Ideal size for a hiking / camping hatchet or hawk?

Mentor

Mentor

Joined
Nov 27, 2004
Messages
3,124
Hi all,

I would like to purchase an axe, hatchet, or hawk to form one corner of my 'Nessmuk trio' for hiking. This would be part of my EDC kit for hiking and camping, so portability is a key factor. I have packed an axe on outings many times, but I have never really owned a really nice model.

So, at this point, I'm looking for your thoughts on optimum head /blade size and handle length. Please feel free to recommend make and model too, of course.

Thanks in advance, and all the best,

- Mike
 
Hawks are designed to be weapons and hatchets are made for chopping wood.

It sounds to me like you want a hatchet.

The size of a hatchet and length of the handle is a very personal thing; I suggest you try to handle a few.



The trade off is weight and size versus chopping efficiency.

A bigger tool will work better, but how much weight are you willing to carry.

I use a large double bit axe for big chopping jobs, but carry my hatchet (or other chopping tool) when headed into the field.

aur086la3.jpg






"If you're not living on the edge, …you're taking up too much space."

Big Mike
 
Last edited:
Big Mike said:
Hawks are designed to be weapons and hatchets are made for chopping wood.

It sounds to me like you want a hatchet.

The size of a hatchet and length of the handle is a very personal thing; I suggest you try to handle a few.
Click to expand...

that is true, but they can be interchangeable. I have used a cold steel trail hawk in the woods for a year, before I wanted something that could chop better. If you don't mind doing a little extra work with it, the hawk is a nice compliment to any kit.
My vote would go to one of CS hawks, cheap reliable and overall good F&F.
 
Thanks Big Mike, you're quite right - I am interested in a tool for chopping wood, not people.

As regards handling before purchasing, I definitely will (and have). I should clarify here - I am not a novice when it comes to bushcraft, hiking, etc. I have handled and used a variety of different axes over the years.

What I'm looking for is a bit of advice from other forumites with more experience than I in the axe / hatchet category.

Perhaps a scenario will help: If you're heading out for a week-long backpacking trip and you know that you will need to chop some kindling and hammer some tent pegs and lug your axe / hatchet with you the whole time, what size would you opt for?

Thanks,

- Mike
 
Mentor said:
Thanks Big Mike, you're quite right - I am interested in a tool for chopping wood, not people.

As regards handling before purchasing, I definitely will (and have). I should clarify here - I am not a novice when it comes to bushcraft, hiking, etc. I have handled and used a variety of different axes over the years.

What I'm looking for is a bit of advice from other forumites with more experience than I in the axe / hatchet category.

Perhaps a scenario will help: If you're heading out for a week-long backpacking trip and you know that you will need to chop some kindling and hammer some tent pegs and lug your axe / hatchet with you the whole time, what size would you opt for?

Thanks,

- Mike
Click to expand...


I would suck it up, and attach my modified wetterlings 18" LHA to the Lunada (which I have done and it works fine). :thumbup:
 
I find an 18" small axe works best as a compliment to cutlery in the field. I'm not really keen on the tiny hatchets myself. They just don't have enough advantage in chopping over what you can do with a 4-5" knife to justify their carry IMO An 18" small axe behaves like an axe and is great for felling smaller trees with a high efficiency gain over using a largish knife. They also don't weight all that much.
 
+1 on what Mike said about a hawk.

As far as a hatchet/Axe my preference when hiking would be to have one that is no longer then my elbow to palm. This allows for easy one hane use and cuts down the weight while still having something large enough to do some work.
 
clx017ht4.jpg


clx019mh5.jpg


I must confess to using this Bark River Clax as a replacement for my hatchet on the trail.

It has an excellent sheath and carries better then my hatchet.

I find it to works well for chopping, it has a long cutting edge and a much bigger sweet spot then a hatchet; it also makes a fine tool for baton work.

It cost a bunch more then my hatchet, but then again it has worked very well as a field tool.




"If you're not living on the edge, …you're taking up too much space."

Big Mike
 
my personal favorite size axe right now is the 1.75 pound head with about a 19" handle. mine is a wetterlings hunter's axe. the gransfors bruks small forest axe is the same size.

i believe that it is the best in terms of size and weight vs chopping ability. total weight on mine comes to 2.25 pounds. i can use it single handed when shaping wood or splitting kindling, or double handed for real chopping power (see here for an example of what you can do with this size axe)

but if you want to have a lighter weight alternative that will still give you plenty of ability for chopping soft and hardwoods up to about 5" diameter (but 3-4" is easiest) i would suggest a smaller hand axe. this would typically have a handle between 12-15" long, the average seems around 13". a head of no heavier than 1.5 pounds typically. my personal pick in this size is the Fiskars hatchet. 14" handle, 1.25 pound total weight. the head is 1 pound, and the light handle moves all of the weight to the head, to give it alot of chopping power in a small size. this is what i carry on some dayhikes and for in the summer when fire and shelter aren't such huge priorities. it gets the most use shaping wood for spoons and other bushcraft arts and crafts projects.
 
Thanks gents,

Some excellent recommendations here. Much appreciated.

Best,

- Mike
 
My advice is to look away from the shiny GB's and wetterlings of this world and take a look at the Fiskars axes/hatchets.

http://www.fiskars.com/webapp/wcs/s...ategoryId=12736&productId=16551&page=products

Try to ignore the appearance of the page, look into the axes, the reviews speak volumes. I have used on for a couple years or so now, and they pack the most bang for their weight/buck of any axe. You can check them out at your local canadian tire or most any hardware store.
 
Mentor said:
If you're heading out for a week-long backpacking trip and you know that you will need to chop some kindling and hammer some tent pegs and lug your axe / hatchet with you the whole time, what size would you opt for?
Click to expand...

Thoughts:

If your aim is to split a little bit of wood for kindling then you can get by with a quality hatchet.... Bahco, Gransfors Bruks, Wetterlings, Snow & Nealley.

If you want to split firewood too, go with a Gransfors splitting hatchet.

If you want to fell trees, limb trees and split kindling and firewood, go with a longer handled 19" axe such as Gransfors' Small Forest Axe or comparable Wetterlings model.
 
The Fiskars is a nice little hatchet, but is limited compared to a Wetterling, which isn't all that much more money than the Fiskars, but if you decide after checking them out that you want a Fiskars, put some grip tape on the handle. It'll improve the user and safety factors a bunch.
 
I harvest downed wood several days a week when I take our dog for a walk. I use a Gerber Gator Combo ax - really a pocket ax or hatchet, the one with the knife in the handle. I also hook a pruning saw to my day pack.

The hatchet has a very short handle, but all together it is about as long as a large bushcraft knife. It is comfortable to carry on a belt. It limbs just fine. The trick is to take small bites, let the hatchet do the work and keep it sharp. I baton it to split wood. It is also very handy for digging, prying and as a hammer. Hold it like an ulu and it slices, dices, shaves, chisels and shapes. Some guys use them to process game in the field. You can also use it as a draw knife. I have even used it in the kitchen at home.

I also use it to make starter cuts before sawing. Since sawing and chopping use different muscles, I find that I can cut for longer periods by going back and forth between the two.

I thought that once I got good with it, I would get something with a longer handle. At this point, I find that it does everything I need it to do and I am going to upgrade my saw instead. It is not going to fell a tree, but that is not why I carry it. I use it to gather downed wood for a fire.

The only safety warnings are take the knife out of the handle, it will fly out when you use the hatchet to chop. Both are dull out of the box. Spend some time sharpening them. The little knife will make a decent necker or utility knife. It will also work well as a paring knife in the kitchen.


Knife = cut
Hatchet = chop, hack, dig, hammer, baton, split, chisel, etc. etc. etc.

I actually find that I go for my hatchet more than my knife. Very useful survival tool and an awesome hand to hand weapon in a SHTF situation. Although I have not tried to, I suspect I could carry it in many urban situations and raise less notice from LEOs than a tactical knife.
 
If I am carrying it the ideal is a hatchet that is right around 1 lb and is 12" or less long and has a 3" bit.

If it goes over a pound and a half then it's too heavy for me.

Normally any hatchet over 12" OAL is well over a pound but I do have a 14" Ft Megs Nessmuk that is 14" OAL and only 15 oz!:thumbup:

Caveat: I'm talking about for backpacking and walking for miles. If I'm not hiking far (10 miles or less round trip) I carry whatever.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top