HYTEST AXES, post yours
- Thread starter moosecreektrails
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Not a pic post, but...
Left my Forester head pock out off a shelf. My dad came 'round today, and managed to brush up against it...
10mm deep gash on his arm. Trip to the emergency room, and some medical-grade superglue and a cute Pommy doctor ensued.
On the plus side, my honing skills are on point.
Left my Forester head pock out off a shelf. My dad came 'round today, and managed to brush up against it...
10mm deep gash on his arm. Trip to the emergency room, and some medical-grade superglue and a cute Pommy doctor ensued.
On the plus side, my honing skills are on point.
Could well be. Racing axes were meant to be ground by their users to a desired shape; this could easily obliterate any markings, especially in the middle where Hytest used to mark 'em. And the Hytest marks changed over the years.
There's one thing that leads me to think that it's not a Hytest at all, but. See that roughness around the poll? That looks like sand casting marks to me. Could be you've got yourself a Keech!
Pin numbers don't matter, as they're easily added after purchasing the head. I've seen competition rules stipulate that each axe must have two sets of pins, out of access with each other. My Forester has a single pin in it, and it's not competition (nor do I think the pin hole was OEM...)
wohooo
be sure to post pics when it arrives. they made some really nice axes. very good curves on the ones iv seen. I just had one show up today with what I suspect is a handle made from something other than hickory, so maybe the spotted gum, not sure. Its well shaped and very slender though. I spose it would be appropriate for me to post some pics of it here when I get home!
wohooo
I just had one show up today with what I suspect is a handle made from something other than hickory, so maybe the spotted gum, not sure. Its well shaped and very slender though. I spose it would be appropriate for me to post some pics of it here when I get home!
Yeah, do that.
Spotted Gum is common for hafts in Oz - but most I've seen are thicker than necessary. The timber is dense, wavy grained and sometimes a bit oily.
Alright this is my latest hytest axe. I must say the handle feels really good and is very thin. I wanted to compare the handle to something off the shelf that people may be able to relate to.
top is a wetterlings american forest axe. 3.5lb head. Bottom is the old hytest.
Note the difference in handle thickness. Plus the hytest is a 4.5lb head.
top wetterlings, lower hytest
the grain orientation on the handle is not what would generally be described as good. Im picking it may be some other kind of wood though where grain orientation is not so important but who knows. . Its thin and has stood the test if time though so I think it will do just fine. the head is tight. Also the grain can be traced the full length of the handle so I think its good to go
alright here is the axe head. pretty good condition. what I assume is the original paint can be seen in places. The other side is much of the same.
this axe has a very high center line and seems to be wedged well.
here is the hytest axe along with my hytest hatchet. You can sort of see the definition on the bevels in this pic. imo its well shaped.
The handle has a sticker on it which appears to say "mohawk" if anyone can shed any light on that?
top is a wetterlings american forest axe. 3.5lb head. Bottom is the old hytest.
Note the difference in handle thickness. Plus the hytest is a 4.5lb head.
top wetterlings, lower hytest
the grain orientation on the handle is not what would generally be described as good. Im picking it may be some other kind of wood though where grain orientation is not so important but who knows. . Its thin and has stood the test if time though so I think it will do just fine. the head is tight. Also the grain can be traced the full length of the handle so I think its good to go
alright here is the axe head. pretty good condition. what I assume is the original paint can be seen in places. The other side is much of the same.
this axe has a very high center line and seems to be wedged well.
here is the hytest axe along with my hytest hatchet. You can sort of see the definition on the bevels in this pic. imo its well shaped.
The handle has a sticker on it which appears to say "mohawk" if anyone can shed any light on that?
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Alright this is my latest hytest axe. I must say the handle feels really good and is very thin. I wanted to compare the handle to something off the shelf that people may be able to relate to.
top is a wetterlings american forest axe. 3.5lb head. Bottom is the old hytest.
Note the difference in handle thickness. Plus the hytest is a 4.5lb head.
top wetterlings, lower hytest
the grain orientation on the handle is not what would generally be described as good. Im picking it may be some other kind of wood though where grain orientation is not so important but who knows. . Its thin and has stood the test if time though so I think it will do just fine. the head is tight. Also the grain can be traced the full length of the handle so I think its good to go
alright here is the axe head. pretty good condition. what I assume is the original paint can be seen in places. The other side is much of the same.
this axe has a very high center line and seems to be wedged well.
here is the hytest axe along with my hytest hatchet. You can sort of see the definition on the bevels in this pic. imo its well shaped.
The handle has a sticker on it which appears to say "mohawk" if anyone can shed any light on that?
Thanks for the images and info. Here is an image from pintrest showing a Mowhawk label by Sequatchie Handle Works. I notice the font is different though and I don't have any other information on it. As far the grain orientation goes, it doesn't always seem to matter wich direction it is going. Vertical grain is the bar but some handles with poor grain orientation hold up very well and some with great orientation don't. I have some great old (thin) Kelly/TT handles and they are 45-90 degrees and still going. When you think about it, the haft has to flex from side to side as well not gust up and down. I am sure many people have broken handles from trying to un-wedge them flexing them from side to side too.
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Good ol' Trove, Bob? First ad I could find for 'Plumb Hytest axe heads' was 5 July 1945 in a Wagga newspaper, I think. I have wondered if, prior to that time, WH Plumb marked axes as 'plumb' & 'hand/drop forged'. For the ad to be in a newspaper by 5 July 45, a fair bit of work would had to have been accomplished beforehand, I would think - manufacture, testing, distribution and marketing. I couldn't imagine they were simply manufactured and shipped to retailers as untested product.
Post #5: http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/1284326-information-on-Hytest-Plumb-Axe
Post #7: http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/1284326-information-on-Hytest-Plumb-Axe
Interesting, some more from ebay:
Vintage Hand Tool COLD CHISEL W.H.Plumb SYDNEY Australia Old Antique Chisel #280
Vintage Hand Tools W.H.PLUMB Fern NAPPING HAMMER Old Antique Tool #144
W H Plumb Kendall St Woollahra Kilner 41 Broadway Glebe 1924
Bob
And, just for decoration
I also wondered if the 'Hytest Forged Tools' 'Plumb (Aust) Pty Ltd' as stamped on some heads covered the period July 45 to the 1946 announcement re Lafayette Plumb - or possibly earlier?
As a kid, making a dead Ironbark (that had been dragged up to the woodheap either by a pair of horses or a Fergie) turn into stove sized lengths was a never ending chore - after school and before milking - and on weekends between milkings. No chainsaws or splitting mauls. No wonder axes suffered such a tough life. AND you soon learned the error of your ways if you didn't address the strike correctly. Then there were all the old trees that had been rung many years earlier that had to be felled, stockpiled around the stumps (the hard way) and burnt. Sure could lose some weight in summer. Now I put it on - Summer and Winter!
Forgot to ask: What happened to Frank in NZ? Has he fallen off his limb or simply grown too elderly to participate?
I would have loved to be able to ask him a couple of questions related to his time in Qld Forestry.
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I Have a4# on mine but its a hytest craftsman 4 # is that good ?
Silver Hytest 6#
Guess no one else has any?
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That looks nearly the same as one I missed on last year. It was at an antique store and I didn't recognize the logo. It was only partially visible. But the head was able to slip off the haft, and it rang like a bell. But without knowing what it was, and the antique store price, I passed on it. I sincerely regret it.
I didn't recognize the label either on the bay, as did no one else. I did recognize the quality and knew it wasn't a Chinese hatchet. I paid $12.37 to my door. It was called a "sturdy utility hatchet" by the seller. After I received it, I found one on Etsy with an intact label, it simply says "Another Hytest".