Hatchet or Hand Axe

MIKE MACINTOSH

MIKE MACINTOSH

Joined
Mar 31, 2006
Messages
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When I was a young Tender foot Boy Scout. I was taught that a hatchet was a flat edged carpenter's tool used for notching log beam's and in construction and a hand axe was a wood's man's tool. similer in apperance but with very distinctly diffrent uses. I see the term hatchet used for both tools these days, am I just being a old nit-picker? which is correct ,or does it matter any more.
 
I agree with your definitions. Problem is, language is always changing and meanings can and do blur over time. When more people worked with such tools, the distinction between them was more important but now, most people have little or no experience with either so the terms start to be interchangeable.
 
I agree with your definitions also.

I think this is a good example how what used to be common knowledge can get lost with time.
 
As others have said, common use isn't always the correct use. IMHO a traditional hand axe would have a fuller, heavier head and bit while the hatchet would have a thinner profile and perhaps a hammer poll on the back. Think of the roofer's hatchet of today. A fairly specialized tool not really meant for outdoor pursuits.
 
There may be a regional quality to these terms as well...I come from a long line of guys who have worked with axes, and I NEVER heard my grandfather or father use the expression "hand axe" for anything that I would call a hatchet. I never call anything a "hand axe." It's either a hatchet, or an axe.

I don't use the expression "hatchet" very often, though. I don't own anything that I would use solely with one hand, which is pretty much the dividing line for me.
 
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