Tools and hardfacing

[VenezianoJ@zzzzzzz]

I'll address George's questions separately, in separate emails.

We'll start with...

"But the face that is struck by the sledge showed the effects of the sledge .
It spread and started cracking apart at the edges just like a over used hand
point. I learned the hard way what happens when you don't grind the split
ends off the sides of the splitter. Clearly the splitter steel was different
 from the sledge. "

They weren't necessarily different steels.  Possibly, even probably, but not necessarily.  It sounds as if the splitter was tempered so as to be softer than the sledge.  This is pretty common with struck tools, you make the tool softer than the tool hitting it, so that it mushrooms rather than breaks, and to reduce the chance of damaging the hammer (which is even more critical with hot metal work, where every nick on your hammer is transferred to the steel...but I digress).  You'll never arrange it so that the hammer will not show any marks, but you can make it so that it's less likely to break during normal usage.

It's also entirely possible to temper a tool so that it's harder on the cutting/splitting end than it is on the struck end.

Now, "The sledge was not your average hardware store tool, and I guess it came
 from Trow and Holden, 20 or more years ago. It never cracked or spread , so
I wonder if the face was " hard faced ". I never noticed a layer of
different steel , but it held up under years of use."

Really doubt that it was hardfaced.  Trow & Holden is a quality company (I know you didn't imply otherwise) with some excellent toolmakers.  I strongly suspect that the sledge is made of one type of steel, and that the temper on the striking end is right, and harder than the tools it was used on.

All qualifier entered because I haven't personally inspected the tools in question.