My personal axe quest...ramble!

[Colin52]

This is mostly a for fun post, because it's fun talking about axes.  I started out with a romantic vision of wandering my new 80 acres with my double bit cruiser axe in hand, felling trees, then riving with my wedges, gluts and mallet.  I like the peace and quiet, and the exercise of using my axe over my chainsaws.  If I didn't really want 16 foot plus waney edge boards for clapboards, I'd probably just do only hand tools. Warning, this will be a bit of a ramble and I'm not entirely sure I'll get to a clearly defined point...

I've handled a good deal of axes, but lately have learned there's a lot more to them than I thought.  I probably can do everything I need with most types of commonly available axes, but I have an idea stuck in my head of one day handing down the axe that grampa Colin built the old homestead with.  I'm not sure what leads a feller to get so sentimental about what could be just another tool, after all, no one gets Misty eyed talking about their old mattock or argues over what shovel profile is best for the Eastern dirt vs Western, or hangs one over the mantel in a place of honor.  It seems there's good money in the axe obsession bug, so if'n I could make shovels a hipster thing and get out in front of it I could make a mint restoring old shovels and selling them on eBay.  

Anyways, having been appalled at the alignment and quality of hardware store offerings, I have gone through several mid range axes in the cruiser size, most recently a Stihl forestry axe and a nice little double bit cruiser made by condor that was surprisingly good quality.  I found the arguments made by the boys axe size can do it all crowd compelling, but recently am finding that there's a good reason the old timers used the weightier heads and longer handles.  I didn't think it would be necessary because in my neck of the woods the bigger stuff is logged off, and I'm mostly working with stuff less than ten inches in diameter usually much less.

At first, I found the lighter weight and shorter handles helped me place my blows much more accurately, and helped me to understand the proper rythym, and letting the axe do the work.  I liked the idea that I could also wield it effectively like a hatchet, though in practice I don't use this feature much.

The condor double bit cruiser I've been using just has too short a blade, too light (2 pounds total) and at 24 inches is kind of a pain to buck or hew with.  Not so much the bending over to do it, but the straight handle seems a lot harder on my wrists.  

I can see the arguments I read in favor of a straight handle for efficienct transfer of power and accuracy, but for bucking and hewing the curved handle is much easier on the wrists.  

I tried out a four pound bit the other day that I was "gifted",. The handle was warped like a corkscrew and the blade was flattened like you see on grubbing axes that come on the back of mattocks.  The metal on the eye is noticeably thicker on one side and if you look directly at the blade it's got some interesting angles. Still, it chopped noticeably better than my hatched on a longer handles did.  This seems like a "duh" moment, but I'd forgotten just how deep a blade could bite on one stroke, and with my newly learned chopping efficiency from many hours behind the axe, the head weight didn't seem at all noticeable, even when I bucked some old dried logs for a few hours, and cleared out a few smaller trees.  
The length of the handle was 35 and a half inches, and I found it awkward for bucking or hewing.  I'm 6'2" but built like a neanderthal, with my sleeve being longer than my inseam (which is 28 inches), so I'm thinking something 28 to 30 inches would be a good handle length.

I reprofiled some axes I've used, making a flat chopping surface, and that seems to have some popularity at present.  It does make the blade bite deeper, which should make chopping faster, but I notice, in both axe videos on YouTube as well as my own work, you spend a lot of time unsticking it, which in time and frustration negates the benefit.  

Now, I'm leaning towards getting a true felling axe, probably in the neighborhood of three pounds.  I could always try a few of the different weights and patterns, and figure it out the hard way, but I kind of hate to stack up extra tools, I'm at a point in my life where I don't want clutter and lots of "stuff". I used to really want backups for my backups, and lots of redundancy, now, I just want to need less storage.  

I have a good friend who lent me his old Kelly perfect, and I'm restoring it tonight, cleaning off rust and lovingly coating this beauty with linseed oil.  I'm amazed at the quality and effort put into this axe, especially the handle.  It's SKINNY, and very nicely worked in an octagonal shape, rather than rounded oval.
I'm going to do some light work with this one, and if what I've read is true, it may just be "the one".  Sadly, I don't think it will be for sale, it's a family sentiment thing, which I understand.  Anyways, I'm also haunted by the sneaking suspicion that once you get the axe bug, you never really arrive, you just multiply axes until you have so many different kinds and types that you run out of excuses as to why you need another one.

The logical reason I'm driving deep into this and trying to figure it out is I didn't get any of this knowledge handed down to me.  I'm finally living my dream of homesteading, and most of the reading I've done on stonemasonry, different kinds of natural building, various aspects of carpentry, etc, doesn't seem to scratch the surface when you start doing it, is just plain wrong, or that various "expert" sources are contradictory.  I want to struggle through these lessons, and make all the little mistakes and learn from them, and pass on at least credible advice and knowledge to my children.  

So, the particulars for my situation is 
A homesteader building several buildings, clearing land, felling almost entirely hardwoods (mostly different kinds of oak and lots and lots of hickory), mostly smaller diameter trees, lots of bucking, limbing, and hewing.  I have long arms and short legs, and the majority of what I need from an axe is to chop, deep and accurate, for great lengths of time 


I'm fond of the looks of the European pattern, but I think a plainer, Dayton like American pattern is what I need.  

I'd rather spend a few hundred if that's what it's gonna take on one good axe, rather than go through 3 or 4 more patterns.  I almost bought the allagash cruiser before I got suspicious that I need more weight and haft.
I remained curious about the Maine wedge pattern.  Has anyone used one?  I don't see any reviews or videos where anyone actually chips with one.
I'm also suspicious that it's really hard to find true quality in anything new for sale, at any price.  So probably looking at restoration, and making a good handle on my own.  I have lots of hickory, so the learning process won't be too expensive.  I can forge a little, and want to eventually be able to make an axe according to my own specifications, when I figure out what that is.  

I like double bits, but I really think at this point I need the curved handle.  I know there are some oddball double bits that have them, but it would seem awkward.  

If you've read all this, then thanks.  Talking about axes is mostly for fun, but I'd welcome a good recommendation or two, or advice on how to choose for my task and physical dimensions.  I'd like to hear the story of your process as well.

[Tacotodd]

Check out Buckin Billy Ray's videos. He quite often has something on axes. His opinions and such might be some help to any questions that you may have.

[Colin52]

Thank you, I've watched a bunch of his stuff and I like it.  He helped me the most with sharpening chainsaws and really got me started on the large double bit axes.  I have a pretty much new condition keen keen cutter double bit 4 pound head with phantom bevels I've been trying to find a good handle for.   I learned the wrist flick splitting from his video which I really like, which let me split well with smaller axes and saved my bit from going into the dirt.  It was new to me but reading old axe stuff and watching old forestry videos makes it seem like everyone used to know all these little tricks...

[DonW]

Colin, it seems you're at a similar juncture to my own by way of a property and aspirations. I think this affinity to axes runs deep not only because of utility but because an axe is probably, next to a hammer the oldest tool for humanity.

There's not much I could pass on in the way of helpful suggestions for a suitable axe and would also look suspiciously on the one who did without knowing your conditions pretty comprehensively, and even then specifics would be difficult for the sheer subjectivity of the matter, but also because I'm new to the North American versions since my axes are primarily European,Swedish, Finnish but for the last years almost exclusively axes of Central Europe. It seems to be where I'd landed. Still, I'm relocated lately now here on this side and for axes, context matters, they do not function so durably in isolation I have found and so I'll also be looking more into this new found axe world.

It's my own preferences and context but for me nothing beats a double-bitted for many uses where you'd want a long one for going at it. I also love a Connecticut axe I've got from, Collins, no less, for cutting down and bucking, though i do relatively little of each. You may try to limit the number of axes you have but from my experience an axe that is universal is an axe that does nothing well so I think you better prepair space for storage.r

[DonW]

Thank you, I've watched a bunch of his stuff and I like it.  He helped me the most with sharpening chainsaws and really got me started on the large double bit axes.  I have a pretty much new condition keen keen cutter double bit 4 pound head with phantom bevels I've been trying to find a good handle for.   I learned the wrist flick splitting from his video which I really like, which let me split well with smaller axes and saved my bit from going into the dirt.  It was new to me but reading old axe stuff and watching old forestry videos makes it seem like everyone used to know all these little tricks...

Logically and empirically this wrist flick action has to be one of the most brutal things you can do to an axe's handle. It overburdens the fibers where the handle exits the eye and will eventually cause it to snap right across the grain at that point. But it is a lot of fun. 

[Colin52]

Absolutely true, it has to be bad for the handle, but I feel like a real deal axeman when I do it.  I too find that I'm drawn to the European patterns, and they seem to stretch back a ways, all the way to the shapes of the old battle axe culture and the stone boat axes.  The Rhineland pattern, like a hello well hessen woodworker axe, seems to go back to the middle ages, and they had lots of oak then too.  It may be that forging a thin and very wide bit was the way to get the most out of your material.  I find the history of managing all those little trade offs in the function of tools fascinating.  All the while knowing I could probably just do some work on a twenty dollar hardware store axe and it would work fine.  I think a lot of this sort of thing is just wanting to make something special.  I often consider tool purchases in the light of being something I'll hand down, though knowing that if I'm really using it for all I plan too there won't be much more left than a nub to pass on.  

[grabber green]

I was lucky enough when I was growing up to be able to hangout alot with some old timers that used axes ,broad axes, adzes and froes on a daily basis that had worked in the log woods before modern chainsaws were a thing. Some of these guys  even in later years would limb the logs with an axe after falling the tree with a chain saw. They loved axes.  The double bit Sager reversible was widely considered the best .  I love the two I have just as much as those old timers. The balance is just perfect for chopping. But I usually end up bringing and using a single bit 3 or 4 pounder so I can knock wedges and cut with the same tool.

[Texas Ranger]

[Colin52]

I was lucky enough when I was growing up to be able to hangout alot with some old timers that used axes ,broad axes, adzes and froes on a daily basis that had worked in the log woods before modern chainsaws were a thing. Some of these guys  even in later years would limb the logs with an axe after falling the tree with a chain saw. They loved axes.  The double bit Sager reversible was widely considered the best .  I love the two I have just as much as those old timers. The balance is just perfect for chopping. But I usually end up bringing and using a single bit 3 or 4 pounder so I can knock wedges and cut with the same tool.

That sounds really cool!  I miss having a poll with my double bit sometimes, but I usually have or make a quick wooden mallet.  I do really enjoy having the ability to stick it in a stump and sharpen it, or put it in a stump just about sideways so I can use it like a drawknife.  I've had good success with putting it in a thin tall stump and splitting branches and small saplings into lathe.  

[Colin52]

The keenkutter head I have has a very similar profile.  That's a very nice axe, and a cool name too!

[Texas Ranger]

The keenkutter head I have has a very similar profile.  That's a very nice axe, and a cool name too!

Thought the name would strike a bell.

[RBend]

I don't use an axe at all anymore except to pound wedges, but as I was putting saws away today, I looked at and briefly picked up a double bit, one of many that belonged to my grandfather.  Born in 1897, he never used a chainsaw and was the best man with an axe I've ever seen, except in the competitions. 

For years when I had a wood fired forced air furnace I went through a lot of wood but never touched the small  stack of his hand chopped wood kept in a corner of the basement. I loved to see it sitting there, its ends bearing the smooth cups of his effortless, accurate swings. We weren't golfers, but I suppose the grace I saw and sought to emulate in his axe-man-ship is what golfers admire in a golfer's swing.  

I still have the large treadle whetstone with the water funnel above. I remember him sitting, pedaling, sharpening scythes and axes and periodically adjusting the drip just right. He slipped away a long time ago, and sometime, I don't know when, that little pile of wood did to. Only the axe and I remain.

Now, at 73 with only 30 trees done in a batch of over 130 to be down and stacked for milling, I guess I was right to put the axe back down today. I work slowly now and need all the mechanical help I can get. My thanks to this thread and that axe for bringing back the memories.

[Colin52]

That was really neat to read.  Thank you for that.

[Jeff]

Ive got a few interesting axes. I plan on putting my John Neeman american felling axe to work this spring for the very first time.

[Colin52]

Talked to a local old timer today.  He said the only axes his family or anyone else he knew used we're double bits, usually a four pound head.  I figure that's probably a good hint for my area.  

He showed me a picture of the old log cabin his father and grandfather lived in.  Hewed flat on two sides.  He even gifted me an old froe, that significantly outperforms the one I bought online.  The old one is slot sharper in profile, the one I bought is pretty thick and has a short thick triangular bevel reminiscent of a maul.  

I was having some trouble riving shingles before.  The first property I bought had some good thick trees but was really hard to split.  The grain would be all twisty even when it looked straight from the bark.  

Riving some today was a pleasure, it seems pretty fast and easy on the smaller stuff, but I'm still learning.  

[Colin52]

Ive got a few interesting axes. I plan on putting my John Neeman american felling axe to work this spring for the very first time.

That's a nice looking axe.  I just went and checked it out.  That's a serious curve on the handle.  I'd be interested to hear what you think of it.  

[Stephen]

I found the book "Keeping Warm With an Axe" by D. Cook inspiring and useful. A few years ago I bought a Gransfors Bruk axe, hand made in Sweden. I like it for a mid price range.

[Sauna freak]

https://www.amazon.com/Hultafors-Hults-Bruk-Qvarfot-Felling/dp/B07BY4NDX7/ref=sr_1_14?dchild=1&keywords=hults+bruk&qid=1619058622&sr=8-14

This is a real axe.  It is not cheap.  The alternative is to find a late 19th/early 20th century hand forged antique axe made in Sweden, Norway, Finland or Solingen Germany.  This will require some research into proof marks.  Some (most?) are not marked at all, or the marks have long become obscured.  You'll need an eye and ear for the steel.  Scandinavian steel just sounds different and they grind the edge and eye a bit differently.  It will require plenty of searching through flea markets, estate sales, etc.

I have an antique Hults single bit and and antique unknown Swedish double bit felling axe.  I know it's Swedish as it came over on a boat with one of my ancestors.  I have also used the above linked axe, and they all balance, swing, and most importantly cut similarly.

For a small camp axe for trapping, cruising, kindling, bumping small knots while building or yarding logs and such, a vintage Norlund is hard to beat.  I left my last one in the bottom of a beaver pond when I fell through the ice, and am still searching for a replacement.

[SwampDonkey]

I have Hultafors small forest axe, comes in handy for cutting a small cedar post, or splitting kindling for camp fire. Most any well known axe still hand forged in Sweden will make a great axe. A good axe is more than a chunk of metal born in a mould, it has been laminated with different hardened steel.

Those axes are actually a few bucks cheaper than Amazon at other places like leevalley.ca


For splitting firewood I like a Collins maul, they are made in Mexico now but they work well. Some mauls are too sharp with too much taper for splitting, they sink into the wood but no separation and your always retrieving it from the wood. :


My grandfather was in Rhode Island visiting relatives years ago. He picked up an axe that said made in Canada. I think the only part made in Canada was the handle. :D My uncle used it to attempt to split the stove wood for the kitchen. After about 3 whacks the blade was broken in 2 places, obviously a knock off from China. We all had a good laugh.  :D

My grandfather was always a sucker for poor quality and cheap......ermm except fishing poles and guns. :D

[DonW]

The least used axes I've got are the typical felling axes. They are really supplanted by other means, with the possible exception of splitting firewood in a reasonable way, and are romantic relics of another era. Many specialty axes, on the other hand, maintain their relevance and can be perfectly justified even outside of the contrivance of this bushcrafting fad. Carpentry, (a broad catigory of axe),  and broad axes, lathing and shingling axes and so on and so on, they can simply be the best option for particular types of contemporary hand crafted work. 

Like swamp donkey I'll rarely choose for an axe that has not got its bit laminated or made up of components in one of the multiple ways out of high carbon content edge steel and a good but simple iron.

[Colin52]

a vintage Norlund is hard to beat.  I left my last one in the bottom of a beaver pond when I fell through the ice, and am still searching for a replacement.

Now that is the proper and manly way to lose an axe!  I salute you!

[Tacotodd]

I've just received a couple from Forestry Suppliers from MS and they seem spot on. Unfortunately, I've just not had the correct opportunity yet to "test" them. I'm just all giggly up until that time comes. We shall see! But they are advertised as being high carbon & laminated steel. Time will tell if I'm going to like them or not. Again, we shall see!

[DonW]

 

Today's work mounting paneling. The axe for scribing uneven parimeter is hand made from a small forge in Sweden with laminated cutting edge.  

[Jeff]

Getting to know her this weekend. Wallflower no more.


 

[Jeff]

The axe. IT WILL CUT.

The Promise. Putting the John Neeman American Felling Axe into Service. - YouTube

Clearly I am not an not a versed axe handler, but I intend on using this axe often now. The sounds of it boost my energy versus how the noise of a chainsaw drains it. This was the second tree I've cut down in my life with an Axe. The first took me 3 weeks with a dull hatchet. It was a dead white birch about the same size, and I was cub scout age. 8 maybe? It stood on the side of the hill we lived on and I worked on it every day. I remember the sense of accomplishment and then the "Now what?" :D

[Nebraska]

Awesome Jeff!

[Ed_K]

 At least you didn't have to do that because your chainsaw was stuck  ;D.

[Jeff]

But Ed, now I can! :D

[DonW]

Ive got a few interesting axes. I plan on putting my John Neeman american felling axe to work this spring for the very first time.

That's a nice looking axe.  I just went and checked it out.  That's a serious curve on the handle.  I'd be interested to hear what you think of it.  

This handle's unusual shape tells you about its Baltic origins. Over-all the axe has no relation to those axes but handles with this peculiar inward sweep at the grip are standard on typical axes of some of these northern Baltic countries, Finland, Estonia, Latvia and so on and so on but not so much Sweden. It tells you one thing geographically, Finland is not part of Scandinavia.