How To Date A Collins Axe – 2 Considerable Aspects

Collins Axes has long-term popularity among woodcutters and loggers. This brand was once the master of craftsmanship, but it has become a second-hand brand over the last few decades.

But still, their previous approach provides high-quality service with low-cost equipment.

Getting a vintage Collins ax is always best. But it is quite tricky to date the real history of a particular Collins axe. But to do this, gathering knowledge about how to date a Collins axe is important.

Know the History Before Dating a Collin Axe

To look at the Collins ax history, the first thing that should be marked is Samuel Collins formed Collins & Co. in 1823. Collins’ shop began its business with eight people. Within a decade, their business had grown into a large factory. Moreover, their brand had established in a reputed position to produce high-quality, pre-sharpened, polished axes.

Until the 1930s, the brand was going strong, but after 1955, the company changed hands several times. Then Truper Herramientas, a Mexican firm that produces axes under the Collins trademark, owns the company. And Collins company closed its doors in 1966, after 140 years of existence.

Then the company’s South American operations were sold to Stanley Tool, and Mann Edge Tool Co. purchased the domestic US operations, including the Collins name.

How to Date a Collins Ax Properly?

The Collins Company’s “Legitimus” brand was very famous and used axes and other cutting instruments. The legitimus mark is an indication of real Collins. By digging into Collins’s Legitimus Ax history, anyone can find that it was last from 1875-to 1966. 

Not only legitimus, but every ax is also difficult to identify and date. Such as, if someone tries to date a craftsman axe, they should also pass some stages. 

The dating ax is critical sometimes because the histories of many of the historic manufacturers have vanished. Companies may throw out print material. But in this case, Collins is the most straightforward to date and the only one actively attempting to preserve their past.

Before date a Collins axe, two things need to consider. First, it is also applicable for Collins legitimus axe date.

Logo: On Axe Blade

To date, a Collins ax, the logo of Collins, is an important indication. Because Collins changed its logo after 1966, Mann manufactured it. Before 1966, the legitimus brand usually used a square logo. So, if your ax contains a square logo, it is probably a vintage ax. Moreover, a logo helps a Collins user determine whether his ax is pre-Mann or post-Mann.

Every Collins brand contained a different shape of the logo. That means Sam. W. Collins, E. K. Root, R. King, B.X Swift, and Bv Wise all have different logo identification. This logo is mainly sealed in an ax blade or head. So how to date an axe head may also be your concern. 

And then between 1966 – 2003, Collins changed their logo into a rectangle shape because it was not real Collins. It was Mann. So, to find out the real Collins, a buyer should know about the proper brand logo and catalog.

Guess Can Help Sometimes

Finding logo identification can be a good option, but sometimes it is quite impossible to get accurate information. In this case, other options can be beneficial. Such as guessing can help sometimes. 

Perhaps someone discovered a vintage Collins ax, and the ax can be quite rusty to find the origin of seeing the logo. So, the user can guess the ax origin after analyzing the catalog. In addition, because the catalog contains a picture of the ax, the user can compare the looks.

Final Verdict

To conclude, in the case of how to date a Collins ax. Then the ax is manufactured before 1966 or after 1966 is very important to explore. Such as Collin’s red seal hatchet is a vintage ax and known by almost every lumber, but to know the real origin dig the catalog is important.

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