\ THE FINE JOURNAL BadAxe: with anArnerican Accent

Chris Schwarz

During the 19th century,Americansawmakers - particularly Disston Works and the E.C. Atkins Co. - were the envy of the world. Even exceedinglyprovincial English books were quick to acknowledgethat American sawscouldn't be beat.

A hundred years later, it's the Americans who are again leading the chargeto build world-classWestern saws for a market that is awashin both excellentlow-cost Japanese sawsand mediocre (at best)Western saws made by the likes American, of Crown. Pax, and a handful of other British, Although you might saythat the is the manliest and Far East makers. woodworkingtool, you might changeyour mind after handting a saw with the Bad Axe logo. But what is curious this time around is that the Americans are making British-style saws. Whereas the 19th-century being a stay-at-homedad. He'd built a straw-balehouse American preferred a steel spine on a ,the British with a solar array. And he knew he didn't want to become preferreda brassone. Whereas the British would sometimes a part of a largecorporalion. use fancy for their totes, such as or ,Americans preferred the utilitarian apple. But there was something he enjoyed doing: Buying old off eBay, refurbishing them, and reselling them. Nearly every 2lst-century sawmakeris following more of "But when I developeda pronouncedsaw addiction, and a British pattern:brass backs, fancy totes,and even using taught myself how to sharpenthe teeth and hammer-smith old-school British hang angles,which make the saw less the platesstraight, that's when I knew I was off and running," aggressive. Harrell says."And in the back of my mind I knew I wanted to build my own saws.It wasjust a matterof gettingthere." Why did this happen?You could make the case that Americans have always had an inferiority complex when it He startedout sharpeningand refurbishing saws under the comesto dealing with the British. But I think the real answer nameTechnoprimitivesLLC, andin 2008I senthim aragged- is simpler: The saw that kicked off the modern revolution out English saw for him to refurbish.The sawplatewas bent, in sawmaking - the IndependenceTool dovetail saw from theteeth were amess,butthe results were soencouraging thatl PeteTaran and Patrick Leach - was a nice British example. was impressedwith his work. Harrell kept at the refurbishing businessand soon hatcheda plan to make his own saws. That saw hasbeen copied and copied and copied by moder{t But insteadof following the British pattern,Harrell decided sawmakers.And asthese toolmakers expanded their lines of to discard the modern path. saws,they followed the British model so that all their saws looked like they belonged together. Insteadof startingout by making a dovetail saw,Harrell's flrst Bad Axe saw was a big tenon saw.Instead of using a Enter Mark Hanell (Colonel [retired] Mark Harrell to those brassback, he chosegunsmith-blued steel. Instead offancy of you in the Army). At the closeof 2007, Harrell hadjust woods, Harrell stuck with American black chery or walnut. redeployedfromAfghanistan, retired from the Army after a 28-year career,and was looking for something meaningful "I wanteda saw that looked like the averagea l0lstAirbome to do. He had tried writing and had tucked four published novelsunder his belt between1988 and l992.He had tried

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Harrell' who Daratrooperin the Battle of the Bulge"' says .rtartedbasictrainingwhenhewaslT'"Thatparatrooper He would want was ... battle-hardened,gri zzled,andtough' that vibe' I'm no an American-looking saw that captures Americansaws xenophobe.but I wantmy sawsto look like pretense'And it doesn'thurt ,fr", filftt:.b done with no thatihey're easy on theeyes' too"' one? And why start with a big saw instead of a small

"I started with big saws because I love timber-"' by my he says. "I love tig tu*t' I get told frequently s?w: to smaller nu.op"un clients that they prefer bigger And the British on"r, uta that's why they;re buying mine' American gryr'*on', admit it, but i think they dig the same rebel attitude as well." Axe saws H istorY, E c olo gY, U tilitY I think my favorite saw of the seven(seven!) Bad it is so that I own is this monsterrip saw'In 4/4 material - Bad Axe really pay attention not to overshootmy Even the name Harrell chose for his company fast that I haveto baseline. ToolWorks-hasalittleAmericanswagger'Forstarters' a swear word in it's easy to mispronounce the name with version of the battle' More than 6'000 U'S' my kids delight in doing)' Plus' there's the Cliff Notes it lsomlthng band of 500 warriors and name' t.oopt the historicalasPect of the "ttut"d Illinois to the 1,500 elderly, women, and children from near where Harrell built is located in the valley of Battle Rnut site in Wisconsin, Harrell's straw-bale cabin to ambush' his cabin.-u.ru".eOver and over,Blackhawk managed Hotto*,tt-t"siteofanl832massacre(orbattle'dependingon the troops sent against his tribe' American Indians during the Battle intimidate, and hammer the source)of Sauk/Fox end' Blackhawk War' untilstarvation wore his band down at the oi gua e*". fhis was the final battle of the settlement op"n"d up Illinois andWisconsinfor white *hich of my companywas a no-brainer"' was president' "So, choosingthe name when Andrew Jackson live up to Harrell ,uyt. "I decided that Bad Axe would me"' giu"tllu*k't credoof strength,stamina' and endurance'" "The Sauk/Foxwar chief,Blackhawk, totally inspired and how and Harrell says, "and I used to teach this battle nearly half of his 2S-yearArmy career under the Jacksonian era of suppression Harrell, who spent *fty i, uniolded cabin while he was Indians to the seniorROTC in Sp"ciatForces, built his off-the-grid uni g"rlo"iO" againstAmerican Wisconsin' *.tning the ROTC program at the University of cadetsunder mY watch'" greenhouse' lu C.ois". tte livedthere for four yearswith his solararray' gray-water system' a history lesson'but here'sthe compostingtoilet, 800-watt Not to turn this article into of right- ;;;;t" coilection. Haruellis a unique combination as "sorl andieft-wing ideologiesand describeshis cabin NRA' Teddy of a crossoverbetween Earth First! and the Rooseveltwould aPProve'"

life' He got But then he started the next phase of his the Army for remarried, had two kids and went back into he spentthe one more tour, this time in Afghanistan' where year building up an Afghan commando force'

runs Bad Axe Although he still owns the cabin' Harrell now house in Tool wlrks in the basementof an old foursquare and7-year- La Crosse,plus he actsas Mr' Mom with his 5- home: She'sa olds.There, he and his wife eachwork from a large software firm specializing in ;.;;t"- manager for all the way to the he builds Bad Axe saws' Mark Harrell's attention to detail extends electroniccommerce and fine as can be' no laser etch on the blade. Every line is as matter how close You examine it'

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Which bringsus to thetools Here's how they compare to other modern makers. themselves.Sawmaking is a little different than When it comesto flt and finish, it's tough to competewith making other hand tools. the modern sawmakers, many of whom have refined the When someonebuilds a art to a crazy science. Customers demand perfection with , no one judges the their premium saws,so even a few tool marks on a tote will tool basedon how well illicit howls of protest.Poorly seatedsawnuts will generate the factory-ground blade returns.Misflt backswill result in grumbling. performs.But with saws, the initial sharpeningis Harrell hits all these marks. His totes have a smooth and as important as the tool's silky feel to them with no hard lines in the grip. Although balanceand flt and finish. some craftsmen prefer hard lines, most woodworkers like the hand-in-glovefeel of this sort of tote. Harrell's sawnuts Oneofthehallmarksof awell' So. sawmakers must are a thing of beauty (never thought I'd write that about a made {ool is how the sawnuts are , sharpeners' fellow man). And the backs are perfectly let into the totes' seated.rr they are n"'h,';;;;;" !:','S:Harrell :llll has focused a and haven't beensandei ai*",--- 3"a lot ojSner8y on becoming And the blade - Harrell deservesa special commendation that is impresrio. *ort" a whiz at it - he uses a for his blade.The saws are laser-etchedwith his company's fairly tricky modulating logo, andit is abeautifulthing, finer thanany etchI've seen. a real "acid etch," rake for his rip and crosscutsaws, plus sloping gullets,to Traditionalists might scoff that it's not is perfect, looks makethe sawscut surgically.He sourcesmany of his tool's but I am deaf to that complaint. The etch components from other expert tradesmen, assemblesthe great, and fits the crisp look of the tool' tools,and thentunes them to a high degreein his basement. The sharpening that Harrell puts on his teeth is excellent and run fast. Harrell His handles are made on a five-axis CNC machine overall. The teeth are sharp,consistent, side of the and perfected by Mike Siemsen,a professionallocal creates saws that are on the more aggressive he comesfrom woodworker who did serious time as a cabinetmaker for equationand perhapsthat's from the fact that a little fleam to Irion Co., oneof the country'sbest reproduction shops. The a timber-framing perspective.He does add backside of the kerf' metalwork gets blued by an expert gunsmith. his rip teeth to reduce tearing on the But I think it's fair to say that Harrell aims for his saws to sawmakers After Harrell assemblesall of the components,he spends have more of a "get-it-done" attitude, whereas aim for a about 30 minutes tweaking each saw individually and then such as Andrew Lunn at Eccentric Toolworks testingit in a chunk ofblack locust. smoothcut that is slower.

approachesthe "If it can survive that, it can survive anything," he says. So it will be interesting to seehow Bad Axe maker. When "It will survive the deepestcut you can make, and whether smaller saws in a typical nest for a furniture sawsin 2010, I'm making a crosscutsaw or a ,I run the plate to Harrell releasedhis 12- and l4-inch carcase He called the bigger full depth under the back in black locust to make sure it they were actuallymore of a hybrid tool. 12-inchone won't drift and that it will cut fast, smooth,and with little l4-inch sawa "sash/tenonsaw" andthe smaller his largersaws, to no tear-out." a "carcase/sash."They wereaggressive,like and they excelled at fast ripping and crosscutting. The result of all this alchemy is a saw that In the fall of 2010, Harrell releaseda different carcasesaw attracts rabid followers. with a thinner 0.02-inchsawplate and 14 ppi insteadof 13 Every time I write about ppi. Thesechanges made a significantdifference in thetool. Bad Axe on my blog.his It cut smoother - more like a traditional carcasesaw - but customers chime in with still retaineda lot of its quickness.Itwas like a sawthat had stories of their devotion been sent to Oxford for finishing. to his tools. As a long- time customer of Harrell And asI write this article, Harrell is working on his dovetail and Bad Axe, I tend to saws,with both a closedhandle and an open handle,that agreewith them. He really are pattemed off of Wheeler, Madden & Clemson saws' saw Prototypesofthese sawshave been leaking out' but nonehas Bad Axe offers eight different does have a special it into my hands.And Harrell, 51, is also working on kinds of sawnuts in both that pressesall the right made full-sizehandsaws for 2011.Harrell sayshe steel and brass. You can have buttons.I don't think his panelsaws and listening to his customers your traditional split nut or a sawsare right for everyone designedthese dovetail sawsafter gunsmith-blued steel nut with a -- but for almosteveryone. who discussthe tools on his Facebookpage. straight slot. No problem.

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The Saw LineuP

catalog of sawsthat Harrell When you look at the Bad Axe allows you to customize makes, the options ate otzzying 'He the filing on the teeth' yJr;;; t;:"ueral wav',inJtooittg of the.back' and the type the material for the tote, the color options for sawnuts)' i,rtere are eight different "it"*"tit Axe offers only five basic So while it might look like Bad 18' and-another18-inch with saw models(i.e.,12, i, rc' tweak the tool to your heart's an extra-deepblade), you can content. admit it"' Harrell says' "It's bluing and I'11be the flrst to I,veneverseenbluedsawnutsinthewild,buttheylookgreat bluing - they won't and walnut totes' "But the steel choices constitute tough with both cherrY fun mixing thesecolors up' airioJ fik" brass.You can have on a walnut handle- that's sawmakersin Sheffield found A black back with blacX sawnuts As both George III and the underestimateAmericans' * a Darth Vader saw'" out, you should never color Wodworking the customer design a saw' the Schwarz is the editor-of But apart from letting Christopher lonuty book can-usethe color choices the author of the forthcoming "The choices do serve a purpose: You Utir"" and to indicate if your teeth are Tool Chest'" it f,""Jf"t, U"cks, and iasteners Anarchist's rip or crosscut. you can ask for almost any In addition to changing the look' 'di-g. patterns: rip' crosscut' Contactinformation: ii"*"u offeis ihree standard for both' The hybrid filing and a hybrid filing that canbe used the.middlewhen a crosscutpattern that straddles Bad Axe Tool Works is basically this filing und lieam' Harrell recommends it comes to rake to afford peoplejust getting-s*t"d*tto *li-ry badaxetoolworks'com for 9:-""conliguration t;"o ri*' e'it lr you11ve.1 lartlcular "rri"J" Fiarrellwill customfile it for you' ;; il Fo.youtteeth, the business a juggling act The variety and options make forHarrell,buttiringshavebeengoingwell-enoughthathe in 2011' i, ,fti"ti"g of expandingthe business to hire someone-- to teach "I am nearthat point where I need says'."That'sahuge someoneto sharpento my standard"'he want to dilute the quality'" step, and you sure ft"ff don't "t he w.antedto do when he But just as he knew exactly what Harrell has a plan' startedreselling saws on eBay' I can hire into the Bad "I know I will encounter vets that been through the gut check Axe world," tt" 'uy'';'W"'ve the language of urgency of war. We understandand speak is simply not optional'" and disciplin", ""d;;;;celence think that you can start a It might seem ambitioy:. to. the economy is struggling and sawmaking enterprisewhile with well-established then compete in a crowded market Lie-Nielsen Toolworks financedco"tp"iito" ittcluding and ' it' too? But to think you can expand attracted to the gunsmith- and Lee Valley lbols' Although many woodworkersare - a fine'looking upgradeto frr*"Jiu"r.t, ihe stainlessback is this saw.

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