Call me hard to please, but I can find at least one small fault with just about anything. As you’ll see in this Fiskars X25 Splitting Axe review, this amazing tool is not one of them.
The Fiskars X25 Splitting Axe vs. a Traditional Maul
I’ve owned a traditional wood-splitting maul for decades. Unlike a felling axe, it’s very heavy, has a broad V-shaped head, and isn’t very sharp. The idea is the weight and the wedge shape drive into the log, splitting it apart. It’s not exactly a “blunt instrument,” but it’s close. Using a maul is what I’ve always done, and it’s quite the workout lifting that beast over your head over and over as you work through a pile of logs.
A couple of years ago, I was casually perusing the yard tools in my local home improvement store and saw the Fiskars X25. It was so unlike what I was used to that I was intrigued enough to buy one—especially because I knew the Fiskars brand is so good that it couldn’t be a gimmick. The axe is an entirely different animal from a traditional maul. You can immediately tell by the hollow handle, light weight, and razor-sharp edge.
How the Design of the Fiskars X25 Makes a Difference
To me, the effectiveness of the Fiskars X25 is counterintuitive. You’ll know what I mean if you’ve ever tried to split wood with a felling axe. A felling axe is so lightweight and slim that it just buries itself in the end of a log, and then you’re doing a tug-of-war to get it out again.
Despite a similar size and weight, the Fiskars X25 works exponentially better for splitting wood than a felling axe. Its super-sharp, hardened forged steel blade has a unique head shape that forcefully pushes the wood apart with very little effort. With the small head and hollow carbon fiber reinforced handle, swinging this axe is similar to the exertion of swinging a baseball bat. Yet, it’s more effective—in my opinion—than a traditional maul. I can happily use it for hours without exhausting my puny arms.
Remarkably Durable
One of the reasons I’ve not blogged about this axe before is I was sure I’d break it. The hollow handle doesn’t look like it’d take much abuse. After two years of ownership, I’ve been proven wrong. There’s no sign of any issue with the handle, and the hardened blade has taken a significant amount of abuse from me accidentally banging it into rocks, etc., with minimal effects.
Why the Fiskars X25 is a Great Camping Tool
While I love to backpack, there are frequently times when I’m camping with friends who aren’t up to long distances, yet we still want to be farther away from other people than you’d be at a state park. I know of several places in the Georgia mountains where you can camp next to water after a short hike in. To make my life easier, I’ll sometimes carry a chainsaw and the Fiskars X25. When you’re already carrying a saw, the super light weight of this axe is much appreciated, and you can quickly cut and split enough wood to get you through a weekend.
You Can Chop With It, Too!
It’s not really what the Fiskars X25 Splitting Axe was intended for, but it’s saved me a couple of times because it’s so sharp that it’ll chop wood. I’ve been cutting heavy branches with my chainsaw only to have the branch twist in a way I didn’t anticipate, binding the chainsaw blade and making it impossible to extricate. I’ve used the X25 to chop through the wood far enough to free the blade, which was awesome.
Treat Yourself to an X25
Yes, this axe is fairly expensive when compared to a traditional maul, but I think the Fiskars X25 is worth every penny. As I said at the top, I can usually find at least one small fault with just about anything, but this axe is the exception to the rule.
