1844 Helko Werk Germany Förster 7 Piece Set - 1 x Hatchet - 1 x Light - 1 x Medium - 1 x Heavy Felling Axes - 1 x Fireman's Hatchet - 1 x Sappi - 1 x Splitting Maul (Förster Axe Set)

I purchased the Helko Splitting Maul for the purpose of splitting larger rounds of Live Oak. My smaller splitting axe, which is fantastic for smaller rounds or different types of wood, simply bounces off these rounds. I decided to purchase the Helko brand because I have had good experiences with the quality, functionality and workmanship of European tools. I also figured that cultures who have developed with the forest must have the appropriate tools to work with the forest (Not the place for this but my grandfather had a woodmill in Laufach, Germany).My first impression of the Helko Splitting Maul was that I received exactly what I expected based on my research of Helko. A beautifully functional hand made tool. The wood is fine and the hardware is attached without any flaws. The maul is a lot heavier than your regular splitting axe (this is my first experience with a maul). Handling the maul takes a little getting used to due to the head weight. If one is comfortable with regular, lighter, splitting axes then the only adjustment necessary to use this is handling the weight which after a period of time and muscle development is easy to do. Proper technique and posture is definitely helpful. The handle that is substantially longer than a normal axe makes sense because it needs to handle the additional weight of the head while keeping an over swing from hitting ones feet.My first run with the maul, in my opinion, was a success (I don't have one of each brand to compare it to.). On pieces that my smaller splitting axe bounced off of the maul embedded itself a couple inches. Bouncing off vs embedding is a huge difference in that if I made another strike, with the maul, in the area of the first hit, I could split the pieces of oak. The long handle coupled with the weight gives the maul an incredibly powerful impact. I am splitting wood on a slope and it is very helpful to have the small hook/beak on the maul blade. If a piece is out of reach or rolls away I can quickly reach over and pull it towards me.Since my purchase I have split mostly oak, redwood and dry eucalyptus. For most rounds smaller that 15 inches the maul will split on the first try. Once I get to larger rounds it really depends on the pieces. It has been only a few weeks so I can only speak to what I have experienced. It sounds like my review is really favorable to this Helko product and that's because there was nothing that I could find negative. One must also remember as stated above that I have no experience with any other mauls...Attached are some pictures...yellow tint in lighting from smoke due to the Big Sur, Soberanes fire...Almost forgot...it has been nice that if you need to set the maul down when readjusting wood you don't need to lay it down then bend over and pick up because it will stand on its own head vertically.

Handle is thicker than typical U.S. axes, but fits my hands well. Best axe I’ve owned!

I loved this hatchet or ax because it’s so well-made but I needed to return it because of the price and cost a little bit too much and we wouldn’t use it as much as we thought we would we still might have it. I’m not sure if he kept it. I’m sure it’s gonna work fantastic Comes with a very nice booklet explaining everything about it and showing other options

I'm old school and refuse to get a gas splitter - I have several hand splitters but I couldn't find my favorite so I got this. This is the most substantial splitter I have ever seen. It came razor sharp and weighs as much as a sledehammer. I only split a few logs to try it as the weather has changed but it was great - great balance which makes the splitter do the work. Went through the logs like passing through butter. A little afraid of it as it doesn't require as much effort as the others but does twice the damage. If I had any comment the wood handle is still new so without the sweat and dirt it is a little slippery as I was not wearing gloves. With well made stuff there is always a little breaking in required but I love this. Now I'm rethinking my axes. Don't get me wrong I have a 30" Stihl chainsaw but I can't handle it anymore. This is a beast!!!

Upon opening the maul axe looks great. Good quality, well made, etc. I will update my review after use. All my axes are made by Gränsfors Bruk. I wanted to give this company a try. I use an axe daily. From a hatchet to a maul. I’ll give it a run for it’s money and report back. One thing I will say is, I believe that the handle will split. Just based off the wood pattern used. Not the ideal handle selection, but I could be wrong and will update.

Have you ever heard the saying, 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it'? Helko has been the incarnation of that motto for well over 100 years, and it would seem that this splitting maul does exactly what it was designed to do. This maul is extremely easy to work with, it sticks practically every time, but unlike all of the crappy home depot mauls that we've bought over the years, we can actually pull this out by hand, every single time. It has a hook tool on the edge you can use to pull wood toward you, saving your back some work.I was actually planning on giving this to my father for a birthday present, but after trying it out, I just had to keep it. After trying it out, he said that he loved it, splitting multiple rounds with ease, and pulling out the maul every time it got stuck with little to no issue at all.In short, this is an amazing tool, and you can't go wrong with it's price. It doesn't get much better than this.

Outstanding Performance and craftsmanship. Chops wood with ease.

Best axe for under $150