Dude, when you're limbing a fallen tree only take off the limbs on the opposite side of the tree, then move to the other side of tree and take the limbs on the other side. It's going to skip off there sometime and you're going to take a hatchet to the shin one day.
Hultafors group owns Hults Bruk and Husqvarna. Both are excellent but the quality is a little better with the Hults Bruk in my experience. I thought the heads on the Husqvarna were cast where as the heads on the Hults Bruk was hammer forged. I could be wrong though.
They are drop forged. (I think that's the word) The hammer/anvil have a set of shaped fixtures that shape the steel in several stages. The smith/operator moves the red steel from form to form as the machine cycles. So, they are not really shaped by hand, just moved through the shaping process by hand. That said, you or I would certainly not have the timing and skill needed to forge an axe on the first try in these old machines.
Better to compare the Husqvarna camping axe vs the almike they are exactly the same tool with less than half the price. Marketing wise when you engrave the brand hults bruk on something it's going to get a higher price than Husqvarna's brand. Regarding which is sharper than which, after using the axes for a period of time you will have to resharpen them anyway i have the Husqvarna camping axe got it for 65$ in Lebanon 🇱🇧 it's an amazing axe
"hand forged" means that the forging machines are manually operated. The word "Bruk" is an old word translating to something like "-works", meaning factory. It refers to a whole mining or worshop community predating the industrial age. The "bruks" were usually located at a source of a natural stream or waterfall providing hydro power for the forge or mill. (I think you have an equivalent in english in the word "falls" in some place names. The hammers at Gränsfors and Hults bruk are old 19'th century machines, each machine has a set of two-sided forms arranged in a row, that cyclically smash together. The smith/operator takes the red hot steel piece and move it from one form to the next, completing the forging process in one single heating. It takes skill and timing to get it right, but it is not like they are forming the axe with a hand-held hammer and anvil. The axes are ground, sharpened and polished by hand, using pre-made grinding jigs. It is an early-modern, semi-automated production process. It is more costly than a fully automated process, and the focus is on high quality and customer-oriented design for the outdoors- and craftspeople markets. Hults bruk and Gränsfors bruk were small tool manufacturers making no-name products for the military and civilian market, but they were a diminishing industry in the 1990's when competition from foreign manufacturers made their products too expensive for the average buyer. The stroke of genius was to find a market with collectors, craftsmen and outdoors-people. They changed the design from polished/painted to leaving the axe heads in the black, for a more rugged and "hand made" look, adding beautifully oiled hickory handles and a leather sheath. If the axe looks like a hundred bucks, you can actually charge a hundred bucks for it. They also started collecting old classical axes and copying their design, rather than sticking to only one boring, generic design. All of these axes are made from homogenous modern tool steel, rather than laminated steel. (As some of the best old axes were) There is a difference in shape and design, and there may be a slight difference in finishing quality, but besides that, these axes are more or less equivalent in terms of material and production method. I have had a few Gränsfors and Hults bruk axes, wich I have used professionally in woodcraft. In my experience, the Gränsfors axes has slightly better overall finish and a wide variety of classic and modern designs, but I must say the Hults bruk axes came with a better edge. Husquarna has been forging tools and gun barrels since the 17'th century but have oriented more towards castings of iron and aluminium for various applications. Internationally, they are most known for motorcycles and landscaping equipment based on lightweight aluminium block engines. Husquarna were late on the bandwagon with the "botique" axes trend, started by Gränsfors bruk in the late 90's. Since Husquarna has a major name recognition for their range of chain saws, they could easily take their market share with botique axes too, even if that wasn't part of their classic product line. It's all a bit of a charade with these axes. They are modern tools, based on classic designs and heritage production lines. I am glad they exist and have had such success internationally. If you have the means to support a local blacksmith, please do so. These axes are the next best thing. Husquarna is a huge international company with production facilities all over the world. They make excellent products but they don't need you to buy their axes, it is just a way for them to grab a piece of the market they feel entitled to. I think it would have been more fitting for Husquarna to make axes for professional loggers and landscapers, maybe in their trademark high-vis orange, so you don't lose them out in the forest.
@@AlaskanFrontier1 why yikes, its pretty cool - you can get husquarna axes that are identical to hults bruks... The further the reach the better, when you buy either - its really about supporting a very very old axe forge and buying into the continuation of some industral cultural history...
The difference between the Husqvarna and the Hults Bruk is not the brand but the model.Husqvarna has absolutely the same model like the lighter Hults Bruk you show here.So is the Hults Bruk Anake the same as the Husqvarna shown in this video.
Hi, enjoy your channel and content. I'm no bushcrafting expert or a lumberjack - only an armchair observer. I believe that the differences may also be due to whether the axe/hatchet head is either a Felling or Splitting type design. Afterall, not everybody in the world bushcrafts in Boreal type forests - hence type of trees' and their respective wood densities all over the world differ. As a side research, do have a look at what the shape of axe-heads of competition lumberjacks look like.... Kindest regards and all the best from Gold Coast, Australia. :)
I think all of these designs are a kind of all-purpouse, "outdoorsman" design. They can be used for splitting, felling and branching, but they are not a specialized tool for any of those tasks. There are splitting axes with a much more wedge-shaped head, and carpenter's axes with a very flat and straight edge for precision work. Hults bruk has a huge felling axe wich is more than twice the size of these. There are also asymmetrical heaving axes, adzes and carving axes in the product line of Gränsfors bruk.
@@AlaskanFrontier1 still a good video, but might be in need of a title edit lol although if you didn't have time or a place to fix up the Husqvarna then I'd definitely buy the hults or gransfors
All made by the same company! Husqvarna make another hatchet called the camp axe and same as wildlife, but curved handle. They all have the same steel. And Husqvarna have better grain orientation in the handles. I bought camp axe, forest axe,and carpenter axe for the same price of the small forest axe! Makes sense. And the masks re not the basic as you have on the basic hatchet. That cost £20 in the uk.
No you are not supposed to do more work with an unrefined hatchet!!! You are supposed to do more work, before you work!!! For nearly a hundred dollars saved what did you expect?!!! You are supposed to do the refinements yourself in lieu of paying!!! So no whining, grab a file and a puck, and some sand paper and make it what you want and it'll be as good as the bruks!!!
A good axe will last you a lifetime. Do i care about spending 100$ more and getting a beautiful piece of art with a 20 years warranty? Absolutely not! Even more when I’m thinking about all the good time i’ll pass in the wood enjoying my perfect tool. To each their own i guess!!!
Sure, the Husqvarna is handmade in Sweden.... with realistically the absolute barest minimum amount of time spent by that human-being in going over each one, since they typically sell for only $50.oo a pop. Compared to _almost_ 3x as much for a similar sized Hults Bruk. *That* is the one getting the amount of time a well-made hatchet deserves in human hands. Yet, technically, both brands are telling the truth when they say their hatchets are handmade in Sweden. The devil is in the details though.
You would hope the price increase means a quality increase. But it really doesn’t work like that. The hults bruk axes fail just like the husqvarna. I have both HB and Husqvarna axes. Handles are the same, heads are the same with the HB having a slightly longer bit. The Husqvarna stamp is actually far more clear. On the husky. The sheath is better on the HB but not by much. It wouldn’t justify the double or double and a half price increase
Ironically, they are both made by Hultafors in the same factory. Hultafors, Hultsbruk and the Swedish-made Husqvarna axes are basically the same thing, although perhaps they spend less time finishing/sharpening the Husqvarnas. In any case the Huskies are exceptional value overall IMHO.
How did you get John Malkovich to narrate?
Dude, when you're limbing a fallen tree only take off the limbs on the opposite side of the tree, then move to the other side of tree and take the limbs on the other side. It's going to skip off there sometime and you're going to take a hatchet to the shin one day.
That’s a fact
Hultafors group owns Hults Bruk and Husqvarna. Both are excellent but the quality is a little better with the Hults Bruk in my experience. I thought the heads on the Husqvarna were cast where as the heads on the Hults Bruk was hammer forged. I could be wrong though.
Husqvarna head is forged just the same with the same steel ,Difference is level of finishing and the makers msrk.
They are drop forged. (I think that's the word)
The hammer/anvil have a set of shaped fixtures that shape the steel in several stages. The smith/operator moves the red steel from form to form as the machine cycles.
So, they are not really shaped by hand, just moved through the shaping process by hand.
That said, you or I would certainly not have the timing and skill needed to forge an axe on the first try in these old machines.
Same thing different brand....
4:15 just wanted to throw this out there u can get that same thin edge on the cheaper none premium haultafors axes...so not really notable
I just ordered the Helko Werk Traditional Rheinland Pack axe hand made in 🇩🇪.
Very cool!
Better to compare the Husqvarna camping axe vs the almike they are exactly the same tool with less than half the price. Marketing wise when you engrave the brand hults bruk on something it's going to get a higher price than Husqvarna's brand. Regarding which is sharper than which, after using the axes for a period of time you will have to resharpen them anyway i have the Husqvarna camping axe got it for 65$ in Lebanon 🇱🇧 it's an amazing axe
Try the husqvarna hiking hatchet!
Will do!
Very helpful, i like the hults better.
"hand forged" means that the forging machines are manually operated.
The word "Bruk" is an old word translating to something like "-works", meaning factory. It refers to a whole mining or worshop community predating the industrial age. The "bruks" were usually located at a source of a natural stream or waterfall providing hydro power for the forge or mill. (I think you have an equivalent in english in the word "falls" in some place names.
The hammers at Gränsfors and Hults bruk are old 19'th century machines, each machine has a set of two-sided forms arranged in a row, that cyclically smash together.
The smith/operator takes the red hot steel piece and move it from one form to the next, completing the forging process in one single heating. It takes skill and timing to get it right, but it is not like they are forming the axe with a hand-held hammer and anvil.
The axes are ground, sharpened and polished by hand, using pre-made grinding jigs.
It is an early-modern, semi-automated production process. It is more costly than a fully automated process, and the focus is on high quality and customer-oriented design for the outdoors- and craftspeople markets.
Hults bruk and Gränsfors bruk were small tool manufacturers making no-name products for the military and civilian market, but they were a diminishing industry in the 1990's when competition from foreign manufacturers made their products too expensive for the average buyer.
The stroke of genius was to find a market with collectors, craftsmen and outdoors-people. They changed the design from polished/painted to leaving the axe heads in the black, for a more rugged and "hand made" look, adding beautifully oiled hickory handles and a leather sheath. If the axe looks like a hundred bucks, you can actually charge a hundred bucks for it.
They also started collecting old classical axes and copying their design, rather than sticking to only one boring, generic design.
All of these axes are made from homogenous modern tool steel, rather than laminated steel. (As some of the best old axes were)
There is a difference in shape and design, and there may be a slight difference in finishing quality, but besides that, these axes are more or less equivalent in terms of material and production method.
I have had a few Gränsfors and Hults bruk axes, wich I have used professionally in woodcraft. In my experience, the Gränsfors axes has slightly better overall finish and a wide variety of classic and modern designs, but I must say the Hults bruk axes came with a better edge.
Husquarna has been forging tools and gun barrels since the 17'th century but have oriented more towards castings of iron and aluminium for various applications. Internationally, they are most known for motorcycles and landscaping equipment based on lightweight aluminium block engines.
Husquarna were late on the bandwagon with the "botique" axes trend, started by Gränsfors bruk in the late 90's. Since Husquarna has a major name recognition for their range of chain saws, they could easily take their market share with botique axes too, even if that wasn't part of their classic product line.
It's all a bit of a charade with these axes. They are modern tools, based on classic designs and heritage production lines. I am glad they exist and have had such success internationally. If you have the means to support a local blacksmith, please do so. These axes are the next best thing.
Husquarna is a huge international company with production facilities all over the world. They make excellent products but they don't need you to buy their axes, it is just a way for them to grab a piece of the market they feel entitled to.
I think it would have been more fitting for Husquarna to make axes for professional loggers and landscapers, maybe in their trademark high-vis orange, so you don't lose them out in the forest.
Haha Husquarna are made by Hults bruk. Lol, same guys hand forge them.
Yikes
@@AlaskanFrontier1 why yikes, its pretty cool - you can get husquarna axes that are identical to hults bruks... The further the reach the better, when you buy either - its really about supporting a very very old axe forge and buying into the continuation of some industral cultural history...
The difference between the Husqvarna and the Hults Bruk is not the brand but the model.Husqvarna has absolutely the same model like the lighter Hults Bruk you show here.So is the Hults Bruk Anake the same as the Husqvarna shown in this video.
I got a Husqvarna to give to the neighbor when they want to borrow an axe.
Great info on axes, where’s the CR Pacific?
Im mortified. 😳😳😳😳
The Husqkvarna is a different type of ax, it is intended for chopping and splitting not as a bush crafting as the other two are.
Good and expert explanation. Thanks alot.
Glad it was helpful!
I stand to be corrected but the Husky carbon steel axes are made by Hultafors & are their 2nd quality finish but are very good!!
You are probably right.
I thought this was a Chris Reeves video? Glad I'm not the only one who F's up! LOL
Oof 😬😬😬😬😬
Hey at least you have all your fingers speaking of F ups!!!
Hi, enjoy your channel and content.
I'm no bushcrafting expert or a lumberjack - only an armchair observer.
I believe that the differences may also be due to whether the axe/hatchet head is either a Felling or Splitting type design. Afterall, not everybody in the world bushcrafts in Boreal type forests - hence type of trees' and their respective wood densities all over the world differ.
As a side research, do have a look at what the shape of axe-heads of competition lumberjacks look like....
Kindest regards and all the best from Gold Coast, Australia. :)
I've been hearing that lately. Maybe that is a point to concede on. As my experiences hover around Alaska and the Boreal Forest at large.
I think all of these designs are a kind of all-purpouse, "outdoorsman" design. They can be used for splitting, felling and branching, but they are not a specialized tool for any of those tasks.
There are splitting axes with a much more wedge-shaped head, and carpenter's axes with a very flat and straight edge for precision work. Hults bruk has a huge felling axe wich is more than twice the size of these. There are also asymmetrical heaving axes, adzes and carving axes in the product line of Gränsfors bruk.
Wrong video for the title. It's axes not crk pacific
I realize that now 😳😬
@@AlaskanFrontier1 still a good video, but might be in need of a title edit lol although if you didn't have time or a place to fix up the Husqvarna then I'd definitely buy the hults or gransfors
Excelents axes, good revitions
Thank you kindly!
At 2:57 you said, "let's jump into it". My GOD!
Sorry!
I love my CRK Pacific its just perfect... but to be true mine looks totaly different than yours and has no long wood handle 😂
😳😳😳😳😳 I'm mortified
Where's the Chris Reeve Pacific? ... Have you been smoking too much Tanana Red?
😳😳😳😳😳 corrected.
All made by the same company! Husqvarna make another hatchet called the camp axe and same as wildlife, but curved handle. They all have the same steel. And Husqvarna have better grain orientation in the handles. I bought camp axe, forest axe,and carpenter axe for the same price of the small forest axe! Makes sense. And the masks re not the basic as you have on the basic hatchet. That cost £20 in the uk.
Thanks for the info!
No you are not supposed to do more work with an unrefined hatchet!!! You are supposed to do more work, before you work!!! For nearly a hundred dollars saved what did you expect?!!! You are supposed to do the refinements yourself in lieu of paying!!! So no whining, grab a file and a puck, and some sand paper and make it what you want and it'll be as good as the bruks!!!
😳😳😳😳😳😭😭😭😭😭
@@AlaskanFrontier1 it's ok I still love you buddy!!!
A good axe will last you a lifetime. Do i care about spending 100$ more and getting a beautiful piece of art with a 20 years warranty? Absolutely not! Even more when I’m thinking about all the good time i’ll pass in the wood enjoying my perfect tool. To each their own i guess!!!
Sure, the Husqvarna is handmade in Sweden.... with realistically the absolute barest minimum amount of time spent by that human-being in going over each one, since they typically sell for only $50.oo a pop. Compared to _almost_ 3x as much for a similar sized Hults Bruk. *That* is the one getting the amount of time a well-made hatchet deserves in human hands. Yet, technically, both brands are telling the truth when they say their hatchets are handmade in Sweden. The devil is in the details though.
You would hope the price increase means a quality increase. But it really doesn’t work like that. The hults bruk axes fail just like the husqvarna. I have both HB and Husqvarna axes. Handles are the same, heads are the same with the HB having a slightly longer bit.
The Husqvarna stamp is actually far more clear. On the husky. The sheath is better on the HB but not by much. It wouldn’t justify the double or double and a half price increase
Ironically, they are both made by Hultafors in the same factory. Hultafors, Hultsbruk and the Swedish-made Husqvarna axes are basically the same thing, although perhaps they spend less time finishing/sharpening the Husqvarnas. In any case the Huskies are exceptional value overall IMHO.
lol, maybee u wold take husqvarna camping axe and then compare and talk? because this comparison is totally wrong
Interesting.
Somebody didn't title this one right ... That's it I'm unsubbing this is false advertisement😏😜
I would too.
😳😳😳😬😬😬😬
Good comparison brother! Thanks. Pretty sure “fitment” isn’t a real word… but who cares it sounds good! Lol ✌🏼
Something wrong with the titel????
Yep I screwed up 😳😳😳
Apparently something is wrong with your spell check!!! Lol😉😄😝
move the axe closer to the camera
Sorry about that