Reply With QuoteWood grenades are good. I've never bought an expensive axe.
After some advice please guys.
As per the title, am after a decent axe and hatchet for my son in law for use with splitting logs and kindling for his log burner. Don’t want to spend a ridiculous amount of money , have been looking at Stihl and Hultafors. Was wondering if you could recommend a decent set ? . Many thanks in advance.
Wood grenades are good. I've never bought an expensive axe.
Good luck everybody. Have a good one.
I got a splitting axe from Aldi for about £12 , does the job nicely, good exercise too.
Can't go wrong with a Fiskars.
http://www.fiskars.co.uk/new-axes
Another for Fiskars here, I’ve got the x-25, it’s bloody marvellous, Tesco was strangely the cheapest place when I got mine last year.
Also got a smaller and cheaper x-11 but you have to use more force given it’s lighter and shorter.
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These are good for the price for kindling, Swedish made:
https://www.gardenmachinesltd.co.uk/...het-2170-p.asp
http://www.topsurvivalweapons.com/hu...atchet-review/
I have Fiskars.
For the most part I get the same results as a heavy maul, with much less fatigue.
Mind you, my technique leaves much to be desired so I am probably safer with the Fiskar.
Shop around though, prices vary widely.
I think I got the X-25 from FFX, and the X-11 from some internet garden supplies.
This place seems cheap at present
https://www.googleadservices.com/pag...0QwIywI&adurl=
Estwing do a good range of axes, and also a Sure Split Wedge for logs. Superb quality.
F.T.F.A.
I have been recommend this roughneck set from screwfix. Seems like a good buy at £35
https://www.screwfix.com/p/roughneck...3-pieces/48279
My brother swears by Gransfors Bruk axes, although he admits they are a little OTT for most use.
https://www.gransforsbruk.com/en/pro...splitting-axe/
We were using the above at the weekend, simply a great tool to use to be honest. He has a smaller hatchet as well, not sure which one though.
Thank you for all your advice and links much appreciated.
I have a couple of Gransfors Bruks axes.
Much cheaper axes will do just as good a job though....
Gransfors Bruk are widely seen as the best factory-made axe. Ive just bought the Small Forest Axe - and it is a thing of beauty.Originally Posted by hoopsontoast
Dont whatever you do start watching axe vids on Youtube otherwise you'll start buying a different axe for every scenario.
Don't watch this, for example.
I've an Aldi splitting axe and a small Draper kindling hatchet, I split down all my own wood and these have both served me well for my third season.
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Can make life easier..
Interesting thread! I am about to buy my first axe for wood chopping duties so very timely, thanks!
This has got me checking out axes on Heinnie's. I don't even have anything to chop but they would look great in my shed!
Another + for the Screwfix Roughneck set at £35 from me. Does the job at a decent price.
Another vote for Fiskars.... I must have the whole range now! Started off with the kindling/hatchet and the X17. Then decided I needed more welly so got the X21 and then went up to the X25 and now the X27!! Then you start to get the various sharpening tools. Oh and there's the chainsaws as well! It can start to be a bit of an illness this wood splitting/chopping lark ;-)
I have two Gransfors. I had a third but it’s somewhere on the bottom of the River Medway. Wetterlings are similar. On an earlier thread, someone mentioned Brian Alcock the last grinder in Sheffield.
http://www.robin-wood.co.uk/wood-cra...grinding-axes/
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I use this Stihl for the big logs and a shorter Gerber hand axe (c.50cm) for smaller bits.
The cuff below the axe head does wonders to protect the shaft in the event of a mis hit. It's nicely balanced too and very comfortable and effective. Highly recommended
https://www.gustharts.com/forestry-l...SABEgI7vPD_BwE
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I have the roughneck wedge & used it with a sledge hammer.
Andy
Wanted - Damasko DC57
I never realised how many different types of hatchet and axes there were! I now want to get some for myself even though I have nothing to chop up !,,,,
Relevant
https://youtu.be/X5W6r5U7yBE
I have a couple of these for when I need to do some chopping, cough "liberated" cough at the end of their service life in the Fire Service, insulated and tested to 15,000v although only used up to 3,000v. I'll do a pic or two in the morning with the pouch, here's a pic from Google . . .
.JPG)
This old boy makes good axes, one of my favorites. If you like modern then Fiskars are top notch.
https://youtu.be/oVV2NORdex4
If it is for splitting wood then the models with the flared protrusions are the best. Lighter than a maul and less likely to get stuck.
Even better if they have protection for the shaft just beneath the head, as mentioned above.
Last edited by ernestrome; 23rd November 2017 at 13:59. Reason: correct image tags
http://northmen.com/en/products/axes
I've read about these wedge/splitting axes but, tbh, I hear good and bad reports... I wonder if I need to buy one to see how good they are? ;-)If it is for splitting wood then the models with the flared protrusions are the best. Lighter than a maul and less likely to get stuck.
Even better if they have protection for the shaft just beneath the head, as mentioned above.
Must get in touch with my 'wood' man and get him to drop off another load of rounds :-)
I have nothing useful to add at all, but this may be my only opportunity ever to reminisce nostalgicly about chopping wood in the spring of 1988, using the little one with the pointy blade to score a line, and the big one with the wedge to split it, my right hand slipping down to the end of the handle once I had got it falling in the right direction. Marvellous, I remember it like yesterday. Never touched an axe since. Mmm.
Sorry, as you were.
Personally I use two Gransfors Bruks axes for preparing firewood: the Small Splitting Axe for splitting the logs and the Small Forest Axe for making kindling from the smaller pieces that result from the splitting axe. You can do the kindling thing also with a Very Large Knife and a baton, which avoids swinging an axe at a small target (of course you can also use a baton on the axe...). I sometimes use a Skrama chopping knife for that, sturdy enough to beat the crap out of.
Ensure that whoever uses the axe also gets a good chopping block, or rather a fat tree stump that is about halfway up thigh height and sufficiently large in diameter. Small axes like the ones mentioned above are a pleasure to use but if you miss, they should end their swing in the chopping block and not in your legs. Absent a chopping block you need to kneel to use short axes. Long-handles axes are more awkward to wield but slam into the ground if you miss the blow.
I looove my GB small splitting axe. They are not cheap, but as they are a joy to use you will actually chop more firewood and get some exercise. The small forest axe is a great allrounder, for delimbing thick branches, cleaning moist bark off the logs, and slicing tomatoes if need be. Scary sharp. It shaves hair off your arm. And get a sharpening puck from the same brand to maintain the edge, it's excellent.
If the GB axes are too expensive, Hutlafors, Wetterlings (now owned by Gransfors Bruks anyway) and Fiskars are pretty good bets. Forget about the usual DIY store axes, you'll end up chopping your foot off. Usually not sharp at all and ergonomically they tend to suck.
I love these products. Not your top of the range axes but the Tomahawks are great fun. I have a number of these axes in my collection.
http://www.coldsteel.com/products/axes-tomahawks.html
Same for me, used a few over the years, top product.
Just to add something else, if your timber is at all gnarly and knotty, get yourself a Grenade log splitter, sometimes my splitting axe and all the strength I can muster cannot get through a pig of a log, the grenade literally tears it apart when driven in.
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As soon as my wife and I moved to a country house, I decided to buy an ax to chop wood. I went to the first hardware store and bought a basic ax for $40. It broke within a week. After that, I decided to take the choice of an ax more seriously. I found info about best wood splitting ax 2022, and read there that it is best to buy an ax from Fiskars. I decided to listen and ordered an ax from this company. I can say that it was a great decision. The quality of the ax is very high, and it has a comfortable handle. So if you're looking for a good ax, I recommend taking a closer look at Fiskars.
Last edited by fisher2; 6th June 2022 at 12:12.
I use one of these for kindling. Good balance, allows closer to the handle control and looks cool.
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As soon as my wife and I moved to a country house, I decided to buy wood from a supplier pre-chopped and split, because a tired and damaged shoulder just isn't worth it.
The lumber yard have a hydraulic splitter, it's the proper way to do it. Check out the Titan TTB762LSP as a cheap version.
I do collect raw softwood offcut stuff and split it for kindling myself, which is fun until my wrist hurts.
The romance of splitting large amounts of firewood is shortlived in my house
Last edited by The Doc; 3rd June 2022 at 12:37.
I purchased one with a hickory wood handle from B&Q a while back. it weighs 3lb 8oz. It is ideal for splitting kindling.
"The Axe & Hatchet"
Sounds like the name of a housing scheme pub with a flat roof.
Another vote for the Gransfors Bruk Splitting axe - as another poster said, get a chopping block too as they’re not so long. I did a course at their factory in Sweden and it’s fascinating seeing them being made and what goes into it.
I use one of these for kindling. Good balance, allows closer to the handle control and looks cool.
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Looks like a good thrower too.
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