Youtube and axes...

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May 19, 2009
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Considering how big youtube is, it's really surprising to me how difficult it is to find videos of people properly handling, maintaining and using axes. I'll exempt the videos by Ray Mears since most people have seen those, as well as the "Handtools for Trail Work" and "An Axe to Grind" videos put out by the forest service and already linked to before by Ross (rg598).

Anyways, I was just curious if you guys had any youtube finds concerning axes that you felt like sharing?

Here's a couple I've referenced for axe hanging:
[youtube]xnmhzAoKs-w[/youtube]

[youtube]9iAFmCitz_c[/youtube]

And I really love this guy's bucking technique - somewhat unconventional in how he finishes off, but seems much safer and is quite effective. Oh, and a nice Hults Bruk axe too:
[youtube]8gv_tbHWbPg[/youtube]
 
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Watching these videos, the question occurs to me, "has any Gransfors Bruks user ever had to re-handle his axe?"

My cheezy rehandlling efforts are good for a few years, while my GB SFA is as solid as the day I bought it, a few years ago.
 
One of the very best vids on Youtube is of Ulrika Stridsberg forging an axe the old way.This is one of the ways we forge axes.The second half of the vid shows a guy using it start cabin logs..Also check out Mark Aspery and Bruce Wilcock for some of the ebst blacksmithing vids to be had..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dbCpDsxUHVc
 
Watching these videos, the question occurs to me, "has any Gransfors Bruks user ever had to re-handle his axe?"

My cheezy rehandlling efforts are good for a few years, while my GB SFA is as solid as the day I bought it, a few years ago.

I'm in the process of doing so, buuuut they are vintage heads that came into my possession without handles, so I guess that doesn't count :p

GB's traditional attachment method is pretty dang sound, and their handles are of very high quality straight-grained hickory... and while I'm sure this has something to do with it, I'd be more willing to say it has more to do with the brand and target audience. Think about it: if you dole out the money for a Gransfors Bruks, you probably don't have the typical "throw-away-tool" mentality and are more likely to take care of this particular axe (if not because of the mentality, then certainly because of the cost) . You probably wouldn't subject it to the sort of tasks someone would a cheaper hardware store axe and you'd definitely keep it in tip-top shape. Also, GB's more popular axes tend to be their smaller/lighter weight ones like the SFA and WLH, which are less prone to damage from overstrikes and such due to their light head and intended usage (more bushcraft than dedicated wood processing).

Sorry for that little tangent - I don't mean to detract from your comment, just offering my $.02 as I know it certainly applies to me and my two GBs (SFA and Scandi). I love the axes, and they are indeed top quality tools! :thumbup:


One of the very best vids on Youtube is of Ulrika Stridsberg forging an axe the old way.This is one of the ways we forge axes.The second half of the vid shows a guy using it start cabin logs..Also check out Mark Aspery and Bruce Wilcock for some of the ebst blacksmithing vids to be had..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dbCpDsxUHVc

Oh right, I think I've seen that posted on here before! Very nice and informative video - both making and usage covered :thumbup:
 
Currently, what I'm really wanting to find a video of is a full sized axe being used to fell a tree... maybe I'm just using bad search words, but I've yet to run by one.

Here's a couple of usage videos that I ran by:

SFA - since he's in a fairly isolated situation and using a 19" axe, I really like that he's kneeling down to cut. Despite the small size of the tree, I personally would have still made a front/back cut instead of cutting around the circumference, but I guess that's just me:
[youtube]ZQV9LH4HJXE[/youtube]

This guy worried me a bit when he started chopping as I didn't see him check for the direction of fall and then proceeded to make a pretty deep and wide cut on one side (looks to be past 50% of the tree). I breathed a sigh of relief when he started the back cut up higher and saw it fall in the intended direction. The rest of the vid looks pretty sound as well:
[youtube]1199YiystaU[/youtube]

And this - this is just plain scary! The SFA is too short to safely use in this manner, the log is bouncing all over the place and his legs aren't even very spread out. The arc of swing would clearly hit his shin if he swung too high :eek:
[youtube]ik4uSmU-w78[/youtube]
 
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