Plumb Hatchet

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Barry the Bear

Barry the Bear

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Fellas, I decided i needed a new hatchet for my hikes and camps. When I was 16 I worked at a local grocer here in town and with my 1st paycheck I bought a coldsteel trailhawk. The head was loose and it took me about 20 min on a lansky puck to get it anywhere near sharp.

I see alot of people are a fan of the trail hawk but I myself have no idea what they see. The only advantage to it over traditional small axes is the lightweight, but the blade length is not sufficient to really hack into anything medium or heavy, for small saplings it works ok. Now over a long time it started getting rusty as the original finish started getting flaked, so I put rustoleum on it and for added gripping on the hand I wrapped the handle in electrical tape.

As I have been going on more hikes and camps where a more "meaty" head so I did some searching and research on the net. Alot of people love the swedish hatchets and axes like Gransfors anf Hultforks Bruks, and although I love the looks of them theyre bit outta my price range.... at least for a hatchet. So i started looking at vintage American pieces and eventually decided on a plumb hatchet that had been restored and polished, it came razor sharp and with a simple but well formed head sheath. Here are some pics alongside the trail hawk. Also pictured is a condor hudson bay knife.
 

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Nice example of a classic shingle hatchet with hammer poll (and nail puller) from the days when roofers split and shingled roofs with cedar shakes. They now make great camping hatchets, as you have figured out. Plumb is decent quality too.
Congrats on the new aquisition.

I saw a load of bundled cedar shakes last week waiting next to an old building. I don't know that there are many roofers around anymore that know how to install em.
 
Looks useful.

How do you like the Hudson Bay? Lots of oldtime frontier types used them for tasks up to chopping small pieces of wood.
 
As a field tool - I find "roofer's" axes less desirable.

I like a larger butt on the head for driving camp-made stakes or just as a general camp sledge.

Also, a great many of the "shingle" axes are side heads, biased for a right hander. I don't like that commitment and also, if they are side axes - they are behind most of the hand-axe injuries that I'm personally aware of due to the offset of the head to one side.



Todd.
 
I have the..

....Cold Steel Riflemans Hawk. Have had it for at least 15 years. Much better cutting edge( wider). Always loved a tomahawk because the handle was as long as my framing hammer that I used years ago. Hatchets and short hammers drive me nuts. If it's not approximately 16 inches I'm clumsy as heck with it.
 
I keep a halfway decent hand axe handy. I like the ash handles, but I always end up destroying them over time. I now keep an odd assortment...I keep 2 Cheapo harbor freight hand ax heads (no handle) around for various tasks, mainly used as splitting wedges. Then I have a wilton to use for driving. I have a sog? Fast hawk for most of the meat related chopping. Of course this all stays in the truck. If I'm out in the woods i carry an old estwing. I need to look some of these roofers hatches up. It fills a gap in my tool box.
 
rc,

Thanks for the link to the thread of you heart hatchet. Still don't have a cover for my plumb that appears in that thread, so seeing you cover pictures might give me something to work on.

I am back with the 14 to 16 year old Scouts in my ward so some real camp outs are in store this summer and I want my plumb with me.

I used the Plumb as my kindling hatchet this winter, though it was little used as we had few fires in the hearth this warm winter. Darned good at splitting. Also recently used it to drive some nails to hang a tarp on the pump house for daughter to practice her tennis serves into.... and found out the beard is still hair cutting sharp while balancing on a cinderblock with the tarp in one hand a mouth full of nails and the Plumb flailing about. Teenie tiny cut not as bad as when shaving, but on a finger. Had I a cover like yours it would never have happened!

-kBob
 
I normally love cold Steel, my first large fixes blade knife was a bushman that skinned several hogs, had a 3 inch voyager that I carried as my edc for a longtime, and also had the 4 inch gunsite model that saved my cajones against a dog that attacked me. I've never tried the riflemans hawk I hope yours works a lot better than my trail hawk.
 
rcmodel said:
No, I've got one I refurbished last year, here.

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=716765

I meant I have never seen a 'side ax' that Todd was referring to as being dangerous.

rc
Click to expand...
Here're three different shingle axes I keep around. The Winchester without a handle is one of the side-axes I was referring to but "dangerous" may be overstating things rather than "risky". It is not only a single edge or chisel grind but the entire head is offset to boot. Outstanding for quick, reliable and accurate splitting of shakes, stakes and pins but if one is not anticipating the bias, that's when it ends up threatening feet, shins and off hands. I shaked a couple of sheds and repaired a hose with this sweetheart.

Most of the axes that I've used which have the nail-pull behind the blade heel have been side axes which is somewhat necessary to effectively use a nail-pull located there as it presents considerably flatter.
Consequently, I like the nail-pull in the poll or butt. Much more practical and necessitates the larger, sledge-like poll which a prefer.

The European,British, "Hudson's Bay" style is a standard "wedge" style but still nods to the practicality of accurate, repeatable splitting by being single-ground. Even these in the hands of someone not anticipating the action can result in injury and most especially if one attempts to split without correctly assessing the wood first for grain, knots, etc... This one is a favorite of mine for stockpiling kindling.

The third, a generic True Temper is double ground and wedge headed so is not so committed as an accurate splitter to me. It has a nice thin grind and double cut so it chips considerably better than the single grinds.

I get kinda pissy with cutting tools from chisels through knives to axes so take my opinion for what it's worth as an internet freebee.

You may have noted that initially I commented upon the risky nature of side axes and then showed myself to be a fan of the same. To clarify, here's my point: I like 'em, hell, I love 'em but they aren't the tool I toss to a friend and say "have at it". Having seen that movie.

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Todd.
 

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Of course.

Soak it in water for a couple of days until the old dry handle swells up tight.

Or better yet, get a couple of handle wedges and drive in the end to tighten it back up.

http://www.truevalue.com//catalog/p...ZFp1gbSrxicZkk1BFUYPfYtnRUzMutbnh9xoCoTXw_wcB

PS: It undoubtedly already has steel handle wedges in the end of the handle, as that's the way handles are attached to heads.

You might get by with just seating them deeper in the handle with a steel punch & hammer.



rc
 
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Well, that right there's your problem!!!!

Look at the end view photos in post #16.

And post a photo of yours from the business end so I can see what you have to deal with.

rc
 
I can't tell much from that blurry photo.

But it looks like there is a full width wood wedge driven right down the center of it.

Take a punch and see if you can drive it in further.

Steel wedges are still your best bet though.

Like this:
image.jpg

rc
 
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