Looking for lightweight double bit

idaho

idaho

Joined
May 5, 2005
Messages
955
Hi.

I would like to buy or restore an double bit axe.
Are there any still being produced?

I'm especially interested in light, thin and very well cutting model.
What should I look for when browsing internet fleamarket-bay?
What brands, what distinct features?
 
Sounds like you are looking for a cruiser d-bit. Usually has a 8.5" head, bit to bit. Usually has a 28" helve. Vintage USA cruiser axes can be found by Kelly, Plumb, Collins, Norlund, Hulks Burk and Sager. Barco still makes a cruiser. I have love of cruisers and have quite a few of them.

Here's a few of mine.

Plumb
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Kelly
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Hulks Burk
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Collins
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Norlund
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Tom
 
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. If you have no experience with dbl bits then the best way to learn is to just go out an buy an old or used head that looks pretty (to you) and then make sure it has a serviceable handle and is properly sharpened. Obviously some maker's stamps on a head have more cachet and prestige, and value, than others. Don't spend a lot of money on your first one!
I personally have never been comfortable using a dbl bit only because I don't like having sharp edges at both ends of a head.
 
Double Ott said:
Sounds like you are looking for a cruiser d-bit. Usually has a 8.5" head, bit to bit. Usually has a 28" helve. Vintage USA cruiser axes can be found by Kelly, Plumb, Collins, Norlund, Hulks Burk and Sager. Barco still makes a cruiser. I have love of cruisers and have quite a few of them.

Here's a few of mine.
Tom
Click to expand...
You've got some "purdy-looking" two-sided implements there! Real eye candy.
 
Thank you Tom.

300six - problem is there is no doublebit axes history in Poland, so I need to get them over the big water.
 
idaho said:
300six - problem is there is no doublebit axes history in Poland, so I need to get them over the big water.
Click to expand...
Doesn't really surprise me. You want, or need, to do a lot of chopping day after day in order to take advantage of a dbl bit. I still don't feel comfortable knowing there is a pointy end facing me when raising an axe in preparation for a swing!
 
Alberta Ed said:
Ox-Head German-made double bit would fit your needs. These are great axes.
Click to expand...
Good tip! I retired all of my other axes from service (except for a Pulaski) after discovering an Ox-head (Canadian pattern) axe in the bargain bin at my local hardware store 20+ years ago. The Germans manufacture first class stuff and I've often come across their products in service with northern mining/exploration/gov't geological survey work!
 
300Six said:
Doesn't really surprise me. You want, or need, to do a lot of chopping day after day in order to take advantage of a dbl bit. I still don't feel comfortable knowing there is a pointy end facing me when raising an axe in preparation for a swing!
Click to expand...

Oh, I do not need it to work :) I do all my luber work with just spliting axe.

I just want one.
 
idaho said:
Thank you Tom.

300six - problem is there is no doublebit axes history in Poland, so I need to get them over the big water.
Click to expand...

A few months ago I sent a Kelly Perfect double bit to a friend in the UK. He was thrilled to get it. It cost $50+ to mail the head and a helve to him. I had to declare it and it took three weeks to get to him. It got held up in customs.
He completely refurbed it and did a great job hanging it. Along with the head I sent him a 36" helve that i had been saving for awhile, it had almost perfect grain in it. He posted it on a UK version of a bushcraft forum. He followed up with a tutorial on how he refurbed it. He sure got lots of compliments on it. Lots of comments on how lucky he was to have an American D-bit. They are very few and far between in the UK.

I can see why you don't see many American double bits in Europe.

Good luck in your search, Tom
 
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