Why the fascination with Gransfors?

I love a good dust up!

I have three GB's Wildlife, Scandi and double- all gifts from my adorable wife and all treasured. The Wildlife and Scandi will get years of use, the double bit likely not...but I will cherish it anyway.

Last time I counted I have over 75 axes & heads of American vintage companies. Some of those will stay with me from now on, some I will fix up and move along. Dad was a machinist and I grew up on farms, fixing hand tools was boys work and I like to do it now for relaxation. Sometimes I buy a 5.00 head, spend an hour filing and stoning and sell it for 10.00. It is not about money but satisfaction of fixing some old, tried and true. It brings a grin when you stroke a bit and the axe "sings".

While I have found some nice heads in the last 2 years spent at flea markets and yard sales. This area is not good for many of the makes or for much variety. Lots of Collins, Flint Edge and Perfects from Kelly. I have to go to that auction site and lay down good money to find the more coveted heads. Given what some people spend for cigarettes or beer in bars, I do not mind. I can think about the families fed and warmed by that head over the last 100 years as I smooth out the wrinkles and restore the bit to cutting trim.

Bill
 
Don't waste your breath. I too asked OP about their hypocrisy on value and also why they can't seem to choose the right tool for the job. But they sidestep those questions every time because they can't answer them.
I have used both, for the different tasks you mentioned, and I prefer an axe with a high centerline for all of the tasks, save fine kindling/tinder.. Which I use a small knife for. :)
 
Also, your "ore" argument is invalid. A vintage axe is already a vintage axe. Iron ore is not an axe. All you need is general axe care knowledge.. Pretty simple stuff.
 
Given what some people spend for cigarettes or beer in bars, I do not mind. I can think about the families fed and warmed by that head over the last 100 years as I smooth out the wrinkles and restore the bit to cutting trim.-Bill
You made my day, Bill!
 
I love a good dust up!

I have three GB's Wildlife, Scandi and double- all gifts from my adorable wife and all treasured. The Wildlife and Scandi will get years of use, the double bit likely not...but I will cherish it anyway.

Last time I counted I have over 75 axes & heads of American vintage companies. Some of those will stay with me from now on, some I will fix up and move along. Dad was a machinist and I grew up on farms, fixing hand tools was boys work and I like to do it now for relaxation. Sometimes I buy a 5.00 head, spend an hour filing and stoning and sell it for 10.00. It is not about money but satisfaction of fixing some old, tried and true. It brings a grin when you stroke a bit and the axe "sings".

While I have found some nice heads in the last 2 years spent at flea markets and yard sales. This area is not good for many of the makes or for much variety. Lots of Collins, Flint Edge and Perfects from Kelly. I have to go to that auction site and lay down good money to find the more coveted heads. Given what some people spend for cigarettes or beer in bars, I do not mind. I can think about the families fed and warmed by that head over the last 100 years as I smooth out the wrinkles and restore the bit to cutting trim.

Bill

That says it all.
 
I have owned and used many American axes and hatchets..starting when I was about 8 years when I ran my own little "bean pole" business. I cut and sold bean poles with a blugrass carpenters hatchet. Ill use them all. I use a Kentucky pattern for big work, also have a couple old double bits..I also own three GB's..What I will say for GB's is that you get a lot of cut for the weight/size in their smaller line..Like the wildlife..You get that nice wide bit, thin and very sharp at a lot less weight than most American hatchets of the same size..The head/handle is just really ergonomic and cuts well..It works great on processing game and with that wide curved bit it skins well too. The small forst axe is just great. Those GB's excel at fine wood working,carving and the like..
I won more American made than I do GB's but I can see why people like GB's so much..Neither are my favorite axe's but I like em' both.
 
I was just making a joke. I like to refurbish the older axes rather than buy new (just posted one in the "What did you rehang today" thread). They are a piece of history. However, the history of the ones I have done is unknown to me. When I said "used by some Klucker to make crosses" I was referring to the Ku Klux Klan (KKK). I could have put some other reference to a bad history of an axe (e.g. Lizzy Borden).
 
Let's bring it back in from the religion and politics. This is my happy place where I don't have to think about either. Cheers y'all.
 
And another thing: I have a damn difficult time finding decent quality old axe heads. I know for a fact there are others in my area constantly on the lookout for axes. All I find at flea markets and antique stores is trash. Occasionally an old timer will be selling old axes for what he knows they're (theoretically) worth, like a beat-up, rusty, Kelly perfect on a useless handle for $50.

Keep your eyes open. I found this Plumb DB today for $5. Second day of the sale - everyone there yesterday had already walked right by it. There's plenty of axes out there in my area. Gotta be some in yours.

Plumb%20DB.jpg



I bought a Kelly Perfect DB for $8 not long ago.

Kelly%20Perfect.jpg



And about this thread, there's no reason for anyone to get hostile. Geezy cow! We're just talkin' axes here.
 
Sorry guys, I was just having fun with RJ's playful jibe. I did not mean to impose religion- only share a pic of something I am proud to have made with a lowly Fiskars hatchet, wooden mallet and folding saw and bound with copper wire stripped and wound.

Now I am sitting here listening to Clanadonia music, stroking a beautiful JB Stohler I paid a princely sum for with 400grit and steel wool.

I wax a little romantic over these old axes, maybe it just sat in a corner, maybe it chopped roots, but I like to think of more noble use as I wipe away the wear of the years and find a work of art waiting to get back to work ;)

Bill
 
Keep your eyes open. I found this Plumb DB today for $5. Second day of the sale - everyone there yesterday had already walked right by it. There's plenty of axes out there in my area. Gotta be some in yours.

Plumb%20DB.jpg



I bought a Kelly Perfect DB for $8 not long ago.

Kelly%20Perfect.jpg



And about this thread, there's no reason for anyone to get hostile. Geezy cow! We're just talkin' axes here.

Nice finds! Yeah, I'm sure there are deals to be had (only because I see them posted on this forum). :D

I actually just picked up some plumb hatchets in really nice shape from a flea market today, one has a visible plumb anchor logo and the other has one of the most deeply pressed PLUMB stamps I've ever seen, 6 and 7 dollars respectively with zero mushrooming or edge abuse. It's my first decent find in Maine, still hunting for a nice DB.
 
I think for some there is a mystic to buying a Swedish-made axe. While American axe making has largely given way to cheaply produced imports people see value in something that is still made by a craftsman. Their steel is high carbon, though it may not match up well against the top shelf axes of years gone by. And they arrive sharp, something that someone new to axes will surely appreciate. To the low information axe buyer who wants "the best" GB provides an easy solution. And most buyers will seldom use it but often treasure it. So it doesn't matter that it sticks like hell when swung into any substantial piece of wood. For small stuff and bushcraft work that flat-cheeked axe works great. And that's what most people will use it for.

So in short, it fits the bills and leaves the buyer feeling good. That's a recipe for success.

So what SP said is about spot on as you can get. I would say that they (GB) were the first to really get into the rebirth of the axe. They took information, what was good about the axe, what was bad, what the consumers wanted, etc, and put it into an axe of various models or specs. GB has obviously done well with them, as they should as they have created a pretty damn good product. Overall, they filled an upcoming need in the marketplace of axes that hadn't been there for probably 40 years. Congrats to them, they deserve it.

I have owned 3 Gransfors, which accounted to a hatchet, boys axe, and a felling axe. I can't say I really had any overall issues with them overall. I sold them in favor of ensuring I keep the American axe business in America. That is just one guys opinion. If you look at my posts and pics, I have barely any euro products, and that is because my interest is in American axes. During the hey day of the american timber and axe industries, you hear no mention of the "superior" GB axe, or Hults, etc etc. So with that I entrust that we were able to create a better product then, and we still can. We hold that to Council now, which I think they are holding their own. I wont comment on the habits of the American consumer, esp those with some extra $$$ in their pockets.

So do your research, and make your choice.
 
I'm overly sensitive about seeing us get tripped up arguing about stuff I think, I wind up doing it for a living. I can't say much about GB but I have a Hults Bruks that's about 30 years old and it seems to take a fine edge. I'm pretty impressed by it. I think some of the axes I've picked up that are 40-70 years old are damn nice though. I got this cruiser yesterday and it rings like glass and seems to have a similar steel to these others. That ring seems to be characteristic of these axes when they are very good.
hJB3oJT.jpg
 
Gransfors Bruks took a step into the derection it went today quite some time ago. Instead of a fancy etch on there premium line they advertised there's as having rockwell tested each head. Apparently not all vintage GB's were created equally.
Any one have one with a small dimple near the bit?
 
I agree 100%. The United States was the greatest axe producing nation in the world until approximately the 1950's. Then the chain saw began to cause the slow death of our great American
axe manufactures. I am partial to PLUMB AXES. These axes always take a very, very sharp edge and retail the edge very well.

My family, both father and mother's, were Tennessee lumberjacks. This included all grandfathers, great uncles, uncles, and most of the neighbors in my mountain community who also worked in the small saw mills of the time. This went all the way back to the 1850's and ended in the 1940's. Council Tool axes were popular because the local hardware stores stocked them. Plumb also was to be found alongside the Council Tool Axes. My grandfather was born in 1878 and purchased his first axe(Council Tool) from his brother for $1.00. That axe is still
in my family and the owner will not sell it to me(DAMMMMMMMMNNNNN HIM)! Really, this cousin and I are like brothers and I can use it when he is in a good mood.

Neither PLUMB nor COUNCIL TOOL axes have any problems of sticking in wood and penetrate deeply because I always thin down the edges with a narrow angle. However, they do remove big chunks of wood because the have a very adequate, thick enough taper going back toward the eye. THEY WILL CUT THROUGH A VERY, VERY BIG LOG QUICKER THAN GRANSFORS BRUKS.

I have restored over 21 PLUMBS and COLLINS(mostly Plumbs). Also, I have owned 7 new COUNCIL TOOL AXES. All were made in the U.S.A. and performed as if they were supposedly $200.00 Swedish Axes. The most I have ever invested into a restored axe. is $50.00. I sold it for $80.00 and bought the next axe and played again at restoration. This has been over a period of 40 years.

Yes, yes, yes, vintage U.S.A. axes will perform as well AND BETTER than Swedish Axes. I know because I own a Gransfor Bruk Axe at this time. However, my 34 year old son borrowed it and refuses to return it(he likes the axe).

Most of the restorations I do cost about $20-$25. NOT BAD FOR A SUPERIOR PERFORMING TOOL tHAT IS SOLD TO SOMEONE WHO REALLY APPRECIATES A VALUABLE TOOL.

Ripshin Lumberjack
 
I live in an apartment so I don't need an ax. I will say I'd like to have a few and a few USA finds just to have a nice selection and the option to have other smiths make the axes is cool too! Now I like verity and having more than one tool for the job. Hell when I move I'll have a few chainsaws too! But for me the main appeal is getting something new and starting the history of the ax.
 
I'd never consider dropping over $75 for an axe, so refurbishing works wonderfully for me. As far as flat vs rounded cheeks, I split a sh*tton of wood by hand as well as small felling and limbing, and I'd say (in my experience/opinion) a flattie is only superior in limbing. Vintage high-centerline axes split and throw chips with less effort or sticking.
 
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