Anybody else using the Stihl hatchet??

jkulysses

jkulysses

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Dec 8, 2010
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I picked this one up a month ago or so at my local saw shop for $29. I confirmed it is German made by contacting Stihl directly & after some digging found out it is made in Germany by a company called Helco. Anyways the first picture is a stock one taken from Stihls website as I forgot to take a before shot. A friend of the family does leather work as a hobby as he is disabled & retired. He wouldn't take any money so I gave him free rein to make it however he wanted. Little bit gaudy but i like it. It works & I really appreciate the time he put into it. I also hated the orange handle & varnish they had on the rest of the handle so I sanded all that off & put about 3 coats of tung oil on it. Haven't touched the head yet so that will be next. Enough talking so I'll post a few pics I took this afternoon.

Jake










 
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Gransfors who? Seriously though, I'm surprised that I don't hear more talk of these. I like the look, the price is right, and I am going to make an assumption that the steel is good. Have you used it much? I'm going to look into reviews of this, thanks.

BTW, I also think that the sheath is seriously awesome.
 
Thank you. I just got it back from the neighbor a couple days ago so no real use yet. Will remove the burr & try it out asap. Here is the info I found on it.

+ Made in Germany
+ German C45 high grade carbon steel
+ Handle is hand crafted in Switzerland from sustainably sourced and FSC certified Swiss ash
+ Lightly lacquered handle with red dipped grip
+ Drop forged, heat treated, and oil-hardened
 
Very nice sheath. Your friend does very nice work!

I have one though and don't like it. I don't like it doesn't come with a sheath, the handle has to be sanded because of the paint, and the head on mine came really rough. It's not a bad hatchet, but when you get into that price range the Husqvarna is a better option in my opinion. Those come rough too, but usually only need to be sharpened. If anyone is buying one a Helko sheath may work.
 
One of my maintenance guys also has one just like mine & he did buy the Helco sheath & it fits perfectly. By buying it in person I was able to pick through them but the head on this one for a $29 hatchet seems pretty good. How well it holds up long term only time will tell I guess. I don't like the painted handle either but it feels a little more like mine now that I've sanded it down & oiled it up. :)

On a side note the Stihl dealer here did claim that up until the last year or so they were made by somebody other than Helco.
 
I shouldn't have said I don't like it. What I should have said is I prefer another option at that price that don't have to be modified as much. The Germans make good stuff and with the Helko sheath it might be nice.

Your friend has the small Helko sheath, right?
 
Yes he does I'll get a picture of it on his Stihl hatchet tomorrow. I didn't take offense to what you had said & I've heard a lot of good things about the husky hatchet. I was very close to buying one & might still just so I can compare them. :) What I really want to try out though is one of the H&B forge camp axes.
 
Those look nice! I've heard nothing but good things about them.

I didn't think you didn't, but it came across harsher than I meant it to. Mine was just rougher than I expected, but it's a decent little hatchet. I like it a lot more than the Fiskars, Gerber, and even the Marbles that Wranglerstar suggests.
 
After looking into these it looks like they are rebranded Bahco camp axes. I don't know for sure but they do look identical. On one hand, the Bahco is half the price, on the other hand they have less than stellar reviews mostly due to soft steel. You will have to let us know how this is after some good use. It certainly looks good and the price seems good depending on quality.
 
jblyttle said:
After looking into these it looks like they are rebranded Bahco camp axes. I don't know for sure but they do look identical. On one hand, the Bahco is half the price, on the other hand they have less than stellar reviews mostly due to soft steel. You will have to let us know how this is after some good use. It certainly looks good and the price seems good depending on quality.
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I thought that at first as well but then after comparing the Stihl to the Bahco and Helko I think they are made by Helko. Just a few difference's between them but one of the major ones is how the handle is secured to the head. The Helko and Stihl have the wooden wedge along with a round metal plug while the Bahco just has a plastic wedge. Also the stamping in the head for the letters and numbers has completely different font between the Stihl and Bahco. I'd really like to know who actually makes this Stihl though just out of curiosity.
 
jkulysses said:
I thought that at first as well but then after comparing the Stihl to the Bahco and Helko I think they are made by Helko. Just a few difference's between them but one of the major ones is how the handle is secured to the head. The Helko and Stihl have the wooden wedge along with a round metal plug while the Bahco just has a plastic wedge. Also the stamping in the head for the letters and numbers has completely different font between the Stihl and Bahco. I'd really like to know who actually makes this Stihl though just out of curiosity.
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That's good to know, glad that there is a difference. I would not want to have an unwarranted negative opinion about these. Can't wait for the review.
 
jblyttle said:
After looking into these it looks like they are rebranded Bahco camp axes. I don't know for sure but they do look identical. On one hand, the Bahco is half the price, on the other hand they have less than stellar reviews mostly due to soft steel. You will have to let us know how this is after some good use. It certainly looks good and the price seems good depending on quality.
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No, they aren't Bahco axes. These are rebranded Helko axes. This particular model is the German Standard European hatchet, the bottom of the low end product line. They are even cheaper on the makers website.
 
jblyttle said:
Any updated review of this hatchet?
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Not really an updated review, just some personal observations. The hatchet is very light weight and the narrow edge/bit chops fine kindling well. It's less than half the price of a Gransfors so no tears of lost in the bush somewhere. It's supposed to be made by Bahco, or Bahco/Helko. It's a nice little tool but you need a sheath for it.

 
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I realize this is an old thread, but I happened across it looking for reviews of this hatchet.

I got mine for Christmas 2022. Doubting the quality, I wondered about heat treating it myself. My employer has a rockwell hardness tester, so I asked for a test.
At the center of length of the head it tested at RC-12. What?!
They also have an XRF analyzer for metal composition… 0.0 carbon. Only iron and manganese!

The short version is I learned about “mangasteel”. It is work- hardening and cannot be hardened by traditional steel methods. So every time you hit it, it gets a little harder - like bronze, for example.
In very high manganese content it’s used in tools for machining stainless steel.

I haven’t used it enough to know if performance improves over time, and how it is to sharpen as it hardens. So if anyone has, I’d love to hear about it!

For me, I really liked the head, but not the handle. After sanding and shaping, I decided it would be better suited as a trail axe. So I put it on a hickory boy’s axe handle, profiled, sharpened, blackened and oiled it.

Now to put it to the test…
 
D-Rail said:
My employer has a rockwell hardness tester, so I asked for a test.
At the center of length of the head it tested at RC-12. What?!
They also have an XRF analyzer for metal composition… 0.0 carbon. Only iron and manganese!
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This is remarkable! FWIW the center of an axe and the eye are typically unhardened. There are a few exceptions to this.

What's really stunning is NO CARBON!! Are you certain his analyzer was working properly.

Assuming the XRF analyzer is working properly, could you test a couple axes for me? Where are you located?
 
I was shocked!
Why did they choose this metal? It doesn’t fit the definition of steel I know. But it’s called manganese steel, or “mangasteel”.

Would like to hear from someone who’s really worked with one.

Unfortunately I don’t have regular access to the XRF analyzer. It is calibrated regularly, though.
 
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