🔎 UNIDENTIFIED Zinc Axe Head?

[Jeff Foster]

Found this axe head about a year ago and just recently decided to maybe try and restore it for something to do. Surprisingly however after removing a boat load of rust, it seems abnormally shiny, I'm no metal expert but I'd say to shiny for carbon steel. Only metal I could find that rusts like steel and is very reflective is Zinc, however I've never heard of zinc axe heads. The picture where it looks blue I took to show its reflecting my cloths even without it being polished. Thoughts?

 

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[creskol]

Looks like an older carbon steel axe to me.

 

[Tony in SC]

It looks like iron or low grade steel, Zinc would not make a very good axe.

 

[Jeff Foster]

It looks like iron or low grade steel, Zinc would not make a very good axe.

You'd be correct, zinc would make a terrible axe lol that's why its so weird. Just to try and confirm my suspicions I did a scratch test to see if I can figure out its hardness and I can definitely confirm that its not iron or steel as a pair of scissors where easily able to scratch it.

 

[Gare]

You could take it to a machine shop or any shop that has a metal tester and they could check it and read it for you

 

[Jeff Foster]

You could take it to a machine shop or any shop that has a metal tester and they could check it and read it for you

Great recommendation, I'll look around and see if I can find something like that in my area. If it is zinc then the next question would be why lol given its reflective silver quality I can only assume for decorative purposes.

 

[creskol]

You'd be correct, zinc would make a terrible axe lol that's why its so weird. Just to try and confirm my suspicions I did a scratch test to see if I can figure out its hardness and I can definitely confirm that its not iron or steel as a pair of scissors where easily able to scratch it.

Not iron or steel? Carbon steel scratches very easily. What does a magnet test show?

 

[PetesPockets55]

Interesting find.
Pawn shops will often have an XRF machine to analyze the metallic content.

 

[pepperj]

Great recommendation, I'll look around and see if I can find something like that in my area. If it is zinc then the next question would be why lol given its reflective silver quality I can only assume for decorative purposes.

Take a magnet test it, if it sticks then you can be assured it's iron.
It looks like snow old rusty pitted axe that has had its rust removed.