17th Century Trade Axe Brought Back to Life!

mangum

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I just finished electrolysis, boiling, baking & waxing on the late 17th century trade axe (long process but worth it) I think it came out great! I only had a little loss on the edge but you can only save what is there. I also included the before pic. This is definitely my favorite iron relic besides my Rev War shells & probably my oldest find. ImageUploadedByTreasureNet.com1473123959.684442.jpg ImageUploadedByTreasureNet.com1473123974.738098.jpg ImageUploadedByTreasureNet.com1473123985.251000.jpg ImageUploadedByTreasureNet.com1473123996.183495.jpg ImageUploadedByTreasureNet.com1473124006.518900.jpg ImageUploadedByTreasureNet.com1473124031.000149.jpg
 

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Scrappy

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Wow, that's a great find man! Nice preservation work to boot. Excellent digs!!
 

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mangum

mangum

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Nice work, ax looks incredible... After electrolysis I boil my relics in paraffin, what is your process?

After electrolysis I boil 2-3 times to remove any salt (important, about an hour) Once the water is clear it's good.
Then I bake at 300 degrees for an hour or so depending on the relic to remove all moisture
I then take it out of the oven & while hot apply Ebony Briwax generously. It soaks it up while hot
After it cools down I wipe off the excess wax & done
 

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You did a beautiful restoration job on a great relic.
 

DirtStalker

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After electrolysis I boil 2-3 times to remove any salt (important, about an hour) Once the water is clear it's good.
Then I bake at 300 degrees for an hour or so depending on the relic to remove all moisture
I then take it out of the oven & while hot apply Ebony Briwax generously. It soaks it up while hot
After it cools down I wipe off the excess wax & done
Great Find and preservation. Excellent info. I Never thought about boiling to remove salt but makes sense. Thx
 

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Fantastic preservation! :occasion14:

Thank you for the method.
 

70monte68

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VMI Digger

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After electrolysis I boil 2-3 times to remove any salt (important, about an hour) Once the water is clear it's good.
Then I bake at 300 degrees for an hour or so depending on the relic to remove all moisture
I then take it out of the oven & while hot apply Ebony Briwax generously. It soaks it up while hot
After it cools down I wipe off the excess wax & done

Thanks for the details, I boil the water out with paraffin heated to 250 degrees. I do notice that after a few months some spot rust does reoccur... Maybe just the salt/moisture rich air down here
 

Ahab8

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Wow that's an incredible piece. Great job buddy
 

jdsly

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Very cool. That would be one of my favorite finds too....nice job!
 

OutdoorAdv

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Awesome axe and excellent work on the preservation!
 

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