The tomahawk head is then heated in a furnace to 1550 degrees F, removed, and quenched in oil. This hardens the cutting edge. After the head has cooled to ambient temperature, it is placed into an oven and tempered at 400 degrees F for two hours. This toughens the cutting edge. The head is then cleaned, degreased, and browned.
Browning is a process of purposefully rusting an item as a means of preventing further rust.
Gun barrels of the 18th century were usually browned. The RMJ Forge browning process not only helps prevent further rust, but antiques the blade in a range of color from deep mellow brown to a blackish gray. Corners and edges of faceting are then hand rubbed to give a worn appearance. While Ryan is forging, Bob is busy sawing boards of curly maple into handle blanks. Each blank is sawn in two pieces, a groove is carved down the length of the blank, and the two halves are glued back together.