Personally, I like the cold steel riflemans hawk.
It's not the lightest on the market, but it sharpens
well, has good steel, and stands up to abuse.

http://www.coldsteel.com/axes.html

Mogg--i was thinking about a hawk as a light weight ax for
working up firewood on camping trips..i have seen others at
Ragweed Forge but they all seem thin in the handles and made
for throwing --have you done much chopping with one of these??

I have an Estwing campers hatchet . I don't remember for sure but I think it cost me about $20 . It came with a sheath to attach it to a belt . Maybe not the best hatchet around but it will last forever . I've had Estwing hammers for over 30 years and they've seen a lot of use and abuse .

I don't like the price, but I like the hatchets and axes: Granfors Bruks.

A GB is definitely worth the coin. They are essentially ready to go right out of the box. I have probably invested 2-3 hours in my Wetterlings falling ax and still do not have it quite the way I want it. While I do not begrudge the time, that effort has to be spent and if I was getting paid for that time would bring the price up to or above the GB level.

Most of the other axes available are nearly pure junk and the amount of effort to get them functional is just way too much or even impossible, it makes the investment in a GB a bargain.

The Fiskars are decent however utilitarian, the Eastwings.....hum….how should I put this….durable, but a Gränsfors is just a pleasure to use.

I bring the very same Estwing with me when camping with my son's Boy Scout troop. It was recommended to me during Scoutmaster training, and indeed it is indestructable enough that I feel comfortable loaning it out to the Scouts.

Schwert summed them up real well.

Ken K.

There is a myth beginners in any endeavor should start out with cheap equipment.Learning with junk produces junk; both in the end effort and education of the user. Axemanship is hardly a skill you can sign up for at the local Adult Education office. A first time axe user needs to buy Mnor's Kochanski's book. Only then should they consider what, like a knife or firearm will be cut,shot or chopped is needed.

http://www.undercurrents.org/visionon/bushcraft.htm

you can find more of these on itunes. I love them, the knife one is great also!

I am in total agreement Chris. A fellow can spend upfront to purchase a properly made and sharpened ax which makes the learning a joy. Or they can buy cheap, and not knowing how to remake the ax into a perfomer, they never learn how a proper ax should work and give up in frustration.

Buying quality up front is always a better option for someone learning in my view.

Cheap project axes are much better for someone who knows how to properly tune them....not for a beginner.

Its actually more a matter of self-preservation rather than cost avoidance when they try to drive the hatchet through a rock, or they slam the handle into the log rather than the head. Scout leaders tend to try to buy really tough gear rather than the "best" gear since it takes a beating.

If I had one I wouldn't loan out a Granfors Bruks axe only to get it all ripped up by Scouts who don't really care about other people's gear. THAT is why we teach them to bring their own gear AND to take care of their own patrol's gear.