What is your favorite wilderness axe or hatchet?

I just stepped out and limbed a small (5" diameter) pine tree that I chopped down a few weeks ago.

I tried the following three tools:

<li> GB Small Forest Axe
<li> HI 15" Ang Khola Khukri
<li> Busse BM-E

The axe was far and away the best performer.

The khukri came in second - I think because of its forward weight/balance.

The Busse was a distant third, to my surprise. It tended to bounce back upon impact, even though it was very sharp. I don't think it has enough weight, compared to the other two tools, to really chop. If I slashed viciously with it, it worked OK, but that was much more energy intensive, and hard to do with the cluttered branches.

So, I think the lazy fellow would go with the axe.
 
Hey, Jimbo! Sorry you're getting a taste of this chilly Alberta weather... several thousand Cedar Waxwings just arrived today, in -18 C. temperatures (that's o F. or close enough). I suspect they were flying Air Canada. We're all hoping this Arctic air moves off to Ottawa. I recall counting several hundred bald eagles in a mile along the Bella Coola River during oolichan season one year.
 
Bella Coola----what a beautiful valley and fjord! However, I wouldn't want to be driving over Heckman Pass in foul weather (I know that they usually close it when the weather turns bad).
 
It was pretty tough in bad weather. This is in really good weather:
bctr2s.jpg

Beautiful place all the same..
 
Thanks for the picture! It's worth adding that the road is gravel, there are no guard rails, the drop over the side is hundreds of feet, the grade can reach 18%, and they run semi-tractor/trailer rigs over it. Not the place to make a mistake!
 
"the road is gravel, there are no guard rails, the drop over the side is hundreds of feet, the grade can reach 18%, and they run semi-tractor/trailer rigs over it"

I'd like to thank you folks for reminding me why I stay here in Tornado Alley. ;)
 
I still think that the road into Telegraph Creek is worse. The switchbacks on the Bella Coola road mean they would find something. Better than a 2000' vertical drop into a cold fast river. I'm scared of heights and if by some miracle you survived the fall - the Stikine would drown you for sure.
Strangely - but I bet Ed will back this up - I believe that Hole in the Wall on the Prince Rupert road has claimed a lot more lives.

More on topic - I was out yesterday and I don't think that I'd have made it very well without an axe for any long stay. The 2lb (total) hatchet I was trying is nowhere close to an axe weighing just a little more. Specifying the conditions is pretty important - and the conditions yesterday were grim with wind chill, blowing snow etc.
 
Originally posted by Paul Work
Norlumd Voyageur. Small, tough, and easy to carry. A great all-round belt axe.

Paul
Click to expand...

Paul:
I looked for this axe but couldn't find it anywhere on the web. Could you please list a link or website that deals with Norlumd ?

Thanks,
Mithril.
 
Jimbo:
You mention an axe brand named "Hults" in your page on axe selection. Where can I get some info on this brand ? I can find Iltis at Lee Valley, but nothing on Hults.

Thanks,
Mithril.
 
If you'll pardon one more digression on some of the worst roads, it was once the one out to the Kennecot mine in Alaska. An old timer told me that when they closed the mine and pulled the trains, locals decided to convert the railbed to an auto road. There's one railroad bridge that runs over 200 ft. above a rocky gorge. The railroad ties had substantial space between them and no roadbed or guard rails. They took planks that were about a foot wide and ran two rows across the ties and over the gorge. If you looked out your car window all you saw was 200+ ft of air to the rocks below. Needless to say, you couldn't get out of your car. However, you had to stick your head out the window in order to see that your tires remained on the planks. The old timer told me that it was a real test of manhood----a solid 100 on the old sphinctometer!

I drove the bridge in '93 when it had a full one lane roadbed and guard rails----and it was still somewhat exhilarating. I can't even imagine what it must have been like in the Old Days.

And they probably used axes when making it (thread relevant content!).
 
Mithril:
It's Norlund. Try a search on ebay and you's see some - well except for the one I just bought - an old Hudson Bay (voyageur) head which I'll be putting a handle on any day!
The Hults Bruks axes are available here now - I'm just in the process of regrinding a Hults hatchet. Basically quality has taken a BIG downturn (or so it appears to me) on all models. I wouldn't have got the hatchet except for wanting to test a low/medium price one. Even the big 4 1/2 lb logging axes are pretty terrible in the current stock.
Even Iltis models I've looked at have problems - you wouldn't want to get a new one unless you spent time selecting from a bunch. Lots of head alignment problems.
It's really sad - but despite being cheap to the core, I have to say that Gransfors are so far ahead that it seems pointless to go with anything else unless you are prepared to hunt down old axe heads and rehandle them. The upside is that either the more expensive GB axes, or going to the work of searching old heads will give you a terrific axe. The more I look at my three Gransfors (Scandinavian Forest, hatchet and carver's hatchet) the more I want in case their quality goes down.

DWK - You got me! I can stand heights on cliffs and such but not on any type of structure. I can look over 2000' cliffs but standing on a chair bothers me. Go figure!
 
Hults website:

hultafors

Click on Sweden because they don't have English yet..

Click on Vara Producter - on top menu

Click on Yxor (axe) on left.

They look pretty in the pictures - especially the classic line. The stuff here though isn't so pretty. The big axe seems to be pretty hard steel still, but the hatchet is pretty soft compared to a GB.
I might be picking up some old HB heads just to see what they're like.
The Iltis axes are thin and hard - if you can find a good one you'd be set. They come in narrow edge as well as the wide oxhead which is worth knowing - and the light cruiser is nice. For the price though one would be better to add $20 CAN and get a GB.
 
Originally posted by Jimbo
Hults website:

hultafors

Click on Sweden because they don't have English yet..

Click on Vara Producter - on top menu

Click on Yxor (axe) on left.

They look pretty in the pictures - especially the classic line. The stuff here though isn't so pretty. The big axe seems to be pretty hard steel still, but the hatchet is pretty soft compared to a GB.
I might be picking up some old HB heads just to see what they're like.
The Iltis axes are thin and hard - if you can find a good one you'd be set. They come in narrow edge as well as the wide oxhead which is worth knowing - and the light cruiser is nice. For the price though one would be better to add $20 CAN and get a GB.
Click to expand...


Thanks for the weblink and the general info Jimbo. I hope to be looking at, and possibly buying a GB within the next month.

Mithril.
 
I think that you'll be happy with a GB even bought by mail order without the possibility of selection. I had a friend select mine just to to get vertically grained handles. He didn't see any alignment or other problems on any of the axes. I must say that mine were about as perfect as I could ever expect. I did have to fix some bevels, to satisfy me, but that's a minor issue.
Ed - if you are around - how's the quality of the present Lee Valley stock where you are?
 
For backpacking, definitely the GB Mini Hatchet. I've packed with it, day hiked with it, and used it car camping. Unless your chopping really big stuff, this little thing is tops. It's small, light and very packable. My next buy will probably be a GB Small Forest axe for the bigger stuff. But the Mini is a delight to carry and use. I've used it for whittling and lopping limbs up to about 3" in diameter. Using a baton, I have split out much larger logs.
 
Norlund was a private brand made by Mann Edge Tool Co of Lewistown, PA, the same people that make the current Collins axes. I don't think there have been any marketed for a number of years but they were common in sporting goods stores back in the 70's. Collins and Council (Lake Waccamaw, NC) are still the most common work axes on logging sides here in the Northwest
 
I haven't seen a Norlund in a store for many years. Southeastern Outdoors Supply carries what appears to Norlund axes in their catalog. They don't have a website, and I can't locat their e-mail address. Try a search in the "hawk and axe forum, I believe I posted a link there sometime back.

Paul
 
I have heard so much about the Gransfor Bruks axe, but where can you buy them? I did a search on Yahoo and Google and I only came up with the GB homepage. I couldnt find anything on the GB homepage about dealers or retailers. Any help would be appreciated.
 
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