This is not the full review I was hoping to post as I am pushed for time but I wanted to post a few quick thoughts on this axe whilst it is on special offer at just £4.89 at Argos.
See some previous discussion here.
http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=38912&highlight=argos+axe+review
I picked one up last week and it was pretty much as the one discussed in the thread linked above.
A file test on the head shows it to be of a good hardness, not too hard not too soft, just right.
Out of the box it would be good for splitting firewood where you do not want a sharp edge just a wedge on a stick, as a cutting tool it was utterly useless. The edge was very thick and rounded, to take it down properly with hand tools would have taken a while, I personally would have started with heavy cuts with a new coarse file and would have expected to be there for at least 20 minutes before starting on anything finer.
If you have a powerful grinder with a coarse grit then it can be taken down quickly with frequent dips in a bucket of water to avoid heating and loosing the temper. It took me about 5 minutes on a grinder then buffing wheel to put good flat bevels on and a good working edge. I like flat bevels for carving use but it would be equally easy to reprofile to a narrower convex edge for general work if that is what you want.
So £5 and 5 minutes skilled work and what do we have? Well the head is not aligned with the handle, I know a lot of people rate this a serious fault. It really does not bother me, I find in use the hand and eye simple make adjustments for it, this goes for beginners with correct teaching as well as those with a lot of experience.
The head is missing a wedge which is just bizarre. Having said that it is securely fitted and I would not regard it as a hazard, I would be astonished if the head flew off in use without giving lots of warning first. As with all my axes I will keep an eye on it, when hewing it is normally easy to feel as soon as a head develops a tiny wobble when it begins to come loose. If after years use the head comes loose then rehandle it, to be honest it would not be bad value at £5 for the head.
I carved a few spoons with the axe and it worked very well, it is a good shape and weight, good steel with correct temper I was just as happy using this as a £50 Gransfors or an old Kent pattern axe. So if you are in the market for a very cheap axe and have the skills to grind the new bevels then this will work well, buy a new coarse file to do the work when you pick it up which will probably be more than half the price of the axe. If you have those skills you might prefer to pick up an old axe head and rework it like this http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=38842&highlight=axe+handle
An old head will undoubtedly be badly damaged and need exactly the same work and a new handle too but it will also have an aesthetic appeal, the joy of bringing something old and English back to life rather than supporting the huge tide of stuff made under unknown conditions in China.
If you don't have the skills or time to do that work I would not buy one of these axes, it is a long way from just normal sharpening to put it right.
See some previous discussion here.
http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=38912&highlight=argos+axe+review
I picked one up last week and it was pretty much as the one discussed in the thread linked above.
A file test on the head shows it to be of a good hardness, not too hard not too soft, just right.
Out of the box it would be good for splitting firewood where you do not want a sharp edge just a wedge on a stick, as a cutting tool it was utterly useless. The edge was very thick and rounded, to take it down properly with hand tools would have taken a while, I personally would have started with heavy cuts with a new coarse file and would have expected to be there for at least 20 minutes before starting on anything finer.
If you have a powerful grinder with a coarse grit then it can be taken down quickly with frequent dips in a bucket of water to avoid heating and loosing the temper. It took me about 5 minutes on a grinder then buffing wheel to put good flat bevels on and a good working edge. I like flat bevels for carving use but it would be equally easy to reprofile to a narrower convex edge for general work if that is what you want.
So £5 and 5 minutes skilled work and what do we have? Well the head is not aligned with the handle, I know a lot of people rate this a serious fault. It really does not bother me, I find in use the hand and eye simple make adjustments for it, this goes for beginners with correct teaching as well as those with a lot of experience.
The head is missing a wedge which is just bizarre. Having said that it is securely fitted and I would not regard it as a hazard, I would be astonished if the head flew off in use without giving lots of warning first. As with all my axes I will keep an eye on it, when hewing it is normally easy to feel as soon as a head develops a tiny wobble when it begins to come loose. If after years use the head comes loose then rehandle it, to be honest it would not be bad value at £5 for the head.
I carved a few spoons with the axe and it worked very well, it is a good shape and weight, good steel with correct temper I was just as happy using this as a £50 Gransfors or an old Kent pattern axe. So if you are in the market for a very cheap axe and have the skills to grind the new bevels then this will work well, buy a new coarse file to do the work when you pick it up which will probably be more than half the price of the axe. If you have those skills you might prefer to pick up an old axe head and rework it like this http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=38842&highlight=axe+handle
An old head will undoubtedly be badly damaged and need exactly the same work and a new handle too but it will also have an aesthetic appeal, the joy of bringing something old and English back to life rather than supporting the huge tide of stuff made under unknown conditions in China.
If you don't have the skills or time to do that work I would not buy one of these axes, it is a long way from just normal sharpening to put it right.
They seem to be very good axes (well designed and well made) and I am sure that I would prefer to use these over my GBs (and even my Wetterlings and other randoms), but they ain't cheap. new toy to play with 
it was hard not to go home with one even at £400 + but im happy with my Red Hunter £40 jobby 
