I've been looking for a good way to pick up some firewood for a new fire ring project I have planned. Well, I got the ok to get some wood off a lot that will be cleared soon, so I grabbed the axes and off I went. I brought a chainsaw too, but I really don' like them (noise, safety, gas, etc), though they clearly are the more efficient tool. I mainly wanted some exercise and to quietly spend an afternoon using these tools i like so much. I found out a few interesting things, too!
The spot: I wasn't about to try and fell some monster pines solo and without proper safety equipment. This site is lousy with widowmakers common to planted pine areas. I was there to take down some small stuff or maybe a medium tree.
I used a number of different axes, simply because I wanted to and to learn a bit about each one.
The beautiful Council Tool beveled jersey (I just had to use this one...it's the most comfortable haft I've ever held and it deserved to see some use, even with the risk of breakage):
A Council Dayton 3.5er on a 30" haft (I wanted to see how it handled as it lives in my work vehicle but I've never needed to use it):
My Norlund Cabin Axe on a 28" haft (Just to see how it cuts, and to see how my swell felt in use):
My original Kelly on its new 36" straight haft (I had to use this one based on the high centerlines alone):
My odd-duck 3-lb Plumb double bit on original permabond haft (I've never really used double bits, so this was a good opportunity):
My Plumb 3/2 Jersey (just because):
Good Results!
And unfortunately one really bad result
My prettiest and most comfortable haft broke. No, it was not my fault (thank goodness), but I was bucking a log, the bit stuck a little as normal, and when I pulled up, there was a cracking noise and the handle came loose. The wedge is fine, the shoulder is fine, but the wood inside the eye broke, and broke badly. I think it must've spent too long dried out and rotting (there was a lot of rust in the eye of this axe). I'm sad, and I knew the risk, but I vowed to use these things as intended. Such is life. It got to fell a tree and buck some logs before giving up the ghost...it's earned its retirement. I will likely rehang the head, and myabe find something good to put on the haft as a wall hanger and use it as a template.
On the flip side, none of my other hangs came loose. They didn't get hours upon hours of work each, but I swung them all hard to see what they had. I have many blisters to prove it.
Impressions:
Everything I had was sharp, and left very clean cuts once I was warmed up.
The Kelly is the most efficient chopper with its high centerline, even if the bit should still be thinned to conform to the Ax to Grind gauge. It held it's edge very well and only needed a little stop when done. It easily removed the most wood per strike, but it wasn't the most comfortable axe to swing (given my not-up-to-snuff skills). That fell to...
The Plumb double bit. Even without the higher centerline, the thin, long, handle and lighter head, along with the assumed balance of the DB mad the Plumb DB a joy to use when bucking. In fact, it's thin profile seemed to help a lot and was excellent as limbing. It bit deep without sticking and I felt I could "whip" this thing with great accuracy. The edge wasn't shaving sharp at the end, but I forgot to check it before I started to compare, though I think it did very well. It bucked very, very well. I will try to use it fell sometime...I was out of energy before I could.
The 30" Dayton CT...This thing cut well, and held its edge great with only stropping needed. I don't feel as comfortable with a 30" length, but it's what fits in the work bin. It needs to be thinned in the bevel, as it wouldn't cut as well at the angle I wanted. This axe needs a much bigger swell, but it's what the haft came with. It's a great all purpose axe, perfect for being a durble, tough, semi-compact, and quality tool.
The broken CT Jersey...Felt like a dream to swing with the big swell. it fell and bucked really well, and the broad edge made quick work of the wood. It held it's edge excellently and only needed a strop. For felling, the 33" length was good, but it felt too short for bucking logs at ground level.
The Norlund...great little cutter! Worked great and held its edge. i would prefer a larger swell for extended use, but as with the 30" dayton, that's all the hafts had...HH needs to leave bugger swells IMHO. But this little thin-cheeked axe is a great little all-arounder.
The Plumb Jersey...The heartwood haft is a bit thick and heavy so it was a little less comfortable to hold for felling, but the head did great and held its edge. It bucked fantastically, too. A beautiful all around axe. I should probably thin the haft, but it's so nice looking and feeling it's hard to want to tear into it. Maybe if I get a 1" belt sander and I can thin it that way I may.
Summary
Overall, these refurbs all did really, really well. I would have tested more, but my hands had some nasty blisters and my shoulders were out of energy after a few straight hours of felling and bucking. Almost all of my heads need to be thinned a little more to match the Ax to Grind profile, but all did really well regardless.
I much prefer 36" hafts to shorter ones with a full-size head. That distance must be ingrained from all those years of splitting as a teenager. I was much more accurate with the 36"-ers, but that may just be due to past experience.
The broken CT felt fantastic...easily the best haft I've ever used.
House Handle needs to leave much larger swells on their hafts, especially for the full-size hafts.
I like DBs much more than I though...so easy to swing with their balance, though I am still a little concerned with safety.
I am much more adept as using my Marble/Imacasa 18 machete on small stuff than using a smaller axe. This is likely due to my many years of machete use over the last 10 years. I'm talking about the 2" and under stuff (cutting, bucking, removing small limbs, etc.)
Once the bevel is thinned and if I were in better shape for this work, I think the Kelly would be the best axe for my personal use.
Just out of curiosity, I'd like to pick up a heavy chopper to compare against my machete on smaller stuff at some point. Something like the Condor Pack Golok or Duku or other similar heavy parang-like chopper. So far, it appears using a big knife for this work would be way less efficient if you have the axes and machetes/choppers at your disposal.
That's all of now...hope you enjoyed it! I ended up with a good bit of firewood, some it sweetgum. I may have to use the maul to split it as it has interlocked grain, but it's for an outdoor fire ring, so it can be odd-sized and busted up.
Last note: I thought of that spoof regarding hand-cut artisanal firewood...it actually would need to be expensive! This was a lot of work. A chainsaw could have done this in about 1/5 of the time if not less. But I don't really like them, and I wanted a workout. Well, I got one. Holy moly am I sore.
