How can you get that "aged" look on your new axe...?

V

Venice Will

Joined
Jan 11, 2007
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Anybody know how to get that "rough" or pock'd looking silver and black finish on a "flat black" axe...?

Know what I mean...? sort of that "I been around awhile and seen
a crap load of work..." look...?


Thanks!

Venice Will
 
I think what you are referring to the a forge finish. The pock marks are from hammer blows, the dark is the scale from heat treat, and the silver is where the forge scale wears off with use.
 
Acid fumes will pit the head ( I wouldn't do it though))) vinegar will etch the head as long as its carbon steel. If there's paint on the head you'll have to strip it off with paint remover. OR, just do lots of work with it ;-)

Regards

Robin
 
sand blast / bead blast with a very coarse media. Then get you some Birchwood Casey Plum Brown and follow the instructions. (you'll need a propane torch and a couple of toothbrushes) Once you have browned it nice and dark, work it back with a medium scotchbrite pad until you have it the color you are looking for - this is a good opportunity to highlight the differences in textures across the hawk. Then, I like to use Johnsons paste wax, wax the whole thing and let the wax set. Then for a final finish I buff it using a slow loose cotton buff with no compound. This is the technique used on most of the hawks you see on rmjforge.com - at least the historicals anyway.
RMJ
ps - when you use the plum brown seriously read the directions. Otherwise your hawk will be pink.
 
I think it would be easier to get a different axe then to accomplish the look artificially. There are plenty of used axes in the world.
 
What kind of axe do you have?

I've messed around a bit with trying to give some choppers an "aged" look. It's kind of trial and error, but here's a few I did, with mixed results...

A Craftsman carpenter axe I hacked up and soked in a mixture of salt, vinegar, and lemon juice...
various2008-2009107.jpg


CS Tomahawks are pretty easy to do. You just strip off the paint, do a little sanding, and do a patina. I like to use regular liquid gun blue....
014.jpg

010.jpg

Before, and after...
018-1.jpg


You can also easily create more pitting in the steel by using PBC etchant solution that they sell at Radio Shak.

...Or I guess you could "just use it" ,and in about 30 or 40 years you'll have the look you want. :p ...hopefully your grand kids will appreciate it! :D
 
holy cow bry those look fantastic!
 
You can recreate that forge scale look with Linseed Oil, and Ferric Chloride. It won't be the exact same thing, but the result will be close enough.
There was a good post somewhere around here explaining the process of using Ferric Chloride.

Basically you get the desired pitting with the acid, and "season" it like Cast Iron. Remember to keep the bit cool and away from the etchant.

For the seasoning part, just warm the head up with a torch and apply a light coating of Linseed Oil on the steel.
Oil soaked rags have a funny habit of exploding, so use tongs and apply the oil with steel wool.
Next step is to simply burn the oil until it hardens and turns black. Linseed oil has a very low smoke point.

I haven't use this on blades yet, so try it on scrap steel first. If you ruin your axe its all on you.
 
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If you REALLY want to pit it, use Caseys Bluing and then dip in bleach, but beware it is etching on steroids and you are removing material.

pitted.jpg


This took about 25 minutes........Randy
 
Halfneck said:
BryFry - what/how do you do the design etching on the hawk heads?
Click to expand...

Using a lquid called PBC etchant that I bought at Radio Shack, it's use for etching circuit boards, but also works fine on non-stainless steel.

What you see in the picture above was my first attempt at it! I think with some practice one could achieve some pretty nice stuff.

There is a couple of good write ups on it in the middle of the "modding the CS Trail Hawk" sticky thread, but basically you cover the steel with a resist (spraypaint works great) then you draw or stencil your design by exposing the bare steel beneath the paint, then dip it in the liquid etchant.

The longer you leave it in the etchant the more pronounced the etching will be. :)

This same method can also be used to create the kind of "pocking" that the OP is asking about, I think.
 
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