I've been fooling around with my father's tools for quite some time now, but I still have much to learn about handling. Today I learned about the difference between the "tool" and "weapon" mentality. You realize this when you're holding something that could effectively injure or end a man's life when it was made to be used for entirely different purposes.
This was one of the last blades that my father ordered from the blacksmith. Made of steel from a truck's shock spring, the tool itself is supposed to be pretty sturdy. It doesn't actually have a pointed end, but its head is also made to be a bladed edge. Instead of a slash, this one inflicts a smash-cut. This is because of the heavy head, intentionally designed to emulate the ability of an ax to add force through its weight.
I wasn't able to do regular maintenance on this one and its fellow tools recently, so the rust is starting to form a new layer over the steel.
Today I managed to damage both myself and the tool. I was trying to cut down some weeds when the blade hit a small shrub's base and bounced off, making its way to my unarmored right foot.
Good thing the head only grazed the skin. It's more of a bruise instead of a cut.
This incident further proves the need to be able to control the tool while using a great amount of force for application. I was swinging about like an idiot and I didn't expect something to deflect the blade. You'd think I already learned the lesson of the day. Nope.
The poor thing got smashed against the face of an unseen boulder and a portion of the blade was chipped. I wasn't able to find the separated metal since the place was still weed infested. Serves me right for bringing along an incompatible tool for a specific job. I'll try to have this tool repaired or have another larger one forged (not as replacement). I'm gonna need to gather supplies before I start doing tool maintenance again.
No comments:
Post a Comment