse salt on the floors have done epic pitting on the sxes---ones only 150 years old look like something from an early medieval dig! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc1 Posted February 11, 2018 Share Posted February 11, 2018 8 hours ago, ausfire said: Yep. Or stand in 12 gallon drums while you adze the log! That's a thought! ... Just a couple of 20l buckets would do Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted February 11, 2018 Share Posted February 11, 2018 Well the Adz should be going under your foot and no where near your legs. The broad axe is heading toward your legs and if the log is braced up to make hewing to the line easier on the back then you will probably be above your bucket leg guards. The ones they make for chainsaws would probably be a better choice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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