Gransfors Bruks 13.50 Inch Wildlife Hatchet - Handcrafted Swedish Axe for Outdoorsmen and Woodworkers

Kyle Coleman: An Amazon purchase from two years ago.

Well, I succumbed to the hype and picked this up. In retrospect, probably not the fiscally soundest idea, but whatever...I love it! The Wildlife's looks, and feel, need to be held to be appreciated. I wanted this piece to use as a general yard and camp work blade and for its intended use, it excels. Now, I suppose an Estwing hatchet from the hardware store would have sufficed as well, but go big($$$) or go home, amirite?

A quick rundown of what I like about this Lil' guy-

-gorgeous to behold
-ergonomic, silken handle
-my example's handle having as perfect a grain as can be wished for
-comfortable, even after extended sessions of use
-head geometry is great for limbing, carving
-'choking up' on head is easy peasy for fine carving detail
-durable steel...takes a wicked edge rapidly and (so far)refuses to chip!
-leather mask is quality, if utilitarian
-price balking aside, it's still cheaper or comparable to many quality fixed blades
-for me, easily replaces larger knives en masse(barring machetes and their ilk)
- made by artisans in a 'green' manner
-proudly 'signed' by said...

United States on Apr 09, 2015

Greene: It’s a Great axe, as most will tell you, very sharp, but know that there is a lot of hype out there. This axe had a few issues with cutting hairs on my arm out of the box. A quick touch up with a fine stone solved that. The steel quality itself is fantastic, so there’s value where it counts. The finish seems a bit rushed, it’s rough, a bit uneven and poorly stamped. I know these are hand forged with the large power hammer they use (there’s a sweet video of it on YouTube by the way) So I understand they will not be highly machined, symmetrical, CAD drawing come to life stuff, and I’m fine with that, it’s very cool actually, but bear with me and I’ll give some examples of the difference between handmade uniqueness and a product made maybe a bit too quickly. First off, the very bottom tip of the blade edge is flat, only about a mil in length, but I noticed it within the first few seconds out of the box. Not a big deal, it effects very little and will be gone after a few years of use. Second, and call me superficial, I know, but I would have loved to be able to read the stamp "Gransfors Bruks Sweden" that comes stamped on all of their heads. And if I didn't know any...

United States on Jul 22, 2013