I wanted to buy a Wetterling - but found something better - Stubai

Humppa

Humppa

Joined
Jul 25, 2010
Messages
7,432
Hi guys!

I wanted to buy a forged hatchet by Wetterling. But they are very pricey. I was grabbling around in my fathers workshop and found this treasure

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It´s an old hatchet from the austrian company Stubai (Stubai is also a valley in the alps), I took home. It needs some work, for sure, and a new haft. When I have time, I gonna restore ist and add a new haft.

Here´s pic of the stamp the head (where you can also see the smitty´s-mark)

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Great piece of steel. I alread made some firewood with it... works absolutelly great!

Enjoy that and give some critics... :)

Kind regards
Andi
 
Looks great. Your Dad must have taken good care of it; it looks like it needs only cosmetic work.
What are the dimensions of the bit and the eye?
 
Stubai is still around, too! I've heard good things about them, and they're one of the few folks out there still making adzes.
 
scrteened porch said:
Looks great. Your Dad must have taken good care of it; it looks like it needs only cosmetic work.
What are the dimensions of the bit and the eye?
Click to expand...

Thank you! My dad didn´t buy that thing. It´s still from my greatgranddad, he passed away in 1993, when I was ten years old. But it´s still in good condition, that´s right. I gonna fix it up a little.
For the technic details, I gonna go and take some information :) The weight is roundabout 0,5 kilogramm (= 1 pound).

But for the technic details, you should take a calculator... I grew up with the metric system, so I don´t know much about inches, ounzes and so on :) ;)

@ fourtytwoblades: Yeah, they make fine tools, I have scissors for metal from Stubai. Also pretty old, but works perfect!

Kind regards
Andi
 
That's good looking for sure, Andi! I wish my dad's shop had old axes stowed away waiting to be discovered!!!
 
Here I have information about Stubai tools http://www.stubai.com/index_englisch.htm (The original site is in German language ;) )

I have no actuall Stubai tool. So I can´t tell anything about their quality nowadays. But the two old tools I have from them is absolutelly great!

Kind regards
Andi
 
If they're like everyone else in the global hand tool community the quality has probably gone a little down, but they seem to still be making fantastic stuff. :)

Just noticed they make beef slitter cleavers! :eek:

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Well, being honest, I don´t know which pattern it is... ;) Stubai makes/made a lot of tools. I´ve already seen some chisel of them.

Thank you for the replie, Turbo!

Kind regards
Andi
 
That's a beauty Andi...And very special to you of course, because of it's history. If she were mine...before re-hanging I would tidy and tighten the original haft. You can always replace it at a later date. But I reckon with a bit of a tidy-up she'll look great and retain that character.

I have an axe that I re hafted for my Dad about 20 years before he died. Each time I use it I'm sure I feel his power.
Dad had a keen eye and a powerful but graceful swing. I'd never re-hang that axe.

regards...frank
 
Hi Frank... the thought with the haft is a good idea... the haft is pretty thin, I use to make my hafts a little bit thicker, but on this one, I like the thin hafts. Maybe because it´s a hatchet and the swung in the handle makes it better to use. Better than a thin axe-haft, for example.

I gonna remove the rust, give it some oil bath and when I have more time again, I gonna make a fine and nice haft on it... As well, as I´ve done it with my other pieces.

Thanks, for the thougt :)

KInd regards
Andi
 
Humppa, thats a mighty nice piece of your family history. Very cool. As far as re-hafting, I'm with ya and think that if you put your own little piece of love into something like you just add to the story for those who will receive it from you or your children down the road. Great find and good luck with that one Andi.

Matt
 
That's an awesome old hatchet, Andi. So cool that it's also a family heirloom.

I have a Stubai broad hatchet that I like. The finish on my hatchet wasn't great but the metal is very good. Will a little TLC it became an excellent tool. It's the one on the left.

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The handle came loose after some heavy use on a timber footbridge project. It had one of those round metal wedges that we axe lovers despise. I cut the handle off, shortened it and re-used it since it's an offset handle and difficult to replace.

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The nail puller was very poorly formed. I used an dremel and some needle files to correct it. It's still not perfect but it's functional.

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I think that Stubai axes aren't finished as well now as they were when your grandfather's hatchet was made. But the metallurgy is excellent and the new axes can be great tools if you take the time to tune them up.
 
Nice piece square_peg! Thank you for showing this pattern. Really like that one very much!

I made some work on the head. Removed the rust and gave him some oil treatment. (The haft is another story)

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The stamp looks pretty nice, now.

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I hope the update from-time-to-time is ok.

Enjoy the pics!

Kind regards
Andi
 
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