Squaring a log into a beam with a broad axe is one of the oldest jobs in building, and the Gransfors Bruk Broad Axe model 1900 carries centuries of Swedish forging tradition into it. Each head is hand-forged by a smith who stamps his initials into the steel, and the axe arrives sharpened, so keep your thumb off the edge.
The 7-1/4-in edge takes long, controlled slices along a snapped line, leaving the faceted surface that marks honest hand-hewn timber, and the 3-3/4-lb head on a 15-in axe keeps the tool close to the work. Gransfors builds it nine ways so it matches how you hew. Pick the handle: straight, or angled to the right or left to keep your knuckles clear of the timber. Then pick the grind: bevel on the right for right-handed hewing, bevel on the left, or a double-sided grind that works from either side. This is a specialist's tool that rewards technique.
Specifications:
- Options: Straight handle with double-sided grind (4801), ground left (4802), or ground right (4803); Right-angled handle with double-sided grind (4821), bevel on left (4822), or bevel on right (4823); Left-angled handle with double-sided grind (4811), bevel on right (4812), or bevel on left (4813)
- Model: 1900
- Cutting edge: 7-1/4 in
- Head: 7-1/2 in long, 3-3/4 lb
- Overall length: 15 in
- Grinds: double-sided (knife) grind for general work and joints; single bevel with a flat right or flat left face for planing smooth surfaces
- Handles: straight, or angled right or left so the edge clears the timber and your knuckles
- Includes: vegetable-tanned leather sheath with snap and the Gransfors Axe Book; each head stamped by its smith
- Made in: Gransfors, Sweden by Gransfors Bruk
