Viking battle axes. How to make a Viking ax

Taiga ax- this is a special type of tool that has many differences from ordinary carpentry tools that can be found in every owner’s home. Good tool it is very difficult to find and it is expensive, so we will make best ax with your own hands from ordinary materials. Next, we will consider the main differences, features, characteristics of the product and step by step instructions its manufacture.

Characteristics of the taiga ax and what it should be like

Since the parameters of the ax and blade are very different from the usual sizes of “household” axes and will seem unusual to many, you first need to decide what problems can be solved with this miracle device:

• Tree cutting. Felling in a sawmill, sanitary felling or preparing firewood for a log house - this is exactly what this ax was made for.
• Rough work with logs (that's right, rough!). Suitable for removing branches, making grooves, removing thick bark and similar work.
• Ax for survival. A lightweight hunting tool, suitable for quickly creating bags and animal traps.
• Construction of huts, decking, wooden houses " instant cooking" A hut will not be built without an axe, but with its help you can do it 4 times faster than when working with a carpenter's ax blade.
• Working with firewood. If accuracy is a secondary concern, then this tool is perfect for the job.

If you want to make a tool for precision work, then it would be better to consider forged axes with a straight, long blade. They are of little use when cutting down trees, but the accuracy is very high. In addition to the quality of the “cut,” there are many differences between a taiga ax and a regular one.

Shorter rounded blade . The ax is much lighter than a regular one, and small area work surface allows you to bury it much deeper into the wood, suitable for cutting wood across the grain. The tool is much easier to carry (the ax and head together weigh no more than 1400 grams).

Presence of a long beard . Its main task is to protect the wooden part from breaking when strong blows. Up to 60% of the impact force is absorbed. But it does not protect against impacts against logs - this is a misconception, since the special shape of the blade already performs this function.

Special ax sharpening . The rear edge of the blade is almost 2 times thinner than the front. This is done for the purpose of using the ax as a cleaver (if struck correctly). IN ordinary instrument the edge has the same thickness for high precision works

Special angle of inclination of the ax . The head of the taiga ax forms a much smaller angle with the ax handle. This allows you to increase work efficiency, relieve hand fatigue and increase productivity when cutting trees. The impact becomes much stronger than that of a carpenter's axe, where the head and blade are placed at an angle of 90 degrees. All taiga axes self made they try to do it with an angle of 75-65 degrees - this is their main difference.

They use ordinary sharpening wheels, since they can be very diverse. The main thing is to observe the difference in the thickness of the leading and trailing edges, since it is this that affects the productivity of the forester.

Do-it-yourself taiga ax - making the tool head

Forge or pour metal part It won’t work at home, so let’s go on our own in a simple way and in a few steps we will make a taiga ax out of an ordinary carpenter’s axe.

STEP 1: we take an old metal head from an ax, the weight of which is approximately 1400-1600 grams ( best option) and cut off the front protrusion of the blade flush with the butt. Protrusion of 5-8 degrees is allowed, but it's better to remove it if you need the right axe.

STEP 2: we make the back of the blade rounded, we cut off the metal so that the entire touching surface is without corners. This can be done using a regular grinder or a medium-grit sanding wheel.

STEP 3: cut out a semicircle in the inner part of the blade. It is necessary for a comfortable grip of the ax when it is necessary to plan something or for more precise work. With this form of an ax you can pull up small logs or hang the ax on a tree branch. In addition, you can reduce the weight of the head by 150-200 grams.

STEP 4: we cut off the upper corners of the butt. This will reduce weight and increase the maneuverability of the tool. This operation can be omitted if you are satisfied with the axe.

Now all that remains is to choose how to sharpen the ax. It is very important to use a low-speed tool (a grinder cannot be used!). A sanding machine with a large wheel and medium grit is ideal. The sharpening must be double-sided and have a moderately sharp edge (a very sharp one will die on the first tree).

Making an ax handle with your own hands

You should not neglect the ax handle, since it is this that affects the comfort of work. The holder must be balanced, comfortable, well polished and with the correct geometry so as not to injure the worker’s hands.

The first step is to choose the right wood for the ax handle. The first and simplest option is pine. It is very easy to sharpen and polish, but is unreliable due to its high fragility. You can use birch - the best option and very affordable wood that is quite easy to find. Maple and clear - ideal option, but making a handle from such wood is very difficult in some latitudes.

The size of the ax can be at your discretion; a handle with a length of 50 to 70 centimeters (universal size) for the cleaver is recommended. A hiking option is 40 centimeters, but cutting down trees and chopping firewood is quite difficult with it. If working with an ax only involves splitting logs, then the handle can be increased to 120 centimeters - excellent impact power and productivity, but you lose in comfort of use. Next, let's look at step-by-step instructions for making an ax handle.

STEP 1: select wooden blank. The log should be 20 centimeters longer, and its diameter should be at least 12 cm. Without knots, rotten areas, deformations and other defects that may be present on the tree.

STEP 2: drying wood. First you need to clear all the bark and split the lump in the middle. It is advisable to withstand for a couple of months at +22-25 degrees and 15% humidity. You should not heat it or keep it damp - this will only worsen the properties of the wood after drying, in addition, it may become deformed.

STEP 3: we shape the ax handle. First, you can remove all excess with a hatchet or a large knife, and all “jewelry work” is done using a chisel and a small hammer. If this is your first hand-made pen and you don’t yet know how to make an ax, then the process will take several hours, you need to check the drawings. A more experienced person will be able to cut an ax handle by eye in 20-30 minutes. You should end up with a handle something like this:

STEP 4: Now you need to attach the ax handle and secure it. You can use gauze and epoxy resin - a proven option. After 2-3 days the instrument is completely ready for use. To be sure, after attaching the ax you can hammer in a wedge - this will be more reliable.

STEP 5: sanding and opening with varnish. The ax handle needs to be properly processed sandpaper and open with anti-corrosion mixtures so that the wood is not damaged over time. Now the instrument will also be beautiful!

Now all you have to do is find out what do-it-yourself sharpening is. You need to sharpen the ax handle on a machine or do it manually and you can go test the tool. True connoisseurs can also make a leather case with their own hands. A piece of leather 30 by 30 centimeters, an awl and nylon threads is all you need. Now the tool will look respectable and you won’t be ashamed to give it as a gift!

You can find out more about how to make a taiga ax with your own hands here:

Axes have been known to mankind since ancient times. This is one of the most useful inventions of mankind. The invention is very simple and functional. However, in Rus', since ancient times, axes have been divided into several types, each for a specific type of work. The size of the ax and the size of the ax handle became the main difference between the axes.

I hope this article will help you understand what a proper ax handle is. It examines the shape of the ax handle and provides drawings of the ax handle. After reading this article, you will be able to make an ax handle with your own hands.

Currently, axes are used in everyday life for cleaning garden plots, minor carpentry work and chopping firewood. There is an ax for every job, so it’s important to know correct sizes axe.

In logging operations, axes are used for cutting trees before felling, cutting branches from fallen trees, debarking logs (in the absence of special tools), splitting and chopping wood. Accordingly, they are called lumberjacks, loppers, splitting axes, and cleaver axes.

Let's look at the structure of the axe; it consists of the ax itself and a handle called the ax handle. A drawing of the correct ax is shown below.

It has a blade, a blade and a butt. The front corner of the blade is called the toe, the back corner is called the heel, the line running from the corner of the toe to the base of the butt is the toe line; the line coming from the corner of the heel is the heel line; the side surfaces of the canvas - cheeks.

The material for the manufacture of axes is high-quality medium-alloy tool steel that has undergone heat treatment.

Now let's look at the shape of the correct ax in the drawing. In it, as shown in the drawing above, there are fastening, middle, gripping parts and a tail.

The wood for the ax handle is birch, ash, maple, hornbeam, old rowan, beech, and apple tree. You should not make an ax handle out of poor material for safety reasons.

The dimensions of the ax handle depend on the type of axe. For work that requires special impact force, you need an ax with the shape of an elongated ax as in the drawing. For clean, precise work that does not require great impact force, axes are made with a short ax shape. For logging axes, you need to use the correct ax handles with a length of 700 - 900 mm, for lopping axes 600 - 800 mm, but the ax handle for a splitting ax has dimensions of 750 - 930 mm. The shortest length is about 500 mm - they have axes for hewing.

The middle and gripping parts of the ax are given a slightly curved shape and their surface is carefully processed as shown in the drawing. The tail is made wider. The fastening part fits tightly to the hole in the butt. The angle of the attachment must correspond to the type of axe: for a lumberjack 86 - 88°, for a lopping ax 70 - 80°, for a splitting ax 80 - 90°.

The axis of the correct ax and the line of the blade are located in the same plane. After attaching the blade, the ax handle is wedged by driving two wedges.

The impact force applied when working with an ax also determines the shape of the ax itself. Thus, a logging ax used for cutting trunks and cutting thick branches on large trees must penetrate as deeply as possible into the wood, not get stuck in it, and produce large chips, i.e., it requires special impact force. In accordance with this, its wedge-shaped shape is convex as in the drawing, the line of the blade is curved.

Below are examples of modern axes.

A delimbing ax is used mainly for cutting branches and sometimes for cutting thin trees when sawing. When cutting branches, less impact force is required, but a higher frequency of work, therefore the blade of the delimbing ax is long, as shown in the drawing.

Nowadays, few such axes are produced; all that I managed to find is given below.

The cleaver is used for splitting - splitting wood, so its blade shape is short, wedge-shaped, heavy, with thick cheeks, with a sharpening angle of about 35 degrees.

Axes for riveting and similar work have a wide blade with one-sided sharpening as in the drawing below.

Undoubtedly, people who live in a private house or often go on hikes need such indispensable tool like an axe. To purchase it, you just need to go to the market.

If you have questions about the quality of the purchased ax, you can make it yourself. Moreover, this can be done very easily if you use the instructions and tips for making it.

Classification of axes

Axes come in the following types:

1. Carpentry. Light, small axes must have a sharp blade. Designed for trimming and precision woodworking.
2. Carpentry universal. Axes of different weights. They don't have a big handle. They are used for imprecise wood processing.
3. Lumberjack's axe. Used for cutting wood, it has a wide blade and a long handle.
4. Ice ax Used in mountaineering. It consists of a spike, a head, a blade and a handle sharpened at the base. Outwardly it looks like a pickaxe.
5. Cleaver. A cone-shaped ax with a lot of weight. The shape and weight help to split hard wood.
6. Kuznechny. With such an ax it is possible to chop off metal materials. They apply the ax to the place where they need to chop off and hit the butt with a hammer.
7. Potes. It is used to trim wood. For efficient operation, the ax has a rounded blade.
8. Povarskaya. An ax with a short handle and a heavy, sharp cutting surface.
9. Paznik. Used for cutting grooves using an edge on the blade. The cutting part is perpendicular to the ax handle.
10. Firefighter. An ax with a metal handle that is insulated to withstand a voltage of 1000W. Its peculiarity is that there is a spike on the butt, which is used to cut a passage through the rubble.
11. Assault firefighter. A massive ax with a long handle. In case of fire, it is used to break down heavy structures.
12. Tourist. A small ax with a short shaft. It happens in combination with a knife or saw. For safety, it comes with a cover.
13. Tsalda. The ax blade, made in the shape of a sickle, is used to clear small bushes from the area.

Self-production

The order of work is as follows:

Work on cutting out an ax handle

Before starting work, it is necessary to make transverse cuts at the top and bottom of the beam. The depth of the cuts should not reach the line of the ax by 2-3 mm. Use a chisel to remove the excess layer of wood. Use a rasp to cut out places where corners and transitions are needed. Finally, the ax handle is sanded using sandpaper.

Choosing the piercing part

At home metal sheet can’t be done, so you need to know what to look for when choosing it in a construction market:

• ideally, steel should be marked according to GOST;
• the eye should have the shape of a cone;
• the blade should not have dents, bends or nicks;
• If you look at the butt, its ends should be perpendicular to the blade.

Placing an ax on an ax handle

This can be done by performing these simple operations:

1. Transverse and longitudinal cuts are made on the ax handle in the upper part.




2. Cut 5 wedges from hardwood.




3. Gauze soaked in resin is wrapped over the ax handle to fit more tightly into the eyelet.




4. Hammer the ax handle into the eye of the ax.




5. Drive wedges into the cuts.




6. After drying, the protruding parts of the wedges are cut off.

Blade sharpening

Good functionality of the ax will be ensured correct sharpening blades. Depending on the type of work performed, you should choose the sharpening angle.

For example, a taiga ax is sharpened at an angle of 25-30 degrees. If you need to cut fresh wood, you need to sharpen at an angle of 25 degrees.

As you can see, having a small set of tools and instructions for making an ax in your arsenal, it is not at all difficult to make it to your size and needs.

Look video instructions for making a taiga ax with your own hands:

It's no secret that an ax is an indispensable carpentry tool. In addition, the ax is especially useful in the household: from chopping wood to home repairs.

This article examines issues related to the manufacture of a taiga-type axe, because finding such useful tool It’s quite difficult on the market, and it will cost a lot. The article provides additional helpful information, which will tell you which ax is best to choose for certain needs.

What should a taiga ax be like?

Such an ax, thanks to its special parameters, which are radically different from the characteristics and sizes of “classical” axes, is an indispensable assistant when performing many tasks, such as:

• Tree cutting. Either carpentry work or simply preparing firewood for the winter - a taiga ax will help you complete the task quickly and efficiently;
• Rough processing of logs – removal of branches, other similar work;
• A tool as a way of “survival” - any catalog of axes will confirm the statement that the taiga ax is ideal for hunting, preparing bags and traps;
• Creation of a hut and flooring, construction wooden house as soon as possible;
• Preparation of firewood.

In cases where the work requires special precision, the most the best option What remains is a forged ax with a long blade. Cutting down trees with such an ax is not very effective, but accuracy plays an important role.

Distinctive features of the taiga type ax

Most people do not see the difference between a taiga and an ordinary ax at all. So what are the differences between these two types of axes?

• The length of the roundness of the blade means that the taiga ax is lighter in weight;
• A long beard provides additional protection against deformation and breaking. Typically absorbs up to 60% of impact force;
• Special sharpening - allows you to use the ax as a standard cleaver, when choosing the right blow. In this case, the leading edge of the blade is twice as wide as the rear. The edge of a regular ax has the same thickness;
• Special angle of inclination of the ax - reduces hand fatigue, increases the overall coefficient useful action while working.

Making a taiga ax head

It is worth purchasing an ordinary carpenter's ax, the head of which will weigh 1400-1500 grams.

From the front we cut off the protrusion of the blade flush with the butt. We form the roundness of the back of the blade - the grinder will help us with this. It is necessary to cut off all the metal so that there are no corners left.

We move on to the inside of the blade - carefully cut out a semicircle, which is necessary for a more comfortable grip. In addition, this manipulation can significantly reduce the weight of the head. To further reduce the weight and increase the maneuverability of the ax, it is necessary to saw off the upper corners of the butt.

Sharpening is done using an emery machine. For best results, install a large circle with medium grain. In addition, sharpening should be done on both sides.

Making an ax handle for a taiga ax

It is worth noting that choosing the right wood is the key to success in making a high-quality taiga ax. Ideal options will become maple and ash. Simpler options are birch and pine. The latter is perfectly polished and sharpened, but is extremely unreliable due to its fragility.

Below are the instructions:

Selection of lumps - without knots or defects. Processing and drying - the tree is cleared of bark and split in the middle. Wood should be dried at +25°, with a humidity level of 15%. Aging lasts two months.

Creating a mold - we will need a hatchet or a large knife to remove the main wood. In addition, do not forget about a chisel and a small hammer - these tools will be needed for smaller jobs.

How to mount an ax? You should use gauze and epoxy resin. After three days, the taiga ax will be ready for use.

The last step is sanding and varnishing. The ax will become not only useful, but also beautiful, like in the photo from the advertising catalogue!

Photos of do-it-yourself axes

The result of an activity - economic or industrial - depends not only on the perfection and quality of the tool used, but not least on how convenient it is for a particular person. As for the handle of a purchased ax, it is often this that becomes the source of a number of problems - intense dulling of the cutting edge, the piercing part regularly flying off, rapid fatigue, and so on. Experienced craftsmen recommend making an ax handle with your own hands, preferably for certain technological operations. The main thing is to know how to make it correctly, “to suit yourself”, so that it is suitable for any household work.

Preparatory activities

Wood selection

It is clear that not every breed is suitable for making an ax handle. It is advisable to focus on ash, oak, maple, hornbeam, acacia, rowan (necessarily old), beech and even apple trees. But the best option is still considered birch, namely, the root part of the tree or growths on its trunk. This wood is characterized by maximum density. Consequently, the durability of the ax is guaranteed. It is better to harvest lumber in late autumn. At this time, the movement of juices practically stops, which means that the wood is relatively “dehydrated.”

It is better to harvest lumber in late autumn. At this time, the movement of juices practically stops, which means that the wood is relatively “dehydrated.”

Sample exposure

Even experienced master may not do it the first time quality ax. Therefore, it is necessary to stock up on several blanks for the ax handle. Opinions vary on the length of their storage before processing, but everyone agrees on one thing - drying should be done for at least 3 - 4 years. Moreover, it cannot be accelerated artificially. The process should proceed naturally, and it is advisable to choose a dark and dry place for storing raw materials.

It makes no sense to use “fresh” wood on the ax handle. As a result of the material shrinking, it will become deformed, which means that the handle will have to be constantly wedged, otherwise the metal will fly off. Undried wood is used only as a last resort, as an exception to the rule, when there is an urgent need to make an ax handle, at least for a while.

Preparing the template

A good ax handle must have a strictly defined shape. Trying to withstand it “by eye” is a futile task. The same applies to linear dimensions– they should be as close as possible to the recommended values.

Axes have different purposes. As a rule, a good owner has at least two of them. Cleaver and carpenter are a must. The dimensions and shape of the ax for each are clearly visible in the figure.

What to consider:

• The “tail” is made somewhat larger in cross-section than the gripping part. This ensures that during operation ax handle will not escape from the hands of the master.
• Since we all have different heights and arm lengths, the linear parameters of the ax handle are not standard. They vary within certain limits. First of all, this refers to its length (in cm). For a cleaver - from 750 to 950, for a carpenter's tool - about 500 (±50). But it is necessary to leave a so-called allowance, first of all, on the side of the butt fastening (8 - 10 cm is enough). Once it is firmly seated on the ax handle, without splitting the wood, it is easy to cut off the excess.

If you have an ax on the farm, which is convenient in all respects, then it is enough to transfer the contours of its handle onto a sheet of cardboard and cut out a template using them.

Having a sample, this is easy to do. The main stages of work are as follows:

• workpiece marking;
• sampling of excess wood (electric jigsaw, carpenter's knife, etc.);
• finishing, grinding the ax handle.

Adviсe:

• You should not rush to fine-tune the fastening part “to size”. During the process of processing the ax, you need to constantly monitor how tightly it fits to the eye of the butt. Even a small “shaft” is undesirable, since such a handle will have to be wedged out immediately. Taking into account the specific use of the tool, it will not last long. Therefore, grinding the ax should alternate with its regular fitting in place and adjustment within the required limits, with a small margin (about 2 mm). The work is painstaking, requiring time and accuracy, but the result is worth it.
• When processing a workpiece for an ax handle, it is not advisable to use files. Such a tool loosens the wood, so it is unlikely that you will be able to accurately maintain the dimensions - you will have to constantly remove burrs, which means choosing wood. For finishing it is more correct to use a sharp knife, glass fragments, sandpaper with different sizes grains The recommended direction for stripping and sanding is along the grain.
• It is also necessary to choose the correct angle of the butt attachment. For a universal tool used for economic purposes, 75º is sufficient, a cleaver – about 85±50. This is also taken into account when finalizing the securing part of the axe.

Protecting the wood of the ax

Any tree is susceptible to rot to some extent. For an ax handle the best impregnations Flaxseed oil and drying oil are considered. Varnishes and paints cannot be used to protect the material from moisture. Otherwise, it is not a fact that the handle will not systematically slip out of your hands. The consequences are known.

The composition is applied to the ax handle in several stages, and each layer must dry well.

Experienced craftsmen mix brightly colored dyes into drying oil or oil. It is very useful if you have to work with an ax in dense bushes or in areas with tall grass. A tool with a handle that is clearly visible will definitely not get lost.

Available for sale ready-made axes. If you decide to purchase a handle rather than waste time preparing wood and self-production, then it is advisable to have it with you approximate dimensions(indicated in the figure above). And choose a workpiece based on them. At home, all that remains is to slightly adjust the ax handle “to suit you.”