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!