Some years ago I saved this el-cheapo made in China axe from the dump. It wasn’t dull, it was blunt. My Scoutsleaders wanted to throw it away, as it was cheaper to buy a new one, than to resharpen an re-handle it.
For years it was lying in my garage, and only a few weeks ago I decided to give it a new life. I bought a new handle and took my file to grind a new edge. After several hours of filing, sanding with wet&dry and sharpening on Japanese waterstones, I ended up with this.
Although it’s far from perfect (I could have removed much more material from the cheaks) it’s razorsharp.