kva47
Member
So, I received a Cold Steel Viking Axe as a wedding present (obviously from a very awesome friend). It's something I'd drooled over frequently when perusing catalogs and youtube videos, but never thought I'd have the spare change for.
I was struck by how heavy it really feels in the hand. There's quite a lot of steel in the head. If anything I would say that it was overengineered. I'm a fairly small guy, so it seemed a little unwieldy for me in the beginning, but after several hours of dry handling I got used to it. It's certainly very different from any other weapon I've handled. I would have no fears with regards to durability of either the axe head or haft.
It didn't come nearly as sharp as I expected. Many reviewers have called it razor sharp, and there's some video evidence to support this claim, but mine came fairly dull. It was definitely not sharp enough to slice a sheet of paper. I touched it up with an accusharp.
The axe comes disassembled, and the attachment screws are a joke. Mine were so poorly made that the male screw wouldn't fit the female connection socket, no matter what. I ended up just seating the axe head firmly on the shaft by holding it upside down and smacking the top of the shaft on a rock (watch the blade). It hasn't come lose. There's no danger of it flying off the end, as the top of the shaft is significantly wider than the body.
Both the shaft and blade came coated in clear lacquer/polyurethane! I can understand this with the blade, as it keeps the carbon steel from rusting, but the coating started flaking off during testing and I removed the rest myself. I used paint stripper and steel wool to take the very thick lacquer off the handle. I've stained it darker and will be rubbing some boiled linseed oil on. I think this is something that Cold Steel should have done in the first place. The stock handle doesn't look very aesthetically pleasing or authentic.
It cuts wonderfully. It came with a warning that it's not intended for cutting wood or vegetation due to a narrower blade profile. I personally think it would stand up to some tree felling just fine, but I didn't try. I've cut pumpkins, milk jugs, soda cans, 2-liters and other similar targets with no problem.
If you want a large Viking/Danish axe, there's not many options out there. This one has its flaws, but on the whole I would recommend it. There's something magical about the feeling I get when I neatly cleave something in twain with it.
Here's a quick video of some cutting I did:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3DRGN6U52c
I was struck by how heavy it really feels in the hand. There's quite a lot of steel in the head. If anything I would say that it was overengineered. I'm a fairly small guy, so it seemed a little unwieldy for me in the beginning, but after several hours of dry handling I got used to it. It's certainly very different from any other weapon I've handled. I would have no fears with regards to durability of either the axe head or haft.
It didn't come nearly as sharp as I expected. Many reviewers have called it razor sharp, and there's some video evidence to support this claim, but mine came fairly dull. It was definitely not sharp enough to slice a sheet of paper. I touched it up with an accusharp.
The axe comes disassembled, and the attachment screws are a joke. Mine were so poorly made that the male screw wouldn't fit the female connection socket, no matter what. I ended up just seating the axe head firmly on the shaft by holding it upside down and smacking the top of the shaft on a rock (watch the blade). It hasn't come lose. There's no danger of it flying off the end, as the top of the shaft is significantly wider than the body.
Both the shaft and blade came coated in clear lacquer/polyurethane! I can understand this with the blade, as it keeps the carbon steel from rusting, but the coating started flaking off during testing and I removed the rest myself. I used paint stripper and steel wool to take the very thick lacquer off the handle. I've stained it darker and will be rubbing some boiled linseed oil on. I think this is something that Cold Steel should have done in the first place. The stock handle doesn't look very aesthetically pleasing or authentic.
It cuts wonderfully. It came with a warning that it's not intended for cutting wood or vegetation due to a narrower blade profile. I personally think it would stand up to some tree felling just fine, but I didn't try. I've cut pumpkins, milk jugs, soda cans, 2-liters and other similar targets with no problem.
If you want a large Viking/Danish axe, there's not many options out there. This one has its flaws, but on the whole I would recommend it. There's something magical about the feeling I get when I neatly cleave something in twain with it.
Here's a quick video of some cutting I did:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3DRGN6U52c
