Imagine only what kind of info could @Steve Tall provide. Steeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeve, where are you?Truly you are a wizard!. Thank you! That would make a lot of sense and is in keeping with what I felt of the timeframe of when it was made. How interesting! Homer- Bishop was part of Samuel Bigelow's story and the Boston fire ruined that businesswhich led to Macomber, Bigelow & Dowse starting up. How cool is that!
Here is my next offering. An adorable Rixford R55 Kentucky pattern weighing in at just under 2 lbs 14 ozs. Typically there is a weight stamp on Rixford’s of this era, but not here. It’s a full size eye so I’m assuming that it’s originally a 3 lber.
And it is SO abused. Mushroomed like crazy, top of the eye is bent. It’s horrible given how beautiful this pattern looks on a 3 lber. The rest of the axe is in great shape- great patina, smooth.
For me, it’s not a user as is and I hesitate to grind the poll and lose the stamp. It’s too abused (I think) to be a wall hanger (btw, I use this phrase metaphorically as I don’t actually have axes hanging in my house). And I have no intention of ever selling.
So the question stands, what would you do?
So, this isn't an axe, but I'm still not sure what I should do with it.
I got this really cool old axe cover with a Rixford DB head. The seller was a lady from VT, so it may be original, IDK.
The cover really isn't in terrible shape. It looks like it was treated with tallow or wax or something at some point. It has a cool saddle ring on the back and seems well built. The straps are a little crunchy and brittle, so if it were to be used, those probably should be replaced. However, I'm thinking that this is more of a collectors item than a user - though I'm not sure I want to get into collecting that kind of thing so I would probably sell it. What do you think? Replace straps and use, or sell to someone who would want to collect it? do you think anyone would be interested in such a thing?
Here are some pics with the Rixford head it came with. The head measures 9 1/2" x 4 3/4" and fits perfectly. Makes me think I should keep it, but to what end?
I'd swing it man! Sounds like you really want to anyhow, and polished axes release so easy when they bind in a cut. If I recall correctly you've got quite a free Rixys. Why not put this one to work?And then there is this guy...
First, I know what many people around here think about polishing old axes. I tend to agree. So, I'll explain.
When I first got this axe, maybe a year ago, I really liked most of it's overall characteristics, but the more time I spent thinking about how I was going to use it, it bugged me. The bit profile had flat spots. The grind was uneven (dramatically different angles either side). It had bench grinder marks for at least an inch up one side. The patina was slightly, but noticeably, different on each side. I'd study it and began to hate it.
Next time I'd picked it up I'd think "I'm soo petty, this is a great axe!" I did this back and forth for many months trying to decide what I was going to do with it. As an aside, I've been looking for a single bit (Rixford) chopper weighing in the range of 3.4 to 3.7 for some time. I have a 36" handle waiting (for times when I'm chopping below my feet). Subconsciously, I wanted this to be the guy. It's a Rixford R46 stamped 4 lbs and weighs 3.67. But with the bit ground down that much, it would take serious work to thin it out to get it to chop well. I had to get over that.
I knew I had to re-profile. I needed to get rid of those bench grind marks. I knew I had to fix the uneven grind. I watch all those videos of 'mirror finish' axes. I decided to commit to my first 'shining'. So I fixed the bit with a file (not sharpened yet), and sanded by hand for about 10 hours (in the middle of the night when the kids were asleep over 2 months).
I get why some people are attracted to shiny things. I'm not one of those people. So, as the thread says, what do I do with this guy? Does the shiny head deserves a fancy handle?
Wait, I got the intent of the thread wrong. What would you do with this axe?
I'd swing it man! Sounds like you really want to anyhow, and polished axes release so easy when they bind in a cut. If I recall correctly you've got quite a free Rixys. Why not put this one to work?
Great job btw! I have hand polished a half dozen heads myself and it takes some serious time. Though I prefer a natural patina myself, sometimes either the look of the axe or some other necessity requires polishing. I think it looks good man.
forgot to mention, yellow birch wedge, another Josh influence.Here’s an update on the shiny Rixford R46.
You might remember my first struggle was wanting this to be a good cutter to put on a 36” haft, but that’s soo not what this head was meant to be. Its much more a splitter’s profile as a stamped 4 lb head weighing in at 3.66 lbs. The other struggle was figuring out what this axe could excel at and what it could it bring to the ‘users’ table that was unique. Josh’s comment “I'd swing it man!” kept ringing in my head. So, I did something a bit different for me. I pulled out a 28” handle I had saved for a completely different purpose and gave it a go. It’s a thick-ish handle for 28” which works perfectly for the 3.66 lbs (I generally prefer a thicker handle anyway, the thinner handles don’t sit in my hands well). All my splitters are on 32” hafts, so this fits the “what it could it bring to the ‘users’ table that was unique” criteria. I had made the comment “Does the shiny head deserves a fancy handle?” While there is almost nothing fancy about me or anything I do, this haft does have some great character with the heartwood/sapwood contrast (I didn’t care for it when I first got it, but I love it with this head...especially at the top of they eye).
I gotta be honest, I think this came out great. Handle length hung is 27”. It’s gonna be a powerhouse splitter, and with the shorter haft, I think my wife might be dabbling into splitting some large stuff (and as Josh mentioned, “polished axes release so easy when they bind in a cut”, so it will be easier for her to release when splitting). I haven’t sharpened it just yet, but it’s gonna be great!
Thanks all for your comments. Y’all help me solve a puzzle.
Here’s an update on the shiny Rixford R46.
You might remember my first struggle was wanting this to be a good cutter to put on a 36” haft, but that’s soo not what this head was meant to be. Its much more a splitter’s profile as a stamped 4 lb head weighing in at 3.66 lbs. The other struggle was figuring out what this axe could excel at and what it could it bring to the ‘users’ table that was unique. Josh’s comment “I'd swing it man!” kept ringing in my head. So, I did something a bit different for me. I pulled out a 28” handle I had saved for a completely different purpose and gave it a go. It’s a thick-ish handle for 28” which works perfectly for the 3.66 lbs (I generally prefer a thicker handle anyway, the thinner handles don’t sit in my hands well). All my splitters are on 32” hafts, so this fits the “what it could it bring to the ‘users’ table that was unique” criteria. I had made the comment “Does the shiny head deserves a fancy handle?” While there is almost nothing fancy about me or anything I do, this haft does have some great character with the heartwood/sapwood contrast (I didn’t care for it when I first got it, but I love it with this head...especially at the top of they eye).
I gotta be honest, I think this came out great. Handle length hung is 27”. It’s gonna be a powerhouse splitter, and with the shorter haft, I think my wife might be dabbling into splitting some large stuff (and as Josh mentioned, “polished axes release so easy when they bind in a cut”, so it will be easier for her to release when splitting). I haven’t sharpened it just yet, but it’s gonna be great!
Thanks all for your comments. Y’all help me solve a puzzle.
