Boy Scout Hatchet

J

Jimbo

Joined
Aug 10, 1999
Messages
546
I got an old Plumb BSA hatchet off ebay. All the usual good stuff of chipped handle and poll that's been used for pounding - but it was cheap and the edge has never been sharpened other than with a stone.
The thing that struck me immediately was the head weight. I wonder why anyone would consider an 18 oz head to be an optimal belt axe? The Norlund hatchet and GB come out to 20oz total - which means about a 13oz head. And these seem an ideal compromise betwen chopping and carrying. I would have thought that a lighter head would have been better suited to young people. Maybe given the fact that the poll is hardened, and yet many of these hatchets show considerable pounding damage - shows that weight for using as a hammer was a good idea.
Naturally the second thing that struck me was the thickness of the face of the axe. Made for durability and splitting I guess - but the way the face is shaped makes for easier profiling.
Those are design criteria - Plumb made the hatchets that way because someone decided that's what a hatchet should be. Does anyone have any background on this?
I guess that this would have been considered a cheap hatchet in its time, and outclasses anything that I've seen in hardware stores lately - well in the last thirty years... The steel appears well tempered and of good hardness. It's also a well finished head. The handle was unfortunately unusable, and I drilled it out. The alignment was good though, and it was properly wedged. The grain of the wood in the handle was vertical. Altogether it would have been what we now consider an excellent wilderness hatchet other than for the design.
It's sure going to be interesting to see what this hatchet will do when rehandled.
Does anyone have any experience with these hatchets?
 
Only from age 11 to 18 when I made Eagle Scout. As all Boy Scout products, the quality wasn't that great. The Camilus pocket knives cound not hold edges. I remember watching the handle of an axe break on a scout chopping. I would never buy Boys Scout tools. They never hold up to hard use. I carried a Swiss Army Soldier, a Gerber Multi Tool, and a Gerber EZ out. My Scoutmaster had a BSA hack saw that he had to weld together to make it hold up. We bought a Gerber-Fiskars hatchet because the BSA one failed.
 
I look forward to your review of your new hatchet. I enjoy your website on all of your cutting tools, and survival info. If I were a Scout today, I would choose the GB Mini Belt Hatchet or Wildlife Hatchet. They are much better than the hardware store one I had back then!
 
For an inexperienced user, I would go light and acute for a number of reasons. First off heavy blades and axes tend to make people put too much power into the swing, which is very bad when your control is low, which it will be in the start. So you go light, and focus on getting the technique down. Basic issues like a consistent swing, and hit placement (as well as where to stand, room to swing etc.) . Having the edge thin allows for high penetration, which lowers fatigue and frustration, and most importantly - glances. It also teaches that occasional edge maintenance is a necessary part of life. The low edge durability will also put at the forefront the need for correct technique and thought about cutting, avoiding knots, checking for inclusions, bark clearing etc. . I will be interest to read your comments about the Plumb after you have worked with it. I would imagine there are a lot of quality axes out there that could be brought back to life with just a little work.

-Cliff
 
Originally posted by tknife
If I were a Scout today, I would choose the GB Mini Belt Hatchet...
Click to expand...

I agree that they are good looking. However, at $77, am I getting the best bang-for-my-buck?

Dan
 
As Cliff pointed out - acute edges have their advantages - as does lightness and balance. That's so as much for experienced users for getting work done as for inexperienced users avoiding glancing or overpowering.
Simply the GB hatchets and axes have incredible balance and edge geometry. The quality of the components such as the handle are high. They're actually cheap for what you get. You can go the route of getting an old Norlund hatchet, grinding and maybe fitting a new handle and making a decent sheath. By the time you are finished you should have something as good as a GB - but it will come out to close to 2/3 the cost and will be a bunch of work. You sure learn a lot in the process though!
Most other hatchets are shoddily made now, and too heavy for real hatchet use. I'm collecting older hatchets and axes - and the older stuff is good - but mostly not as good as a GB.
I asked the same questions as you though - and it took just a little use to convince me to get a bunch of GBs. I have more coming as well.
 
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