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Neat seeing it cleaned up josh. Think cutting off the larger mushroomed edges with a hack saw would save time?
The Great Divide: Felling and Bucking Wedge Thread
- Thread starter ithinkverydeeply
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I do wish I had a forge and and nice anvil. Yes, a guy wouldn't want to disrupt the stamp on it. I bought two identical files and box of chalk to do a test to see if there is anything to it extending the life of a file. You are reading the file training correctly, Josh. File work is an art form if you were to ask me and you are an artist with a file! Nicholson is the only file anyone around here carries. I have always thought they worked OK, but, I am sure there are better files available. I need to do some research on that topic. Filing late at night without distractions you can really get focused on a project. I have gotten wrapped up in tube radio repairs late at night and the next thing you know the sun is coming up and you wonder where the night went? Good job Josh!
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That thought crossed my mind. I don't have a power hack saw so by hand it would've taken quite awhile. I liked the idea of letting the grinder do most of the work. One of these days I'll get one of those vertical (adjustable) band saws. That would've made short work of it. It's getting quite rusty already!
I have no idea how long I'll have to let it rust before I can wire wheel it. I guess I'll find out!
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A couple days ago I wire wheeled the rust on the wedge. Here's how it turned out.
I continually wet it for 8 days and let it rust. It doesn't match but I quite like the finish. That was bright steel! I'm definitely going to do that with the next axe I do.
Unfortunately, due to the stamp, I couldn't take all the evidence of mushrooming off. I really wanted to blend it so you could hardly tell. But it's all good! It was a fun project!
I continually wet it for 8 days and let it rust. It doesn't match but I quite like the finish. That was bright steel! I'm definitely going to do that with the next axe I do.
Unfortunately, due to the stamp, I couldn't take all the evidence of mushrooming off. I really wanted to blend it so you could hardly tell. But it's all good! It was a fun project!
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- Dec 17, 2018
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Great start to a patina! It’ s a cool wedge!A couple days ago I wire wheeled the rust on the wedge. Here's how it turned out.
I continually wet it for 8 days and let it rust. It doesn't match but I quite like the finish. That was bright steel! I'm definitely going to do that with the next axe I do.
Unfortunately, due to the stamp, I couldn't take all the evidence of mushrooming off. I really wanted to blend it so you could hardly tell. But it's all good! It was a fun project!
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- Dec 17, 2018
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Anybody know what brand this stamp is?
Perhaps Iron City forge but IC was known for a six sided star with an R in it.
This has 5 points with what looks like an R but could be a B or even a P at times.
I’m trying a couple things when cleaning up these wedges.
After grinding off the mushroomed polls and cleaning up the edges I touched up the raw metal of the one with the star logo using Caswell’s black oxide accelerator.
You can see the blackened one next to the WATco.
The black is great but I don’t like how smooth the poll is compared to the rest of it which is so deeply pitted.
So now I’m trying to pit the poll of the WA&Tco before blackening. Man! I tried vinegar with salt and straight water and it does not want to pit easily...
We’ll see...
Perhaps Iron City forge but IC was known for a six sided star with an R in it.
This has 5 points with what looks like an R but could be a B or even a P at times.
I’m trying a couple things when cleaning up these wedges.
After grinding off the mushroomed polls and cleaning up the edges I touched up the raw metal of the one with the star logo using Caswell’s black oxide accelerator.
You can see the blackened one next to the WATco.
The black is great but I don’t like how smooth the poll is compared to the rest of it which is so deeply pitted.
So now I’m trying to pit the poll of the WA&Tco before blackening. Man! I tried vinegar with salt and straight water and it does not want to pit easily...
We’ll see...
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Wedgie
I am a fan of the undisturbed look of the large wedges but sometimes that mushrooming is so extreme that it catches your hands just moving them. It you take just a little off of the edges it leaves them shiny so you may as well take it all off. It does change the look of them but it’s the same premise as taking off jagged mushrooming off the poll of an axe I guess.
Here is a quick before and after quick bluing just to take the shine off it. I wish I had taken a picture of the amount of smashed steel overhanging the butt on it but maybe next time lol.
Wedgie
Wedgie
Bradenk1987
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ithinkverydeeply
Search for “gun blue and bleach etching” you can do years of pitting in hours. May be something worth trying.
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Thanks for the tip!
Search for “gun blue and bleach etching” you can do years of pitting in hours. May be something worth trying.