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Author Topic: Boy's axe  (Read 2605 times)

alone

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Boy's axe
« on: March 09, 2013, 07:34:56 am »
I am of the opinion that one of the handiest tools one can have, is a Boy's axe.
2 1/4 lb axe head, 27" total length from top of axe head to end of handle.
Mine of course has the hickory handle.

Easy to tote, and this size and weight is just handy.
Big enough to handle a lot of tasks, small enough and easy enough to choke up on the handle, to handle smaller tasks like where a hatchet would be used.

I snagged mine here awhile back for $20 at Tractor Supply (TSC).

For me, it was therapeutic, to sharpen this axe, as axes today do not come sharp, or with the proper bevels to do any work.

Just me, still for about $20 there is no excuse for anyone to not have a Boy's axe.

alone
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    IMerrell

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    Boy's axe
    « Reply #1 on: March 09, 2013, 10:59:29 am »
    For me it is a machete. Tramontina 16" got mine when I was 12. Very useful tool.
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    Desert Rat

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    Re: Boy's axe
    « Reply #2 on: March 09, 2013, 12:39:58 pm »
    For my personal arm and leg length, an axe with a 27-30" length is just about perfect. Short enough to carry strapped to a pack, yet long enough that (with the right technique) even if you miss with a chop, the bit will sink into the ground and not into your foot or leg. Very important when you are far away from a hospital. According to Mors Kochanski, the man who literally wrote the book on bushcraft, that size axe is a perfect general purpose axe. The handle should be long enough to go from the cupped fingers to the armpit, or from your crotch to the ground.

    You'll have to do a review on that particular make and model and tell us how the edge holds up on that axe after extended use. If it holds up well, that would be a great deal for someone who didn't want to dole out $100+ on a Gransfors Bruks or a Wetterlings axe. 

    GeorgeHill

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    Re: Boy's axe
    « Reply #3 on: March 09, 2013, 11:36:42 pm »
    The little Gerber hatchet is a great tool.
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    mnw42

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    Re: Boy's axe
    « Reply #4 on: March 10, 2013, 12:33:46 am »
    I have an old felling ax that my grandfather found camping in NY a very long time ago.  My dad cleaned it up and it has been in use since then (40 years or so).  I couldn't tell you how many hafts it has had.  It is a fantastic tool.  The only axes that I consider comparable are the Gransfors Bruks or the Husqvarna; the regular consumer axes are typically pretty awful.   To be fair TC probably carries a better grade of tool than my local Lowe's or Home Despot

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    Re: Boy's axe
    « Reply #5 on: March 10, 2013, 10:46:22 pm »
    Yup.  Great tools.  They used to be called cruiser axes way back in the last century.  Problem with most today, as you pointed out, it takes all afternoon to get the bevels right and put a decent edge on one.  The other pet peeve is a hickory handle with the grain not lined up properly.  Some dimwit should have made a broom handle out of it instead of putting it on an axe.   :scrutiny
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