Designed for splitting chunks of wood, "rounds". The thick part of the concave wedge shaped axe head powers apart the grain of the wood. The poll is not designed for pounding on a wedge. The head weighs 3 1/2 lb. The face is 3". The axe has a 27" hickory handle, circular grooves at the grip, steel collar and a grain-leather sheath.
Owner Reviews, Ratings, Comments and Criticism
I love splitting wood with this axe and it'll split just about any type of wood you put in front of it. Green or seasoned, knotty or smooth, oak, hickory, ash, whatever. It just tears through everything you hit with it. I can generally get through a smooth peice of seasoned walnut about 15 inches in diameter with one chop if I hit the grain right. If it takes more than two, it's most likely operator error.
After splitting over two cords of wood, I still haven't had to sharpen the axe and it still goes through green hickory like it was balsa wood.
For those who don't know, Granfors Bruks is a very cool company who makes axes old school. A smith forges the axe heads by hand and literally puts a stamp of approval on the axe head (his initials). You can go on their website and see the person who made your axe, all the way over in Sweden.
They are more expensive, but when you think about what goes into the process, it's a much more special tool than some generic $40 peice of crap you can get at Lowe's. If you are splitting your wood by hand, you might be doing so because you enjoy the work and because it's a philosophically satisfying thing to heat your home (even if it's just an asthetic fire) with something you put your own sweat into. If this is the case, you can appreciate the Granfors Bruks way.
Something worth mentioning...I haven't ever tried to split a really big (over 2 ft diameter) round with this axe, and something that big would certainly be better served with a maul. As the description says, the poll is not designed for pounding on a wedge. When required, I bring out a sledge and a wedge. I would very much like the 5.5 lb maul Granfors Bruks makes, given the quality of this axe and the wildlife hatchet, it is a safe assumption that the maul is a beast. Admittedly, though, wanting the maul is more wanting to complete a collection of sorts.
If you have a wood burning stove and split big rounds on a regular basis, you'd probably want the maul. However, in terms of versatility, this is the best splitting axe Granfors Bruks makes. You could probably get through something huge with this axe...it would just take a few more swipes.
