Okay, so I said in an earlier blog that my favorite hand tool was a Japanese hand saw. It’s got competition now. After using this axe, I think I have a new favorite. This axe was an absolute delight to use. Very well balanced and great to hold in my hands! Made by Gransfors Bruks of Sweden, it was hand-forged and stamped with the maker’s initials. After receiving the axe, I went online and saw a picture of craftsman who made my axe, giving me an even greater respect for the tool! I am now an axe advocate, eating up any information I can find on axes and their uses! Axe throwing anyone?
To make the curve in the top beams of the head/foot boards, I started by wasting out the material to about an 1/8” from the line. From there, I used a draw knife to clean right to the line. The draw knife left a beautiful scalloped look on the top of the beam. Very nice to run your hands over! At first I tried using an adze to finish scooping out the curve. I don’t know if it was the fact that I have never used one before and there is a technique I don’t know, but I could not get the adze to work like I wanted it to. I have found it quite difficult to find any information online about how to use one, so I’ll have to keep looking.
