In modern “bushcraft,” to listen to many of the self-proclaimed gurus, the saw has trumped the ax as the most important tool for fieldcraft. It is often pointed out that the ax is a dangerous tool, and amateur users are prone to grievous bodily harm, The ax, so goes the modern wisdom, requires months, or even years, of constant use to master, while a young child can learn to use a saw safely, in a few hours. It’s absolute horseshit. I mean, it’s true, to a very large degree, but is used as an excuse for mediocrity, rather than a driver to develop expert skill. It does take more practice to use an ax effectively and efficiently, because its proper application is not as intuitive as the saw, but I can teach any trainable person with enough hand-eye coordination to ride a bicycle, to use an ax, safely and efficiently, for the majority of fieldcraft uses, in half a day of instruction and practice. For most tasks, an ax is faster than a saw, by a considerable margin, and the safety factor is generally a matter of applying simple common sense before you start swinging and hacking. The ax is more versatile for use than the saw, and should always be the first choice, even above a knife, if for some reason, you were truly limited to just one tool1. Splitting and shaving wood, making and pounding pegs or wedges; none of these can be achieved with the saw, while an ax—like the saw—can fell, limb, and buck trees, including those too large in diameter for commonly carried fieldcraft saws. There are benefits to the saw though, and these are the reasons I carry one, whenever feasibly possible…. Read the rest: https://www.patreon.com/posts/field...paign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link Continue reading...
