Make mine bearded

[PeterCartwright]

So I've been playing with several hatchets including a traditional Plumb BSA job I'm fixing up and my Wetterlings and GBs tools. I've decided that the Scandinavian design (with a pronounced "beard") works better for me. The primary role for my small axe/hatchet revolves around making fire and other assorted camp chores. I'm discovering the wisdom of that bearded design when I try to choke up on the Plumb. In a word, it's more cumbersome...at least I find it so. I'm talking about tasks like scraping fine shavings from pitch pine, shaving cedar for kindling and such like.

The little Plumb is made of good stuff and it does simple splitting tasks well, but I think I prefer my GB Wildlife Hatchet. That's my story. What's yours?

PC

 

[Cpl Punishment]

I prefer bearded axes for all-round woods tools as well, such as the GB, or the Snow & Neally Pen Bay and Hudson's Bay.

The American pattern axes with less beard and a different profile work better for dedicated felling of hardwoods found in the US, but not quite as well for all-round use.