The BladeForums.com 2024 Traditional Knife is ready to order! See this thread for details:
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/bladeforums-2024-traditional-knife.2003187/
Price is $300 $250 ea (shipped within CONUS). If you live outside the US, I will contact you after your order for extra shipping charges.
Order here: https://www.bladeforums.com/help/2024-traditional/ - Order as many as you like, we have plenty.
I am new to this part of BladeForums, and at first thought like 300six, but after reading and thinking about it, might be nice to have one in the truck!
Well, to be honest I've never seen a Viking axe with both a beard that long AND a blade that thin. I can't speak to this specific manufacturer as I've never handled their tools but I know there's only so much a bit of unsupported steel can take, even good steel. The original post mentioned that the blade only bent as a result of the initial "abuse" and that the break happened when the owner tried to straighten it out himself. Here I'm only guessing but if the straightening method was to hit it with a hammer I don't think the beard stood a chance.
So, I guess those stupid Vikings had utterly no concept of good axe design. We should just write them out of history altogether. Up to and including today, what with all the Scandinavian wood carvers using a bearded hatchet. ...... There are many very good reasons to have such a beard on a small tomahawk or hatchet. The fact that this particular example had a flaw is not really an indication of its suitability as a tool. I don't necessarily like these one piece tomahawk like objects but they are an answer to a modern need.
Anyone can find many examples of long bearded axes on the net in actual Viking museums. What always puzzled me more than the strength of the unsupported beards, are the very small cheeks on these real Viking fighting axes. Some of these thinner waterjet or plasma cut, one-piece tomahawks are probably made a bit too thin to be able to handle the pounding that many of them are subject to. But then again, I really don't see very many of them on the forums that have been broken. The hawk in this thread was probably a bit too hard and thin. That beard would need to be kept somewhat springy I'd think.
Our current wartime hand weapon industry has rekindled the romance of the fighting tomahawk. These light hawks, with this type of beard, are a very good close range fighting tool. There's no reason to think that it shouldn't also pull duty as a light chopper.
Got any suggestions on such a bearded axe?
These fantasy things are decorative only. What was the owner thinking when he figured he'd try to chop wood with it? Ya gotta buy the right tool if it's actually gonna be put to work.