Anyone use a hatchet / small axe for bushcraft?

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SouthernCross

Forager
Feb 14, 2010
230
0
Australia
G'day Everyone.

I appologise if this has already been asked, but I'm interested if anyone else uses a hatchet / small axe for bushcraft.

If so, apart from chopping wood /splitting kindling, what other uses do you put it to?

Thanks in advance for your responses.



Kind regards
Mick
 

forestwalker

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
I sometimes carry one of Wetterlings hunting axes (40 cm, 0.7 kg). I know people who carry smaller axes, but persoanlly I only uses those for crafts. Even the hunters axe is on the small side for actually doing cutting wood. Hatchets are nice for crafts (e.g. the carving axe), but IMNSHO not for much else.
 

spiritwalker

Native
Jun 22, 2009
1,244
3
wirral
i have the small forest axe which is useful for splitting small wood but if i am to be honest while i love my axe i think its largely replaced by folding saw and knife. Saw makes light work or cutting wood (and less danferous) and knife with a baton can split wood with ease i carry 2 moras but have never damaged one using it to split wood
 
got a Cegga as my first axe so i fitted in with the look at meets :lmao:
not every body likes a huge Kukri waving about

Axeknife.jpg


its oks and very good for stirfrys
axeonion.jpg


but it dosnt get used much as most places i only need ot cut fire wood and being lazy i mostly burn it into bits as i gi and end feed :eek::rolleyes: using a saw to collect really long bits if needed

still bought a £2.99 one from Argos a few weeks ago hopefully make a carving axe ............................... if i ca nfind time to carve:rolleyes:

Argos1.jpg


ATB

Duncan
 

robin wood

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Oct 29, 2007
3,054
1
derbyshire
www.robin-wood.co.uk
To me the word hatchet means an axe with a handle length around 14" or so and intended to be used one handed. This is exactly the sort of axe I would carry if I was putting an axe in a backpack for bushcraft type activities. If I am not walking far, or as I most often am, car camping it would be a fairly heavy one like a swedish carving axe. If I was walking further it would be a light one, a little kent hatchet or a wildlife hatchet. I can fell and dismember any size tree with one of these, firewood it and carve, and do it all safely given good technique.

If I am doing serious tree felling and firewooding I want a proper axe with a full two hand handle 30"-33" long and a decent weight to the head but to me this is not really bushcraft territory. The axes with handles half way between like the SFA I personally don't get on with. You can swing it two handed like a proper axe and you can carve with it like a hatchet but it doesn't really do either very well.
 

Peter_t

Native
Oct 13, 2007
1,353
2
East Sussex
the axe i usually take with me weighs 1 1/4 lbs and is about 14" long. this seems about the right size or maby a heavier head would be more usefull but more of a pain to carry.

tbh its only worth its weight if it is very cold or wet when most firewood is damp or covered in snow. the rest of the time i get by with just a knife and batton.

i prefer an american style axe most of the time with a fairly chunky slightly convex profile. i have kent patern axes too which are great for cutting, snedding an shaping wood but with the thin profiles of these axes they tend to fall behind on splitting so these usually stay at home.


pete
 

SOAR

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Jan 21, 2007
2,031
8
48
cheshire
Again its horses for courses, hatchets are handy tools as they can fit inside your pack, if the weight is good they can split well, the Husky axes I have found are very good for the price and I found they performed very well. For felling bigger axes are needed, or a chainsaw lol
 

Tiley

Life Member
Oct 19, 2006
2,364
374
60
Gloucestershire
I do sometimes take an SFA with me out and about but generally make do with a Laplander saw and knife. Having had a bit of, shall we say, 'an experience' in the woods a long way from help with the axe, I am a little wary of including it. Having said that, practice does make perfect and I am getting better at using it safely! :eek:

I also have one of those dinky little Gransfors hatchets which is ideal for preparing kindling but is too light and small to do much else. It's a pretty thing but I generally tend to select my SFA for most bimbles out and about. I suppose you have to ask yourself: will I need an axe for any jobs I encounter or can I make do with saw and knife? Then, you choose the appropriate tools.
 

maddave

Full Member
Jan 2, 2004
4,177
39
Manchester UK
I use a gransfors mini hatchet for most of my bushcrafting needs. From cutting wood to prepping meat and veg.. There's really not much it won't do... (except slice crumbly white cheese...bah)
 

Shewie

Mod
Mod
Dec 15, 2005
24,259
24
48
Yorkshire
I use a Cegga the same as Duncan which is small but still really useful. Main axe tasks for me are splitting and chopping firewood, delimbing or tidying up wood for a purpose.
 

MrEd

Life Member
Feb 18, 2010
2,148
1,053
Surrey/Sussex
www.thetimechamber.co.uk
no i dont, i just use a folding saw if need be and my knife to batton. when carving i use my knife to do the roughing out - its sufficienty heavy that if i hang my little finger over the butt i can get quite a chop going on.

i also rouhg out wiith my folding saw, then do finer work with my various carving knives.

i personally havent really found a need for my hatchet in the UK woods, most stuff i can do with a knife and saw - i.e fire wood for one person and shelter. If group camping, or needing large amounts of firewood then yeah i would use an axe prob
 

fast but dim

Nomad
Nov 23, 2005
317
6
52
lancs
G'day Everyone.

I appologise if this has already been asked, but I'm interested if anyone else uses a hatchet / small axe for bushcraft.

If so, apart from chopping wood /splitting kindling, what other uses do you put it to?

Thanks in advance for your responses.



Kind regards
Mick


mick, if you want a husky axe like in the thread let me know, i'll go the shop ,pick you one and post it at cost to dodge customs.
 
Hi Southern Cross! I carry and use a tomahawk (not an axe or hatchet) in my forest all the time. Rarely however do I use it for cutting firewood. For firewood I can usually breake it under foot or over a rock.
My tomahawk gets used for constructing primitive shelters, for making pegs for traps and pegging my oil cloth. As the tomahawk is good for throwing it gets used for throwing for sport, but it can also be used for hunting and defence back-up when hunting wild boar.
I use a round poll tomahawk, and the poll is fine for hammering in shelter stakes or trap stakes. Also good for making helves, stails and rabbit sticks.
The tomahawk is much lighter than most belt axes, and because the helve fits in from the top of the eye and is tapered, it does not require a wedge and this makes replacement helves esier to make and fit.
You can find more on tomahawks on my blog here: http://woodsrunnersdiary.blogspot.com/search?q=tomahawks
And if you are interested in our group our site is here:
http://historicaltrekkers.ning.com/
Regards, Le Loup.
PS. Would love to chat about Australian Bushcraft anytime.
 

SouthernCross

Forager
Feb 14, 2010
230
0
Australia
G'day fast but dim

mick, if you want a husky axe like in the thread let me know, i'll go the shop ,pick you one and post it at cost to dodge customs.
Thankyou for the very generous offer.

I'm happy with the GB mini I currently use, so I'll decline on this one.

Whilst it's no chopping power house, I find it to be very usefull for bushcraft.

Thanks for everyones' responses.



Kind regards
Mick
 

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