Bushcraft Axe – Tool That Could Save Your Life

A survival/bushcraft axe is an indispensable tool for bushcraft enthusiasts, survivalists, and anyone who spends time in the wilderness. Whether you are camping, hiking, or surviving in an emergency situation, having a axe with you could litteraly make life or death difference.

Types of Bushcraft Axes

A hatchet is a small, lightweight axe with a single cutting edge and a short handle. This type of axe is perfect for anyone who needs a compact tool for chopping small- to medium-sized branches. Hatchets are easy to carry, making them a great choice for people who need a small axe for light tasks. They can also come in form of a carving axe that has a bit different edge profile that makes it useful for carving items such as wooden spoons, wooden kuksa, and any other useful thing made out of wood…

A felling axe is a larger axe designed for chopping down trees. This type of axe is typically heavier and has a longer handle for increased leverage. The head of a felling axe is also larger and heavier than a hatchet usually between 2 and 5 pounds but that also depends on a person’s height, weight, and strength. Felling axes are best for those who need to chop down trees for firewood, clear a camping site, or build a shelter.

A splitting axe is designed specifically for splitting firewood. This type of axe has a really heavy and thick head making it able to split wood fibers a lot easier. Because of its weight, it is not really practical to carry it around the woods so a felling axe with a right edge profile can do its job just fine.

Axe Handle

Axe handles are traditionally made out of wood. In today’s day and age more modern materials are sometimes used like fiberglass but wood will remain the prime choice because of its look, feel, and ability to reduce the shock that from hitting trees. Even though it looks like a simple thing to make, that can’t be further from the truth. It is so complex that it probably requires another post by itself. But in short words, a good axe handle should be made out of hard but flexible wood such as hickory, ash, oak, black locust, elm, osage orange…

Axe handle should be the proper length for its head size, shouldn’t have grain runout, and also shouldn’t be thick like we see in a lot of today’s axes (if you look at the old pictures of lumberjacks they all have relatively thin axe handles compared to today standards). I will write more about axe handles in a future post and I will link it here.

Axe Head

There are dozens of different axe head designs and it seems that every culture has its unique axe head design. Some are better at one task some are better at the other but generally they will all do the same job.

When it comes to edge geometry and profile it usually comes in either convex or scandi grind as well as chisel grind for a special kind of axe called hewing axe (it is made for hewing logs). Typically convex grind axes are labeled as general-purpose axes while scandi grind axes are usually used for carving.

Also, it is important to have a survival axe that is made out of high-quality steel and is properly heat treated to retain its sharpness for a long time. Further down I will recommend some axe manufacturers as well as some of its best models of bushcraft axes.

Conclusion:

A bushcraft/survival axe is an essential tool for anyone who spends time in the wilderness. With its versatility and usefulness, it can make a significant difference in a survival situation. The different types of bushcraft axes, including hatchets, felling axes, and splitting axes, cater to different needs and tasks, making it important to choose the right one for you. Additionally, the handle and head of an axe are crucial factors to consider, as they impact the overall effectiveness and longevity of the tool. Whether you are a seasoned bushcraft enthusiast or just starting out, a high-quality survival/bushcraft axe is a must-have in your gear collection.