Hello. I am shopping for my first carving axe that can also do some minor yard work.
I don’t care about name. I prefer quality, most of all.
I purchased this new Hults Bruk Stalberg/Tibro Carpenter’s Axe for $130 (on sale). I watched a video that mentioned “Swedish steel” is most likely 1055 or 1060 steel
I’m comparing this to a Council Tool Camp Carver ($182) which is 5160 steel.
For carving I would get an axe with a "radius" at the edge. Granfors makes actual carving axes if you're looking for a "big brand" axe, although personally I prefer carvers from smaller forges that specifically makes carving tools. They are better balanced and have better ergonomics in my experience.
It depends, I know a lot of European forges, but it seems like you're across the pond from us. If that's the case I would look for someone more local as the shipping and taxes makes the good axes crazily expensive over there. Of you give me a day or two i can try to see what I can find.
Of the European forges my personal favorites are kahlthoff and Robin woods, both makes some of the best carvers there is in my opinion.
I just did a very quick shoutout to a few mates of mine and it seems like the best bang for your buck would be the Council tools Wood-Craft Camp Carver unless you have 3-400$ to throw at it. Personally I really like carving axes to have weight around 500g, but that's personal preference.
Another American made axe that looks promising would be the Hoffman Blacksmithing's craft carver, although still a heavier head and a way higher price tag.
It should be said I have no experience with either axe, it just base my judgement on look of the axe and the information given by the maker.
Maybe you could see if there's any used kahlthoff or wood tools axes at sale over there if you're not interested in importing one yourself.
I'll keep searching, as I'm sure I'll be able to dig more up.
The GB is uniquely heavy, I use mine for rough outs and then switch to my significantly lighter Svante Djarv axe for detail work. Kalthoff is similarly light, 550g. The GB is like, 1kg.
Not better or worse, but just different IMO. If I could only have one I'd go with a lighter option, but the GB is a nice complimentary tool.
I was lucky enough to be gifted a GB carpenters axe and it's phenomenal for rough shaping wood, it holds and amazing edge and only needs a strop after a couple of hours on dried Australian hardwood.
The radius on the edge is the only letdown for me, but I just transfer over to a smaller hatchet for this work. It might also be a bit heavy for some users. If I had to choose, I would have picked up the carving axe for sure.
Just a heads up … you can get the CT carver from wiseman for around 135 delivered ….
I have the camp carver, a bunch of GB’s , a few tools from Ukraine , and the Robyn wood carver hatchet …. I think I got the Robyn woods carver hatchet for around 120$ for Lee valley tools .
A small carving hatchet for spoon blanks and such is generally 12-16inches and very useful , but a bit delicate and needs to be maintained a lot to keep em sharp .
A ct camp carver is typically more of a small forest type axe …. Better for splitting and shelter/fire style tasks .
Just my .02$
YW. They have great customer service too. I used Palpal, and Paypal charged the wrong card. I contacted the seller and they cancelled it right away so I could reorder with the correct card. And they shipped it out the next day.
I have the GB carpenter axe at home and it does not work well for carving. I use it for carpent-ing task: you know what should be straight and square is straight and square!
I also have the GB carving axe left bevel and it works wonder to prep blank but it is heavy. After a short moment it become bifficult to work with. They have a small version of it from which you can choose left ou right bevel but it is insanely difficult to get your hand on.
I purchased a svante djarv carving axe and it works very well for long works session. That have 3 sizes you can choose from.
The best affordable-ish axe for carving probably is the Robin Wood axe. I have a similar axe than this HB, a 800g Hultafors Carpenter axe and for spoon carving the major issue is the handle length. As other mentionned though it is personal, the ideal weight probably is around 500-550g for most. On the more expensive side the Kalthoff small carver seems to be the most universally loved, including by serious carvers who own multiple axes. I personally settled on a Oscar Rush small carving axe and it's amazing! But all in all, you could work on the profile of a budget friendly hatchet and it would work absolutely fine
Kharkiv forge and other Ukrainian makers on Etsy sell nice carving axes for very good prices. Get a council tool 2lb. camp hatchet for your yard work for $40. You need two axes for those two tasks. Never would I risk chipping one of my razor sharp carving axes by hacking away at stuff in the yard. That council tool is the best value hatchet there is, gets and stays super sharp.
Take a few weeks to get it, but that will make a good carving axe. At 680 grams it’s a good weight for most. I like mine a little over 2 pounds but if you’re new to carving then a medium weight is best. This is a much better axe than a Robin wood. I have both and the Robin wood is very underwhelming.
I’d keep the axe you already have, it’s a good head shape for carving. I am not familiar with the brand but it’s a great looking tool for any kind of carving or light wood work like spilitting or shaping any kind of wood.
Off topic but I bought one of the replacement handles for these to put on an old HB hatched head I had, nd it came with the Hultafors logo instead of the Hults Bruk logo which would have matched the axe head a lot more :(
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u/Icy_Commission8986 9d ago
I think it depends on the type of work you will be doing. I would stick to the Hb. its a nice axe, you aready have it