Your ability to fashion these hatchets etc, make a guy with no interest, til I saw, want it! Now that’s artistry. Well done man.

Hey Timothy, just a thought here. There is a HUGE market for steel made before 1945 due to the low background radiation. Everything made after that has elevated levels and is substandard for making medical devices that require as little radiation as possible as to not interfere with the results. There is a lot of money to be had in this kind of steel which you are in possession of. You may want to investigate and see if you're sitting on a gold mine. I know 100 year old axes are cool, but, 75 year old axes are pretty cool too and the steel can be bought with the proceeds of your 100 year old stuff...

Rail has a high manganese content, which means it will “work harden”, or become actually harder on the contact surface with the train wheels after use. An older rail is harder on top than a new rail. I tested this metallurgical fact during my railroad, welding, blacksmith, and machinist days.

For a college summer job, I worked for the Canadian Pacific Railroad turn-out crew picking up the old lines. They would sell the rails to razor blade companies. They wanted it because it was extremely high-quality, premium, hard steel. Interesting job to say the least.

As someone who lays the rails for Tier 1 railroads, this is super cool to see it repurposed instead of laying all over our yards and roadways

That's a million bucks worth of art material and a fine use for high manganese scrap rail. The way you refined and market product is a lesson for anyone interested in these things.

You may want to consider making medical grade equipment, they currently pay a fortune for equipment that's made from pre nuclear era steel, old shipwrecks are targeted because of the presence of rare low-background steel, commonly known as pre-war steel. This steel holds immense value due to its low radiation levels.

Though I have never tried black smithing in person, I am a welder of many years. I do and always will tip my hat to a dedicated smithy. Art and Heart can create wonderful things.

Outstanding work and attention to detail. Worth every penny. This is the kind of craftsmanship we need more of these days.

Really enjoyed watching, I manufactured & heat treated industrial, knives & saws for 35 years. I now have over 22,000 blueprints on file of chipper knives, lathe knives, granulator knives, paper knives, leather knives, Zamboni ice scrapper blades & saw blades up to 144" in diameter.

Hi Timothy. Beautiful workmanship. While I would want to put it on display, I am sure thatthese axes deserve to work. May I offer you some metallurgical feedback that might save some head scratching as you work through that pile of rails. I served as the rail rechnical specialist at Australia's rail mill in Whyalla through the 1980's and 90s. I had cause to visit the Algoma Mill where your rails were manufactured and in 1998-99 was a consultant at the Sydney Steel mill in Sydney Nova Scotia, representing them on the AREMA (American Railroad Engineering & Maintenance of Way Association. Modern rails are all continuously cast but up until about 1990, almost all rails used in Canada were made by the ingot route. Apart from improving the yield, continuous casting eliminated a potentially serious quality issue inherent to the ingot process - central segregation and potentially even pipe (shrinkage cavity). Pipe would be a disaster for your purpose though you would likely see it during the itial forging. The segregation though you would not see and it would give you grief durng hardening and tempering. I suggest that you use the head and base for axes and find a less challenging use for the web. The Carbon content is typically 0.6 - 0.82% lower end of this range in older,smaller rails higher in larger, newer ones. Johnny Jones is correct in commenting that rail has a high Manganese (Mn) content (usually about 0.8 - 1.0%. though not high enough to be a serious issue and certianly a long way short of the Hadfields Managanese steel which is cast into crossings which he may be thinking of. Johnny is also right that the head of the railwork hardens but that disappears as soon as you heat it to forge it. A bigger concern is micro-cracking of the running surface (called head checking) which results from the work hardening. Mocro they may be but they are still cracks and will grow during forging. I suggest that you clean up the rail head on your belt grinder and check for cracks - a little kerosine sprayed on the surface is a good crack detector. When spraye on the surface it soaks into the cracks. When the excess kero is wiked off, some of what soaked into the cracks will seep back out again to show you where the cracks are. I've subscribed to see more.

Never appreciated how much workmanship goes into making an axe - Admire your passion for your work. Thanks for sharing ..

All of the blacksmithing hammers I own were bought from Ethan. It's good to see you guys working together. 👍

Not only are the axes made in Canada, so was the 1912 rail - Algoma Steel, Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario

You have quite a shop with some very serious equipment! Nice job on the axes. Fascinating seeing the process.

We cut a Weld out of a piece of continuous welded rail at our welding plant at our Union Pacific Rail welding plant . The piece was sent to be tested for any defects . The piece is cut into 16 pieces to fully test the weld . The welds are a flash butt weld in the plant and the strings of rail were 1440 feet long when I retired but now they are about 2000 feet long and the rail trains haul 50 strings of rail . Great idea of using the old 85 pound rail . Awesome video .

I could watch you make axe heads 100x’s over and never get tired watching you make them. It’s mesmerizing……You do great work Timothy. Thank you for bringing us all along on the fabrication process. I know filming and editing adds a lot of extra time onto each project. Thanks again 👍🙂

I’m a 70 year old retired tool maker when I got in this business but as an apprentice you guys told me railroad rails is the best material to make your tooling out of like angle plates and vises because it’s been run over so many times. It’s so old when you machine it it’s not gonna move anywhere

What a beautiful handmade product. Wow! It should be rewarding to create such excellence.

My grandfather was from Norway. He was a blacksmith. During WWII he worked in the Brooklyn Naval Shipyard. He was the lead blacksmith and laid the keels for destroyers and liberty ships. He was a real American hero.

You can never have too much raw stock. It gives you the freedom to experiment and develop new methods and products without worry. Forge on, Timothy…

I can tell by your numbers that you have been doing this for a while on KZfaq and I have just found you. This has to be one of the coolest things I’ve watched on KZfaq. It is hard to explain with words why it is so satisfying watching you pound old railroad rail into a hatchet. I was sitting here watching and I said out loud, this is so cool.

Congrats Timothy Dyck from Canada, on showing-us all how u go about the Methods of making ur Blackhawk Hatchets. looks cool..

My grandfather was a hammerman in the clyde shipyards Scotland. Before WW1.. Great workTimothy.

What a wonderful product all around! It's probably too late but I would have added a historical locomotive stamp on the axe and box for this series :)

This is heirloom quality. I love the fact you make these axes with passion and knowledge. Great job !!

My grandfather's ax, father replaced the handle, but no need to replace the blade... really cool to watch blacksmithing being done.

Very interesting, a lot of work goes into making a high-quality hatchet from railroad rails. What a great addition for any serious collector!

Your whole process and the videos of the past year or so and everything youve been doing have allllll come together for me with this videos and I see where you're going with it all! It makes so much sense now! Haha you're a smart dude, and I can't wait to see how this all turns out!

I wanted to buy one but at $650 I think I'll just stick to my cheap-o one, but these things are awesome and wouldn't blame anyone who did grab one.

I don't have a need for an axe, however, I now have the want for one of these artworks.Truely awesome to watch and your filming is ace. Cheers.

So cool that you're using the old rails to create these well made axes. Terrific work.

It's always fun to do your own thing. Axes are always needed. I think in every house, not in an apartment, but in every house there is an ax. I have three 🙂

This is such a cool idea for reclaimed Steel, its a known steel and because there is a date on each rail you can date the Axe, brilliant. Very cool Timothy and thanks for sharing

These are beautiful pieces of art that no doubt took a lot of time and skill to make. But for $650 I doubt any of them will ever be used! Lol I was wanting one to use around the farm but I'm definitely not on that level 😅

Lovely work......and your axes and hatchets will probably be around for the next century, assuming the new owners care for and use them properly like we all should with any tool. Fascinating process to watch. Keep up the great artistry with those reclaimed rails.

You should expand into making small anvils for a lot of blacksmith others

Thanks soo much for taking us along on this journey. im trying to find a valid reason to get an axe after watching these videos. great work as always

Great process to watch ,patience time and care went into these ,thanks for showing us . Greetings from Wales UK .

Very nice video, impressive and quality workmanship... good to see still people out there that care about their products.👍

Beautiful process and end piece of functional art. I'm with one of the other posts, put it to work! These are just too nice to be wall hangers or viewed in collectors boxes. Congratulations young man, I wish I was going to be around to watch you progress in your trade and art! E

I came across your channel just by chance and I'm really glad I did. It has been very enlightening to watch you work.

I love these axes. So much character in that like a piece of Art. Great work!

You are definitely producing an excellent product. Old iron is best. Beautiful work and the kind of craftsmanship that's impossible to find now days. Sure wish I could afford one. geez I'd have to sell tickets just for people to look at it hanging in a bullet proof case above my mantle.

Beautiful work from excellent source material, Timothy. First time viewer here--instant subscribe. Thanks for sharing!

I really enjoyed this video. Beautiful craftsmanship. Shared with my family.

Man this is such a pleasure to watch a skilled craftsman. 👏🏽👏🏽

The ore that they used to make these rails was some of the best. It yielded "blue" steel after smelting with little to no effort. A Swedish company scrapped an old rail line near me that was over a hundred years old. When assayed it was determined that they could convert 200kms of rail into mens/womens razor blades......hella profit.

Now thats a LOT of metal! Keep up the great work 👍

Beautiful work man, keep up the good work. Nice to see blacksmiths still doing the true work of skill. Thank you for sharing

My favorite is the conversion of rail into a small anvil for the home shop. Having read some of the comments I agree as to the quality, composition, and presentation presented in this VID.

you sir are a master craftmen. what you do is almost a lost art. metal forming and the techneque is a joy to watch.

You and your model of business is a true inspiration!!! Love what you do and how you do it!! Keep doing you brother!!!

I've got a buddy who does rail repair & maintenance who told me about the old rail steel. VERY cool! I thought I already had enough axes, ....... but... maybe not? Gonna be watching more of this channel - first time I saw it was this video today.

I forgot how therapeutic and relaxing your videos are thank you and I can put a lot of hard work into these as well as the axis. I can see all the detail in the attention that you put into it. Beautiful video and I might say some damn good looking axis. Make On. Maker 238

Ive always saved shelving angle iron. This is next level :) Great investment, into most probably really great metal, and certainly a historic commodity.

Amazing craftsmanship!

Good buy, 20 years ago my friend bought a property in Portugal and there were 10 old rails on it, he gave it to me for collecting it, very useful stuff.

Simple, elegant, utilitarian, beautiful. All four axes. You're good man. ✌️🖖

I cannot resist watching metal being squeezed in slomo, it's great. Like your attention to detail and your final presentation at ship time, that says it all. Smart move on the old rail purchase.

That's awesome man. I have a handcrafted log home with rusted corten steel siding/roofing. I scored some 1910 rails with Alaska history and used them as my top rail on my deck railings. Mortised into log post. Weird thing was logs were already up when I scored them, and my eve's log center of post to center of post was 33', same length of rail and didn't even have to cut them! Sick material

Fascinating from start to finish Timothy............you guys a true craftsmen

Both you and your friend have an incredibly inviting and friendly personality. love it

Amaizing workmanship! Love the historic use of these RR rails. -- SUGGESTION: How about making small anvils?? Maybe 6 to 12 inches long? With HARDIE, HORN and PRITCHEL with bolt holes too... They would be super-handy for the small projects guys like me.

The detail and love you put into each of your axes blows me away, i just came across Square Space earlier today I really like that you use that website to sell. I will be ordering one, I've been making knives for a few years now and have yet to make an ax. It's difficult to do without a large hammer like you have, but eventually I'll make one. Their axes look absolutely beautiful and I can't wait to buy one. Thank you for posting 🇺🇲

I gave you a thumbs up which means that I pushed on that blank thumbs-up figure and it turned black so that means that KZfaq will pay you fairly and properly for your efforts and is proof that people are viewing your videos and I found out it doesn't cost anything.. yeah I like helping people too have a nice day sir

Whoa, this stock could be too valuable to make axes out of. Pre atomic test 'low background' steel is very sought after.

Timothy Dyck, This was an interesting video. These days I am mainly tracking solar system colonization and gravitational engineering. So, seeing your tools, methods and materials, I tried to translate that to Mars, Moon, various orbits and transit situations in space. Mass is expensive so taking tons of materials and equipment is generally not the way to go. More likely people will process local materials, and 3D print metals where they are needed, but glass and nano-synthesized more likely. The Mars "regolith" (unconsolidated deposits covering solid rock) is about 18.4% iron oxide (Fe2O3). The regolith is mostly silicon dioxide (quartz sand), ferric oxide, and the oxides of aluminum, calcium and sulfur. For making things like pipes, plates, structures, windows various types of Mars concrete are being tested (simulated materials). About 42% of the surface materials on Mars is Oxygen, so "mining" and extracting oxygen is part of the plans. Once the oxygen is separated (many methods), then the residual silicon (22%), iron (13%), magnesium (10%), aluminum (6%), calcium (3%), sodium (2%), potassium (2%), titanium (0.6%), manganese (0.2%), chromium, phosphorus etc -- can be used for various things. Mars glass and iron will be important. I think that Mars humans will use hammers, shovels, hoes, spoons, forks, plates, cups. I expect nuclear and atomic heat to be common. Low cost, compact sources of electricity, heat, radiation (for industrial, chemical and practical uses). Richard Collins, The Internet Foundation

I used to work on the railway and my first shift was marking old rail for the cropper to come along and cut it,it was at Abington in Scotland 👍🏻👍🏻

Omg, I was gonna buy one until I saw the $650 price tag 😮, I get these are hand made pieces and all but that's a bit high if u ask me.

This is awesome! Very cool axes! :) one tip if i May say wouls be to use a wire brush to knock off the scale before you start hammering and after hammering, i think it will reduce the amount of scale being hit against the metal and cause the pitting and uneven surface.

Tim Both my Grandfathers were blacksmiths in Mexico. In 1920 American Railroadmen hired blacksmith to w94k on Railroads in Western United States. A small company by the name Of SOUTHERN PACIFIC RAILROAD SENT THEM TO San Francisco smith steel from United Steel Works. So your w94k excites me. I loved blacksmithing in metal arts classes that San Francisco Unified School District sponsored because they got all Navy surplus metal working machinery from decommissioned ships from a giant Naval Ship yard here names Hunters point Naval Ship yard. These metal arts classes were in Jr. High and High school. Many students went into steel work. Mid 1960s is my metal schooling…..I’m retired now limited funds but I’m saving to buy one of your beautiful pieces. I wish I was younger and could work with you….thank you for letting me remember..in 68 now but still love w94king with my hands. God Bless you for spreading your labor of metal love. Smith on….

Great quality products came from quality work. Thanks for your video. As a student of forging, it's fun to watch.

I'd be super curious to get an alloy composition of that old rail vs new rail. Very cool project Tim! Talking about them work hardening and cracking, I think they are a high boron(?) alloy like forklift tyne

Nicely presented Tim...I would say that by using the rails that you are on the right track! 🚂...ps nice shafts but I would use a lighter stain to show the wood off (retired woodcarver)

I have 1 word for the craftsmanship of your Axe's & that is " EXCELLENCE " & how you pack them in your own crafted Lovely boxes. You have great pride in your work & it sure shows :) Thumbs up From "Downunder" Aust. Well done Mate :)

Great show. I admire your equipment and your skillful use of it. There's lots of scrap rail.

I think what you're doing is very cool , and great work from what I was able to see , I was wondering if you ever thought about doing a line of firemen's axes , short handled and smaller heads , it's a very versatile design besides being a very useful instrument , hope you would give it some thought if you haven't already , in the meantime I sincerely wish you the best of luck with the regular axe heads , I really think you have a winner .

The UK post WW2 had a salvage operation to raise metal from the German Fleet sank at Scapa Flo off Scotlands coast, for the same reason and for the medical aspect. It is also stated that the Gillette Razor blade company also used the same salvaged metal.

Great work! Good to see a young man producing a very fine product in Canada! Very good looking equipment also!

Wow, amazing craftsmanship and quality. Wow.

I wanted to buy one looked up price and it's worth it but the price is out of my range .what a good product

Hey, these are really cool and I checked out your page. Would you ever consider doing forestry axes? I have been looking for a North American custom forestry axe for some time now. Everything I buy breaks in less than a month. The old Swedish axes are getting harder to come by too, and an axe made from old train rail is such a cool idea.

just incredible work. Great quality video and impressive use of reclaimed material.

Hey Friends! Thanks so much for all the encouragement! I really appreciate all your positive feed back! If you would like a Blackhawk Hatchet head over to my website! timothydyck.com/

And 1912 there was a huge sunken ship, causing a stir about the quality of steel assembled in Ireland boatyards.Your power hammer is awesome.Dark color wedge in ash or hickory is an elegant solution.

I actually got emotional watching this, being a perfectionist in several hobbies myself...I just love it when I see someone like Timothy ply his trade sparing absolutely ZERO compromise! Nothing but respect for this man...and hopefully my wife and kids will make dad a happy camper on his 70th B-day👍🤣

As a locomotive engineer and someone who deeply appreciates all types of metal fabrication, this is awesome. Your tools, machinery and love that goes into the creation of these axes is incredible. I’ll be placing my order very soon. Cheers from upstate New York 🍻.

If that stuff really is 100 years old, then it's pre-nuclear age, so it's a relatively special kind of steel. It can be used for experimental machines and whatnot because there is no nuclear component to it.

You do fantastic work in creating those unique axes thank you so much for showing us how you do it, the price you have set on those axes are definitely worth it sadly there out of my range but hey a man can dream ah!

Great on you Tim, looks like a great time !

Pushing the head on and then the wedge insert is brilliant!

for that price,hell no

Awesome!! This is the only kind of "hatchet job" that I enjoy these days!

Wow I'm super impressed. I have some super old ax heads I found and saved . You give me some inspiration.

Great video! Awesome looking product. Love your attention to all of the details. :)

I'am glad you are using old materials and giving them a new life I do the same. Beautiful work on the axes like the profile godbless and be safe Timothy.

Great worx Tim!! Sweet bit of income too. I spent 36 years as a metal stud framer in high rise buildings, we built this city on Rock and Roll.

Lovely work. Nice to see a craftsman at work 😊

Beautiful work!