Sunset On The Lake

Here is a photo I took looking out the front door.  This is how nice the sunsets have been recently. 

It is really calm and peaceful out here on the lake and I thought I would share it with my readers.  Since the weather has recently been very nice, I have spent more time outside working and looking at this view.  I feel privileged to be able to work outside in such a nice setting.

Dave

Gransfors Bruks Swedish Carving Axe

Tags

carving, Carving axe, Drew Langsner, Gransfors Bruks, Green Woodworking, Hans Karlsson, Swedish Carving Axe

Gransfors Bruks Swedish Carving Axe
Specifications:
Bit Profile: Symmetrical Grind Double Bevel
Weight: 32.0 oz. ( 907 grams)
Blade length: 4.625″ (117.5 mm)
Handle Length: 14.5″ (368.3 mm)
Overall length: 16″ (406.5 mm)
Price: $179.00 USD (Dec. 2012)

When I first received this axe I was a bit disappointed. Now, after a bit of work and getting over my initial feelings, I have really grown to like it. So, after this disclaimer we will delve into the review.

I got this GB Swedish Carving Axe at the same time as the Hans Karlsson Sloyd Axe, which I reviewed a few months back. Out of the box I was thrilled with the HK Sloyd Axe. The quality was top notch and the fit and finish great. You can read that review here: “Hans Karlsson Sloyd Axe”

On the other hand, the Gransfors Bruks axe was nowhere near as good. The handle was in poor shape and the head of the axe was on crooked. (Sorry I do not have pictures of this stuff as I was preoccupied with fixing the problems.)

The handle had large tear outs from the shaping process. GB will tell you that this is part of the design to give you more grip, but I do not believe this. The handle does have a texture which resembles drawknife marks, but the handle had large chunks torn out where the cutter was going against the grain. It is the same thing that happens when you cut against the grain with a knife or an axe. With some knife work and judicious sanding, it is better now and really not a big deal.

The head is canted on the handle, which is a result of the eye being pierced off center. While this looks a bit wonky, it actually is not a problem for right handed use. Apparently according to the company I bought it from, this is within standard for GB axes and they routinely ship them to the states like this. They can have a fair amount of cant to either the left or right. Since this is a symmetrical ground double bevel axe, the bit should be straight and parallel to the handle so that it can be used either left or right handed. This is different than a side axe or single bevel axe which can only be used on one side and usually has some cant to the handle to facilitate cutting on that one particular side.

Now that all of that is out of the way lets talk about how the axe performs.

The shape of the bit really facilitates slicing through wood. When I first saw these axes many years ago I thought that they look a bit funny with the upswept bit that was shorter in length than the rest of the blade. However, after using it I see the value of this design. This works in conjunction with the curved handle to produce good chips efficiently when cutting. Now the form of this axe is very pleasing to my eye and I think it has a nice look to it.

The handle design is also very different than most axes / hatchets. The design is very comfortable in your hand and works very well in use. As stated above, it allows the axe to swing in a manner to make cutting efficient and accurate. I am going to make a wood pattern of this handle so that if I need to rehandle it in the future I will have a dedicated pattern. Overall, there is no need to modify the handle as I do with most of my tool handles.

The grain orientation of the handle is also very good. It runs very close to parallel to the bit.

With a few modifications (you know I can’t leave things alone) this axe performs very well. In fact, it is a tool that I will not part with if given a choice. It is a great compliment to the Karlsson axe. I use the GB for the heavy work and roughing and then switch to the Karlsson for the detail work and final shaping. In this manner I can carve much more efficiently, and the extra weight of the GB is not a burden but a benefit. If I were just using the GB by itself it might get a bit tiring as some people have commented, but I do not find this to be true when used in conjunction with a lighter carving axe for part of the work being done.

Symmetrically Ground Double Bevel

One thing that I did to improve the axe besides smoothing out the handle was to round over some of the sharp edges. I did this on the bottom side of the axe head where my hand touches the edges while choking up on the handle. This makes for a much more comfortable grip and reduces wear on my hand. The steel at these spots is soft and can be easily removed with a round file and some sandpaper. You can see the spots in the photos as bright white steel that is lacking the dark forged finish.

The other thing I did was on recommendation from Drew Langsner’s website. This was to flatten the left bevel of the bit for right handed use. This makes the blade bite in more and really makes this axe work so much better. At one point GB offered the axe this way but stopped for some reason. To do this I used a coarse Lansy Puck to slowly take down the convex surface until getting it very close to flat. I marked the edge with a permanent marker to show if I got to close to the edge. This worked out well and prevented me from working the edge down which would cause the edge to become uneven.

This axe also comes with a decent leather edge guard that is riveted together. The fit is a little loose but it does the job of protecting the blade from dings.

After doing these things I have really grown fond of this axe despite my initial disappointment. I suppose I could have not mentioned the issues I had with it when I first got it, but I wanted people to know that there is a chance they could end up having to do work to this axe before they can use it. This is my intention, not to talk negatively about the Gransfors Bruks Swedish Carving Axe.

I would recommend this axe to someone needing a heavier carving axe. Just keep in mind that you might run into some of the problems I did. If you end up with one like mine, a little work on it will make it into a nice tool that should last you a lifetime.

Also you might have noticed that the photos are taken with the axe resting on my recently built pole lathe that I built from reclaimed lumber. That will be featured in an upcoming article, so keep checking back for it. As always please leave a comment. I enjoy hearing from you. — Dave

Rhododendron Wood Analysis – Safe or Not?

Tags

Rhododendron, Rhododendron toxicity, spoon carving, spoonwood, wood spoon

I had posted some information on a forum a few years back about whether Rhododendron wood was safe for making utensils. I got varied opinions, but along the way I did more research that may shed some light on this issue.

When my wife and I moved to WV, we noticed that there were rhododendrons everywhere. The wood from the plant is dense and seems as if it would be good for carving utensils from it. In fact, I believe some people call it Spoonwood around this area. This got me to thinking that since they grow everywhere like weeds, they would make a good source of wood that could be harvested without impact to the forests.

However, Rhododendron has a reputation for being poisonous and therefore seems that further investigation was necessary to determine whether one could use the wood from this plant or if it should be avoided. The only official study that I was able to find was one conducted by the School of Agricultural and Forest Sciences at the University of Wales, Bangor.

http://www.wildresources.co.uk/reports/rhodo_eng.pdf

This study shows the levels of grayanotoxin in the different parts of the plant. The grayanotoxin is the neurotoxin that is responsible for illness or death in animals and humans. It shows that the highest concentration is in the flowers and leaves and if ingested in moderate quantities can be fatal. There are two main grayanotoxins covered in the study, GI and GIII. These were the subject of the study as they are the most toxic while the others would pose less of a significance over these two.

The level of GI found in the flowers is 55.26mg/g while the amount found in green wood is just .3042mg/g. The toxic level of ingestion is 5526mg to 12,433.5mg of grayanotoxin-I to seriously poison a 55lb(25kg) child. This would indicate that the toxic dose in an averaged sized adult (165lb) would be from 16,758mg to 37,300.5mg. To get to these levels of toxicity, one would have to physically ingest up to 122,618.34mg or 122.6 grams of wood. This is 4.3 ounces of actual wood that would have to be ingested to consume enough GI to be toxic.

Since one is not consuming the wood we can infer that the actual amount of GI exposure to the green wood is fairly low. The grayanotoxins were not shown to pose a risk for absorption through the skin which would lead me to believe that handling the wood is safe. So carving the wood should pose no significant risk of exposure to grayanotoxin.

Consequently the level of GI drops to less than half, or .1341mg/g in dry wood. This level can also be further reduced by washing the dried wood as the grayanotoxins are water-soluble. At this concentration there would be not even be enough GI in the dried wood to cause any symptoms.

So we can determine that in a spoon carved from Rhododendron that weights 1 ounce when dried, would only contain 3.8mg of GI embedded in the wood. This is 1454 times less than the toxic dose of greyanotoxin-I by ingestion. Again, unless you are physically eating your spoon, the amount you would consume from using such a spoon would be significantly lower.

So does this mean that it is safe to use Rhododendron wood for making eating utensils? Well I have come to my conclusion, but I will let you make that decision on your own.

Dave

Lawyer Note: The above should be taken as an analysis of a study conducted by the University or Wales and not to be used as a definitive resource for basing ones decision for the safety of using Rhododendron wood for eating utensils or for the safety of handling any part of this plant. By using the Rhododendron plant you assume all responsibly for the consequence of such an action which could result in illness or death.

Traditional Axe Making Video

Tags

axe, axe handle making, axe making, blacksmithing, carpenters axe, forge, forging, metal work

This is a cool video that I had seen some time back. It shows a Swedish blacksmith forging an axe and then handing it off to a man who uses it and other tools to cut a detailed notch for a log cabin.

It is a pretty neat video and thought I would share it just in case some of you had not seen it.

Freedom From Electricity

Tags

Freedom From Electricity, Green Woodworking, Jotul Stove, log cabin, shop

By day I fly as a carpenter and can’t get away from power tools. Seems like every task has been turned into one that people think you absolutely need some sort of powered equipment. I use some hand tools on the job and people look at me like I am crazy. I have had a lot of people refer to me as old school which is kind of funny since I am only in my 30′s.

I have been building my inventory of hand tools, and for the most part prefer not to use power tools when I am doing my own projects. I just like the skill needed and the interaction with the wood when using hand tools.

Lincoln’s Boyhood Home

We recently sold some real estate, and I am dreaming of building a non powered shop one day when we find some land to purchase and homestead on. The woodworking shop I have in mind would be fairly small so as to be quick and easy to build. Being smaller would also make it easily heated with a small wood stove like the Jotul F602 CB that I have in my current shop. I am thinking that a 12 x 16 log cabin style shop built with logs from our own land would fit the bill nicely. Perhaps it would also have a large attached overhanging roof for working outside in the summer.

Maybe I could have a small solar panel for charging a battery just to run lights, or perhaps get really crazy and go with only lanterns. That may not be supper practical, but it would be enjoyable. Every time I would walk into the shop it would be like stepping back into time.

Sounds like fun. What do you think?

Dave

New Tutorials Page

Tags

tutorials

I just wanted to let people know that I have added a “Tutorials” page to my blog where you will be able to download and print tutorials about things I have written about on my blog.  These will be in pdf format for easy downloading and viewing.

There isn’t a lot on the “Tutorials” page at the moment, but I will be adding more from past blog entries over the next week or two.  After that, I will create pdf’s of articles which have “how to” content once they have been posted on this blog.

Keep an eye out for future tutorial pdf’s.

Dave

My blog’s name has been stolen!!

Tags

stolen blog name, traditional skills

Today I was searching for my blog’s name on Google just to see where my blog has been mentioned, when I ran across another guy that started blogging with my blog name some time after me.  I don’t know if this was intentional or not but that is not cool.  People really should search the Internet before deciding on a blog name.  I tend too think it must have been intentional, because if someone was to Google “Traditional Skills”  my blog is the first entry to show up, so it would not be that hard to see that that my unique blog name had been taken.

According to trademark attorney Mary-Alice Pomputius, “Assuming that your use of your blog name doesn’t step on someone’s else’s toes, you start accruing what are called “common law rights” in your blog name when you start using it, and you can sue in court to enforce those rights. “

Should I seek a common law rights violation against them? Am I over reacting? I have plans for this blog and do not want someone else using my name. One of those plans is for using it as my school name in the future.

I may sound like a jerk for ranting like this but I am sure that if anyone reading this had the same thing happen with their blog they might be a little upset as well. I just wanted to see what others thought.

Thanks,
Dave

One Year Blog Anniversary!

Today is the one year anniversary for my blog so I thought I would give a quick summary and thank everyone for your comments and for joining me on my blogging journey.

I am one of the few that has made it past the one year mark of blogging. Apparently the statistics put out by blog companies say that between 80-90% of blogs do not make it past the first year. I had a few lags in my posting more than one month, but I am still here and kicking. I have found that I really enjoy the blogging experience more than other forms of Internet sharing. I have tried forums and they just do not motivate me like a blog does.

I had over 16,000 views, 5,000 of which were just last month, due to the fact that I have posted more again. I know views are not what make a blog, but it is a motivator to keep posting as you know people are looking at your blog. The part that really makes me enjoy blogging is the comments that I receive from viewers. So far I have had 133 comments, about half of which were my own, as I strive to reply to all comments.

I have posted 45 blog entries in seven months. During the other 5 months scattered in between, I was being a slacker and was too distracted by life to do much blogging or traditional skills. Life happens though, and it is good to still be here.

Again, I share this to thank everyone for following my blog, commenting, and giving me inspiration to continue the good fight. With any luck I hope to still be blogging next year.

Thanks,
Dave