Maybe I should post a thread about re-quenching new axes. Wait...that sounds familiar.
He wanted me to buy axes I couldn't find? No, he just didn't check the market.
As for sources other than Ebay, I don't have them. It must be nice to live in Washington or Vermont, where everyone has 50 nice axes in their shed, but I'm in Florida, where people buy Chinese tools and take trees down with bulldozers. There are no Fifteen-Dollar Axe Outlet franchises near me. There is nothing on Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, or Offerup. There are no websites selling old axes at low prices. It would be silly to spend days wandering around the area's substandard, disappointing flea markets just to find one axe.
I think it would be easier just to admit I was right.
I can find something faster, if I'm willing to spend a lot more.