Camp hatchet/axe

Perry Winkle · 03-05-2007, 08:52 PM

This:
Woodsmans Pal

or something like this:

Gerber Gator Axe

Griff · 03-05-2007, 09:02 PM

I'd go with a lighter machete than the pal. We used machetes surveying and nobody liked the heavy ones. A light folding saw might be a good way to go. I wouldn't carry a hatchet on a bike tour, too heavy.

zippyt · 03-05-2007, 09:08 PM

eather one looks like they would get you busted for a weapon , BUT eather one would work as a weapon as well

Elspode · 03-05-2007, 09:46 PM

How much actual backcountry camping are you planning on?

I'm with Griff...folding saw is probably more utilitarian than an axe overall, but then again, if you're driving a lot of tent pegs...the axe is the clear winner.

lumberjim · 03-05-2007, 11:02 PM

get one of these:

and one of these:

Aliantha · 03-05-2007, 11:42 PM

That torch looks neat. We might have to get one of those. I guess they probably sell there over here too.

lumberjim · 03-06-2007, 12:00 AM

absolute life saver for starting fires in the damp. refillable with canned butane. i recently replaced the one we had when we were on tour.

03-06-2007, 12:00 AM

I don't like the new, light, hatchets... *old fart*

wolf · 03-06-2007, 12:06 AM

IMHO, you can't go wrong with a Gerber anything.

Although I'd recommend the Glock entrenching shovel if you were intending on taking one. Has a saw in the handle.

Kitsune · 03-06-2007, 08:38 AM

I carry a Fiskars hatchet when camping and love the thing. All the new stuff is light and comfortable enough that hacking up enough firewood for several nights doesn't result in exhaustion.

Make sure it has a sheath if you hike with it, as the Fiskars didn't come with one and the blade was razor sharp when left left the factory. I strapped it to the back of my pack and managed to slice my hand up pretty good by accident.

For starting wet firewood, I carry some Trioxane bars I get from the local army surplus store.

Perry Winkle · 03-06-2007, 10:13 AM

Thanks for the suggestions. I'm going to run around tomorrow and see if I can find somewhere with a variety I can try on.

I just need something that I can cut a night or two's worth of wood occasionally.

I kind of want to avoid anything that could be easily construed as a weapon.

barefoot serpent · 03-06-2007, 11:03 AM

hammer = rock
hatchet = rock

... so simple even a caveman can do it.

03-06-2007, 11:22 AM

My idea of a hatchet... I hate the light ones. I feel they are dangerous. I have spent a LOT of time with hatchets. I grew-up on a ranch and was an Eagle Scout.
NEVER buy a hatchet with a tubular (hollow) handle, no matter what model you buy, PLEASE!!!
My Fave.
Another.
If you want smaller.
Go to your local hardware store, not a camping store.

Personally, I get a converter, charged batteries for my cordless sawsall and used it the last few times I camped. I pre-cut wood and brought it with me.

footfootfoot · 03-06-2007, 11:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wolf

Although I'd recommend the Glock entrenching shovel

Don't forget the hot buttered groat clusters...

Kitsune · 03-06-2007, 12:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rkzenrage

I hate the light ones. I feel they are dangerous. ... NEVER buy a hatchet with a tubular (hollow) handle, no matter what model you buy, PLEASE!!!

Really? Why?

The Estwing, by the way, is a really nice looking hatchet, seeing that the base metal runs well into the handle. I've always considered the hatchets with an all-wood handle to be more dangerous than the new composite ones, as most of the ones I've owned in the past had the blade drop due to the wood shrinking. In one case, I even had a blade fly off mid-swing.

Quote:

Originally Posted by rkzenrage

Personally, I get a converter, charged batteries for my cordless sawsall and used it the last few times I camped. I pre-cut wood and brought it with me.

That's a good idea, but... that ain't camping.

03-05-2007, 08:52 PM	#1
Perry Winkle Esnohplad Semaj Ton Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: A little south of sanity Posts: 2,259	Camp hatchet/axe This: Woodsmans Pal or something like this: Gerber Gator Axe

03-05-2007, 09:02 PM	#2
Griff still says videotape Join Date: Feb 2001 Posts: 26,813	I'd go with a lighter machete than the pal. We used machetes surveying and nobody liked the heavy ones. A light folding saw might be a good way to go. I wouldn't carry a hatchet on a bike tour, too heavy. __________________ If you would only recognize that life is hard, things would be so much easier for you. - Louis D. Brandeis

03-05-2007, 09:08 PM	#3
zippyt LONG LIVE KING ZIPPY! per Feetz Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Arkansas Posts: 7,661	eather one looks like they would get you busted for a weapon , BUT eather one would work as a weapon as well __________________ "Success is getting what you want. Happiness is wanting what you get. " Brother Dave Gardner

03-05-2007, 09:46 PM	#4
Elspode When Do I Get Virtual Unreality? Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Raytown, Missouri Posts: 12,719	How much actual backcountry camping are you planning on? I'm with Griff...folding saw is probably more utilitarian than an axe overall, but then again, if you're driving a lot of tent pegs...the axe is the clear winner. __________________ "To those of you who are wearing ties, I think my dad would appreciate it if you took them off." - Robert Moog

03-05-2007, 11:02 PM	#5
lumberjim I can hear my ears Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 25,571	get one of these: and one of these: __________________ This body holding me reminds me of my own mortality Embrace this moment, remember We are eternal, all this pain is an illusion ~MJKeenan

03-05-2007, 11:42 PM	#6
Aliantha trying hard to be a better person Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Brisbane, Australia Posts: 16,493	That torch looks neat. We might have to get one of those. I guess they probably sell there over here too. __________________ Kind words are the music of the world. F. W. Faber

03-06-2007, 12:00 AM	#7
lumberjim I can hear my ears Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 25,571	absolute life saver for starting fires in the damp. refillable with canned butane. i recently replaced the one we had when we were on tour. __________________ This body holding me reminds me of my own mortality Embrace this moment, remember We are eternal, all this pain is an illusion ~MJKeenan

03-06-2007, 12:00 AM	#8
rkzenrage Guest Posts: n/a	I don't like the new, light, hatchets... old fart

03-06-2007, 12:06 AM	#9
wolf lobber of scimitars Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Phila Burbs Posts: 20,774	IMHO, you can't go wrong with a Gerber anything. Although I'd recommend the Glock entrenching shovel if you were intending on taking one. Has a saw in the handle. __________________ wolf eht htiw og "Conspiracies are the norm, not the exception." --G. Edward Griffin The Creature from Jekyll Island High Priestess of the Church of the Whale Penis

03-06-2007, 08:38 AM	#10
Kitsune still eats dirt Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Tampa, FL Posts: 3,031	I carry a Fiskars hatchet when camping and love the thing. All the new stuff is light and comfortable enough that hacking up enough firewood for several nights doesn't result in exhaustion. Make sure it has a sheath if you hike with it, as the Fiskars didn't come with one and the blade was razor sharp when left left the factory. I strapped it to the back of my pack and managed to slice my hand up pretty good by accident. For starting wet firewood, I carry some Trioxane bars I get from the local army surplus store.

03-06-2007, 10:13 AM	#11
Perry Winkle Esnohplad Semaj Ton Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: A little south of sanity Posts: 2,259	Thanks for the suggestions. I'm going to run around tomorrow and see if I can find somewhere with a variety I can try on. I just need something that I can cut a night or two's worth of wood occasionally. I kind of want to avoid anything that could be easily construed as a weapon.

03-06-2007, 11:03 AM	#12
barefoot serpent go ahead, abbrev. it Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Lawrence, KS Posts: 2,623	hammer = rock hatchet = rock ... so simple even a caveman can do it. __________________ Chooses rowing vs. wading

03-06-2007, 11:22 AM	#13
rkzenrage Guest Posts: n/a	My idea of a hatchet... I hate the light ones. I feel they are dangerous. I have spent a LOT of time with hatchets. I grew-up on a ranch and was an Eagle Scout. NEVER buy a hatchet with a tubular (hollow) handle, no matter what model you buy, PLEASE!!! My Fave. Another. If you want smaller. Go to your local hardware store, not a camping store. Personally, I get a converter, charged batteries for my cordless sawsall and used it the last few times I camped. I pre-cut wood and brought it with me.

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