The Home Machinist!

Man, it's about 8 feet from my house!

LOL. Dont worry, it will move the house....

My garden tool struggles are bearing fruit.

I found a decent mattock at Lowe's, but someone bought it before I could, so I ordered the same model from Amazon. It's a Truper. Very heavy steel. I decided to get a pick mattock, which has a pointy end for breaking rocks. I haven't used it yet, so maybe it will shatter in a thousand pieces, but it looks good. I notice they sharpened it on the edge facing the handle, so it's nearly impossible to put it on a grinder. I think I should put a new edge on the other side.

I bought a Council Tool double-bitted axe. This is an American company with a good reputation. Unfortunately, I will never know whether their axes are any good, because they ship them in flimsy cardboard envelopes. The edges of the axe penetrated the envelope and hit something hard. I sent it back.

I found an okay-looking Collins axe head on Ebay. About 95% of the old axe heads looked awful. Big chunks missing. Rust damage. It seems like about 60% have one pretty good side and one side which was stored face-down in water. I don't know why. The one I bought looks suspiciously good. I'm going to buy a handle locally. Total cost will be under $50, and it should be better than a Chinese axe.

I found out you have to ask Ebay sellers how they got the wood out of their axe heads. Some of them burn them out, which is not great for the steel.

It seems to me that the bevel of the edge is on the inside for a reason, which would be the releasing of a chip (root, etc) in the arc of a cut. The outer surface is approximately a segment of that arc. It's typically used like an adz swinging straight down (roughly along your body mid-line) and working walking forward, mostly for trenching through hard soil and roots or other vegetation. I would sharpen with the flat face of an angle grinder, I would not try to switch sides.

I don't know the theory behind mattock sharpening, but my hoe is sharpened on the other side of the blade.

OMG Steve!! Don't even think of sharpening a mattock on the outside edge.
The Mattock PC Police will come for you in the middle of the night and confiscate it.

--earlgo

I didn't mean to alarm anyone.

We are not trying to "pick" You apart.

SteveHGraham wrote: ↑Mon Sep 10, 2018 7:59 pm I didn't mean to alarm anyone.

Doesn't matter.

I expect you're going to be paid a visit by the mattock cops, likely resulting in you spending a good deal of time behind bars (as it should be for such a serious infraction).

H

Harold_V wrote: ↑Tue Sep 11, 2018 12:23 am

SteveHGraham wrote: ↑Mon Sep 10, 2018 7:59 pm I didn't mean to alarm anyone.

Doesn't matter.

I expect you're going to be paid a visit by the mattock cops, likely resulting in you spending a good deal of time behind bars (as it should be for such a serious infraction).

H

Behind bars like back where the dumpsters are where they throw the garbage?

SteveHGraham wrote: ↑Mon Sep 10, 2018 10:19 am I don't know the theory behind mattock sharpening, but my hoe is sharpened on the other side of the blade.

I don't know the official line, but to me that makes sense. The mattock is an arc segment somewhat roughly matching the typical arc of the swing. And it's meant to displace to the inside as you walk forward. With the blade bevel sharpened on the back/outside, it would want to ride up on whatever you are working your way into. For a hoe, the angle of the plate forming the blade is straight and provides clearance. It's also not meant to sink a foot or more while cutting as a mattock would when breaking a trench. And of course the wedge lift of a reverse sharpened mattock would be even more pronounced if you were using it like an adze to work a root or stump due to the "next" remaining cut material being much harder. At least that's the way I see it.

I think of it kind of like sharpening an axe on one side. It should cut very well from one side (hand, shoulder, whatever you want to call it). But switch sides and it wouldn't be happy at all, particularly for cross grain chipping/felling cuts.

I can't believe how hard it is to get an axe. I wonder if Wranglerstar has days like this.

I ordered a Collins axe head from Ebay. The silly thing arrived, and part of the eye is pushed in. It didn't show up well in the photos. If I try to hang it, I will never be able to get the handle all the way into the head. I have to send it back.

The new axe I ordered was packaged so the edges got damaged. Now this.

I have a single-bit Plumb axe head on the way. Ordered it on a lark. Wonder what will be wrong with it.

Some people say they fix axe head eyes by heating them with torches while keeping wet cloths wrapped around the bits.