Look at the axes section in your local store, and you’ll note they’re of various kinds and styles. Although axes are fundamentally for cutting trees and splitting wood, it is essential to understand the application of the diverse types. Thus, we will exhaustively cover all common types of axe styles. Let’s get started.
Cutter Mattock
A Cutter Mattock
You might not consider the cutter mattock an ax, but it is one. One end of this tool features an ax, while the other has an adze blade. It’s essential in making a clearing in roots-infested soils or rocky grounds.
It is possible because of the adze side, which has many applications, like ripping up roots and digging in rocky grounds. The axe blade can be helpful for regular ax applications such as cutting trees and splitting wood.
Don’t confuse the cutter mattock for the pick mattock with no ax head. Instead, the latter has a pick blade on one side and an adze blade on the other.
Hudson Bay Axe
A Hudson Bay Ax Silhouette
As its name suggests, the ax stems from Hudson Bay Company which was synonymous with the fur trade in the past. The primary feature is a flat poll and teardrop-shaped eye. This poll shape was handy in driving-in wooden stakes while out in the bush.
Also, as earlier mentioned, the Hudson Bay ax was for use by fur traders for hunting games and clearing small trees to build camp houses. Their handle ranges between 20 to 28-inches in length and is slightly larger than a hatchet but smaller than felling axes.
Double Bit Axe
A Double Bit Ax
They have two bits, allowing you to use them for a long time without sharpening as you keep alternating between them. Hence, you don’t have to worry about being stuck out in the woods with a dull axe requiring sharpening.
Besides, you can mount a long or short handle on them depending on your intended use.
Felling Axe
A Lumberjack with a felling ax
They are for felling trees and belong to the large axes category. Most will have handles measuring between 30 to 36 inches, meaning you cannot operate them with one hand when cutting down large trees.
This long handle and relatively overweight weight of around 3 to 6lbs accounts for their tremendous force when felling trees.
Furthermore, their bits have a slight curve to elongate the cutting edge, improving the bite-size they make on wood during cutting.
Dayton Axe
A Dayton Ax Silhouette
After the Hudson Bay Axe, which we covered earlier, the Dayton ax is another named after a place. The Dayton ax is predominant in Dayton, Ohio, and is specifically valuable for felling hardwood trees.
Thus, Dayton axes are relatively weightier than Hudson Bay axes at 3.5lbs to 5lbs. It is key in cutting through hardwood lumber.
Michigan Axe
It hails from the Water Wonderland state, and its head resembles the Dayton Ax. Nonetheless, the Michigan ax’s poll is relatively rounded, and its cheeks are fatter than a Dayton’s. Also, we can generally consider the Michigan ax to be convex as opposed to Dayton’s, which is concave.
Its bits are broad, and its edges feature a slight curve. Thus, its ax head is safe from chipping upon swinging on the knotty pine wood or frozen trees synonymous with the Great Lake state.
Jersey Axe
A lumberjack with a Jersey Ax
They have a lug that improves the handle and ax head contact to boost stability. Also, the Jersey one features more rounded polls, toe, and heel compared to the Michigan Ax. Furthermore, you’ll find a Jersey ax with bevels on its cheeks to minimize friction and prevent the ax from sticking to the wood.
Swamper’s Axe
It is the swampers’ favorite ax(Swampers limb trees). They use it to limb a cut tree into small logs to facilitate easy transportation. Thus, to promote its functioning, it possesses relatively wide bits than the average felling tree.
Forest Axe
A typical forest ax
You’ll find some people refer to this all-purpose ax as the woodsman’s ax. They are easy to carry along, making them ideal for a woodsman’s long walks deep into the woods. Also, they can fell trees in addition to limbing them to small parts.
Also, their handle is similar to a boy’s axes at 24 to 28 inches.
Pulaski Axe
A fireman with a Pulaski ax
The typical household name for this tool is the fireman’s axe. Its poll side features an adze edge to ensure its versatility which is cardinal while fighting fires. However, a proper fire ax features a pick on its axe end. This part helps wreck obstacles during rescue operations.
Boy’s axe
A Boy’s Axe is typically a men’s ax.
The cruisers or boy’s axes have axeheads weighing 2 to 2.5 lbs. They are suitable for men’s use and possess a handle of 24 to 28 inches.
Carpenter’s Axe
Carpenter Axes
They resemble the typical hatchet in size and are handy in carpentry applications such as joinery and woodworking. Also, they possess a finger notch and an impressive beard, while their main role is to make precise curves. And they’re also handy in hammering nails, thanks to their hard and flat polls.
Shingling Hatchet
Again like the carpenter’s axe, the shingling hatchet has a hard poll thus useful as a hammer. Also, you’ll note the shingling hatchet or roofing axe by its notch on the ax head’s bottom, which helps pull out nails.
Hewing Axe/ broadaxes
A Hewing Axe
They are single-bevel axes with only one cutting edge and are handy in shaping logs into square beams. Also, you might find some double-bevel hewing axes capable of making notches at regular intervals and, at the same time, chopping.
Crash Axe
A crash axe silhouette
If you thought they were for use in plane crashes, you’re right. According to FAA regulations, it’s a requirement for all planes with at least 19 passengers on board to have this type of ax.
Fundamentally, they are useful for firefighting applications and breaking doors and windows in case of a crash. However, they have also grown in popularity in the mass market primarily because of their versatility. They are helpful as glass breakers, nail claws, crowbars, and hex sockets.
Adze
An Adze
An adze is one of the conventional metal tools that are still in use today. It helps clear rocky areas, primarily in a curving and smoothening wood.
Also, looking at it, you’ll note that it is not essentially an ax, as its cutting edge lies perpendicular to its handle. But it is common on polls of axes such as the cutter mattock.
Tactical Axe
An army tactical ax
They are war axes that we can trace from the Vietnam war. Their poll end features a spike that facilitates deeper cuts through clothes or uncovered body parts.
You can, therefore, buy one as a protection tool; otherwise, it is a dangerous one if you mishandle it.
Viking Axe
A Viking with an ax illustration
Viking ax designs exist the Danish ax and the bearded ax (skeggox). Similar to tactical axes, Viking axes are also war tools synonymous with 11th-century Vikings.
Tomahawk
A Tomahawk ax
They were predominantly war axes made by Native Americans for fighting the French and British colonizers. Native tomahawks featured stone heads today; there are modern ones with metal heads. Thanks to their lightweight and small design, their versatile axes make them easy to carry while camping.
Throwing Axe
An ax-throwing illustration
Are you looking for a hunting and ax-throwing competitions ax? Look no further than the throwing ax. You’ll note them for their small stature and simple designs. Tomahawks also qualify as throwing axes.
The key characteristic of throwing axes is that they have a light head and straight handles. Also, if you have a small throwing ax, consider creating your ax throwing target as our guide entails.
Splitting Maul
A splitting maul
They are used explicitly in splitting wood rather than cutting, as you’d expect for an average, typical ax. Hence, we cannot consider splitting mauls as proper axes. Their edges are relatively round and possess fat convex-shaped cheeks for splitting wood logs.
Thus, for excellent splitting, they are also heavier and bulkier than the average axes. Also, it is common to use them in tandem with splitting wedges.
Splitting Axe
The Splitting ax
Splitting axes perform similar tasks to splitting mauls, but these are sharper and look more like a proper ax. Also, unlike mauls, splitting axes lack the hardened polls feature.
Miner’s Axe
A miner with a pickaxe
Mines are cramped up places requiring short-handled tools such as the miner’s ax. They weigh about 2 to 2.5 lbs and are useful in chiseling minerals such as gold, copper, and silver ores in the mines.
Shepherd’s Axe
Shepherd axes
They have different name variations, including fokos in Hungary, valaška in Slovak, and ciupaga in Poland. A shepherd’s ax is a convenient tool that shepherds use to ward off attackers of their flocks.
They have a relatively long handle to provide a safe fighting distance and a relatively small axehead. Also, you may use a shepherd’s ax as a walking stick when out in the bush.
Conclusion
We’ve covered some of the axes you’ll most likely come around. But there may be more, although we have tried to be as exhaustive as possible in our guide. If you have further queries on the axes, don’t be hesitant to reach out.