Originally Posted by
george wilson
Another reason I recommended a Plumb hatchet,is too many of the hatchets and axes sold in woodworking catalogs are actually castings.
I met the guy who supplied Woodcraft years ago with axes and hatchets they said were hand forged. They were made in medieval designs,if i recall correctly. He might have told them they were hand forged,but he admitted to me that they were cast from tool steel. That is never the best way to make a cutting tool. And,it is NOT to be confused with the old "cast steel" tools made in the 19th. C. and earlier 20th. C. They were made of tool steel CAST ingots,but subsequently FORGED into tools. Forging compacts the grain,and gives it good direction to make a strong tool.
The Plumb hatchet might not look as cool as a hatchet of ancient design,but it will not be cast. I don't know about new ones,so I suggest finding an older one. Has Plumb gone Asian yet?
Gransfors and the other Scandinavian hatchets will be forged also.