Hatchet or Saw?

[LUNCHBOX]

I have both but would drop the hatchet and never look back. Would you use one or the other? Do you think the weight is worth carrying a hatchet? I have a saw that I would take anyday/anywhere. Its a little cheap thing but I have put this thing through hell and back and the only way it ever let me down was cut my finger (I blame the tool, not the operator..lol) I plan to do a review on it soon.

So which would you choose?

Don't bring in the chainsaw, its in a class of its own.

[RedJohn]

If it is only a choice of having either one, I choose the hatchet. More uses than the saw.

[izzyscout21]

I'm with RJ. I keep the hatchet around. Definitely has more uses than the saw. I'll take the weight vs the versatility

[bacpacker]

I think I'm with LB on this one. You can cut most anything with a saw you can a hatchet. A be much quiter while doing so. Move up to a true ax and i'd change my mind. There is not a good way to spilt firewood with a saw.

To me a hatchet is just too small, unless you plan on driving stakes with it.

[mitunnelrat]

I've been doing a little reading and thinking on just this lately, since tools can really impact the weight of a BOB and mine is/was just too damn big and heavy. A cutting tool isn't a necessity throughout most of the year here, but the ability is useful enough I'll keep my lightweight saw in it year round. I'll be adding my gerber hatchet in the winter when its going to be most effective and needed for splitting dry kindling and pounding tent pegs into the frozen ground. I'm still thinking about one of the gerber axe/ saw combos Kodiak mentioned for winter use.

[dpwill99]

In this instance if I could only have one I'd take a hatchet any time. A good hatchet can double as a knife if necessary, strip poles much easier than a saw, split a decent size log if you use it like a wedge, double as a hammer and if absolutely necessary it can provide a reasonable emergency weapon. Additionally it's a whole lot easier to sharpen a hatchet out in the feild than it is a saw.

[greenbeetle]

Saw

+1 weight
+1 safer

[Sniper-T]

of those choices... hatchet. more versatile.

personally though... I'd leave em both at home, and take my machete.

[realist]

Hatchet over a saw. It is better for fire starting. diwill99 I'm with you, the small ax is much more versatile than the saw. Mitunnelrat I have a Gerber too and have found it works well. I would much rather be in a position to have a full size ax but in a BOB it is not going to happen.

[ncmtnman]

Its going to cost you alot! But i bought a double bit axe that was use by people who had to carry while on horse back.Its 1-1/4lbs lighter than a normal one and uses a shorter and smaller handle.I gave $50 at a flea market and the ones ive seen on E-Bay got for $150 in the shape and name brand as mine. Dont give me a hard time over this im new and open minded!

[bobthe]

a hatchet isnt going to be quieter than a wire saw. and wire saws weigh maybe an ounce and can be concealed in your shirt pocket. they take a long time to cut, but the can cut through just about anything, and do a quiet job for essentially no space / weight penalty.

[mitunnelrat]

I would strongly recommend against anyone buying a wire saw. I used one this year in side by side comparisons with the little folding saws and a pocket chainsaw. imo, the wire saw was crap. It cut the sapling I was going to use as a handle for it, but bound up and broke as part of that process. There are far better options out there that are much more durable.
http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn165/mitunnelrat/021-1.jpg
The pocket chainsaw did much better. It weighs a bit more, but has a much more impressive cutting length, and still packs up pretty small. Its biggest downside is it'll still take some trial and error to select the proper sapling/ branch for adding a handle to it.
http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn165/mitunnelrat/023-1.jpg
http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn165/mitunnelrat/033-2.jpg

The best option I had available was the little folding saw. It doesn't have the length of a bow saw (which I'll be adding to my BOB as soon as I find it in my storage unit) or or the pocket chainsaw. but it still packs pretty small if space is at a premium - and is extremely user friendly.

ETA: on hatchets, its my view that its designed for different tasks than the saw, with each holding a significant advantage over the other in those areas. In my area, a hatchet isn't a necessity in the dry summer months, but during the wet/ frozen seasons it will be a huge asset in splitting larger logs and getting to dry wood for my fires. I've had a hell of a time getting a good blaze from the smaller pieces that were saturated from snow and rain. Could I just carry a saw and use my knife? Yes, but I'd run the risk of damaging the blade, which isn't ground for wood work. Its stout enough to do a lot of things, but batoning is just abusive. I've snapped a knife in half using it to baton. Besides, it won't pound tent stakes into frozen ground.

[bobthe]

I would strongly recommend against anyone buying a wire saw. I used one this year in side by side comparisons with the little folding saws and a pocket chainsaw. imo, the wire saw was crap. It cut the sapling I was going to use as a handle for it, but bound up and broke as part of that process. There are far better options out there that are much more durable. .

i would concur that the PERFORMANCE of a wire saw compared to a wire saw compared to that of a hatchet or just about anything else is crap, but from my own experience i wouldnt discount them. I wager you bought a bum wire. I have used wire saws to cut 6-8" (by memory) trunks before. it takes ages to cut something big, but suffice it to say, the wire i used didnt bind up and break cutting a small sappling like yours did. Ive had mine for ages and when purchased it had ends with what look to be keyrings on the end to slip a finger through to hold the wire with. imho they are for when you need a near zero weight / space solution.

[mitunnelrat]

That's cool then, but did make me think of something I haven't seen discussed here yet: The energy expenditure of using one tool over another. For instance, how much harder is it to cut lengths with a hatchet over a saw, or even a full ax over a saw? and since we got into various saw types, how much more work is it to use a short bladed saw over a long one? Has anyone considered this aspect of their tool selection?

[bacpacker]

The energy output for keeping a fire going is considerable, in particular if you are alone or only 2 folks regardless of the method used. As has been pointed out in other threads on this site, a small fire will perform almost as well as a large one and require a lot less wood to fuel it, which in turn needs a lot less labor to fuel. A small fire is also much less likely to be spotted by other folks in the area wishing to do you harm.

I think the "chain saw in a can" is certainly worth having. The wire saws vary greatly in quality. I've trashed one on the first branch I tried to cut. Others have been damaged after more use. I've only found one that is still functional. An hatchet, or ax, is much more useful for a wide range of tasks. In a BO by vehicle I would want to have a hatchet, ax, bow saw and pocket chain saw, maybe even a powered chain saw. However on foot I probably will not be carrying a hatchet. At least current plans don't call for one.

One last thing I have found over the years, i will take down dead standing timber first, second stuff in the bushes, third stuff on the ground. All pieces are left their full length and drug into camp. Once the fire is built up I will start feeding a long branch or log in by the end and move it up as it burns. This keeps the labor to a minimum.

All this being said I know that weather conditions around the country varies a great deal from what we see here in east Tn. so take what I posted with a grain of salt for your location.

[izzyscout21]

for obvious reasons, my hatchet is my tool of choice. I can use it for wood, or well, you get the idea.

http://i764.photobucket.com/albums/xx288/2crgrunt/DSCF2907.jpg

[LUNCHBOX]

Izzy, I've came across a couple of these in my recent excursions and never bothered with them. Can you tell us what you gave for it or what it would be worth?

[dpwill99]

I've looked at that design a few times, Izzy, but I haven't picked one up to try it yet. Does it perform as well as it looks like it does? Right at the moment when I'm out in the woods I either carry a cold steel rifleman's hawk or a small Wetterlings hatchet. The Wetterlings was slightly expensive, but I've never had another hatchet cut like it does or hold an edge as well.The hammer head on the rifleman's hawk has come in really useful a time or so, even if it is a little heavy. Tyically I'm kind of a traditionalist when it comes to carry blades in the woods, but that beast you have looks like it just might change my mind!Oh, another note- wiresaws can make really good emergency snares if you find yourself in need of one. I always try to have one stashed somewhere even though every one I've ever had has bound up and broken quite easilly.

[izzyscout21]

I really like it. It does a fine job splitting kindling, saplings and the like. I havent used it on anything heavier yet, not have I driven any tent stakes with it. It WILL open fire hydrants and that spike on the end will penetrate kevler, soft and in helmet form.

[tank]

Hi all first time on here. If I had my pick I'd use both, a saw can cut larger wood than a hatchet with less noise, the hatchet will split wood where a saw can't or will take too long.
Remember, a knife will do different things than a hatchet or a saw, a hatchet will do different things than a knife or saw, and a saw will do different things that a hatchet or knife, carry all three.

[AquaHull]

I'm part Native American ,so a hatchet is the way to go. Tank,I'm also in West Michigan near M82

[Gunfixr]

One of the things to remember with the wire saws is that it is very easy to overheat them and break them. If you get a good one, and are slow with it, it'll work. Run it too hard and fast, and it gets hot and snaps.
I'm personally kind of on the fence over saw or hatchet. I have both, plus a full size axe. The axe isn't really much heavier, and would do so much more than the hatchet. However, the saw is lighter and quieter. I guess it would depend on the mission.
I think a good combo might be a saw and good machete, especially a short to midlength one. The machete will do many of the small shaving type work that the saw just doesn't do, about the only thing left undone is serious splitting.
If you have friends along, just have others carry something, and you can have them all. I could carry the machete, for trail breaking, my wife the axe, or the oldest son, and daughter the saw.

[dragon5126]

Saw hatchet and machette all have different uses with minor crossover with the exception of the sawback machette which suck as a saw... but will still saw. A good hatchet can be used as a draw knife, an ulu a skinner, a hammer, a pioneering wedge, a spoke shave and numerous other tasks that a saw simply can not do. A saw is just a saw BUT there are tasks you can not do with any other implement, such as cut a dove tail, cut precise lengths of wood, and cut quieter and cross cut faster than a hatchet can in most instances. For these reasons, in anything but an extremely basic kit, both are needed. As for a full axe, well thats a totally different tool, it's designed for felling trees and splitting heavy wood. Gunfixer has the right idea, gear NEEDS to be split among the people in the group. Rarely is there a need for redundancy in most of the tools. so the load out being divided out lightens the load and makes it possible for a more efficent kit.

[sidewinder]

The Tomahawk (With Video) | ShilohTV (http://shilohtv.com/?p=5073)

I'm leaning in this direction


Tomahawk

[Gunfixr]

I do have a tomahawk, and it is quite cool. However, it seems like it might be a bit limited if you were trying to chop wood with it, as it's kinda light.
For non-firearm CQB, well, it'd be awesome. A good blade in one hand, and the 'hawk in the other.
I just saw something neat today in the new SPG catalog. A Dutch firemans hatchet. Instead of the hammer side it has a pick opposite the cutting head. You could still do some hammering with the side flat. It has a 13" handle with steel guards, and weighs in a about 1 1/2 lbs.