Hey all, we just had a great experience building and using a broadfork for the first time.  We broke up new ground on our homestead in northern BC, Canada.  If you're interested in the process or the results check out the video:



Jeff, Rose and the girls

Great video, Jeff.  I'd love it if you posted more frequently.

Anyone ever tell you that you remind them of Karl Urban?

I'm glad you enjoy the videos Timothy, we try to post a new one every second week.  Any more often and I think the quality and value would go down.

Karl Urban.... I don't think so.  I'll look into it, he must be something special!

Great project!  Thanks for sharing!

Thanks for posting, Jeff.  I like how you were teaching your girl.  The vid is fun, too.

I make stuff from steel, too.  I think I'd make my broadfork a little lighter.  Any reason why you used materials that thick?  Just the stock you had laying around?

I get raw stock suitable for this project , every time I tear down a chimney and fireplace. It's available for free in Victoria.

There's a much more suitable recycled material available for making tines. Planer blades can only be sharpend so many times before they reach a point where they don't fit the machine . It's different for each type . Some of the big commercial units used here on the west coast, have a blade large enough to build a froe. Smaller models are perfect for making a broad fork. They are made of really tough metal that is pre-drilled.  This would give the option of attaching them to a hardwood block with a handle similar to what you would have on a mattock. A workable broadfork for the millions of people who don't have metalworking tools or skills .

Joel,

Glad you enjoyed the video. I sorted through the odds and ends at a small local metal shop and that's the best material I found.  I also tend to err on the heavy side given the lack of "engineering" on my projects.

Thanks,