Yeah for felling big trees all day for a job undoubtedly the best choice. For fannying around in the woods at the current date single bit boys axe is best
Awesome video Ben! Really fun watching a tuned double bit in action. When I was younger I had always thought that the double bit would be my axe of choice due to versatility, but like you, I found it much more comfortable using a boys axe or a heavier single bit. True temper was a really good company back in the day. I have one of their cruiser doubles. Really nice patterns👍
I found an old plumb double bit at a local antique shop and its a beefy 5 pounder. It was in rough shape when i got it. And it has some fat cheeks on it.. i spent alot of time reprofiling it and putting an edge back on it. It's still pretty fat on the cheeks but it turned out to be my best chopping axe because it pops chips like nobody's business. It also splits really well too. It's just alittle too heavy to use all day but it makes bucking alot of fun. Amazing video ben!
Awesome vid, that big notch was a killer. Appreciate the effort for the diagram too. Never used a double, next to none available down here, seem impractical for a lot of tasks but sure look cool👍
Ben thanks for posting enjoyed the video.... could you possibly show the way you store your axes ... I want to make a storage rack for my axes Thanks for sharing your knowledge keep chopping ... cheers 🍻
I think for just relaxing and hobby purposes myself, I like to take as much time as I did when handling an axe, maul, bow saw or chainsaw. its a labor of love, not work or something that, I dread. If it saves time and money from hiring someone else to do it for you, its a plus and something to take pride in.
Yeah, I've been picking at my firewood with just an axe for most of the winter. Last week I finally fired up the saws and finished off the pile, just to give next winter's wood time to properly season. Running the saws sure felt like a chore, using the axes felt like honing a skill. Back to using an axe this week, maybe next spring I wont need to use the chainsaws.
Great video Ben. Would be great to also see you chop into some really stubborn wood sometime. Cutting through some dead hardwoods would make for an entertaining video and also allow you to give some advice on situations we haven't seen you in yet. A good teaching opportunity
I agree that double bits arent practical for most people, but i think they still have a purpose just because you can do like you did and put two differnt grinds on them.
Sorry to bother you Ben but as a woodsman can you show how to make a log to a cup of tea in the quickest time with a knife or axe and a firesteel..me and a few other CZcamsrs are doing it but the "bushcrafters"aren't 🙄my money is on you or bundi fundi 😁
I love light double bits in the rarer 2.5 to 3¼ lb they are heavenly. I like single bits for a heavy axe like a nice connie or a tassie if over 4lbs. really want to try that ox head double you used, always wondered if it had a full size eye or same size as a crusier
I also don't use double bits in the woods. Somehow scared making a stupid safety mistake. However, I never had any safety problems with single bit axes.
This is probably my favorite vintage for working axes. The patterns are really nice (both single and double bits) and the most of the American patterns were pretty thin but nice and cheeky. That handle looks super long. When you say its 34 inches, do you measure from the base of the head, or from the top?
Hey Ben just wanted to get your opinion on some things, what do you think about straight handles vs curved? And then also how do you feel about octogonal handles? Thanks!
@@benscottwoodchopper would you say the thinner sharper edge is better for chopping and cutting and maybe the rough thick edge is better for splitting?
You made using this axe look painfully awkward. I know that it wasn't intentional for this video either. It really drives home the context of the type of work you're doing in the woods and how thick or thin the forest is. Also the thickness of the trees you're cutting. The larger trees probably wouldn't be a problem or if you hung the axe on an Adirondack style handle.
DB’s are highly addictive Ben, you’ve been warned😆
That's a nice double...I just built me a boys axe and man you ain't kidding ..they are super handy in tight quarters and get the job done nicely 🤙🏻🪓😎
That camera angle really shows the handle flexing, brilliant work
Looking at old logging pictures from the latter half of the 19th century we find that double bit axes were the weapon of choice.
Yeah for felling big trees all day for a job undoubtedly the best choice. For fannying around in the woods at the current date single bit boys axe is best
I've found a fair amount of flint edge double bits here in the states, they're all really nice axes
Almost fell asleep listening to you chopping 😀. Great video! I have 1 double too, but rarely use it, but she sure is pretty!
Always love your videos and your an amazing guy 💪🏻🇬🇧
I like the balance of a double bit
Awesome video Ben! Really fun watching a tuned double bit in action. When I was younger I had always thought that the double bit would be my axe of choice due to versatility, but like you, I found it much more comfortable using a boys axe or a heavier single bit. True temper was a really good company back in the day. I have one of their cruiser doubles. Really nice patterns👍
Brilliant video.. All the best Lincoln 🤙👍
Great video and really nice double. I love those old flat but doubles!
I found an old plumb double bit at a local antique shop and its a beefy 5 pounder.
It was in rough shape when i got it. And it has some fat cheeks on it.. i spent alot of time reprofiling it and putting an edge back on it.
It's still pretty fat on the cheeks but it turned out to be my best chopping axe because it pops chips like nobody's business. It also splits really well too. It's just alittle too heavy to use all day but it makes bucking alot of fun.
Amazing video ben!
I enjoyed. Lovely axe
Awesome vid, that big notch was a killer. Appreciate the effort for the diagram too. Never used a double, next to none available down here, seem impractical for a lot of tasks but sure look cool👍
Ben thanks for posting enjoyed the video.... could you possibly show the way you store your axes ... I want to make a storage rack for my axes
Thanks for sharing your knowledge keep chopping ... cheers 🍻
Sure will do at some point
I think for just relaxing and hobby purposes myself, I like to take as much time as I did when handling an axe, maul, bow saw or chainsaw. its a labor of love, not work or something that, I dread. If it saves time and money from hiring someone else to do it for you, its a plus and something to take pride in.
Yeah usimg hand tools is more rewarding than a lot of people realise
Yeah, I've been picking at my firewood with just an axe for most of the winter. Last week I finally fired up the saws and finished off the pile, just to give next winter's wood time to properly season. Running the saws sure felt like a chore, using the axes felt like honing a skill. Back to using an axe this week, maybe next spring I wont need to use the chainsaws.
Great video Ben. Would be great to also see you chop into some really stubborn wood sometime. Cutting through some dead hardwoods would make for an entertaining video and also allow you to give some advice on situations we haven't seen you in yet. A good teaching opportunity
Cutting dead hardwoods is just hell, really busts your elbow joint czcams.com/video/qvtgmWbVI-g/video.html
Fun axe
I agree that double bits arent practical for most people, but i think they still have a purpose just because you can do like you did and put two differnt grinds on them.
Sorry to bother you Ben but as a woodsman can you show how to make a log to a cup of tea in the quickest time with a knife or axe and a firesteel..me and a few other CZcamsrs are doing it but the "bushcrafters"aren't 🙄my money is on you or bundi fundi 😁
I love light double bits in the rarer 2.5 to 3¼ lb they are heavenly. I like single bits for a heavy axe like a nice connie or a tassie if over 4lbs. really want to try that ox head double you used, always wondered if it had a full size eye or same size as a crusier
its a full sized eye
I also don't use double bits in the woods. Somehow scared making a stupid safety mistake. However, I never had any safety problems with single bit axes.
Its just a bugger to trip and fall on, there is no safe way to point the edge with a double
First? Excellent video. Well almost.
Anybody who views in the first day is a hardcore fan, so dont you worry!
This is probably my favorite vintage for working axes. The patterns are really nice (both single and double bits) and the most of the American patterns were pretty thin but nice and cheeky.
That handle looks super long. When you say its 34 inches, do you measure from the base of the head, or from the top?
Total length so top of head
The top-down method does seem to be more wasteful. That notch was huge.
Hey Ben just wanted to get your opinion on some things, what do you think about straight handles vs curved? And then also how do you feel about octogonal handles? Thanks!
Octagonal is somethig i tried and didnt like czcams.com/video/Arv58I3M7ZI/video.html
Did you sharpen with a bastard file or a fine cut file?
Smooth cut
What kind of file do you use? The Flint Edges I've come across are hard enough that most files seemed to skate across them.
Vallorbes mostly
also noticed a double bit makes you more aware of your swings and what your doing.
by more aware I'd say far more cautious and awkward
@@benscottwoodchopper lol. To each his own. If I had to pick only one axe to use forever it prob wouldn't be a double but I love them nonetheless.
@@thcolonyest 2.5lb boys axe for me, not nuch need for anything bigger these days except for fun
Aren’t the two bits for different purposes? Or do you just need to sharpen less often?
you have a super thin sharp side and another with a rougher edge generally
@@benscottwoodchopper would you say the thinner sharper edge is better for chopping and cutting and maybe the rough thick edge is better for splitting?
@@insatiable_mind both are cutting edges really
Zombie apocalypse approved.
🕛💀
You made using this axe look painfully awkward. I know that it wasn't intentional for this video either. It really drives home the context of the type of work you're doing in the woods and how thick or thin the forest is. Also the thickness of the trees you're cutting. The larger trees probably wouldn't be a problem or if you hung the axe on an Adirondack style handle.
First