Titanium was never designed to be used as blade material - its ability to hold an edge is dwarfed by even 440. Seeing all these titanium tools kind of bugs me in that regard. If you want a tool to work well, just use the right material.
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Of course a titanium knife can work just fine.
I have several MISSION knives and they do stellar service. Ive used my MISSION MPS Ti for many years for camp duty and for years used the MISSION MPU Ti for skinning deer. Its also my kayaking knife, as its impervious to the elements.
The MISSION knives work above and beyond, are easy to sharpen on diamond stones and hold an edge for adequate time. I have no problem zipping through several roe deer with no sharpening adn the knives are for all intents and purposes all but indestructible.
For my use when minimalist hiking, hunting, kayaking, they are ideal.
I am how ever with you in regards to most of the other titanium 'knives.' With few exeptions, I have no regard to the vast majority of them.
The problem is that few have any real experience with the MISSION knives (they have an opinon but few have any user experience - Im not referring to you here but in general, that is so).
How ever a distinction has to be made.
When titanium at some point became wildly popular and became THE material to make knives of (heck, pry bars, tooth picks and tea cozies - everything hat to be titanium all of a sudden), a lot of knifemakers found out that the only material worthy of making titanium knives out of was extremely difficult to work.
The material being BETA Ti.
Few have the machines to work it and found that their machines simply gave up the spirit when trying to work Beta Ti.
But shoot, they HAD to make titanium knives since the dang things sold/sell like hotcakes!!
That being the prime mover, many switched to a LESSER GRADE of ti hence all those abominable 'carp' knives made out of titanium with the same capability as butter in regards to holding an edge.
That the vast vast VAST majority of titanium 'knives' are made of a titanium grade unsuitable for making knives because Beta ti is difficult for most to work, means that titanium has gotten the ill rep, which you (to a degree correctly) express.
AFAIK MISSION is one of the few - if not THE only- manufacturer to be able to work Beta ti in larger quantities.
Again, I dont disagree with you on the most of the horrid titanium knives, but the above distinction has to be made.
As for making other cutting implements out of titanium than knives - go check out MECHA's threads in the custom subforum/search his posts.
He makes and have written/demonstrated his titanium blades (swords) extensively.
As for the thread subject; an axe made of ti. Yes, it can seem strange, as the point of an axe/hatchet to some degree is the heft of the swing.
But some want/need as little weight as possible when en route and/or they are drawn to the titanium being impervious to the elements.
I can relate to some degree, as Im a fan of quality titanium implements (as if ya couldnt tell).
For kayaking/hiking, Ive bought a SOL titanium Jetboil, ti dishes, ti mugs, ti sporks, ti tent pegs, ti knives, russian titanium small military spade (for occasions calling for that) etc etc.
Were I to purchase a titanium axe or hawk, it would be the Schwatz Titanium (hammer, not spike) Hawk.
I would do it for the heck of it and to try it out. The arguments about the lack of weight in, of all things, an axe or a hawk are difficult to argue with.
May the Schwartz be with you:
https://www.google.dk/search?q=schw...ved=0ahUKEwjqiZSA8rLQAhXmAsAKHShmCQ0Q_AUIBigB
Until then and if...my favorite hawk will be this beard hawk made by my buddy to my specs:
