Where did you get the Council for $29?!?
Bailey's had an online sale. I'm on their mailing list, so I went in and bought one quick.
Their shipping is ridonkjulous, but after all was said and done, even WITH shipping,
it was still cheaper than anything else out there now (that's "if" you can even locate
one as Council has supposedly discontinued them sadly).
More than adequate. How you implement your axe really comes down to skill and knowledge. Heck, I can use my 3lber pictured above to make feather sticks and do basic carving - it's just that it's not very optimal for the task and can really get my forearm burning if I choke up on it for extended periods. The Council FSS looks to be a really good design IMO and well worth the money. Like I said previously, the only issue I have with Council is that they keep their steel too soft. Even in their Velvicut line (5160 steel) they still keep it in the low 50s, when it could easily be tempered to 55-58 hrc without issue. This hardness is perfectly fine for chopping, limbing and splitting, but if you try to perform finer tasks directly after that, you'll probably find that the edge hasn't retained its sharpness well enough for the task and might need a stropping first. Better heat-treated heads like my Keen Kutter for example, can transition easily without edge maintenance in between as I believe it's quality steel tempered to around 57hrc (rough guess based on sharpening and using it - it's pretty much on par with GB's HT).
I guess that's where a smaller hatchet comes in handy though.. use that for finer tasks and keep the Council more exclusively for heavier tasks. Speaking of which, you might consider something lighter if you intend to pack it along with your Council FSS, especially if you plan to keep it as a belt axe. I couldn't imagine lugging a 19"er on my hip, but the 14" GB WLH feels fine and my 10" GB Mini is so light, I'll occasionally forget it's there. Both work great for feather sticks, carving, and other small tasks. If you go with the GB Carpenters (19" I believe?) or Wetterlings FFA (24?"), there's just too much crossover with your 28" Council and you're realy just carrying unnecessary weight.
According to what they had to do to get it up to spec for the Forestry Dept. I believe it was up to mid to high 50's.
Not pretending like I even know how do physically differentiate between the different ratings by "feel", but just
spouting out the numbers I came across in my research.
If I do with something smaller (a hatchet), I won't be carrying both at the same time. I'd use the hatchet for
my bushcraft "light" days and the axe more likely in winter when keeping wood on the fire and building more
substantial shelters will be the priority.
Thanks.
1. Guy simply asked what people thought of them - so I answered.
2. Guy has a wetterlings axe with some "issues" with it, and a 4 page thread broke out on a myriad of schematics, angles, grains, hardness, bevels, grinds, etc. Its an axe - it isn't perfect. Use it already.
Pretty simple really. Just tell it like it is.
Issues? Wow. See pics. There's no way in Hades I'd use an axe with as many defects as that particular piece had.
That's just begging for an injury. I sent it back and let them know if they don't have a perfect one, not to bother
sending me a replacement.
Anybody reading that post I responded to, consider this a PSA: NEVER use a tool in the condition that I
have shown below. That's just horrible advice. Don't EVER use a tool "just because" you have it if it poses
a danger to you. There's a big difference between something not being perfect and something being defective
to the point that it can potentially cause you a catastrophic injury.
1. Yes, providing nothing in the way of "why?" and thus contributing absolutely nothing to the discussion.
2. "Issues"? It's a clearly defective axe that's unacceptable for the price point he paid. The item also didn't meet the criteria the buyer provided for the dealer before sale. It should be sent back not only because of the horrifically misaligned head but because (from a legal standpoint) the seller did not provide the buyer with item he paid for.
And would you prefer all threads here be kept to a 2 page maximum and for all responses to be brusque? If no discussion ever took place, how do you expect people seeking knowledge are going to learn? It seems to me that members are all giving their insight, opinions and continuing the discussion so there must be a reason for it. If no one ever gave a thought to angles, hardness, bevels and grinds, I'm sure we'd all be stuck with the flat-faced european axes you seem to absolutely detest. Or worse yet even...
Tell it like it is you say? Alright then - you're currently not contributing anything of substance and are just shy of being abrasive.
Amen to that KC. And, it's unacceptable even for a budget axe. It's to the point that it's not even safe to use.
While I've not used axes in the woods, I've used them extensively in demolition work and there's just nothing
ever good about working with a faulty tool.
As for the rest of the posts here, THANK YOU. I am learning a lot (even if I'm not commenting on those particular
posts). I'm glad that this thread has more life out of it than what I intended for it and I'm sure others with limited
knowledge will be learning too. If the OP's opinion matters here, feel free to keep posting whatever you want that's
axe-related.
