The Fedex truck just dropped my last toy, a 19" Wetteling hunting axe. It cost an arm and a leg, but worth every penny. I knew they were good, but not this good. Having felled hundred of acres of eucalyptus with my crews, I've purchased, sharpened and used dozens of axes and I've never seen a sharper one, it cuts paper like a Mora knife! Now for the field trials (once the temperature goes down a bit!).

good post,thanks.and an example of why you should buy real gear.

You're absolutely right Canoedogs. I learned it the hard way. I've bought 4 or 5 useless backpacks! I guess that things are not quite what they look in the catalogue.

That brings up a good question ...

When I look at (or buy) some brands of what I THINK are a good axes - such as a Snow & Nealley or an Estwing - those axes don't come sharpened to nearly the degree of the Granfors Bruks or Wetterlings axes.

I mean those Swedish axes really do come knife-sharp. So sharp that while looking at one of the Granfors Bruks axes in a local store the blade accidentally sliced through the leather sheath (ooops ... shhhh!!! ... I wasn't buying at that time).

Is that because they can't be made as sharp? I have both S&N and Estwing, am I've sharpened mine, but neither are knife sharp. Maybe because I'm not that good at sharpening axes.

Is that because of some industry standard outside of Sweden?

Is that because they don't want to ship them quite so sharp? For safety reasons?

Is that because the axe industry in the U.S. really feels they shouldn't be so sharp?

I just don't get it.

I see your point. I recently bought a very small hatchet made in the U.S.A. by Kaughan. The edge is so blunt that you feel as if they thought you were an idiot that should be kept away from sharp things! I've been trying to give it an edge for three days now, and there's a hint of an edge, but still useless as a hatchet. I don't get it, you are far more likely to cut yourself while sharpening the bloody thing, than while using it!

I have a small Wetterlings and it is scarey sharp, suitable for skinning big game. I also have a Collins hatchet that has a very blunt grind, probably only good for splitting shakes. Maybe the difference is hand hammer forging (Wetterlings, Granfors) vs drop forging. I'm not a metallurgist, but there seems to be a huge difference in the structure of the steel. Congrats GauchoViejo, you made a wise choice and you will love your new hatchet.

Congratulations on the axe. I'm sure it will serve you well. They have a fine reputation as well adapted tools. Well worth the price for a person who does a lot of axe work.

Not to pick on this particular case, and certainly have nothing against GauchoViejo or any others, but something bothers me in reviews of knives and other edged tools. Specifically I'm always taken aback by recommendations of edged tools when people use 'sharpness' as a decisive trait.

Many tools come 'sharp' but even the most expensive usually need dressing and honing to get the most from them. Generally, the closer a tool comes to honed to perfection the more of a premium you pay for the privilege. Even as it is cheap for a manufacturer to get a decent edge. That limits the amount of time a users needs to invest in honing the edges first thing out of the box. Nobody would buy a straight razor and expect to use it without stropping the edge.

Complimenting a tool because it comes sharp suggests that if it wasn't sharp enough it might be a problem. As if sharpening wasn't a skill every user shouldn't master. Sharpening, beyond setting the bevel angle and establishing a rough edge, is not traditionally a manufacturers concern. The concept is relatively new.

Then again, as with all things, the modern trend is to make tools essentially disposable. The emphasis is on the commercial gain, buying and re-buying a disposable product instead of learning a skill. Once they are dull you toss it out and buy another, like razorblades. Which is incongruent with a relatively expensive tool, like a Wetteling axe, that might last a lifetime.

It is good that it comes sharper than duller as it saves effort. But sharpness is not an immutable trait of the tool because it will dull in use and can be expected to be dulled and resharpened many times in its lifetime. Generally the inherent traits are more like the balance expressed in the geometry and the design, or the edge holding capacity and toughness of the steel. These stay essentially the same throughout the productive life of the tool.

GauchoViejo has a justified right to be proud of his recent purchase. It is a fine tool. It is good it came sharp, it saves him extra work, but the sharpness of it as a tool rests with him and the sharpness of his skills at sharpening. With use the axe will dull. With use his skills at sharpening will only get sharper.

I have a Wetterlings axe. Luckily mine was a gift as the cost is quite high for this product of which I have a couple of axes that can do the same work for a far less price.

That being said, as Art mentioned, sharpening an axe or hatchet is learned process and any can be brought to a good sharp edge. I personally like a good sharp edge, but not as sharp as the factory edge which to me is more for the marketing of the product and not always a desired trait in real world use.

Regardless, the OP will be very happy with his new axe and with care and attention, the axe will easily last a couple of lifetimes.

Another good brand that is mass produced (so it is less expensive) but still of very good quality is the Iltis Oxehead brand felling axes.
They have very high quality steel and great temper.
I would not call them inexpensive, but they are still within reason.
They are a bit fine bladed for splitting

Another good brand that is mass produced,so it is less expensive but still of very good quality, is the Iltis Oxehead brand felling axes.
They have very high quality steel and great temper.
I would not call them inexpensive, but they are still within reason.
They are a bit fine bladed for splitting, but excellent for felling and such work.
Mine has a cruiser length handle.

I have used an Estwing for years. It always got th job done, and the head is not likely to get loose and come off.....

I guess you failed to read my full post. In my youth I had a tree-felling crew of 36 lumberjacks, 10 power saws and three tractors. I purchased and maintained the equipment, so I bought and sharpened axes and changed handles on a regular basis. I am not judging this particular axe because of its sharpness, I just commented on this feature, which I had never seen before. My last paragraph states that I'm going to field test it once temperatures drop. In any case this axe is way to light and short for tree-felling, and it's more of a general work axe. It means I can carry a short knife of 5 - 6" and leave the heavy work to my axe.

I got me a Wetterlings forest axe last fall. Through a stroke of luck, it sort of fell into my lap - didn't have to pay shipping.

I'm guessing that, because the Wetterlings axes are hand forged, the blacksmith sharpens them as well by hand. The QC on these things, being artisan crafted, must be top notch. The maker's initials are stamped on it and everything.

One thing I read (don't recall if this was on the Wetterlings site or if it was on the material provided with the axe) is that they recommend warming the axe head in cold temps - perhaps by sticking it down your pants or shirt for a bit or some such. Just FYI - I haven't had the need to use mine in cold weather yet.

There's a defense for future Lorena Bobbits:

"Your honor, I was just warming the axe."

While I certainly agree with you on most points, I have several hatchets in my blade collection that simply would not take an edge like a Wetterlings, irregardless of my skill level. The blade geometry simply would not permit it. The Collins for example is a fat wedge shape with a coarse flat grind. The blade is quite heavy and thick for a hatchet, and it has a very wide bevel that you might expect to see on a splitting maul. I have the skills and the honing and buffing equipment to put a better edge on it, but there is no way to change the shape of the blade without a cutlers grinding machines. The Wetterlings has a much slimmer profile and a concave grind, a shape which along with a quality steel lends itself to razor sharp honing. When you buy a blade online, you don't always know what you are going to get. GauchoViejo was obviously pleased with his purchase, ready out of the box, as was I when my new Wetterlings arrived on the UPS truck.

http://www.knifecenter.com/kc_new/store_detail.html?s=SAW16H

just as a side note,you don't see as much info in the camping "how too do it" books on the ax and it's care and sharping as you once did.i have some older books that have not only the use of the hockey puck shaped stone but how to drive in stakes to hold the ax against a log so you can file with both hands,more control i guess. and some more detailed stuff on how to bury the head in such a way that a busted handle can be burned out without killing the temper of the edge.i have said this before,my Gransfors small hatchet is the only thing i ever cut myself on.i was carrying it a short way without the sheath and just brushed a finger on the back edge and got a surgical style cut,i pitched it shut and it stopped bleeding in a couple minutes..that's sharp.i would think when an axe was a tool used every day at work that they did not come with a sharp edge because every logger had his own way of doing that and getting it just right was a matter of personal pride.

I am always looking for old camping and hiking books. There is so much lore that has been nearly lost. That is why I admire guys like you who go to nature centers and give kids a taste of the past. Oddly enough, most of the old timers that I have read advise against hatchets in favor of a full sized axe. Some go as far as to say a full sized axe is the only indepensible survival tool that there is. They say that a hatchet is too small to be effective and dangerous to handle. One example is the 1971 book 'Backcountry Camping' by Bill Riviere. He has a chapter on backwoodsmans tools that really explores the axe. This guy looks exactly like I always thought a '50s backwoodsman should look. Floppy hat, boots, pipe, and a checkered flannel shirt. He lived the backwoods life that I wish I could live.

Many times, old timer advise is welcome. However from experience in the mountaineering community (and others), I know that a lot of the old time advise will get you killed, or worse, maimed enough that you wish you were dead.

The world of survival and bushcraft has changed over the years and what may of been sound advise from 39 years ago does not neccessarily mean that it is good advise today.

An ax or hatchet is a very capable tool in the right hands and when used with care. If you do not pay attention or use either tool in a manner it was not meant to be used, bad things will happen very fast.

Personally I prefer to carry a small hatchet when out backpacking and am well aware of it's limitations. In camp, an ax has it's better purpose over a hatchet, however each tool in the right hands is very capable of doing whatever I need.

I use axes almost every day. Love using them, but you really have to focus on what you are doing. With an axe, all sorts of factors (e.g., inexperience, exhaustion) can make a situation much worse with a single sloppy swing.

If I'm packing stuff on my back, I lean toward a good saw rather than an axe. Lighter, safer, and faster.

IMO the only hatchet worth considering is really a small axe: about 24" long with a somewhat heavier head than the average hatchet. A large Estwing with the tubular handle cut short is a good example of what I consider a minimum useful size (and you can slide it in your belt easily, sheathed of course).

I'm hesitant to buy a super-high-end axe. I'd be scared to take it out of the vault. And since winter is my high-use season, I pale at the thought of keeping it warm to avoid damage.

When I was first introduced to proper mountaineering techniques, we tied in with a single loop bowline tied on laid rope and routinely did body rappels (I had the scars to prove it). Mountaineering techniques certainly have changed for the better with the development of new technology and techniques (which are considerably more expensive, I might add).

I think it is a little different with the traditional woodcraft mode. Nowadays, with the rise of LNT and the need for lessened environmental footprints in heavily used recreational areas, bough beds, leantos hacked from living saplings, and even wood fires just don't compute anymore, especially in vast areas of the relatively arid West (unless we are talking about very unusual circumstances, like emergencies). The old woodcraft still works fine, but it is now just inappropriate.

Today, I go out garbed in fleece and other synthetics, even though they are susceptible to melting if contacted with hot embers from a wood fire. I have kindled hundreds of wood fires over the years, but today, I routinely carry some kind of a stove. The last wood fire I built was twelve years ago (when our gas stove crapped out). If you build wood fires, wool clothing is much better, but wood fires, and a lot of other traditional techniques, in many areas just don't make a lot of sense.

I am particularly fond of a Pulaski (axe variation), an extraordinarily versatile tool. It needs to be used with care, but so does a Primus stove, or a GPS.

I have been using a Wetterlings axe for years and it just keeps on going. Unfortunately, I don't even treat it that well. It has been left out in the rain and sun more times than I care to mention and the only thing to fail is the strap on the sheathe, which broke off a few years ago when I was pounding in some stakes with the sheathe on. Punched a hole and added some 550 cord and the sheathe still hasn't been replaced yet.