Chicken,

That is why earlier in this thread I had suggested reading (rereading) Doug Ritter's section on Gear & Equipment. I was specifically referring to his recommendations on axes:

"To the horror of many old time traditional outdoorsmen, I tend to avoid recommending hatchets and axes. It is so easy to seriously injure or cripple yourself using these tools that the risks outweigh the benefits, in my opinion. This is especially a problem if you are tired, cold or otherwise not in particularly great shape, not an unlikely possibility for any survivor. An axe or hatchet is not very forgiving of poor or sloppy technique, as many a person, experienced and not, has learned the hard and painful way. For the inexperienced survivor there isn't the time to learn how to safely use these tools, which have been known to bite even those with plenty of years handling them. A saw is simply safer."

These are wise wise words.