Your opinion on these hatchets.

[Hatchet]

Hello everyone,

Can I have your opinions on these hatchets? If you have any of them, could you tell me how they perform?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/350620259550...84.m1438.l2648
http://www.ebay.com/itm/120999911400...84.m1438.l2648
http://www.ebay.com/itm/390482063237...84.m1438.l2648
http://www.ebay.com/itm/380490101238...84.m1438.l2648
http://www.ebay.com/itm/310320763180...84.m1438.l2648

Thanks,

Hatchet.

[Dingo]

hey 'Bro'

hatchets are pretty much all the same really, unless that is your a craftsman of some kind and use them accordingly.

the primary use for chopping and trimming small branches etc is usually well done by most makes, however... the edge holding and wieght can be an issue.

is it your first axe/hatchet? if so and only my opinion, i would trip round a few garage sales or pop in the warehouse and pick up a cheapie mate, if you find that you use it a lot and feel you need an upgrade then sell off your cheapie or keep it for 1st reserve and get yourself a beauty, maybe at some real cost! especially with carriage to NZ

but if you have the dollars buddy, go for it, get the best you can afford and enjoy yourself, theres a lot worse things you could waste your hard earned dollars on than bushcraft gear... well thats my excuse anyway



only my opinion.

Adam.

[Hatchet]

Thanks, 'mate'!

What is considered cheap for a hatchet? I don't have much to spend on bushcraft, unfortunately.

[Dingo]

if dollars are scarce, ask yourself if you really need one... i very rarely use mine, if your out for any length of time its a good idea to have a larger knife/hatchet or parang, something that may come in usefull building a basecamp or for cutting larger limbs/branch's, but to be honest its not something i do very often as i try and 'leave no trace' as a rule, i have a decent folding saw which i find more use personally.

you dont need to spend fortunes to enjoy bushcrafting, i would be a liar if i said it doesnt help in SOME instances, but generally a keep it simple approach along with common sense and a little planning usually does the trick

a good tarp, decent doss bag and a light groundsheet, in my opinion are more important than a hatchet, some may disagree, but if your in NZ and around the bush/woods there, you wont be short on deadwood, and in lots of area's fire can be dangerous due to the peat and woodland floor being very combustable, so big fires can be very dangerous.

i dont know what kind of kit you prefer/have and what/where you intend to go, this varies accordingly, trawl through the many posts on here and you will see the kind of things people generally carry, and how much/many put hatchets in the must have catagory.
there is some great advice in lots of threads, have a good look around and enjoy it 'bro'

Adam.

[Mike Bowler]

Have a look at this hope this helps

[Gray]

I agree with Dingo, hatchets a hatchet as long as not a £5 one, unless your a craftsman of course and he's right about the fact that they hardly get used except for chopping logs for the fire. I use a machete more and even that's not often

[Hatchet]

Thanks guys for replying.

I'm not in a very bushy area, it's a sort of forest made up of ferns, kauri and rimu trees. I go there a lot, and several times I've wished that I had an axe with me. There is a lot of dead wood, but most of it is the size of huge limbs, so I'd like to be able to chop some up and split some of the very thick ones.
Dingo, I think I'll take your advice and just get a cheap one, so if it turns out I don't need one as much as I think I did, then it won't be to much of a money waste.

Hatchet

[MGF]

I don't know about New Zealand but, in our oak/hickory forests I carry a hawk.
I use it for everything from preparing fire wood to pounding in stakes and even skinning game. I also like to carry a bow saw, especially in winter.

The only commercial hatchets I've used are the relatively inexpensive variety you find in the hardware store and they were all junk. They come with no edge on them and they're too soft to hold an edge.

I make my own but, If I had to buy one, I think I'd be willing to spend enough to get a good one.

Edit: I carry a hawk instead of a hatchet because it's fairly easy to replace the handle in the woods if I have too...that and I just like them.

[Hatchet]

Ok, so maybe I shouldn't get a hatchet.

But if I were getting one, what do you think of these?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/321005746615...84.m1438.l2648
http://www.ebay.com/itm/121002092134...84.m1438.l2648
http://www.ebay.com/itm/271084476260...84.m1438.l2648

Thanks!

[MGF]

Have you looked for some online reviews?

I've never used any of the them but I know the Estwing is kind of an old standard.