Plumb axe question

L

longtimealaskan

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Sep 17, 2017
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I have had this old axe for many years but I don't know which axe it is. The head has what looks like 2 1/4 lb on one side. PLUMB is on the other side but it's toward the back of the head whereas most of the axes I've seen on this site has PLUMB written in the middle of the axe head. The handle is about 27 inches long.
PA3
Is this a rafter's axe? That's the only one I've seen with Plumb near the back of the head.

I see my image didn't post so I obviously didn't do that right.
 
Yes. That's exactly where the PLUMB name is written. The handle is reddish and 27 inches long if that makes any difference. I know handles can be changed but I'm guessing this has the original handle. The head weighs 2 1/4 pounds, not nearly as heavy as most I've seen.
 
Yes, that's the location that "Plumb" is written on the head. The head of the axe has 2 1/4 written on it, lighter than most other axe heads I've seen. I know handles get changed but I think the handle is still the original handle if that makes any difference. It's 27 inches long and has a reddish color. I've had the axe since sometime in the 1980s if I remember correctly. If I could figure out how to post a photo I would.
 
Square_peg said:
That's a boys axe not a rafter.
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Thank you. That was my original thought but couldn't find a photo of one. Is it the weight of the axe head that makes this a boy's axe? Directly below the 2 1/4 mark is another mark that looks like an "M". What does the "M" mean?
 
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Rafting axes are, for the most part, nearly symmetrical top-to-bottom (flipped across a horizontal axis) much like a splitting maul shape, while axes like the Plumb National shown above has a very definite flare to the beard.
 
That m means either Mann edge or Mexico ,don't know if anyone knows for sure.Could be a plumb in name only.Saw a m marked plumb ct on the auction site .
 
longtimealaskan said:
Is it the weight of the axe head that makes this a boy's axe?
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Yes. That weight makes it a boys axe. But boys axes do come in different patterns. I've just never seen a true rafting pattern in a boys. Some Plumb Nationals have a beveled poll like a rafting axe but the overall pattern isn't a rafting pattern.

If it did have the actual shape of a rafting axe then I'd call it a rafting pattern boys axe, still not a rafting axe because at that size and weight it couldn't perform the heavy-hammering maul function of an actual rafting axe.
 
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