You need just a few things to forge up a quick and easy railroad spike throwing hatchet. This is a nice project for beginners because I show you a few different important techniques including smithing up your own tools, piercing holes, and rounding out steel

I also have a video tutorial on this project at the bottom of the page.

Will has a youtube channel with over 700 videos on projects you can make. Check it out right here

Here is the hatchet/throwing axe we make

And one of the neat blacksmithing techniques we use is piercing a rectangular hole for the handle.

This hatchet is a fun and easy little project and one of the techniques we use is to pierce a hole in it. Using the Pritchel hole and even the hardy hole. But.... It isn't a circular hole. We want it to be a rectangular hole, more of a slot. So, how do we do this? In this tutorial I show you how. It demonstrates a fundamental skill that every blacksmith knows.

Before we launch into the tutorial let me show you the technique that every blacksmith knows and uses when blacksmithing. It is almost taken for granted. And we use it in this tutorial. It is the concept of forging up tools, jigs and other helpful aids when you need to accomplish a task. Here is how we do it in this tutorial:

We want to insert a hammer handle into the center of the hatchet head.

The hammer handle is rectangular in shape so we need a rectangular hole in the head of the hatchet. How do we accomplish this.

We do this by making a tool that is the right size and shape for the job. You can see here that I shaped a second railroad spike to about the same thickness and width of the wooden handle we are using.

We start the hole with any kind of a piercing tool. But then we switch to our home made tool to continue the piercing and get it to the shape we want. As simple as that! Make a tool to help you accomplish the task you need done.

Once you start doing this you will never forget it. Making yourself a little jig or tool can save you lots of time and can make things much easier. Also, you now have the right tool for any other time you need a hole the size of a hammer handle.

Okay - Let's make the Tomahawk/throwing axe! Or watch the video below

Video is here:

A Blacksmithing Primer: A Course in Basic and Intermediate Blacksmithing

Virtually every task beginning and intermediate blacksmiths must master is presented in this excellent book. Over 400 detailed drawings help increase comprehension levels. This is a reference manual that will be found lying open on the workbench more often than found on the bookshelf and is highly recommended to anyone swinging a hammer to shape hot metal. This is an excellent introduction to this glorious craft and an excellent resource for advancing your knowledge, skills, and vision for blacksmithing.

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