A friend who works for an Estate Sale Company dropped off a Craftsman axe head today (He has been bringing me blacksmith tongs lately). At the end of the sale all items not sold are sent to the dump so he has his pick for free. I have no idea how old the axe head is but it appears to have never been helved or used. The corner edges are all sharp with no dings and the cutting edge seems original. Certainly not an heirloom piece but I imagine it will have some good steel in it and it is made in the USA. Guess I will find a good handle for it and put it into service!
I have a similar axe, with a similar story. I think it is Stanley brand. It makes me wonder if the axes were sold without handles or something. Maybe just very bad ones...
Niiice! Don’t cut it in half like I did to a Collins ax head I had... you’ll get a talking to by one walt.
A while back I helved the Craftsman axe head. Here are a few pictures. It is markedly weight forward, not like some axes I've had that seem somehow not so heavy at the head. Hard to explain how it feels. The handle is quite long and graceful which may have something to do with the heft of it . I think this would be a good felling axe but will probably be used mostly for splitting. A friend made the sheath as he has made for several of my other axes. The head is covered in preservative grease is why it looks so funky. Next load of rounds I will try it out!
