Making and using a small axe. I forge the head, carve the handle and sheath from wood and use the axe on a bushcraft trip. Open the full video description for more information.
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Date: May 2024
Day: about 20°C (59°F)
Night: about 10°C (50°F)
Hours of daylight = about 16
Location: Scandinavia, Northwest Denmark - sea, spruce/pine and hardwood forrest. Some of the most remote in Denmark, but limited how remote it can get. A lot of birds and deers etc. No bears, only a few wolves.
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Consuming: coffee.
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A few questions:
1. What steel did you use?
C45 - about 80mm long piece of 40x20mm.
2. What wood did you use?
Oak.
3. How did you heat treat the axe head?
Normalizing in air and hardening in water - hardening only the cutting edge area and using the remaining heat to temper to a light yellow collar.
4. Did you split the wedge kerf?
Yes - I prefer to make the kerf/opening for the wedge by splitting the wood using a chisel instead of using a saw and removing material.
5. What did you use to get the black collar on the axe head?
Oil on a rack applied while the steel is hot - about 200 -300°C (392-572°F).
6. Can you tell me more about the axe design?
Yes - The sheath design is dating back to the Viking era - similar was/is used in many parts of the world. Not the most convenient sheath to attach, but it works. The axe head design is modern - started gaining popularity in the early 1900 hundreds in Scandinavia because of ease of mass production due to the very basic shape compared to collared axes and other traditional Scandinavian axe patterns.
7. What oil did you use on the handle and sheath?
Vegetable oil/rapeseed oil.
8. Did you use something to color the wood?
No.
9. Is the blacksmith setup inside a tent?
Yes - a large lavvu/tent. Just made from cheap tarps, spruce poles and nails. Nothing fancy... Made it a few months ago.
10. What are you going to use the axe for?
A lightweight option for bushcraft trips and crafting in general.
11. What blower do you use in the blacksmith shop?
One made in Denmark for the danish military. Similar is common for blacksmithing - if you want one try to google "Hand crank forge air blower" or similar.
12. What type of axe are you using to carve the handle for the new axe?
A classic russian axe design. Homemade - C45 steel and ash handle.
13. Where did you get the anvil from?
Forklift fork, cut with angle grinder and heat treated like an anvil.
14. Where can I get similar axe - can I buy from you?
No. My recommendation is to support a blacksmith/axe maker local to you... Or to make your own. "Black Bear Forge" and "Nils Ögren" is great youtube channels for learning blacksmithing. I do sell on off, but only locally here in Denmark and only a very limited amount... So very unlikely you can buy an axe from me. I don't do waiting lists. But I would like to make a few "give aways" every year.... like an axe made by me and a knife made by me etc... - not sure how or when, but I will let you know.
15. How did you learn blacksmithing?
I learned the basics from watching youtube videos. I quickly turned blacksmithing into my fulltime job and learned a lot by trail and error. After a few years did I start visiting other blacksmiths here in Denmark. My father/grand father was not blacksmiths. Still a lot to learn and a lot to try for the first time.
16. What is you're full time job?
Youtube and on off making and selling axes and wooden spoons.
17. Where do you live?
On off tent/lavvu, car or tiny house... At the moment is my home the tent/blacksmith shop shown in the video. The tent is on my own property - a tiny piece of a larger protected nature area in Northwest Denmark.
18. What have you been up to the last two years?
Just enjoying bushcraft trips in Denmark and simple living. Living in a tent/lavvu makes all mundane household tasks take time. On off making and selling axes and on off doing youtube. A few trips to the Italian alps helping a friend renovating a traditional stone cabin.
19. Why not forge weld?
It is future videos.
20. How did you forge the lugs/ears so big?
50% by drawing out with the corner of the hammer and the other 50% by reducing the heigh of the rest of the axe.
21.What are the axe dimensions?
The handle is 34,5cm long. The axe head is 14cm long. Cutting edge is 5,5cm. The pole is 1,5cm thick and 3cm long. The eye is about 3,6x1,4cm. The thickest part of the axe is 2cm.
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Some of the gear used in the video:
1. Pants = Klättermusen Gere 02
2. Axe and knife = homemade
3. Boots - Lundhags Forest
4. Backpack = Eberlestock Mainframe F1
5. Kettle = Eagle 1.5L
6. Sleeping bag = Carinthia Defence 4
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Camera gear:
Nikon D7000
Nikon 50mm 1.8
Nikon 20mm 2.8
Nikon 300mm 4.5
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