You may have read in another post that I'm trying to sharpen my Snow & Nealley Penobscott kindling axe. I just noticed something VERY disturbing and I'm turning the question to all of you to tell me how big an issue this is:

I held my axe up to the light to see how the left and right bevels were coming up (so one wasn't more ground down than the other) and I realized that the head actually isn't straight...nor is the handle. If I align the edge with the light, the square striking part of the head is at an angle and the handle is at an even bigger angle, where the tip of the handle is way off to the right. If I align the edge with the tip of the handle I can see the cheek of the blade clear as day.

To me this is all wrong (especially considering the horrible handle grain)...but maybe not? They have a lifetime warranty...should I be actioning that or should I return them to Cabela's while I can and keep looking

I think Cabala’s will make every effort to make it right with you and make you happy.


But without seeing it (kinda hard to visualize) it’s hard to say if it’s a real problem.

If the axe is well put together, feels good when chopping wood I may just live with it. But you said it has a lifetime warrantee so no harm in sending it back either.

I think the head is OK but it's super hard to tell...it could just be the handle is bad and is going into the head at an angle. Considering the grain of the handle I guess it could have other issues.

I'm going to sharpen it anyhow (I'm this far right) and then call Snow & Nealley on Monday to see what they say. If I could get them to send me a replacement handle it would be worth it to rehandle it instead of paying to ship it across 2 countries to the East coast.

I would put up with this if it were a $10 Chinese-made axe, on the assumption that the judicious application of an angle grinder would sort things out.

For a top-shelf-item, with serious money out of pocket, it would go straight back. When you pay for quality, you have the right to expect it.

Life is too short to put up with axes that cut sideways.

(My two-cents' worth.)

Well, since you have already worked on the head, returning it is not an option. Re the handle, I have the best luck picking out and fitting my own handle, since you have no guarantee that any replacement they send you will be any better than the original. Of course going out to buy your own handle really bumps up the cost of the axe, but you will know what you are getting. Good luck...

Call Cabela's and explain. They have been extraordinarily willing to take returnns in my experience of more than 30 years - even if the item has some normal wear and tear - if it may have been defective in manufacture.

I haven no doubt that Cabela's would allow me to return or exchange it. The problem with that is that they came as a set so I'd likely have to exchange both. This means I have to pack them all up again, ship them to the US at my own expense (not cheap or fast) wait for it to get there, then I'm either back to square one or I wait for a replacement set (3 weeks give or take) and because I can't inspect them, could have the same problem...plus I'd have to sharpen them again.

If S&N can't take care of the issue in a reasonable manner, I'll just return them and swallow the cost of shipping.

I sent an email to S&N last night explaining the problem and explaining how much of a pain it would be to send one or both of these axes to Maine for warranty especially after I just got them so sharp. I suggested they send me a replacement handle (preferably with a vertical grain this time) so I can change the handle myself without having to ship anything.

OBG: The head on the kindling axe is the exact same as the head on their 23" long Hudsons bay axe so if I can be certain that there is nothing wrong with the head (and I have no idea how that's possible), I might try that because there certainly isn't anything wrong with the maul. I can't wait to murder some logs with that thing!

Misaligned ax heads is an all to common problem. I think I would return it for sure.....it is likely you will get another with a misaligned head however, so ask for an inspection of the head alignment and helve grain while you are at it.

I just talked to the folks at Snow & Nealley. It seems they didn't get my email but they are going to send me a new handle in the mail right away...no questions asked. Service seems pretty good so far.

They also would have replaced it outright too but I like this solution better.

Hopefully it is just the handle...the eye may be crooked so a new handle may not solve the problem unless you scrape it down to account for a crooked eye. Once you have that handle out, see if the sides of the eye are straight with the bevel and poll.

Good luck.