Merlin Carving Axe

Key Features:

• Edge Retention: The axe is forged from 52100 ball bearing steel, offering phenomenal edge retention. The Merlin features a flat scandi grind with bevels at 28 degrees for a balanced blend of sharpness and durability. During testing, we pushed the edge to the limit with extra-long 25-degree bevels, and the edge held up remarkably well with minimal sharpening required.

• Versatile Weight: Weighing approximately 850g, the Merlin is ideal for detailed spoon carving but has enough heft to handle bowl blanking and heavier work. It strikes the perfect balance between power and manoeuvrability, without the bulk of heavier carving axes in the 1kg range.

• Bearded Axe Design: The well-proportioned beard allows for close, detailed work. Compact and lightweight, the Merlin is easy to attach to a backpack, belt, or tool bag, yet it’s built for hard, demanding tasks.

• Character: Every Merlin is of a kind like all other Thorn Wood Forge tools. Each axe is individually number stamped (#001, #002, #003 etc) to capture the unique character and charm of hand forging.
  
  Premium Materials:

• Leather Sheath: Made from J & FJ Baker’s oak bark-tanned leather, known for its superior toughness. The leather is hand-finished with beeswax and stitched using traditional saddle stitch techniques, ensuring durability.

• Ash Handle: Crafted from European Ash, known for its strength and flexibility. Each handle is made from seasoned ash, which is slowly dried in Thorn Wood Forge’s handle sauna. This process ensures that each axe is handled at an extremely low moisture content, minimising the risk of shrinkage and ensuring a secure, long-lasting fit. The handles are copy-lathed by Huddersfield based Richard Carter Ltd, then hand-finished, sanded to 400 grit, laser-etched with Thorn Wood's logo, and soaked in boiled linseed oil. Handmade wedges secure the heads, and each handle is finish-sanded and oiled.

How is the Merlin made?

The Merlin Carving Axe begins with a 95mm long piece of 41mm diameter round stock of 52100 steel. The first step is to heat the steel to 1000 degrees and forge it under a power hammer into a rectangular billet. A hole is then punched and drifted to form the eye, which is drawn down and shaped to 50-60% of its final dimensions. The blade is then spread and drawn out to its final length and width, with repeated back-and-forth adjustments to ensure both the eye and blade are consistent and properly proportioned.

52100 (ball bearing) steel has an extremely narrow forging range of 900 to 1100 degrees, making it particularly challenging to work with - if the temperature strays outside this range, the steel risks cracking. To further prevent cracking, the steel must be cooled slowly and any forging stresses must be carefully relieved, especially given the extensive shape changes involved in axe making.

After forging, the axe is annealed and profile ground to refine the shape. The edges are skimmed on a belt grinder to ensure consistent geometry. The axe then returns to the forge, where all corners are chamfered for a refined aesthetic (and avoids digging into your hands for close up work). Following annealing, the axe is normalised and tempered. The entire axe is hardened and then tempered, with the poll and eye specifically softened using a gas forge. This ensures the poll is resilient enough to be struck with wood.

Finally, the bevels are flat ground to a total angle of 28 degrees, and the edge is polished to a razor-sharp finish. The 52100 steel’s exceptional edge retention means the blade will remain sharp through extensive use.