Replacing the shaft on Deepeeka\'s dolabra

[Appius Solanius Pertinax]

Salvete,

I have to admit I'm writing this while I'm still quite angry, so I apologize if my language turns out too strong.

I'd like to ask the people who've bought a dolabra from Deepeeka about their experience with its shaft, and whether they've tried replacing it. I'm asking because I own one, I was not too thrilled with the shape of the shaft (it must have been designed by a sadist, or somebody who never tried actually using it), so I set out to replace it.

I was not that surprised when I found some kind of filler in the space between the shaft and the blade. I said to myself - hey, it was a cheap one, they weren't going to fit it perfectly, and maybe they're using it as a kind of sealant. But when I found out they've also drilled a hole through both the blade and the shaft, put an iron peg through the hole and welded it into place, I was left speechless. Which is a good thing, considering what I'd probably say otherwise. I've never seen a pickaxe use such a design. I've gone and opened the books I have on hand - everything I've seen points towards the common solution, i.e. securing the shaft by hammering in a wooden wedge. So I guess the Deepeeka one was designed by an idi*t.

I think my best option now would be to cut through the peg, clean the hole and put in a new shaft, but I'd like to know whether there's ever been a find similar to the design I've described. I'd be amazed to find out such a design actually existed, I'm pretty sure this is just laziness or paranoia on somebody's part, but I don't want to be too sure of my own knowledge.

[Peroni]

I've gone and opened the books I have on hand - everything I've seen points towards the common solution, i.e. securing the shaft by hammering in a wooden wedge. So I guess the Deepeeka one was designed by an idi*t.

You do not even need a wooden wedge. (Mods... this is not an advertisement for sales..) have a look at the ash shafts on our Newstaed dolabrae.. The heads simply slide down the shaft, (which is tapered at the head) and a good tap on the ground secures the head beautifully. This way they can be disassembled and packed away very easily too.

I think Dan Peterson initiated the DPKa dolabra. I can't comment on whether he specified the 'pin' though

[Appius Solanius Pertinax]

Thanks for the reply. As for the ash shafts becoming secured by hitting the ground with the bottom end of the shaft, well, that's what I'd been hoping for when I planned the replacement. I've seen this work with other implements, so that wooden wedge could've been just an extra bit of security for a cautious mind. Good to hear it can be done.

Regarding the pin... Well, I wouldn't want to call Mr. Peterson an idi*t. I guess he doesn't deserve that, and I have no idea whether the pin was in his original design. I can even understand the logic behind it - nothing short of destruction of the shaft (or the blade) is likely to make the blade fall off. And I know I'll be repeating myself. But I've failed to find a source that would mention this having been found in archaelogical record, I find this design too complicated, and I can hardly imagine it being used for real work, neither in ancient times nor in the modern era.

So I guess somebody came up with the idea either to drive the price down (neither the blade nor the shaft has to be made very precisely) or to make the dolabra safer and more durable. Either way it was a good reminder of why I've decided to keep the number of thing I buy from Deepeeka to a minimum - this is not the first time I've seen a good idea ruined by poor workmanship or bad design decisions. Which is a pity, not in the least because I think the numbers of roman reenactors are on the rise, and I'd love to see adequate equipment being sold at affordable prices. We're still in the cottage industry stage, and while this hobby is unlikely to become mainstream, I'd love to be able to point a newbie towards affordable but good enough equipment - and things like this dolabra in question just make me wonder whether I'm turning into an authencity nazi. Grumble...

[jvrjenivs]

also, I think the Deepeeka dolabra was never designed to be used. Just a show item, it is. At least when I saw someone (trying) using one and instead of the the wooden block he wanted to split, the dolabra blade got destroyed and only a small scratch on the wood. And indeed I've seen this kind of shortcuts more often with Indian (and chinese) reproductions.

[Robert]

The dolablra or present day pickax head on an ash shaft is not set by tapping the bottom on the ground, you tap the head side on the ground. As the head slides down the tapered shaft, it becomes wedged tight. On originality though, most of the dolabra, hamer and heads I have seen so far have round or oval holes with no taper to them. As a blacksmith, I alway pay attention to "how was it made?". I am afraid we will see a lot more junk out of India and China in the years to come, as the junk is still being bought .... So why change?

[Appius Solanius Pertinax]

So why change?

Because at least some of us learn from our mistakes? I know, there are times one feels like one's trying to make water flow uphill, but at least some, if not most people in this hobby try to improve.

By the way, a sort of funny thing is that I've learned about the way shafts used to be set some half hour ago, and I started out by reading about Slavic battle axes.

[Robert]

The problem here is that altough WE learn from our mistakes, there are not many producers that are in any way interested in producing quality, even if supplied by detailed drawings and diagrams. Often as not, shortcuts are taken, instructions not followed, the one copies the other and quality goes downhill, old designs keep on being produced. There seem to be no understanding whatsoever about what the whole re-enactmentscene is about. Far less about caring for true craftsmanship. Instead of making something good and charging a bit more, the most irksome "mistakes" are made, also so easily avoided of just a little more care was taken. This is for a large part due to the fact that in India many items are contracted out to third parties, with no adequete supervision of quality or checks agains specifications. It is indeed like trying to make water flow uphill or trying to run through molasses. Several people have tried, Adrian Wink being one of them, but most all end up settling for second best or have giving up in disgust.