Recommendation: Good hatchet or backpacking axe

If you can withstand the Bladetards bemoaning their existence, or belittlement of you choice.
Harbor Freight has a few axes what are plenty good.

I bought dozens of a couple their models to make art project of. Just a good sharpen, They were really good as is.
Paid less than 10$ each with their discount coupon.
 
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dogstar said:
For a lightweight hatchet, it's hard to beat the Fiskars. I would not be so quick to discount it; it's the Mora of hatchets.

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That's a pretty good way to describe Fiskars hatchets. The reason I like them for backpacking is the lighter hollow handle. If you have to pack it you might as well have the weight where it's needed.
 
Lieblad said:
If you can withstand the Bladetards bemoaning their existence, or belittlement of you choice.
Harbor Freight has a few axes what are plenty good.

I bought dozens of a couple their models to make art project of. They were really good as is.
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I don't need a hatchet but that is a clear set up for anyone recommending something beside Harbor Freight's tools being a "Bladetard".
 
Lieblad said:
If you can withstand the Bladetards bemoaning their existence, or belittlement of you choice.
Harbor Freight has a few axes what are plenty good.

I bought dozens of a couple their models to make art project of. They were really good as is.
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The harbor freight hatchet I got a few years ago has decent steel, but I could never recommend one if you have a real need for a chopping tool. it was the best of the bunch, every other example I have seen looked like total crap, and I doubt I could find another good example if I searched every store within 100mi from my house.
 
Square_peg said:
That's a pretty good way to describe Fiskars hatchets. The reason I like them for backpacking is the lighter hollow handle. If you have to pack it you might as well have the weight where it's needed.
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But they are ugly....
I have actually never used one. I could completely understand ease of maintenance though. I have little doubt they would out perform a steel handle also.
As much trouble as weather can cause me with wood hafts it must be twice as bad in your climate. You getting hammered with the weather or is the worst missing you to the south?
 
garry3 said:
As much trouble as weather can cause me with wood hafts it must be twice as bad in your climate. You getting hammered with the weather or is the worst missing you to the south?
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We're going back and forth between damp and freeze. But we're not getting dumped on like the rest of the NW. And it's actually pretty good maple syruping weather.

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You guys are killing me with bare ground, green grass and you even have sap running. That is just unreal. We are getting hammered. Brutal winter.
BTW I think the OP will go with a GB.
 
Cold steel trail boss are pretty good. Mine came with a decent edge and are affordable. Mine was 33 dollars shipped.
 
Best would be to give a general price range you're willing to pay. A 18-19 inch ax should be more than adequate. It is also the shortest I feel that is "safe" otherwise I go to a 10 inch chopper.
Gransfors have a great reputation, but they have a pretty high price tag. Expect to pay $140+ for one.
Wetterlings and Hultafors are cheaper, good reputation.
Council Tool are probably the best US-made production ax. They have a pretty wide range of cost.
 
You might also look at condor, the new scout axe looks like a nice size. I have the woodworker axe and it might be a bit much for backpacking, but there a Big Bang for the buck
 
I was watching some of the demonstrations on YouTube where people were putting the fiskars head to head with more traditional axes and while they chopped well at the end when they compared the blades the fiskars steel was really chewed up and in need of work, I'd prefer something with a decent steel I wouldn't have to reprofile as much. I went to a local hardware store today and checked out some Collins, Husqvarna, and I think Stihl.. they were nice and all but I'd like to find some older ones and refurbish but that'll probably have to wait til the spring when the flea market opens, unfortunately I can't find much else around me and the bay's pretty competitive.
 
GotSteel said:
I was watching some of the demonstrations on YouTube where people were putting the fiskars head to head with more traditional axes and while they chopped well at the end when they compared the blades the fiskars steel was really chewed up and in need of work, I'd prefer something with a decent steel I wouldn't have to reprofile as much. I went to a local hardware store today and checked out some Collins, Husqvarna, and I think Stihl.. they were nice and all but I'd like to find some older ones and refurbish but that'll probably have to wait til the spring when the flea market opens, unfortunately I can't find much else around me and the bay's pretty competitive.
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The marbles hatchets and axes really seem decent for the price ( made in El Salvador by imicasa / condor ) I just got their little double bit hatchet and while I haven't really used it yet it seems like a good steel based on filing it.

vintage heads are definitely the way to go though, and while the flea markets may not be open in your area yet you can check any local thrift , antique, or junk stores.
 
I would stick with your thoughts toward a dependable hatchet. It is mostly used for building shelter and breaking wood down for a fire but it is a Very useful tool to have.
Couple it up with a small saw and small knife and you are well equipped for a 3-5 day trip. The Fiskars is a good one. If you're going on a day trip a knife and saw will do.
Good camping. DM
 
I have 3 of the marbles camp axes for myself and two boys. We have used them quite a bit and really like them. They are good steel and all three handles were really nice. They are priced the same as the fiskars but offer a wooden handle. Also agree that the council tools boys axe and hudson bay are great tools.
 
GotSteel said:
I was watching some of the demonstrations on YouTube where people were putting the fiskars head to head with more traditional axes and while they chopped well at the end when they compared the blades the fiskars steel was really chewed up and in need of work, I'd prefer something with a decent steel I wouldn't have to reprofile as much. I went to a local hardware store today and checked out some Collins, Husqvarna, and I think Stihl.. they were nice and all but I'd like to find some older ones and refurbish but that'll probably have to wait til the spring when the flea market opens, unfortunately I can't find much else around me and the bay's pretty competitive.
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Part of the problem with Fiskars is that the steel is only medium hardness (neither dead soft nor very hard) but the factory geometry is pretty thin. They need a small additional thicker angle added to them to prevent dings and rolls. Nothing extreme, but it really goes a long way to stabilize the edge.
 
I will take a look into the marbles they seem to be well built maybe made better by a new haft?

vintage heads are definitely the way to go though, and while the flea markets may not be open in your area yet you can check any local thrift, antique, or junk stores.
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We've got quite a few thrift shops around so I'll pop in when I'm near them, I can't remember seeing tools but people do donate pretty much everything. What do you mean by junk store,
There's a sweet looking antique shop in an old barn I'm planning to check out maybe later today, I've looked through a few pawn shops and only thing I found was a big Husky kind of looked like a fire axe but but had a flat back instead of a spike I think for clearing or something it was like a one piece with the fiberglass similar to the fiskars, only $15 and seemed like a lot of axe for the money but a bit large for my purposes.

Part of the problem with Fiskars is that the steel is only medium hardness (neither dead soft nor very hard) but the factory geometry is pretty thin. They need a small additional thicker angle added to them to prevent dings and rolls. Nothing extreme, but it really goes a long way to stabilize the edge.
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That's a good point a wider angle would give strength to the edge.. but I'm not very good at sharpening yet :cool:
 
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The other knock on Fiskars is that the original edge seems to be softer than the underlying steel. Many have reported longer edge life after resharpening. This leads me to believe they are overheating the edge in the sharpening process.
 
The Fiskers is great for the price and for a new user, that was my first axe and it's a solid tool still going strong.

At the time, I didn't have the knowledge to care for a wooden handle or hang an axe. Also I wasn't as skilled of a user and hit the ground alot.

I also didn't understand the importance of a sharp axe or proper swinging arcs or how to notch the wood to make cuts. Haha good times.

I love high end axes but I wouldn't sweat getting the best axe right now.

Get a beater like a Fiskers, learn to sharpen , that's a requirement to enjoy any axe and also you can just go out to the field and not have to stress about the wooden handles rotting or breaking from bad swings.

When I was getting better at swinging I noticed that the wood handle was wayyy more comfortable thus worth the extra effort but that comes in time.

If your feeling froggy, just get the Council Tool Boys axe for $30, buy a file, and a puck, watch videos, sharpen and profile the bit. Get some scrap leather, make a sheath. Buy a can of BLO and some sand paper and finish the handle. And the handle breaks buy another and learn to hang it.

Haha it definitely becomes its own hobby.

If you really enjoy it you'll buy more anyways otherwise your only out $35 bucks for a "who cares" Fiskers that will last forever with infrequent use and abuse.
 
A junk store is just another name for a thrift store, but it depends on where you live.
They're mostly called thrift stores here, but I've known people who called them junk stores. There are also people who refer to all thrift stores as goodwills, much like coke being a generic word for soda in some states.
 
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