Estwing Camping Hatchet

1.8-pound camping hatchet forged from a single solid piece of steel. Bound and lacquered leather grip. Comes with a tooled leather sheath. Made by Estwing in Rockford, Illinois. (more info)

Notify me when back in stock

From the edge to the handle, the Estwing camping hatchet is made from a single, solid piece of hardened metal, making it virtually indestructible. The hatchet is great for calving off segments of small felled trees, trimming branches on dead fall, quickly chunking wrist-sized fuel logs, and even splitting and separating thin tinder and kindling. The bound leather grip absorbs shock.

This versatile hatchet works well on camping trips, strapped to your pack. Besides being functional, the hatchet is also a beautiful thing. The metal darkens with age, adding character, and the leather ages gracefully, taking on a warm patina.

Use & Care

Firewood is not cut, it is split. This means you shouldn’t be using a chopping motion to get all the way through the wood. Aim the hatchet to strike the wood at the same spot, with the grain perpendicular to the ground. After a few key strikes the log will split.

To make kindling, split small pieces of wood from the outside. Don’t try splitting wood with nails in it. The little arrows will either go flying or crack the edge of the hatchet. Avoid knots. They will not split and you can spend hours trying to get through them.

To keep the Estwing hatchet working well, an occasional sharpening is needed. To keep rust from forming, oil the metal once a year or so, and keep it dry and out of the rain.

Production & Design

Almost a century ago, Swedish immigrant Ernest O. Estwing began forging tools from one solid piece of hardened steel. Since its inception in 1923, Estwing has continued making high quality durable metal with balanced weight distribution.

Made in the USA, the Estwing camping hatchet is constructed of solid hardened steel with a leather-bound handle. The handles are sealed with a water based lacquer.