I bow down to your greater experience and will forget about using a hatchet for this job and look into the alternatives suggested. Thank you to everyone for your suggestions. Plenty of food for thought here to ponder over.
Tiny little hatchet or tomahawk….suggestions?
- Thread starter HorseGuy
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Apologies for the misunderstanding. My mistake. I should have used the word 'suggestions' rather than 'wanted' in the title.
I didn't intending to suggest that I wanted buy something from another member on here. However I will be keeping an eye on the classified section for anything suitable in the future though to see is anything suitable pops up there.
There was a flurry of purchases and mods a few years back on BB, like you say, some of them were superb.
A few years ago (so I can’t look up the seller on eBay), I bought a lovely little axe head from a Bulgarian blacksmith off eBay. It’s in the, what I think of as the East European style, with a bearded axe head that leaves a space behind it for your hand to grip the head itself- not sure how to further describe it. It only weighs maybe, 300g or less, a really lovely dinky little thing. I put a relatively long handle on it to make up for its lack of “heft”. I bought it as a light weight hatchet for overnight camps, but it’s a tad too light for splitting, although it would be a perfect weight for your purpose, I think. You sometimes see them on Etsy as well.
What you describe is exactly what I was imagining in my head. I don't know if it even exists but something with a head shaped similar to this one but slightly smaller.
That’s it, but I’d say my head was, maybe ⅓ smaller, and the haft, possible 2 or 3 inches longer. I’ll dig it out tomorrow and post a picture. The head on mine is all polished metal. I did have a concern the the blade wouldn’t be tempered, but it has been fine in use, keeps an edge fairly well but is easy to hone it back.What you describe is exactly what I was imagining in my head. I don't know if it even exists but something with a head shaped similar to this one but slightly smaller.
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I know this is immature but... LOL
Thanks. I'll be interested to see that. It looks like a design which would give you plenty of fine control if you choke up with your hand effectively being inside the axe head.
For Google purposes that type of head is called a bearded axe.I know this is immature but... LOL
Thanks. I'll be interested to see that. It looks like a design which would give you plenty of fine control if you choke up with your hand effectively being inside the axe head.
BeaverCraft AX6 Compact Long Bearded Bushcraft Hatchet
BeaverCraft AX6 Compact Long Bearded Bushcraft Hatchet - AX6 (BeaverCraft Wood Carving). The Beavercraft AX6 Compact Long-Bearded Bushcraft Hatchet is hand-forged making it the perfect tool for all your bushcraft or camping needs.
www.cyclaireshop.co.uk
Honestly, a cheap machete is all you need and perfect for the job. Trust me, these will take off any thinner branch in one easy flick of the wrist, dont even need to swing. Much lighter than a parang or axe, cut very very well, and dont break the bank, and you're not gonna miss your swing like you potentially could with an axe or hawk.
I use a tramontina, have done for years, but seems they are not available in the UK anymore, but this is the same sort of thing.. Easy to sharpen with a file, no frills, no fuss, and wont break the bank. You dont mind giving them a kicking. And they can take it.
On top of that, you have an excellent tool for brambles/nettles etc which an axe/hawk just can't do. They are thin, lightweight and remarkably capable of taking down a 4" thick sapling in 3 or 4 swings if you rotate around the stem and cut at an angle.
Edit to add, I just checked mine (same as the one in the link, just 2" shorter, i have more than one machete) It weighs 410g, including sheath and has a 16" blade and is perfectly legal to own/use with proper reason, same as an axe.
moynessnurseries.co.uk
I use a tramontina, have done for years, but seems they are not available in the UK anymore, but this is the same sort of thing.. Easy to sharpen with a file, no frills, no fuss, and wont break the bank. You dont mind giving them a kicking. And they can take it.
On top of that, you have an excellent tool for brambles/nettles etc which an axe/hawk just can't do. They are thin, lightweight and remarkably capable of taking down a 4" thick sapling in 3 or 4 swings if you rotate around the stem and cut at an angle.
Edit to add, I just checked mine (same as the one in the link, just 2" shorter, i have more than one machete) It weighs 410g, including sheath and has a 16" blade and is perfectly legal to own/use with proper reason, same as an axe.
Silverline Machete & Sheath - Moyness Nurseries
Order Silverline Machete & Sheath online, with local delivery available in Perthshire & Dundee, or click & collect from the Moyness Nurseries in Blairgowrie.
moynessnurseries.co.uk
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I have a ' Trail Hawk ' supplied by the Cold Steel outfit, to report ; it does the job asked of it and has ideally more than it is supposed capable, and especially so when one has sorted out the edge. The beauty of that little thing is that the head can easily be removed from the haft, to be carried without the haft to. be used as a scaper or splitter, even a small anvil when one hammers the head into a log or if one desires given the lack of complexity in the haft one can be easily cut from the forest
I’ve been kicking a similar idea around.
From my personal experience, the right tool depends A LOT on the exact job or environment. My other consideration is that I’d be packing out whatever vegetation I took down… Truth be told, I can’t really imagine or recall situations where I didn’t rip the trees limb from limb or cut them up with a saw or loppers... which is still using back and chest muscles.
If your talking wild rose, brambles or Berberis you’d have more reach via long handled loppers and be snipping those prickly pests into very short 1 or 2 foot lengths. You aren’t likely to waste time turning half that stuff into kindling.
Nowhere would I be swinging a machete. Swing a stick, or 'improvise' to reap some nettles or weeds sure. But cutting tools would only be swung against a some kind of chopping block or a tree truck I was removing.
Back on topic.
My core message is: I’m not sure a smaller hatchet will work? [*]
To be brief:
My personal dogma goes something like this:
I’d skip the tomahawk, I feel it’s a multi-tool unless you bought the much larger sizes. Tomahawks are supposed to be light and used with a long handle. I would also feel a little weird to pack a take down tomahawk only to grunting and swearing every time the head wobbled or worked loose.
[*] Suggestions:
Home page for Rinaldi tools. (You don't need to read this... it's very much for reference at your leisure.)
https://www.br-rinaldi.it/en/index.html
The wonderful catalogue. With all sizes and weight variations (Read this.)
https://www.br-rinaldi.it/en/download/CATALOGO2025.pdf
N.B: Is that review really showing the exact weight you are interested in?
Yup 350 gram head. (micro bonus)
UK supplier… A guide to what you might easily get. (A little starter for you.)
https://www.lamnia.com/en/search?mid=833&sgid=134
https://byxco.com/search?q=Rinaldi&options[prefix]=last
Starter part 2. (homework)
Option 1. "America" the most extreme thin limbing axe. 400g option.
Option 2. "Trento" still thin but a wider bit.
Option 3. "Calebria" flat wedge, the bits are a narrow. 350 g option.
Option 4 / Bonus. "Sicilia" (Tomahawk) Very narrow, flat wedge. 250 g alternative.
From my personal experience, the right tool depends A LOT on the exact job or environment. My other consideration is that I’d be packing out whatever vegetation I took down… Truth be told, I can’t really imagine or recall situations where I didn’t rip the trees limb from limb or cut them up with a saw or loppers... which is still using back and chest muscles.
If your talking wild rose, brambles or Berberis you’d have more reach via long handled loppers and be snipping those prickly pests into very short 1 or 2 foot lengths. You aren’t likely to waste time turning half that stuff into kindling.
Nowhere would I be swinging a machete. Swing a stick, or 'improvise' to reap some nettles or weeds sure. But cutting tools would only be swung against a some kind of chopping block or a tree truck I was removing.
Back on topic.
My core message is: I’m not sure a smaller hatchet will work? [*]
To be brief:
- I would like to play with lighter tools, and think further outside the box. So I'm willing to be wrong about the Trail Hawk and other offerings.
- I have light hatchet... It's shaving sharp and thinned a little but it's a splitter. It's a cheap worn out convex cheeked wedge, without the weight (narrator: "it never had the weight!"). I don't find it effective. I think it's about 350 g head? And the total is a whisker under 500 g) I can choke up on the Montreal pattern for crafting. It's a cheap toy I seek to upgrade at some point. So a pig's ear and all that.
- My primary hatchet, is largely as described below. It's a flat wedge cheeked profile, It chops and splits the small stuff like a dream. But it has a full broad blade, so no good for crafting and erm erm it's kind of heavy. I might say it's a work of art.
My personal dogma goes something like this:
- I’d want a minimum of about a pound and half. (Alternatively, there are good options.)
- A thin, or even real thin limbing blade. ( Big topic. Splitting fire work is different but most axes aren't very special. Axes are either easy to cast cheap fat splitters, or flat ground, or thin limbers.)
- a 14 inch handle so that the centre of my hand and the middle of the cutting edge is a particular distance. (Pure personal preference, your mileage may vary. I would lock or 'nail' this variable down. For me, something portable and easy to use will simply get more field time. But remember it's a piece of wood, so tune to your liking.)
- I would also want to shave the shaft to absorb the shocks and have something big enough for my hands. (Also highly personal preference. But let's not over think this one...)
I’d skip the tomahawk, I feel it’s a multi-tool unless you bought the much larger sizes. Tomahawks are supposed to be light and used with a long handle. I would also feel a little weird to pack a take down tomahawk only to grunting and swearing every time the head wobbled or worked loose.
[*] Suggestions:
Home page for Rinaldi tools. (You don't need to read this... it's very much for reference at your leisure.)
https://www.br-rinaldi.it/en/index.html
The wonderful catalogue. With all sizes and weight variations
(Read this.)https://www.br-rinaldi.it/en/download/CATALOGO2025.pdf
N.B: Is that review really showing the exact weight you are interested in?
Yup 350 gram head. (micro bonus)
UK supplier… A guide to what you might easily get. (A little starter for you.)
https://www.lamnia.com/en/search?mid=833&sgid=134
https://byxco.com/search?q=Rinaldi&options[prefix]=last
Starter part 2. (homework)
Option 1. "America" the most extreme thin limbing axe. 400g option.
Option 2. "Trento" still thin but a wider bit.
Option 3. "Calebria" flat wedge, the bits are a narrow. 350 g option.
Option 4 / Bonus. "Sicilia" (Tomahawk) Very narrow, flat wedge. 250 g alternative.
For fishing and camping i use the multifunctional Hatchet Hammer, crowbar combination.
Cost almost nothing on Amazon. Does the job making firewood, remove nails en hammer tensteaks. Its indestructible en if i lose it......so what ??
For showing off i have the wetterlings buschman axe from old Les Stroud.........to nice to lose.
Cost almost nothing on Amazon. Does the job making firewood, remove nails en hammer tensteaks. Its indestructible en if i lose it......so what ??
For showing off i have the wetterlings buschman axe from old Les Stroud.........to nice to lose.
Have a look here. Have a few of their small axes and can't complain.
strongwaytools.com
Home
Strong Way Tools - Ukrainian manufactory that has been engaged in blacksmithing for more than 10 years. We combine tradition and modernity and create professional woodworking tools, knives, leather goods and bushcraft stuff.
strongwaytools.com
A tiny hatchet or tomahawk is not a lot of use.
I have found that even a fairly light axe head benefits from a 16" handle, with few downsides.
For cutting off branches from a bough, though, a billhook or parang/machete makes much more sense.
I have found that even a fairly light axe head benefits from a 16" handle, with few downsides.
For cutting off branches from a bough, though, a billhook or parang/machete makes much more sense.
Yeah the bill hook is a rather good lopper, I have an old Brades Shropshire pattern hook that has seen some hefty woodland use, and wow stunning for battening.
I like to use a Nata: https://ancientpathworkshop.com/a-nata-is-not-a-hatchet/
It also works great as a baton-driven splitter. There are lots of options out there, chisel beveled, double beveled, all natural handles and scabbards, ditto in synthetic materials. A parang might be another idea.
It also works great as a baton-driven splitter. There are lots of options out there, chisel beveled, double beveled, all natural handles and scabbards, ditto in synthetic materials. A parang might be another idea.
I use this.
Amazon call it a “stubby” hatchet.
It’s described as 450gms - feels a bit heavier.
Indestructible.
Fits in my fire drum.
Less than £12 from Amazon.
Useful tool, does the job.
I once had a smaller one: about 350gms and only 200mm long. Dunno where it went. This is the best replacement that I could find fifteen years ago.
Go for it 
@Chris
After fifteen or so years there is a little rust in the head (yes it’s stainless steel but much abused and little cared for) and the odd scuff on the handle. It gets a swipe with a puck when I use it.
When you are using a handle that short you are ever so careful not to over-strike!!!!
@ChrisAfter fifteen or so years there is a little rust in the head (yes it’s stainless steel but much abused and little cared for) and the odd scuff on the handle. It gets a swipe with a puck when I use it.
When you are using a handle that short you are ever so careful not to over-strike!!!!
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