It also has the same plastic sheath with a carrying handle as the Fiskars X11, making it convenient to grab and go. With these developments, Estwing’s market share grew and by the 1970’s, Estwing hammers were the “hammer of choice” for many tradesmen and were found on job sites throughout the United States. It's one of the sharper options in the test out of the box, and the rubber inserts on the glass-filled nylon handle are comfortable to hold. Whether you’re splitting or slicing, camping or hunting, Estwing axes and knives are the right choice for precision, power and durability. Now you too can find the perfect option to strap on your favorite backpacking backpack, toss in your car camping rig, or strap to the outside of your camper van as you head out to the horizon.

Estwing About Us | Estwing

The Fiskars Norden N12 is more top-heavy than other top options, making it harder to swing with one hand. Toolstop offers a wide range of their products, like the Estwing Claw Hammer and Estwing Framing Hammer in a range of weights.The plastic sheath is also surprisingly sturdy and handy, with an included nylon strap so you can sling it over your shoulder.

Axes/Hatchets Axes/Hatchets

With five and a half decades of wood chopping under his belt, Glen Tate gives the Fiskars X11 and Kershaw Deschutes Hatchet his nod.A well-balanced axe transfers power effectively from the handle through the blade, cutting into the wood efficiently. It also feels sturdy and well-made, lacking any discernable points of weakness and boasting a fairly sharp blade right out of the box.

Axes Archives - Estwing

We're impressed with the Fiskars X11, Fiskars Norden, Kershaw, Gransfors Bruk, and Gerber Freescape. The Estwing and Kershaw options are also well-balanced axes, though they have very different designs. Due to its compact 14" length, the Gerber Freescape is more of a purebred camping axe that can also chop wood when needed.While most axes include a loop on their nylon sheath that you can run a belt through, you have to take off your belt to do so. Without hands-on experience, it can be hard to discern the right axes for splitting firewood, precision tasks, and which are easy to carry. Its wedge-shaped head is excellent at splitting off small pieces of wood but starts to suffer if you need to split rounds or full-sized firewood. Since 1923, Estwing have endeavoured to produce the worlds most durable, attractive and comfortable striking tools - and in our opinion, they succeeded!

Estwing Axe 4lb | Toolstation

The streamlined MTech and Schrade axes leave little to break, while the multiple connection points on the SOG give us pause. We limited our splitting chores with this axe, though it excels at carving kindling from pre-split wood. The Gransfors Bruks Small Forest offers outstanding balance and is our favorite option for precise tasks like limbing logs or cutting down saplings (of invasive species only, don't worry). The entire axe head is thin, keeping weight down while the mid-length handle still gives you the power to do the job.The handle is comfortable to grip, with an arched construction that provides excellent balance, leverage, and blade control. The shorter but very similar Gerber Freescape is also balanced and easy to put where you want, particularly given its compact size. Unfortunately, the Estwing's sanded and lacquered leather handle wrap is hard to hold onto, detracting from its efficiency and quickly tiring our hands and forearms. However, we appreciate the X11's hollow, impact-dampening handle, which kept our forearms and hands fresh. The nylon webbing sling on the sheath can be annoying if you don't need it, but it's easy enough to remove.