Stripping paint off an axe head

[chris_irwin]

Just a quick update to show off the finished product. I stripped off the paint with a countour sanding pad in the end (it was cheaper than nitromors ), sanded down the handle and rubbed with linseed oil. It's also nice and sharp now thanks to Red's sharpening thread and a DC4

I found a wilkinson sword axe in the shed the other day, I think it was left by the previous owners. I thought it would do as a starter axe to try out a few things before I spend any money. But I would like to strip the paint off the axe head and make it look a bit nicer. Whats the best way to do this without damaging the metal? Heres the axe in question:

 

[woof]

They left that behind ?, it looks brand new, i'd leave it alone, just sharpen it.

Rob

 

[British Red]

Strip the paint with Nitromors or similar, rub down the helve and oil it with linseed, profile it properly and it'll serve well

 

[chris_irwin]

Yeah they basically just left everything in the shed behind. I don't think they had space for it.

Thanks Red, will nitromors strip the paint off the wedge as well? Or will it damage the wood?

 

[Shewie]

Nitromors all the way

Brought my old childhood axe up lovely when I refurbed it recently.

 

[brancho]

Is the wedge covered on plastic (red or orange) if so leave it alone as it will protect the helve.
Nitromors want do anything much to the wood that linseed oil want cure but as Red said sand the helve and you could sand the head if you prefer.

 

[chris_irwin]

Is the wedge covered on plastic (red or orange) if so leave it alone as it will protect the helve.
Nitromors want do anything much to the wood that linseed oil want cure but as Red said sand the helve and you could sand the head if you prefer.

No It's not plastic, It's just been covered in the same paint as the head.

 

[Sparrowhawk]

Nice little axe. I'm with Red; a little re-profile couldn't hurt.

 

[brancho]

The paint is not really worth getting hung up about really I would be cautious about putting nitromors on the wedge etc as it will dry the wood a little.

What are you wanting to do with this axe as it will split wood nicely without doing anything. It will be nicer to use with the varnish sanded from the helve though.

 

[Chrisj]

I got a similar looking axe when Argos had them in the sale for £2.99. I found the head cleaned up really nicely with some wet and dry used wet. It didn't take long either.

 

[Teepee]

Wrap the shaft in pvc electrical tape, and apply the nitromors-the tape will protect the varnish. Don't use the nitromors super strip, use the ordinary-its much better.

If it were me, I'd reprofile it and not strip it, but horses for courses. A shiny axe head is nice.

 

[chris_irwin]

OK. I think I'm going to use nitromors on the head, but just leave the wedge. Doesn't matter too much. I'll sand down the handle as well and see if I can get my hands on some linseed oil.

I need a little help with the profile of the axe though. It doesn't really have any kind of profile at the moment. How can I go about profiling the the axe? Could I use a file to rough out the shape and then sharpen as desired? Anyone have any sites or threads that will help with reprofiling an axe.

I really don't have a clue what I'm doing here so sorry if I don't make any sense.

 

[Teepee]

You need a sanding block and an old mouse pad to finish the axe after filing. Stick the cut-to-size piece of mouse pad to the sanding block with spray-fix or the like, and then use varying grades of wet and dry, always running off the edge, not onto it. The mouse pad gives the flexibility to get a perfectly curved edge.

 

[British Red]

Here is all you need to know Chris - with pictures

http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=22814

 

[ged]

OK. I think I'm going to use nitromors on the head ... I'll sand down the handle ... help with the profile ... It doesn't really have any kind of profile at the moment. How can I go about profiling the the axe? Could I use a file to rough out the shape and then sharpen as desired? Anyone have any sites or threads that will help ...

There are some sticky threads in the edged tools section, quite a bit of useful stuff there. But I'm with Woof on this. If you're new to it then I'd recommend introducing yourself to the tool before doing a lot to change it. When you know it better, and know better how you'll be using it, you'll be able to make more informed choices. I can understand your wanting to personalize it, but please try not to do that to the detriment of the tool. It looks like a grand little hatchet and it deserves to be looked after.

A file might take metal off easily and it might not, that depends on how hard it is. I'm guessing not very hard. Emery (carborundum, wed&dry) paper or aluminium oxide paper will certainly do it. Some woodworking places will have plenty of used belts to give away. Don't be tempted to take a grinding wheel to it unless you really know what you're doing, safety aspects aside you could overheat the metal and damage any heat treatment. Isn't it sharp enough as it is?

 

[chris_irwin]

There are some sticky threads in the edged tools section, quite a bit of useful stuff there. But I'm with Woof on this. If you're new to it then I'd recommend introducing yourself to the tool before doing a lot to change it. When you know it better, and know better how you'll be using it, you'll be able to make more informed choices. I can understand your wanting to personalize it, but please try not to do that to the detriment of the tool. It looks like a grand little hatchet and it deserves to be looked after.

A file might take metal off easily and it might not, that depends on how hard it is. I'm guessing not very hard. Emery (carborundum, wed&dry) paper or aluminium oxide paper will certainly do it. Some woodworking places will have plenty of used belts to give away. Don't be tempted to take a grinding wheel to it unless you really know what you're doing, safety aspects aside you could overheat the metal and damage any heat treatment. Isn't it sharp enough as it is?

Fair enough, I'm not trying to completely alter the tool, it's just totally blunt and I've heard that in bushcraft your axe should be as sharp as your knife. Looking at other similar sized hatchets, the profile seems quite different and I thought that it might need reprofiling as it seems like it has just been used for splitting logs and nothing else. Therefore, I thought that a different profile would be more appropriate. But I accept that I don't know what I'm doing so I can't really make much of a judgement on what kind of edge to put on it.

Perhaps I will just sharpen it and strip the paint off for now.


By the way, thanks for the thread link Red. That looks like it will be very useful

 

[demographic]

Personally I would use an abrasive flap disc on a grinder as although it sounds harsh its not that bad and I usually have some kicking about in my toolbox.

 

[ged]

Personally I would use an abrasive flap disc on a grinder...

Yes, they're good, and if you haven't got a grinder you can get something similar which fits an electric drill.

There are lots of options for sharpening stones too, for example these.

 

[brancho]

it's just totally blunt and I've heard that in bushcraft your axe should be as sharp as your knife.

This is not true if all you want to do is split wood with it. Chopping trees down or carving are different though. We always teach scouts if its thicker than your wrist use a saw its safer.

 

[chris_irwin]

This is not true if all you want to do is split wood with it. Chopping trees down or carving are different though. We always teach scouts if its thicker than your wrist use a saw its safer.

I wanted to use it mainly to try my hand at making my first spoon to start with. So It needs to be relatively sharp. If I just wanted to split wood, I would probably just leave it as it is