An Axe - Seriously?

[I Leak Oil]

Axes have been around for CENTURIES! What's the debate?

 

[VanIsle_Greg]

I will never go camping without an axe and or a hatchet. I 99% of the time take both as they live in my trailer storage trunk. I bring my own wood as well when I camp (locally and where permitted), but do not go as far as splitting all the kindling or chopping up what I need before I depart. I simply plop a pile of wood on the rack and split it at the camp site.

In the north and of course other places, a good axe can save your life. I have read this and heard this forever, and my personal experience is that when you "need" an axe, not much else will do.

Zombies of course are EVERYWHERE not just in the north... so those of you in the south, pack an axe where appropriate as well.

:drool:

(most zombie like smiley available)

 

[john101477]

Not to hijack a thread about axes but bringing firewood in from elsewhere is a serious no no. In Ontario they have signs up on the major highways regarding this.Destroying a forest due to imported bugs is totally not cool and once the bugs are in, they don't leave till they have finished the job.

I know in some areas specially up north there is an issue with forest destroying bugs. In many areas to bring your firewodd is the only way to have a fire sometimes so you do what you gotta do. I dont mind finding down wood for fires when i am out but even that is a no no in some areas.

 

[teotwaki]

I have never had much luck with a bow saw. Of course mine were probably made in china so not the best quality. But by the time I get it out of the vehicle and stab my self a few times while installing the blade that has rusted from being stored improperly, they never cut worth a ----!. With an axe I can chop of some small dry branches to get a fire going, i can split or chop bigger stuff and I have used the back side(head) of my axe to hammer my steering tie rod straight again once upon a time on 21 road. Used it on a bent rim once also.

When I am in forested areas I do like to bring the bow saw in addition to the axe. The saw is a bit easier to use to trim long "bouncy" branches that can deflect or move when struck with an axe or hatchet. I have a "BowHack" and really like the blade design. My hatchet and axe are both Gerber and I recently added the SOG Fasthawk to the arsenal

 

[Buliwyf]

I ziptie and electrical tape my axe to my roll bar or to the mounts under my bed sides.

I usually use a sharpie to write something crazy on the handle like " I buy Zoloft." and hang a ski mask on the end. It keeps the yuppies away from my campsite.

 

[RHINO]

i just stumbled on this thread and didnt read the whole thing. but to the OP's original Q. i dont see much need for a full size 36" handle felling axe. you will see posts like the recent gransfors bruks. these axes and axes like them are small two handed axes for general camp work, limbing ect. they are pretty light and easy to keep in a rig. i think many folks with full size axes mounted on a roof rack or elsewhere next to a shovel and hi-lift dont get used very often and (purposely or not) are mostly for show.

 

[Fireman78]

I guess it depends on where one lives and hangs out. I just upgraded my Axe compliment with the addition of Fiskars newest animal... http://www.google.com/products/cata...9bUAT4vrCtLJiQLmo-2uDg&sqi=2&ved=0CGYQ8wIwAA#

So now I have three Fiskars models, two or three "cheapy" models stowed away as "spares",, and one Granfors Bruks edition. The Fiskars are superior, of course just my opinion, but I use them all the time. This new splitting head on the 36" Fiskars is AWESOME!

Another small cheap item we ALL can add to our kit (those of us that use axes).. is this Fiskars sharpener... http://www.amazon.com/Fiskars-7861-Axe-Knife-Sharpener/dp/B0000950Q4 Simple, cheap and it works.

 

[teotwaki]

i just stumbled on this thread and didnt read the whole thing. but to the OP's original Q. i dont see much need for a full size 36" handle felling axe. you will see posts like the recent gransfors bruks. these axes and axes like them are small two handed axes for general camp work, limbing ect. they are pretty light and easy to keep in a rig. i think many folks with full size axes mounted on a roof rack or elsewhere next to a shovel and hi-lift dont get used very often and (purposely or not) are mostly for show.

even Arizona can drop nice fat trees across trails

http://www.expeditionportal.com/for...th-on-The-North-Rim-!!!?p=1007669#post1007669

 

[BurbanAZ]

i have an axe, ive used it a ton of times from using it to hammer in stakes or chop wood. Plus i have a full size suburban so an axe mounted or stored somewhere takes almost no space

 

[expo80]

I carrie a Fiskar's Axe and a Husqvarna 454 at all times in my 80.

The axe is an essential tool to have I use it from anything from the obvious of cutting, splitting wood to using the but end to beat things back into shape, pounding in tent steaks ect.

After the hurricane that hit us in upstate ny it took me an hour to go 1 mile because of down trees if it was not for the axe and chain saw it would have been a lot longer

on the note of tree cutting I also equip myself with two lengths of 20' GR-43 chain for pulling trees out of the way, good stuff top have around with any tree cutting, skidding activity's that might come your way

 

[Hill Bill E.]

.......... i dont see much need for a full size 36" handle felling axe............

Mine gets used everytime I'm out here. When I head to Moab, I usuallu just bring my hatchet, as we buy firewood there.

But here in MN, it's illegal to transport 'unapproved' firewood (and I won't pay for the 'approved' firewood)

Where we camp is all woods, and a lot of logging areas, so for firewood, we gather it from the tops that the loggers leave behind.

We either use a chainsaw or a bowsaw to cut it, and being in the 6-8" range, a full size axe makes splitting a lot easier.

Most of the smaller stuff for firewood, has been long scavenged during the season before I get out. I love the fall for camping/fishing/wildlife watching.

I also cut up blowdowns, and am always on the lookout for cedar trees that have been blown over. These I cut with the chainsaw, and can range in size up to 20+" in diameter!

A splitting maul would be more appropriate, but a full size Axe is a good compromise for me.

I always try and leave some firewood at the site when I leave, 'paying it forward' for the next wandering soul to use the site.

 

[RHINO]

even Arizona can drop nice fat trees across trails

yessir and i've run across a few of them. i used to carry a cheap 36" axe, but i now have a good 20" small axe, it chops about as fast and with less fatigue than the cheap full size axe. its a win win for me. nothing wrong with carrying a full size axe i just think lots of folks who do rarely use them because most of the ones i see on trucks are cheapies.

i always have the small axe with me, and it can handle everything from chopping, splitting and making feather sticks. i carry a chainsaw and gerber splitting axe (really dig the gerber/fiskars axes)when i am going to big tree areas, so i am usually in pretty good shape.

 

[Fireman78]

Having 27 pages of Axe talk so far is Awesome. Just sayin

 

[Idlehour]

Not gonna lie - my Estwing campers axe puts a smile on my fave every time I use it.
Nice cutting profile + takes and keeps a sharp edge = chops super fast. Its Long enough to use double handed, light enough to use single handed, and short enough to strap to the roll bar upright or back pack. The steel handle is nice for those clumsy over strikes. Pluse its cheap enough I don't mind using it as a hammer. Major improvement over the cheapies that always seem to be a useless compromise between a splitting axe and a cutting axe.

There is a quote attributed to Abraham Lincoln - "If I had six hours to chop down a tree, I'd spend the first four hours sharpening the axe"

 

[JamesDowning]

How long would it take to chop this sucker in half with an axe?

I don't bring a chainsaw due to the amount of space they take up, but I've found that a reciprocating saw and a long blade work pretty good. That's how I took care of that tree, above. (same trail that teotwaki posted a link to above)