I love the concept "let me clean it up to show respect"

The knob on the end of the handle is called a "fawn's foot". I personally recommended rubbing those handles down with linseed oil. If you get enough on the loose one, the wood will swell and hold the toolhead a little better. I'm probably to late to the game for my comment to get any notice, but I really enjoyed the video. Thanks!

Thanks for the pickaroon, "it'll help an old man work a little longer" In my working years I have learned more from old men than I have learned from young chargers. Eyes and ears open, mouth shut...

I'm 71 years old and couldn't pick up cut and split firewood pieces off the ground for very long without one, you are absolutely correct about being a back saver. Great video!

These are the feel good learning videos that brought me to this channel in the first place. Glad to see them pop up on my notifications.

Love how you respect old tools.. most people don't have respect for anything or anyone.

Interesting timing - Just came in from my shop ,where I put a handle on a pickaroon that I forged.

Scott, because of your urging, I will leave a comment. As a 66 y.o. retired contractor I can categorically state that if I had used a pickaroon for the 38 years I was active, I would have lasted a few more years. I have no idea how much lumber I moved the wrong way, but it was enough to wear my back out by the time I hit 60. Young men and women who do this kind work for living take heed.

At 75, I'm pleased to remember my younger days in Cottage Grove, Oregon, just out of high school (and before Vietnam).... I was selling firewood... Pond Lillys they were called. Yes, I had a pickaroon and also a pike pole.... (and a splitting maul!!!!!) Though no longer needed, it'd fun to still have them!! Thanks for the trip!!

Remember turning on some hippie landscapers to the pickaroon moving railroad tie up a hill for a staircase Back in the late seventies. A lot better than creosote burns on your forearms! Had to fabricate one for them and as you said in my youth I had not paid attention to the tip. Thanks I am going to address and redress my tips to chisel, I learned to use these while living in Eugene and living out on the rural fringes while being a U of O student from California. My neighbors were wonderful folks like you who were eager to share the joy and satisfaction of the simple tasks and work...essential indeed! Even used one out at Coach Bowerman's place trying to stack firewood. He was a wizard with one and could pick and throw up a stack exquisitely being of Oregonain stock and all. He used a short one like you showed and yes there was a lanyard on it as well that allowed you to let it go to use two hand for adjusting things with two hand s and not loosing it.

I just picked up a pickaroon. What a tool. My son turned me on to your channel. Now I am wearing him out with my Essential Craftsman stories. So funny. This tool has saved me so much time and back pain. I love cutting and splitting wood.

We use the smaller pickaroons for firewood stacking.

Pickaroon and a Canticlever- save your back, less slivers and bites. Great video and presentation.

This is by far my favorite channel, I use picaroons & a hookaroon while splitting my firewood

'The Pickaroons' -sounds like a great bluegrass band name.

After my dad passed, it fell to me to break down his shop. Over the years I've been trained and used just about every tool he owned, but there in the corner hanging on a nail was one of your pickaroons. However back then, I had no idea what it was called and even less of an idea of what it was used for. As I picked it up off the nail, I figured it was one of his picks that he had ground down over the years. At the sale later that weekend I sold it for a few bucks. I would gladly give a couple hundred bucks to get it back. Thank you sir, for sharing your knowledge and wisdom.

I admire your wisdom. You seam to always be teaching something

Love these videos where you talk about lost arts. Especially, I think, on topics that would have been so normal in days gone by that nobody thought to document them. Thanks for doing what you do.

What a treat to watch this video. I just bought a pickaroon, because my back has been injured and I'm not bending over like I used to. Should have bought one of these when I was 25 instead of 50. I learned a lot, great video, thanks

Very interesting. I live in Bolton, UK. I've never heard of a pickaroon, although Stihl, for example, make a small 'hookaroon' for similar use. I do have a similar tool with a three foot handle (we aren't all metric people here!). It came from the old Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway Locomotive Works at nearby Horwich (now demolished). It was a platelayer's* tool and had three uses: 1 there is a ¾" wide rounded chisel tipped spike similar to yours for 'picking and moving' wooden railway sleepers. 2 the chisel tip is also a rough 'chisel' for gouging out areas on a sleeper to help level the plates or chairs. 3 on the opposite side of the forged head is a stubby axehead for chopping out the area of a sleeper to be levelled for the plate or chair. *Platelayer is a general term (less in use now) for a person who works on the railway (permanent way or railroad in the US). In the early days of the railway their skill was in placing the plates or chairs as level as possible on the wooden sleepers, onto which the track was laid.

Love the electrical tape band-aid. Sign of a resourceful craftsman!! :-)

Y’all’s love of building, working and crafting is infectious. Always an inspiration to watch an E.C. video. I wish I could get some of your music to work by.

Good time of the year to frame up a spec house.

I've never owned a pickaroon, and now I want one. The strongest association I have with this tool is that it was the weapon of choice for East Indians working in the mills and bent on importing ancient feuds from their homeland into our culture. When I was a teenager, a guy my cousin Billy described as "just a great guy" was killed in the mill parking lot. A pickaroon took out his car windshield, and shortly after took out him. Another great video. Thanks.

Love pickaroons. Couldn’t afford to buy one yet, but wanted one so badly that I made my own!

Have one of these in my truck and one in the wood shop...perfect for stacking cut firewood when you are stocking up for winter heat. I haven't bent over for a piece of firewood in 40 years. You can't go wrong with a Pickaroon....

Every thing you just said is so true. My family was in logging, pulpwood, fire wood. Carpentry, barn builders. That's how we got things done. My first time using one I was 9 years old with fire wood. Moved up from there. They're quite handy. I could use 2 at time with that short handle loading wood in back of a 71 model Chevrolet c10 and stack it tight. No just throwing in the bed at our house. I made that mistake once I busted out the back glass. I got my butt torn up too. Lol. That's when I learned going fast doesn't always mean doing well. When coming to pulp wood. It easy on the pine. Easy to stack on the cable to load. Logging , it worked great as well. We used miles and snaking dogs. Then a tractor and finally a loader bucket.. From, moving limbs to help guiding on the slide poles to get it on the truck. Can't hooks and pickaroons. Saves time and money. I'm 57 now. I'm still a firm believer in them. I do a lot by myself. It just another pair of hands. I've gone too long. Thank you for seeing memories. Time goes by fast. Slow down, enjoy what you do. Why live life in a hustle. God bless.

Thanks Scott! My grandpa left us several pickaroons (just got two out of storage yesterday, in fact). I was trying to figure out based on guesswork how to best sharpen them. Now I don't have to guess, thanks to you! Keep up the great videos.

I live in the PNW. It was once all about lumber. Now it's all about lumberjack apparel (hipsters).

Another great video! We love seeing my son Drew's picture of his Estwing hammer in the background of your videos. I love how much you value and respect hard work. Best channel on you tube!

I picked one up at a flea market a few years back! It looks about like yours do - neglected, sitting in a corner somewhere for who knows how long until it's called upon again to save our backs. Next time i'm taking a tree down i'll be sure to use it to handle the various lengths I'd otherwise have to pick up. We don't do any commercial logging here in Kansas for obvious reasons, but plenty of firewood cutting, clearing for pasture or cleaning up storm damage, etc. When I'm processing and stacking my firewood this year for the inevitable winter, I'll take the time to appreciate this too. I was super excited when I found it and have added it to my collection of axes - ready to be used, whenever that may be.

I've been frequenting antique stores and flea markets here in my part of Indiana for several years and have never come across a pickaroon. I saw plenty of pickaxes for sale and got some for cheap. With an angle grinder I converted a couple of the pick axes into pickaroons.

TOTAL back saver. Wish I had known about this tool 47 years ago...My neighbor bought me one this Christmas. My back is sooo happy!

The pickaroon moves you 3 feet away from a nasty snake bite. And yes you’re right about black widows. They are more numerous and will send you to the hospital as well! Tools were invented by the working men. The right tool for the job is is a safe practice at all times. Nice video as usual!

Great to hear memories of you dad!

I've got one next to my shop door and just last week i was telling a grandson what that tool was. But i did not know about the tip shape. I"ll fix mine tomorrow. thanks for the info.

That's funny that this is posted just now. I was out with my wife and daughter doing some "buying other peoples old crap" for a garden project and we saw one of these. We are in Eastern Ontario, Canada, and I (at 58) had never seen one before. My daughter asked what it was for, and I surmised what it might be useful for, and wasn't far off. Once you pick up enough tools and break a sweat with them, you start to recognize what an unfamiliar tool might be good for.

Hi there I appreciate your love and knowledge of tools... And it's obvious the way you talk about your dad, he had a big play in that quality, that he instilled in you. My dad's been gone a lot of years... But it's rare to have a conversation with me that I don't bring him up, a funny story or something he taught me.... Still teaching me. Thanks for being one of the good guys. Now I'm gonna have to pick me up a pickaroon.

My brother, an avid collector/restorer of old axes and chainsaws, once bought a cheap new hatchet and cut/ground it into a pickaroon just like the small one you showed, for handling firewood after splitting.

I've had one(with the "best" tjp) in my truck for forty years. It was made for my Dad by the local blacksmith... It's handy for lots of things...although I mostly use it now to drag things that have slid out of reach closer..

I'm a firm believer in the pick axe because of the added function of an axe on the back. I use them often when cleaning out woods roads because I can chop brush as well as pulling rotten logs off the road

I had no idea these tools even existed until a couple of days ago when I stumbled upon another video. My back is sore every time I move around firewood mostly because I'm bending over all the time picking you up off the ground. This would help me out a lot and this video is helping me choose the correct type to purchase. Thanks!

Sir, I collect steel hand-tools. Not in a regular ‘collecting’ style. I aim to have one of each tool. Although axes and hammers have a wide variety and so I have several examples of these. My pickeroon was shipped from Council tools to Australia, along with a pulaski and a wrecking bar. Shipping was more than the items cost. My tool collection causes a stir for new visitors who then hear the story and marvel at the size of a burning trunk than can be doused by simply rolling with a pickeroon. I am working on a display wall for the collection. Cheers, -Mac

Picked one up at an estate sale last year, they had no idea what it was. Brought it home, cleaned it up and use boiled linseed oil on the handle and on the end. The head tightened up after several applications on the end. It works great and like you said it does save your back.

I keep a pickaroon in the bed of my J.D. Gator and use it quite a bit collecting firewood and as I'm clearing fallen trees off my fenceline. Several times I've looked at the tip and wondered whether it couldn't be improved in some way but never got around to experimenting with it. Now it and I will spend a little time making sparks this afternoon or tomorrow. I look forward to trying out your dad's recommendations. Thanks for taking time to share them. As always, you have something worth saying, and you say it well. And, as always, I feel well rewarded for watching.

If you add a pickaroon to your collection, consider adding in a pike (and maybe a cant hook if you find yourself rolling stuff a lot) as well. Having more tools at hand gives one more options, and a long handled pike can let you grab, pull, and push stuff with less walking.

I had seen one before never knew what it was. Thanks Scott.

I’ve been following Essential Craftsman for sometime… you’ve inspired me to clear my land and to build my home. Felling 120 foot trees produces a lot of wood to be processed either into firewood for the community and for future use for me…. Had an axe it was poorly made and the fibre glass hand started to slip out. Rather than stick it into some obscure corner… I decided to make a pickeroon. It was a fun process to repurpose a tool, thank you for the inspiration and keep up the good work!

I have this tools in my garage for years! he was my grandfather and I never knew what he was serving. Thanks ... I can not believe that I have never used this tool. my back would have thanked me 😂😂😂

I'm also in Oregon, and played with these when I was young. Never knew what they were called, but their usefulness was immediately obvious.

We use them in plywood mill for clearing jam ups

A definite back saver. Even more important for us active seniors. I could probably use one on our retirement property that we just move onto in Texas. Starting in on an overgrown, non-improved, multi-acre lot of land at my age.

Another of the unsung heroes of the tool world. Used it just as much as I used the axe when splitting wood for the fire. as you say, It saves your back SOOOO much.

Not something I've ever seen in the UK, so I made one last week, bloody brilliant, save so much bending..

Over 40 years in construction and logging /sawmilling and I have never heard of or seen one, I'm located in Western Kentucky and I could have used a pickaroon millions of times

And just like that, pickaroon sales are soaring! I didnt know I needed one, but i do now, so i just bought one! Thanks EC

Always had one beside me at all the job centers in the mill. Also the little hooked beak was best as you didn't have to swing as most times the beak would set in enough to pull the piece and that ultimately was less damaging

Dixie Tools from Forestry Suppliers-1987. File the tip periodically, coat the handle yearly with hot pine tar, beeswax and turpentine. Swing down into the end grain of a firewood round, swing it up and in the ATV tire bolted to the splitting block, pump the handle down once smartly and she ejects herself. 32 years old and still giving good service. Simple & astoundingly efficient!

I have worked in a sawmill for the past 20 years, using a pickaroon the entire time. I do grind the sides till the tip is about 1/8" wide, then bring the top down in a gradual arc, nearly to the point, I then finish grinding by cutting in a steeper flat angle for the chisel point. That all makes it easier to stick, to make it grip the wood, I peen the chisel point down slightly with a hammer, striking straight on to the point to make a hook around the bottom and a burr on the sides. Seems to work great in southern yellow pine.

Nice video...I worked for Oshkosh Tools for many years and we made many pickoroons along with many other logging tools. Thay are stamped and are very collectable. Leach Co. Oshkosh

Thanks for sharing. By far the best info on pickaroons I've found online

One of my uncles spent a few years in a lumber mill and when we would visit him during the time he was cutting his home firewood, his sappie was used constantly. That sappie was what you note as the short-handled pickaroon. I imagine it's a regional thing as this was in northern Wisconsin - nowhere near Oregon. :-) I've also seen a couple old timer carpenters that had welded a 'pick end' of sorts to the puller end of a hammer that was set near the lumber pile for ease of handling the sticks.

Hey Scott, we use both a long one and a short one on our circle mill. Shorter one by the head for fall off and the longer one for moving it down the non powered conveyor.

So glad I heard about them, I had a big tree cut down and two that fell.So I bought one and it worked great.

The pickaroon is a great tool in the right context... And when used correctly. I've been wanting to make a few in my blacksmith shop for a long time now.. after making one for my own use (for fire wood and moving quite a few cords at a time) .. I can sell a few a year to those guys who still do real work.

Got 2 of them i made from yard sale axes, they are so sweet for moving wood around, my back has never felt better!

Gonna have to forge one for my dad after I learn how in the Essential Blacksmith course. He has a wood stove in his basement and could definitely use this when splitting wood.

this one of the favorite tools i keep in my bug out bag and camping bag for wild camping makes clearing a camp site so much easier especially when the younger guys try to show off their muscles, i just use my biggest muscle and break out the pickaroon ..... both of mine are estate sale finds and i got em for a steal because no one knew what they were

Scott, you and cy have inspired me to try my hand at forging, I havent really had the heart to go through most of my dad's stuff since he passed 9 months ago but as I started first thing I see is an anvil, he never forged and as far as I know he didnt know he had one. I like to think its a sign he supports me metal working instead of just wood working. Thank you! Oh and your hoodie's really hold up! Built a deck with my brother in the pouring rain for a good 7 hours and I was dry!

I bought a pair of these a couple years back, at a garage sale for $3 apiece, having no idea what they were. A friend who heats his home in the city with firewood knew what it was right away and asked me for one. I obliged. Left the other at my Dad's place and not two weeks later he was using it to yank around the old lumber from a deck resurfacing project. Handy little things.

This guy is the best teacher on the internet! And I got my first pickaroon a couple years ago and can't believe I never had one before!

I made myself one of these by grinding a hook into a cheap axe head. The extra swing weight from the axe head helps drive the tip far enough into big pieces of firewood when loading the log splitter. Could not live without it. Will definitely grind a chisel into the tip though.

I really enjoy your videos. I am a mechanic for the railroad and I work on a team that dose large scale track maintenance. A lot of the work today is done by machine but we still use hand tools . I also worked in a Black Smith shop growing up I mostly cleaned up but I was learning from People like The Late Clifton Ralph Who would hold yearly classes. So I really enjoy your videos and Thanks for taking the time to make them .

Such a simple and wonderful tool..... brilliant!

Pickaroon, hookaroon, whatever you prefer to call them. It is absolutely a wonderful essential wood moving tool. I love mine☺! I just subbed this channel but I remember watching some of these videos a few years ago and I don't know why I didn't subscribe back then. But I love old tools and learning from craftsmen who've spent a lifetime honing their skills in their trade. I love running and repairing the older chainsaws and I watches a few of your chainsaw videos which I believe was back when I first encountered your channel. Very good viewing, great tips, and just a great pleasure learning from knowledgeable folks like you guys.♥

First time viewer ! Great video , just started using the pickaroon a few years ago, it now has a permanent home in my pickup truck for gathering fire wood, and offloading it ! Cheers !

I grew up using the shorter ones for processing firewood. Game changer splitting wood. I to this day use my fiberglass handled framing hammer to stand up and move chord wood. You do not have to bend over and wrap your hands around every piece. Big difference.

One day i had a need for one of these. Went across the street to my neighbors house and asked if he had one i could borrow. He spent 3 min. In his garage, found one and gifted it to me. Great fellow, friend and neighbor.

We just called them picks. In my day they were used mostly to load 5 foot pulpwood onto a truck then onto a rail car. The wood was going to a paper mill so pick marks didn't matter. I've seen men stick a pick in the middle of a stick of pulpwood and carry it around like a suitcase. I come from the Southern Appalachians where lumbering was concentrated before it stripped most of the old growth hardwoods then moved to the Pacific Northwest. A lot of the people followed the industry to Washington, Oregon And Northern California. Two of my uncles "Went Out West". One returned in a few years. The other returned in a box. He was on his way home when he died in a car wreck.

I like your approach of showing the tool respect. Tools are the things that make, build and maintain are everything. From under the dirt, into space and everything between. I also like the electrical tape bandage on your finger.

Years ago, in my youth, I hadn't heard of these little tools. Now at 60, I won't go near the wood pile without my two favorite tools....my pickeroons!!!!

Pickaroon and Peavey poles, part of the history of lumber makers and users.

My sister's husband has a pickaroon. But I doubt he has seen this. I expect he will appreciate the stories, as I did, and the technical aspects. Thanks. This may be important to someone. It was for me.

Love the electrical tape band aid! Man after my own heart. Thank you for sharing

Started making my own out of old axe heads. I take mine to the woods every time I go

That sure brought back some memories of logging in Montana, a pickaroon was very important, although you had a chainsaw we all ways kept that pick in a toolbelt. Thanks for the video Sir. 🇺🇸 God Bless you and your family's 🇺🇸

I made 2 of them. The first one using a large U bolt that I cut where the curve starts, bolted it at the end of an old round handle. I put a pipe coupling over the handle where I bolted it for strength. I make a palm swell using hockey tape. Been using it for 10 years. Made a 2nd one from a cheap 14$ axe I got in the discount bin at the hardware store. I prefer them to pulp hooks in many situations, but a pulp hook is also handy.

Still have one of those, did have two but give one to a son. Very handy tool and used one for many years, super back saver ! Thanks for sharing and take care. 👍

I love that picaroon. I use it for using the Railroad ties.

You are right, one of the hardest tools there is for moving your firewood and logs, thanks for sharing 👍

Scott, you’re dead on about the pickaroon. I’ve used one quite a bit when I used to cut and deliver firewood as a young man. It came in real handy getting those last pieces out of a truck on a delivery. I wish I still needed one, sure miss that kind of work.

Great bone yard, my dad made me a pickaroon when I was cutting post and pole in high school. Which I could find it, but that was 40 years ago.

That’s just amazing to me I love the simple beauty THANKS FOR SHARING!

I used one to move wood scraps around and onto a conveyor in a plywood mill a few years ago!

How does one man manage to 1, accumulate and 2, recall so much valued and invaluable knowledge and wisdom? Mind boggling!

Scott look I forward to your videos . I grew up as a loggers son used a pickaroon a lot as a kid. And still use one for making firewood all the time. I have a tip if you don't know it already soak that loose headed pick in boiled linseed oil it will tighten up , I cut empty oil container (quart) length ways add inch or so boiled linseed oil and soak head for a day or two.

Thanks for sharing I love watching your videos. seen them all, and I especially love the tool videos I've never even heard of a Pickaroon before now I have to have one! Brian, from New Jersey

That's a cool little tool. When I framed we would keep the claws on our hammers real sharp and use them occasionally just like your pickaroon. Nail gun in the right and hammer/pick in the left.

I grew up in Toledo Oregon (Born 1964 at Toledo Hospital) and I swear we all were born with a pickaroon in one hand and a stihl chainsaw in the other... blessings from Hill Country in Texas

Yes sir. An often overlooked, or not even known about tool. I heat my family's home with wood, and have for the last 20 years. From standing tree all the way to fireplace, the pickaroon always comes in handy. I think my favorite use for it is burying it in a big round, then choking up on the head and just using it as a handle to carry the round to the splitter. Also really nice just to sit on my chair in front of the splitter and reach out with an extra 36 inch reach and snatch rounds to me :-)