Adze

Does anyone have an adze they really love? I’m at the point where I want things to be pleasing to look at not just functional. Like having water spill into a garden pond from a beautifully cut log not just a plastic waterfall. Thoughts?

What size stuff you thinking on? I've read that adze can produce extremely fine work, but the part where you stand on the work and hack at your toes give me the willies...

One story is that in NYC there was a rich young dowager that wanted her home to display "old world craftsmanship" on the huge beams over her public room. There were a couple three  companies that did that with authentic "auld world craftsmen" and she picked one. When they delivered the beams, she had a tizzy and said she was not that stupid. She had ordered hand hewn wood and would NOT pay for that totally flat machine finish! After about 1 short minute trying to explain that no power tool had touched the beams, only adzes and flat axe  (or whatever you properly call those things) and that was the best hand work by the best artists in NYC... The owner took the beams back to the shop parking lot and had one of his journeymen hack "tool marks" along them; they gave the apprentices a chop or two as well and finished off in a couple hours and covered the load on the truck.  After a week to allow the lady appreciate the seriousness and time it takes to produce hand work, they re-delivered the beams and the customer was happy as a clam. <G>


Cheers,
Rufus

That’s a great story Rufus. To be honest I didn’t know you could get that kind of detail from one. I guess I’m like the lady in your story, just rough and rustic.
I’m guessing I need to look into this more. I saw a fellow use one that was the size of a hammer. I’ve got 16 acres of wood and creating something like a trough or water feature would be awesome! Maybe I could get the family that makes the Russian hoe to make one. Is that thing slick or what!
My buddy and his wife built a log cabin a few years back. They had an old six foot piece of hand cut wood that they wanted as a mantle. It just wasn’t rough enough for the look they wanted. The ended up firing a few rounds from a 12 gauge into it then putting a finish on. Looks so good.

If I wanted to make a trough out of a log, that would mostly be seen from the outside, I'd cut a V out of it with a chainsaw..

But, if that wasn't a large enough channel, or not craftful and time consuming enough.. and if the log in question wasn't too huge.. I'd put a nice edge on the mattock side of a pick-mattock, and try that... since I have one of those around..

I think the curve of it would really help for a troughing tool.. probably there is a particular type of adze best suited for this, with a curved blade... but many are flat.

Here is a video by one of my community members.

He does traditional carvings of bowls,spoons,spatulas,cups. He uses primarily adzes.

Here he is showing how he uses his bowl adze.

Thanks Jordan and D. I really like the mattock idea and think that’s where I’ll start. The video was quite educational. I really didn’t know there was that much of a difference that’s not readily visible without a closer look. I love the bowl idea too. What a timeless piece! My aunt’s grandad carved a large bowl out of wood and she still has it. It would be so cool to pass something down like that. I guess that’s what you did before tv and smart phones.