When I was a kid i used something like that for skinning game that my great uncle and I had trapped or hunted. Its got the same blade geometry as a skinning knife, but no point to ruin A valuable fur. We used em' on everything from weasels to elk and bear. They really come into their own when used on big game, but we'd case out any kinda fur bearing critters that we'd be trapping in the winter.

Anything is better than nothing, is what I always say

I like all of the secisions on the belt ax! They get the job done! I will have to get me some of these in the future! God speed to you Ben and your family! David Back.

Benjamin church is my ancestor. My grandmother's maiden name was church. My cousin has a lot of info on the lineage

what book(s) more than one source? can i find this information from?

Great video!

Nice video, thank you 😊

That isn't a 'small axe'...it isn't even a 'small hatchet'...it's a 'tomahawk'. My answer would be...if it's all you got with you, it's pretty damn valuable...

Sasquatch were called " Yahoos" in Daniel Boone's time and area. I heard 2 Sasquatch in Kenefick, Texas bellow out "YAHOOOOOOOOO !" in November 2018 while hunting on my Aunt's land. They were about an 1/8 mile east and 1/8 mile north of me. I believe the were hunting and probably smelled me. Me and my family have seen them all our lives living in Kenefick.

Ben where can I get those reproduction glasses that you wear?

Awesome gun. Can a rear site be installed on it

Hi Ben, I carried a little axe, that Bill Reynolds made, for years and found it useful. It fell out of my bag at Ft. Meigs and the guy that found it wouldn't give it back. So he apparently thought it was useful also.

Live in the southwest and have used one many time while bushcrafting to process campfire wood and make small overnight shelters. Not chopping down and oak but for smaller chores does a great job and saves your knife.

Hoffman Practical

I stumbled across this video and enjoyed it so much I’m going to give you a follow. I checked out your site and found some very interesting items. I live at ground zero for the revolution, the battle of Lexington and Concord and the old north bridge are about 8 minutes from me, Salem is about 25 minutes, Boston Freedom Trail and Tea Party Museum about 15 minutes and Plymouth Rock is about an hour. As you can imagine, these types of items are pretty popular around here. I’m going to take another look and reach out if I come across something that would turn some heads at some of the events we have around here.

Hey Ben, Jack Weeks here. I have enjoyed your on facets of our early times. Beautiful jobs on the guns you have shown. My bag and leather work has slowed down quite a bit, but still doing. Hunts and treks have gotten slower not too intense. Rick is still screaming horns. I think went to 2 shows down state. Seems like Bidenomics may have slowed his business... maybe. I hope you are well. Jack

I've done pretty much the same with a tomahawk ; but when it came to splitting a , not even , very large log it got stuck , so I batonned my way through with a stick on the hammer pole .

I use a very small axe myself for mostly tarp stakes. Was already used to chop kindling from firewood and to cut chickens in half while camping. Small head + small handle (just enough for the hand) I would describe the use as "everything where my knife will get damaged or takes to long"

A tool is a tool is a tool, whatever you have you make the best use of. Did they not have small saws on the pattern of a modern pruning saw? There is always the question of when it is more efficient to saw through something or chop it.

Far from useless, obviously. People are funny, to be honest, they get some crazy ideas, and a LOT of the time, base their decisions on nothing more than image. Long time ago, I met a visitor to my country. He had flown in the night before, it was his very first day back-packing, his first day in all his life, outside of the USA. And he had his sleeping bag in a non-waterproof bag on the outside of his pack. We were both going to walk down to the railway/ferry station to catch a train . . . and it was POURING rain. I gave him a big clean rubbish-bag out of the hostel cupboard, and said, cover your sleeping bag, or it will get wet, and you will be cold sleeping the whole trip . . . He put it on the bag . . . looked at it . . . and took it off. Because it LOOKED FUNNY TO HIM. And he just accepted a wet sleeping bag . . .

Thanks!

Cool little axe…I have a cold steel of a like pattern and find it very useful

Looks like it would make a fine tool for processing deer (rib cage, tenons, etc.) in camp, kindling, pounding stakes…

Today, with so many options, everything is a compromise. Do you want to carry a heavier axe and leave something else out of your kit, or carry a lighter axe and add another item for the same weight of pack ? There's no perfect choice, only what you think is best for you. All of the pompous arguments for one or the other are just egocentric BS.

This is a cheap fake.

Is that 12oz overall or just head weight?

A hawk has become my favorite woods tool. I prefer a slightly longer handle, but the profile on yours looks nice. My favorite is very similar to the original Biscayne trade axes with a slightly different shape to the eye. Never fails to put a smile on my face.

I feel a small axe and large knife are both competing for the same job. A kukri, parang, or golok can also do light chopping.

i have two

faster in cleaning game

I that this one is below optimum tool size, but as you showed completely usable. I'd choose the one you demonstrated last time as a better balance between frequent chore use and occasional but life or death use as a weapon.

That does good work for a package that weighs less than a pound. It is far from “worthless”. As a general purpose ,lightweight edged tool that functions as an effective defense weapon , It’s definitely better than a belt knife alone. It’s a good sized wood chisel on a stick that can act as a froe when making kindling from small branches. If one’s task is to fell and process a large white oak tree into fuel and lumber , it’s not the right tool for the job. If your just exploring afield, it’s handy and easy to carry. The only problem I can see with the small tools your showing, is people’s perceptions of them. I bet a primitive man would trade you a couple wives and a winter’s worth of mastodon meat for one of those and hold it as his most prized weapon and labor saving possession. Worthless? I don’t think so. If they were “worthless” ,they wouldn’t have been carried.

Good stuff, Ben. I was at a shoot once and saw a guy whose belt axe blade was just over an inch. It had a squared pole...kind of Meig's-like. He used it as a throwing hawk, but also for setting "tent" stakes. I doubt it weighed even as much as your example. He was good with it, but I'm guessing the average guy would find it tough to use. IMO- the heft and sharpness of the head is what makes it a good cutter.

I love to use the U fire striker ( french striker)

Good morning from Syracuse NY brother and thank you for sharing this subject

If you want willow i have a hole tree come get

Any cutting tool is going to find use in the woods.

Weight, weight, weight. In a time before light weight materials such as synthetic fabrics or aluminum the hatchet was the light weight multi tool of its time. It may not be the best tool for all tasks but it can be used for most.

Interesting historical context. However, if your title meant are they still of much use today in the outdoors, that is a different context altogether. For modern forays into the wild, there are far better alternatives. Firstly, for doing cross-cutting of wood a saw is a far more efficient tool. At 8:00 that branch would have been cut through in a quarter of the time with a Silky saw, and with a fraction of the effort ( and much more safely!). The branch at around 6:30 would have been cut just as effectively with a good belt knife. Also, even a small tomahawk like that is still quite a cumbersome tool to carry around. A Silky Gomboy is far more compact and light. However, I concede, these tools I mention are not as much fun! ;-) Cheers mate.

Always better than no axe at all.

I have the RMJ Tactical SHRIKE, and I think it’s the best Bushcraft tool I have. 1:16

How do you think would a bearded axe performed that offered a three inch blade while only being marginally heavier?

Knew to black powder after 55 yrs ty so much for tutoring me and ty mr knight RIP sir

Knew to black powder after 55 yrs ty so much for tutoring me and ty mr knight RIP sir

Its good as both tool and weapon. Its up to it's owner to come up with it's uses.

Now, what are you going to use that young maple for?

Thats interesting . The details about the teeth and the chest bone are intriging. Blond and yellow skinned ? Idk if ive ever heard of a big foot being discribed like that.

Never had a problem with it in most of 20 years use. You just need to know how to use it like any tool. I have a even smaller Fort Meigs style that is basically a pocket ax. Just learn to use it within it's limitations.

U said a mouth full brother,,I do civilwar r,,used to teach about it at are museum to school kids can't do that anymore 😢😮

I'm sure I've seen images of British troops in America having their hangars (short swords) replaced with tomahawks