We decided to dedicate this article to such a useful and necessary tool as an ax . This tool, perhaps along with a hammer, is present in the kit of any normal owner who often performs construction and repair work at home or in the garage. At the same time, it is very often used and not for its intended purpose, simply because it is with an ax that one can perform some kind of work or its element due to the lack of the necessary specialized tool.
In the process of performing any work not quite as intended with the help of an ax, it experiences significant loads, for example, when hitting the butt with a large hammer, or a large bend in the blade (if you need to expand a thin gap with this tool), finally you can just miss the point of impact and hit on a log not with a butt or blade, but with the neck of the handle, as a result of which it can simply break.
One way or another, the ax can get quite serious damage, as a result of which it will no longer be possible to use it for its intended purpose.
But as the famous saying goes, what one can do, another can break. But this saying in most cases also works in the opposite direction: what one can break, another can repair. After all, repairing a tool is often much cheaper than buying a new one.
And now let's go directly to the topic of our article, namely the consideration of the main damage and subsequent repair of the ax.
Basic ax damage
To begin with, we will divide all the main breakdowns and damage to the ax that may occur during work.
Since axes have only two main parts, only two types of damage can occur.
1. Damage to the handle. For those who do not know the ax handle is called a wooden ax handle. With a very inaccurate blow, if you miss the place of impact, it can crack or even break at the junction with the metal butt.
2. Damage to the butt. The butt is the metal part of the ax, which, on the one hand, has a blade that splits a tree or other material of comparable density, and on the other, a flat part that is used as a hammer. You can hammer a nail, break stones and similar work.
Often, the flat part is hit with a large hammer or small sledgehammer to increase the impact and maintain the accuracy of the blade application. Sometimes, due to a poorly made metal part, marriage, low-quality metal or an inaccurately directed additional blow, a situation may arise in which a crack may occur in it. Usually it occurs at the point of transition of the blade to the part for attaching the ax handle, or in the middle of the flat part.
Handle repair
When repairing an ax handle, it is usually replaced with a new one, as this is easier and more reliable. However, if the crack is small enough, then you can try to continue operating the old ax handle.
To do this, you need to use ordinary electrical tape. It is best to take an insulating tape on a fabric basis. We wrap the ax with it, starting from the metal part in a spiral moving to the end of the wooden part. At the same time, it is necessary to wind the electrical tape very tightly and so that the next turn overlaps the previous one by 50%. The first layer is applied 1 - 2 cm further than the crack ends. After that, without breaking the tape, we return back, adhering to the described method.
As a result, it turns out that the handle is wrapped with two layers of electrical tape, which hold the load quite well and do not allow the crack in the handle to grow. The only drawback of this method is that it can only be used if the crack is small.
If the crack is large enough or part of it has broken off altogether, it is better to buy a new handle and replace it.
Of course, you can carefully cut off the damaged part and, having planed, put the metal part on the ax handle again. However, in this case, the handle will become shorter, which can greatly affect the usability of such a tool.
In any case, regardless of whether you decide to use an old ax handle or a new one, the operations for repairing an ax will be the same.
Initially, we sharpen the front of the ax so that it is slightly wider than the hole in the metal part and goes a little on the cone. In this case, the metal part will fit tightly on the handle and will not loosen. It’s better not to rush here, because if you cut it a lot and then try to put chips in it or come up with other methods of compacting the landing site, it won’t work. It will still crumble.
When planing an ax handle, it is so necessary to remember that the planed part must be of the required length - it should not protrude from the metal part, but also not be located deep. The best option is either flush or recessed by no more than 5 mm.
At the end of the planed part, you can make a cut with a depth of about 1 cm using a conventional hacksaw. We will later drive a wedge into it to spread the end of the ax handle to prevent the metal part from jumping off.
As a wedge, it is best to use a piece of a metal plate 2–3 mm thick, one edge of which should be cleaned in the form of a blade using a grinder.
After that, putting on the ax handle, we hammer it into the gap previously cut with a hacksaw.
Some use wood chips or wood media as a peg, but we do not recommend this. The fact is that after this, the ax must be lowered into the water at the attachment point so that the wood swells and the attachment point is well fixed. Yes, at first everything is fine, but you will not constantly keep the ax in a bucket of water, and as the water gradually dries out, the attachment point dries up and the wooden peg will pop out sooner or later.
Repair of the metal part of the ax
If you have a welding machine or you can ask a friend or neighbor to weld an ax, then you can easily get rid of a crack in the metal part. The most important thing is to do everything right.
The fact is that when welding, the most important thing is not to weaken the metal. After all, if it is overheated, the metal becomes soft and the ax will cease to fulfill its function: the blade will easily bend or the flat part will begin to become covered with strong dents.
Also, before welding, it is necessary to prepare a crack. To do this, we expand it by a cone. That is, with the help of a grinder, we grind expanding chamfers into cracks. Since the crack will be larger as a result, it is best to use metal wire as an additional material, which is placed in the gap and then welded.
If everything is done correctly, then the repaired ax will serve for many years like new, except that the appearance will not be so beautiful. Although this can be corrected by sharpening the welding seam with a grinder.