Axe lanyards...?

[Draven]

Howdy folks!

I've seen a few axes with lanyard holes, and a few fewer with lanyards, so I was wondering what the general thoughts were on axe lanyards. Do those with lanyards use them?

My thoughts are that if your hand is likely to slip off your axe, the problem is more to do with the shape or finish of the handle, or the manner in which it is being used. Mistakes can be made of course, but all in all, I think that if the axe slipped out of my grip, I'd rather it flew away from me (since I always ensure that i'm not cutting towards someone, anyway) than have a heavy, sharp axe bouncing around on its lanyard. Opinions?

 

[British Red]

My thoughts

Never...ever....ever use a lanyard on an axe. It can cause a pivot point shift or if the axe slips causing the axe to rotate down and towards you rather than fly away.

I can't see anything other than danger

Red

 

[Wayland]

The only thing I use a lanyard hole for is to hang the axe with a shot loop.

 

[C_Claycomb]

The holes aren't for lanyards, but so that the axe can be hung from a nail driven into a wall. Lanyards on axes are a potential danger and don't offer any real advantage. Personally I would rather an axe keep on going if it slips from my grasp, rather than recoiling on a lanyard and possibly coming back at me. The chance of this happening seems greater than the chance of there being a person in line with the axe should it slip.

Never mind about the lanyard catching on something as you swing, so causing an accident all on its own.

 

[C_Claycomb]

I still haven't found a time when I find a lanyard on a knife all that useful either.

 

[Draven]

Ahh I didn't think that the hole might be for hanging

I don't use a knife lanyard either. I've never had a knife slip out of my hand, and I've only seen it happen when I was a kid, when my friend was de-bearding mussels and seperating the good from the bad, and tossed his (correction: my ) knife into the sea with the bad ones. I blame that more on the fact that we were 7-8 than the fact that the knife had no lanyard

I am thinking of adding decorative lanyards to a couple knives, but still probably not my axe, it'd just whip around and drive me nuts.

 

[Snufkin]

I still haven't found a time when I find a lanyard on a knife all that useful either.

They're brilliant! The most efficient way to collect dirt and culture bacteria on a knife ever

 

[SkogKniv]

I agree with British Red on not using a lanyard. Now here is where I contradict myself haha I put one on my axe just for one reason and one only. If I have to chop ice I do not want to risk shooting my axe down the hole and losing it perhaps until spring or forever. That is the only time I would ever slip that thing over my wrist.

 

[demographic]

I think if an axe was to slip out of my hand during use I would rather it flew off into the woods to be picked up later than flailed about on the end of my arm

 

[pwb]

the lanyard catching on something as you swing, so causing an accident all on its own.

That's the biggest danger I can see of having a lanyard, even a small loop for hanging attached, is it catching stopping the axe dead and your hand keeping going

Pete.

 

[Peter_t]

i think the loseing an axe chopping through ice is far worse than posably swinging towards you. if it is tight around your rist it would minimise the chance of slipping out your hand and if it did it should hit the ground of the workpeice first, also how often does an axe slip out your hand anyway? if your in a northern forest in winter and lose your axe your going to realy struggle to survive.
but totaly unnessasary in the UK

pete

 

[C_Claycomb]

If you are going to make a habit of chopping though ice, then an ice chisel is the tool to use. If losing the axe in snow is the worry, why not just tie a long ribbon to it so that if lost the ribbon trails out and either lies on the snow, or along the path the axe travelled? Since its not looped its less likely to catch on things. I am still skeptical as to whether lanyards are used by people in snowy places, it seems that the same disadvantages would apply.

 

[Draven]

I've never even thought of chopping ice with an axe. I get that ice is brittle, but still hard - does it really chop away easy enough to avoid blunting/chipping your axe?

 

[SkogKniv]

..........double post..........

 

[SkogKniv]

I've never even thought of chopping ice with an axe. I get that ice is brittle, but still hard - does it really chop away easy enough to avoid blunting/chipping your axe?

A for instance: When I my winter hikes, especially in one place I will often break ice into a small very slow fed stream for a billy can of water. As for the lanyard yes I use it then and only then as to ensure by some chance I do not shoot it into the hole. Of course this is very unlikely to happen. If I was out on one of the lakes I would do the same. As for dulling the edge it does no less damage than wood to me.

I agree with while chopping to let that baby fling into the forest and then go get it haha. Then again I can not ever remember a time where I had an axe get away from me.

 

[dwardo]

Pretty sure as mentioned that the hole is for hanging the axe up, atleast thats what i use it for.

The only other time i use it is to string the axe up over my shoulder, this leaves both hands free to carry the firewood i have cut back to camp.

 

[Draven]

A for instance: When I my winter hikes, especially in one place I will often break ice into a small very slow fed stream for a billy can of water. As for the lanyard yes I use it then and only then as to ensure by some chance I do not shoot it into the hole. Of course this is very unlikely to happen. If I was out on one of the lakes I would do the same. As for dulling the edge it does no less damage than wood to me.

That's fair I suppose - though I like to stay off frozen things They scare the bejesus outta me

 

[Shewie]

I had a bit of a scary Russ moment on Saturday morning at Loch Lomond, I was happily splitting down some damp logs for the kelly kettle when I glanced the edge and threw the axe between my legs to about 5m behind me. This was a combination of being lazy with my technique and and just not thinking about what I was doing at the time. Luckily I managed to miss everything but it was enough to put the wind up me, needless to say I didn`t touch the axe again for the rest of the day.

Thinking about it, if I had been using a lanyard then it would certainly have pivoted and either hit my arm near the elbow, somewhere in my nether region or more likely gone straight into my shin bone. Either way I was very lucky and the fact that we were on an island and at least an hour from the mainland made the whole thing sink in a bit more.

Gaillaine had a quite word in my ear and reminded me of a few things I should aleady have been doing.

 

[dwardo]

I had a bit of a scary Russ moment on Saturday morning at Loch Lomond, I was happily splitting down some damp logs for the kelly kettle when I glanced the edge and threw the axe between my legs to about 5m behind me. This was a combination of being lazy with my technique and and just not thinking about what I was doing at the time. Luckily I managed to miss everything but it was enough to put the wind up me, needless to say I didn`t touch the axe again for the rest of the day.

Thinking about it, if I had been using a lanyard then it would certainly have pivoted and either hit my arm near the elbow, somewhere in my nether region or more likely gone straight into my shin bone. Either way I was very lucky and the fact that we were on an island and at least an hour from the mainland made the whole thing sink in a bit more.

Gaillaine had a quite word in my ear and reminded me of a few things I should aleady have been doing.

Its telling your self off when these things happen that keeps you safe in the future
At least it is with me anyway. When i do something daft i examine how stupid i was and try to learn from it. If not your doomed to repeat the same mistakes.

 

[BigShot]

Agreed with you there Dwardo...
Recently I've added a few cuts to my hands, I can see 6 in some state of healing or another right now, be they from being dumb trying to close my BAK in a strange, one-handed way and catching myself between the edge and the liners or from stupid moves when carving something, or even when sharpening with my fingers too close to the edge and slipping over/between them and the stone.

The scariest one I can see is across my right wrist. Slipped when sharpening my axe and dug in right across where the palm and forearm come together. Thankfully it was the initial sharpening and it was still kinda dull so I got away with just a tiny bit of bleeding, if it was as keen as it is now I could have ended up in surgery! !

Definately learned from every one of those cuts!