Gransfors Bruk Small Forest Axe: My Honest Review

This was one of the axes i got early on in my collection, at the time I thought it was pretty good but was not absolutely blown away. As time has passed I have become less and less impressed as my collection has grown and I have compared it to other axes from much less expensive producers. This is my honest review, if you disagree fine, but I don't care to hear it unless you have directly compared it to a Rinaldi. Part of reviewing is comparing to the competition, and Rinaldi make a better axe for £25

[JudahMaccabee_]

I've had one for 8 years and use it on a daily basis. I carry it around my belt or in backpack, as it was meant to be a backpacking/camping axe. I have built a 10 - day camp for 7 people with this axe. I have zero complaints about it. It is a phenomenal tool for its intended purpose.

[gtruls]

I use this exact axe for backpacking while hunting. Of course it doesn’t do as well as a full size felling axe but for its size and weight, for my needs, this axe is really hard to beat. I mostly use it to cut down trees that falls in trails and for making fire in my hicking trips. I don’t process wood bigger than what i can cut with my small folding saw so we’re talking about felling, limbing and splitting trees that are between 2" and 5" inchs. I does the job perfectly for me. There’s a lot of soft wood where i am tho but still.... i love this axe. To each their own! I personally don’t care paying the price for a tool i’ll love using and looking at for many many years!

Don’t know where you saw that the ray mears version is longer and heavier. They are the exact same dimensions and weight on his website and gransfors’s website. 2 pounds and 50cm

[nikondgo]

Dude, I’m so happy I came across this review. I thought I’m the only one who was doubtful about the usefulness of an axe with a shorter than 24”/61cm handle in the sea of positive reviews. And I’m a short guy, for taller people would be worse. I didn’t know about that Rinaldi Calabria until now and by the look of it it’s exactly what I’m looking for. I have that memory of the no-name axe I was using as a young boy, maintaining trails, with a very long handle and very light head. It proved extremely useful - light, yet quite capable, easy to reach those higher branches hanging down over the trail, and quite handy for just about anything short of chopping down big trees. I was also using it as a support, like a cane on steep slopes for balance. I didn’t know it would be so difficult to find something like that these days.
Thanks for the nice review and for pointing out that aspect of the matter. I’ll be checking out your other videos.
Ah, and for those interested there’s a Hultafors model with the same head weight and longer 24” handle, same price range though...

[ivanmarjanovic]

I chop wood whole my life, i use most for my spliting old "Bosnian" axes, al hand made, and cost me 30$ just for head. But spliting and cuting are two different things. I buyed only one axe head in my life and only changed handels. God spliting axe with good wood handle will do. I buyed GB small forest axe just for kindling, and small use around the house, and camping, and bragging rights. 😂😂 Owning a nice axe today is a hobby, if you want to do a work in forest, i mean a lot of work i use husqwarna chainsaw. For chooping and spliting any spliting axe will do. All other is just bragging rights! My son is now 7 years old loves to camp, fishing, i buyed GB small fores axe for us to use, and for him to learn how to look after a good tool...

[SkillCult]

Can't argue with much of that. I've never been interested in axes with handles between 16" and 25. I'd rather have a light 16" belt hatchet or something more like the gransfors longer forest axe, which is about 25" long. You hit the nail on the head, they never feel right. Even the 25" version is kind of something that doesn't do anything best, but it's pretty capable, whereas these also do too many things wrong and are more dangerous. Pretty disappointing that they can't make straight heads on such an expensive axe. I'm pretty sure i could eaisly invent a jig to align them right off the shaping dies, or at least improved. They don't bother, because no body cares, even though virtually every writter on axes says align the bit with the handle. I don't really care about the geometry for splitting on a multipurpose axe. I want it to chop and the splitting can be made to work.

[rogerharvey]

Is this the highest proportion of thumbs downs you've had? 😄
I got mine when it was about £45 and I agree pretty much with every word you said.

[robbowman]

G'day, Ben. GB SFA is over 200 AUD typically and not something I could ever justify buying. When you say chisel grind, do you mean a single bevel, or a straight V taking out the convex? Like a scandi bevel? Also, I was gifted a 400g Rinaldi American axe head which I'm making a handle for now. Is there any benefit at going for a longer handle than the as sold 450mm length on such a light weight head? You have about a 600mm handle on your 350g Sicilian?

[Frendh]

They make a ton of versions. Get a version closer to the length that you want next time.

[hobojordo]

I agree! I was always wondering why people were so into them, good to see an informed review ;) ive always liked the inexpensive soviet Siberian forest axes, have u ever used those? (some are better than others - gotta find one with good steel)

[busy]

Why not buy a Scandinavian forest axe? It sounds like you bought the wrong axe for the task.

[jlastre]

Of course you’re entitled to your opinion, and if you feel this axe is overhyped I’m not going to argue. In general the smaller an axe is the more dangerous it is for a novice. Compact axes are not a new idea. But the *proper* technique is to kneel and aim at arms length when using this type of axe when processing wood. Maybe it’s old school but Ray Mears covered this more than ten years ago. I think you can even find the video here on YT. There regular Scandinavian Forest Ace is the smallest I would use to fell a tree.

[bunndyboy]

I agree with you. I bought one and don't like it either. Handles too long for the hatchet head. I wish I got the Scandinavian one with larger head and longer handle.
It's just too long for one hand and not long enough for two hands. I have and old school gba boys axe that I handled myself, absolutely shits on the forest axe. 2 3/4 pound head with a 26" handle.
Oh and I forgot to mention on my forest axe the grain on the handle dose not run parallel with the blade like it should, in fact it goes in the opposite direction. Shit go gransfors bruks considering it cost me over $200.

[arctichare]

Change the handle for a longer one and you should be happy.

[mini]

So... You wish you bought the 430 and not the 420. It's not the axes fault you ordered the wrong one.

[quintond.]

Pretty much. I bought one a few years ago to limb a huge tree in my yard. What I was really after was the Scandinavian forest axe sized tool. Now I have an overgrown expensive hatchet that I hate and a hults that I spent less money on that sees way more use.

[Popeii]

Haven't tried either. Kind of a tacky commercial for the rinaldi though.

[nickwinters]

Maybe you should of bought the Scandinavian 1 slightly bigger and heavyer put the wrong 1 mate its a very good axe but you need something bigger

[andymcclymont]

Maybe its that dodgey sleeveless shirt your wearing thats clouding you from thinking straight, youre the only person out of 20 odd thousand that have made a review vid of this axe that thinks its over hyped.
Keep up the honest content though because i like it. 👍🏻

Andy from North West England

[johnmcgirr]

GRANSFORS Bruk are the best Axe makers period they stay sharp longer than any other Axe makers and a breeze to sharpen, I have owed most makes of Axes and these are superior.

[Rooster]

People will spend $200 easily on a knife but not an axe. I never understood that.