Originally Posted by lvmiker
You are an artiste. I have cleaned up and rehafted [is that a word?] a few old axes and enjoy the process. I was gifted w/ a huge old broadaxe that appears to be quite old and getting ready to clean it up. It has a handle w/ the proper curves/offset that looks like a big round tree branch and is very hard. It is too thick to reduce w/ rasps and I have been thinking about a drawknife. Any guidance as to hand tools or techniques would be appreciated. We were past due for a good axe threadgrin


mike r


Many thanks! I wouldn't invest in a drawknife for one broadax. You can thin down some slabs near the top of the haft using a handsaw, then smooth it with the rasp. Or just be patient with the rasp. There is some learning curve to drawknives, and some woods that do not drawknife well, although hickory does drawknife well. You can also use a bandsaw or table saw to thin down the top of the haft for a few inches, but this may take a jig or clamp arrangement. Care should be taken to avoid kickback if using a table saw and fence. If you have a vice, you can stand the haft up and take some meat off the top with a Sawzall. If you have a belt grinder you can clamp down the grinder upside down, turn it on, and hold the haft against it to remove some bulk. But you have to remove equal amounts on both sides, or whatever the shape of the eye requires. Broadaxes have weird eyes sometimes.

I do not entertain hypotheticals. The world itself is vexing enough. -- Col. Stonehill