Another eBay impulse purchase

Hickory n steel

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Axes in general are something I rarely ever find in the wild around me let alone a boys axe, and even on eBay with boys axes I have no luck finding anything decent at a good price.

When I saw this I couldn't jump on it fast enough, and the $53 shipped doesn't seem too bad to me.


For some reason I'm thinking early 70's for the TT logo on the label but I don't know why.
Hopefully when I get it it's as nice as it seems in the pictures.
 
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Axes in general are something I rarely ever find I'm the wild around me let alone a boys axe, and even on eBay with boys axes I have no luck finding anything decent at a good price.

When I saw this I couldn't jump on it fast enough, and the $53 shipped doesn't seem too bad to me.


For some reason I'm thinking early 70's for the TT logo on the label but I don't know why.
Hopefully when I get it it's as nice as it seems in the pictures.

Nothing wrong with that for $53.
57.jpg
 
That's a good looking axe.
Great impulse buy, love the swell on the handle too.
It's a long way from my last impose axe buy that's for sure :D
honestly though that thing has been a great beater tool around the garage.

The handle on this Woodslasher sure looks like a relatively nice one, it seems TT was probably the last of the big 3 still doing it right. ( Plumb TT and Mann )

I find it strange to think of an axe like this seeing such little use if at all, and I'll never know why.
Someone probably just didn't need it as much as they thought they did, maybe bought it for camping trips they rarely had time to take.
 
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And they CT is kind of ugly too.
I'm sure they're a good tool, but they're a modern interpretation of a Dayton and like most axes today slightly skewed from what the pattern once was.
I don't understand how a long standing company who has been making axes for a long time does this either.
How did Mann take a beautiful classic pre 60's Michigan and turn it into a 1980's Collins Commander ?
The flat cheeks I can understand but why did head patterns have to become distorted ?
 
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Axe use declined to a fraction of historical use. After that I'm not entirely sure.

There's two things I've thought of. One is that the whole industry collapsed pretty precipitously, so the companies left standing had to produce junk just to stay in business.

The other is that as axe use declined, and subsequently knowledge of how an axe should be made and perform declined, any complaints were a minority small enough to ignore.

Things are usually complicated, so probably a combination. I'm not sure if either is right, or if one was of much bigger significance than the other.
 
Axe use declined to a fraction of historical use. After that I'm not entirely sure.

There's two things I've thought of. One is that the whole industry collapsed pretty precipitously, so the companies left standing had to produce junk just to stay in business.

The other is that as axe use declined, and subsequently knowledge of how an axe should be made and perform declined, any complaints were a minority small enough to ignore.

Things are usually complicated, so probably a combination. I'm not sure if either is right, or if one was of much bigger significance than the other.

This would probably sum up the decline of axes pretty well.

The one curiosity in this whole thing is the Michigan pattern double bit.
Barco industries still makes a Michigan cruiser with convex cheeks that is not at all skewed from what the pattern once was, and in general it's the one pattern that has hardly evolved at all with a lot of manufacturers.
 
Well the axe was shipped today and in checking the tracking number I noticed something very interesting.

It turns out this eBay seller who deals axes on the bay actually lives here in northern California, if they can find a steady supply of axes here in NorCal then it gives me hope that I should be able to find some good stuff when I've got the rare opportunity to go out and look.
I've had a few decent vintage tool finds over the years, but very little in the way of axes.

I almost jumped on a nice boys size fire axe they had listed, but one axe purchase at a time is best.
 
Boneyard pirate gets all kinda good stuff out of north California got my favorite chopper from him
Came from a seller name Axenaturally, really has some nice axes.
One can put 2 and 2 together if they're interested in that little fire axe, it'll be gone by next payday nor that I don't have other expenses to come first but I hope a forum member scores it so I can see it rehabbed :D
 
Axes in general are something I rarely ever find I'm the wild around me let alone a boys axe, and even on eBay with boys axes I have no luck finding anything decent at a good price.

When I saw this I couldn't jump on it fast enough, and the $53 shipped doesn't seem too bad to me.


For some reason I'm thinking early 70's for the TT logo on the label but I don't know why.
Hopefully when I get it it's as nice as it seems in the pictures.
That's a nice tool in great condition.
 
Northern California should be pretty rich in axes! Anywhere people needed to chop and split wood before the invention of the chainsaw. Anywhere there was a logging.
I would think so with all them giant sequoias that were being logged in the first half of the last century, but with the limited time I have to look I just find very little.
I still kick myself for not snagging that plumb saddle cruiser because I thought $30 was too much.
 
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