An axe is a handheld edge tool used primarily to chop wood.
An axe consists of a flattish metal head with a sharp edge on one
side (occasionally two sides) of the head and a handle which is
traditionally made from wood.
The
axe is used for and has a history of being used for felling trees,
forestry management, carpentry roles, outdoor pursuits, preparing
firewood, as a safety tool and as a weapon.
The axe is one of the oldest tools known to man with roots back
to the Stone Age. Over the ages the axe has roughly stayed the
same in function with variations evolving through technological
advancements and specialist job roles.
There are many types of new and old axe available to see today,
the largest variety of different axe types which have survived are
from the 1750's - 1950's. During this time period there were bountiful
amounts of axe types produced for a host of different trades and
on top of this there were regional differences in the designs of
some of these axes.
A hand axe is a short handled axe that can comfortably be wielded with one hand. The most common type of hand axe is referred to as a hatchet.
There are numerous modern axes which base their design on old axe types, some have modernised the handles with new technological advances, some have continued with the traditional wooden handle but all the axe heads I have seen are based upon old designs.
A typical axe consists of the following parts:
There have been many makers of axe past and present, below are a list of a few well known axe makers:
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