Autine Large Forest Axe

Alas I have been missing in action from the blog for a while, 2015 was a crap year for a variety of reasons, the passing of a good mate being one of them and an overload on work the other.  But on a more positive note (apart from the postal stuff up) my Autine Large Forest Axe arrived.  I had an extended wait courtesy of Australia Post returning the package to Latvia without notifying me that it had arrived at the local post office.  When I complained that I received no notification they kept repeating that the system said I was notified, the complaints officer accepted that this hadn't actually happened but regardless they wouldn't pay for the extra postage costs.  The package was sent back to Latvia by ship, 3 months at sea before it arrived back at Autine.    They then forwarded it to me for the second time and it finally arrived.  Must say Autine were really helpful during the ordeal.  Thanks Karline!

Believe it or not I had a similar experience with Australia Post a few years ago with a Frost River back pack from the US.  Australia Post unlike Autine are terrible to deal with.  Rant over...

The axe is simply beautifully crafted.  Everything about this axe is crafted by hand, from the forged head, carved handle and the leather axe head cover.   Talk about sharp, you could shave a wooly mammoth with ease, let alone the hairs off your arm.  It's one axe where poor axe handling could see you with a flesh wound similar to the one in Monty Pythons the Holy Grail.  It's an interesting head design, more European than anything you would typically see in Australia or America.  They make an American pattern forest axe, but the exotic shape of this model caught my eye. 

Check this video on the build process:

I haven't had an opportunity to use it alas, but if it's anything like my Autine hatchet it should be tough as nails.  I'll come back to this post with further feedback down the track.  In the interim enjoy the pics.

Autine Axes

Just taken delivery of an Autine camping hatchet.  This axe was hand forged and this video shows you the steps involved.  A review of the hatchet to follow soon....still haven't had an opportunity to use it.


How to forge an axe: Step by step. AUTINE and bladesmith John Neeman from Autine by John Neeman on Vimeo.


The below photographs were taken by Autine prior to dispatch.  Very impressed by their customer service as well as their craftmanship.  Looking forward to trying out the hatchet next weekend.

I had the opportunity to use the Autine today and here is my initial impression.  First off, it's shipped with a keen edge, which was still nice and sharp at the end of the day, as you would expect.  It's not the lightest hatchet however the extra weight helps make it a great chopper.  The axe head is more wedge shaped when compared with a comparable Gransfor Bruks and as a result it's works well splitting wood.  As I indicated earlier the handle is rather substantial in thickness terms.  I must confess that I had reservations about this however after using it I'm now a convert.  The handles long enough that you can use both hands and combined with the thickness of the handle it affords superb control to the woodsman.  You can also choke up on the head for finer work such as creating shavings.  

My 8 year old son joined me today for a little bushcraft tuition.  A while back I bought him a custom ML Kephart mini which he only gets to use on such trips.  Showed him a few techniques to safely use the Kephart. Reward at the end of the day was toasted marshmallows.  We sat around the fire an hour past sunset.  It was a great day.

More impressions to follow.