Gransfors Bruks Ray Mears Wilderness Axe

£140.00

Brand: Gransfors Bruks

EAN 7391765434104

Weight: 1400 g 107 reviews

The Gransfors Bruks Ray Mears Wilderness Axe is an exclusive collaboration between Ray Mears and the Swedish company Gransfors Bruks. After years of designing, testing and refining, Ray and the Woodlore team are extremely excited to unveil this unique signature model; in Ray's words, it's the 'Small Forest Axe Plus'.

While many Gransfors axes are forged en masse in large presses, the Wilderness Axe is produced in small quantities by Gransfors' experienced blacksmith, who work by hand with a traditional hammer press. Thanks to the use of this press from the 1940's, the production looks the same as it would have done back then.

Upon its release in December 2010, Ray sat down with us for an interview on this new axe, answering questions on its design, purpose and benefits over other models available today. An excerpt of this is shown below:

What were your main goals when you set out to design this axe?

A good axe needs a combination of many features, but most importantly, it needs the right weight balanced with the right length of handle. There will always be a compromise between a small, portable hatchet and a large axe more suitable for felling; the Small Forest Axe is great, but it is lacking in weight and length for good splitting and chopping. I wanted an axe that was a little bit longer, better to swing with two hands, with a heavier head.

So what is it that makes the head of this axe so special?

It’s been designed to give real bite. The weight of the head combined with its size makes it a little more potent to use - you can split wood with it one minute and then use it for carving the next.

And what's different about the handle?

The length is different, which is critical to the functionality of the axe. The handle is long enough, and the head heavy enough, so that the head is doing all the work. This means that your muscles can instead focus on guiding the axe, making it a much safer axe to use. The length of the helve, in balance with the weight of the head, is designed to give perfect balance. It’s a mix between the Gransfors Scandinavian Axe and the Small Forest Axe, but there is real magic in it; anyone who uses it will see and feel the magic quality of weight and length - it makes it a very special axe.

What would you say are the ideal uses of this axe?

Anything you have to be able to do in the woods – felling trees, chopping dead trees that have blocked a portage trail, splitting, carving, fashioning a canoe paddle - but it does require expertise to use it well and these things take a long time to learn...

To read the full interview, please visit the Woodlore Blog.

Details:

Ray Mears Bushcraft logo on handle
Head weight: 0.8 kg
Total weight: 1.4 kg
60 cm hickory handle
Protective leather sheath included
20-year guarantee

Under UK law, this item can only be sold to persons over 18 years of age. Woodlore will need to verify your age before your order is dispatched. From January 2020 age will be checked on delivery. This item cannot be delivered to a locker.

Quantity

Shipping

Delivery in 1-2 days within the United Kingdom
UK Orders placed before 2PM GMT will be dispatched the same working day
Overseas delivery times will vary depending on the destination

Please note that our offices are closed at weekends, so any orders placed after 2PM GMT on a Friday will not be dispatched until the following Monday.

Orders with a total value over £300.00 will be dispatched free via a next day delivery service within the UK at no extra cost.

Please note that in some instances, orders for heavy items may take an extra day to arrive.

Overseas deliveries

For overseas deliveries, please refer to the following estimated delivery times:

Europe: 3 - 5 working days
Rest of the world: 5 - 7 working days

Returns

A full refund or exchange will be given provided that the items have not been worn or used, and are returned to us within 30 days of purchase, together with all relative labels and packaging. You are responsible for the cost of returning items.

Please ensure that you include a copy of your invoice, along with an explanation of why you have returned your goods. If you wish to return your goods for any reason, please do so to the following address:

Woodlore Limited
PO Box 3
Etchingham
East Sussex
TN19 7ZE
United Kingdom

Product Reviews

Gransfors Bruks Ray Mears Wilderness Axe is rated 5/5 based on 107 customer reviews.

All of our product reviews are from customers with verified purchases.

Overall Rating:

(95)

(8)

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1 of 107

An excellent small axe, small enough to carry around on a pack but big enough to split some decent logs, shipping took a few days but as to be expected, also came sharp enough to shave out of the box.

Pawson

14th January, 2021

Rated: 5/5

2 of 107

This is how things are supposed to be made, it's perfect. Very sharp, very strong, an ideal size for me (5 ft 10 inches). Fits snuggly in my Karrimor SF Sabre 75 Litre Rucksack. The leather sheath fits with staggering precision. If the house was burning down, this is what I would save.

J S

6th January, 2021

Rated: 5/5

3 of 107

I LOVE IT! Really good splitter, great head weight, perfect for my use getting deadwood (mostly softwood) ready for fire while bushcrafting. Maybe a little heavy for carrying in a backpack but it’s possible and the work it's getting done while splitting is worth the effort. Not the best chopper but still good. Taking down one dead tree a day for fire is enough so it doesn’t matter anyway for my scenario. Also I prefer taking down dead trees with a saw. Keep on the good work, greetings out of the Blackforest in Germany.

Pfurzkack

6th January, 2021

Rated: 5/5

4 of 107

Fantastic axe! Really, there is nothing I would change. I wouldn't be surprised if it got up and started dancing around and cutting wood by itself. Also of note, Woodlore is a upstanding company, very professional. Immediately processed my order, safely packaged it and got it to America in a timely manner. Thank you!

Tlr

6th January, 2021

Rated: 5/5

5 of 107

I bought this axe recently having just moved house which has a wood burning stove. A lovely piece of kit. Sharp and really well balanced. It’s not as heavy as other axes but still does the job well due to its excellent design. Would highly recommend.

C. Horner

6th January, 2021

Rated: 5/5

6 of 107

After over a year of use I can honestly say that the ergonomics and overall build quality of this axe is exceptional. Hats off to everyone involved in the conception of this beautiful axe. Also I live in France and the delivery was very fast and well packaged. 5 stars all day long.

James Lordan

11th October, 2020

Rated: 5/5

7 of 107

Very nice, exactly as described, and these folks are a pleasure to deal with. Very professional, I would recommend them to anyone. The Wilderness Axe has just the right heft, but remains handy to fit my needs perfectly.

George J Krick

21st August, 2020

Rated: 5/5

8 of 107

A very well made and durable axe. The craftsmanship is evident straight out of the box. Both the axe head and handle are excellent. For me this is the perfect size for a pack axe. It’s got more heft than the Small Forest version and makes chopping easier yet it retains the ability to be used for carving and various bushcraft activities. I am very pleased with this purchase.

David White

12th June, 2020

Rated: 5/5

9 of 107

What a fantastic axe, and the pricing on this site is better than I could find in the US for the smaller GB forest axe. And even though it was being shipped across the pond I received it pretty quick even during all this Corona virus stuff. I really can't recommend this axe or this website enough.

Ryan O.

27th May, 2020

Rated: 5/5

10 of 107

My Gransfors Bruks Ray Mears Wilderness Axe is just perfect. Thanks Woodlore.

Ursan Eusebiu Cornel

23rd May, 2020

Rated: 5/5

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Frequently Asked Questions

Answers to frequently asked questions on this item can be found here. If you have a question about this product, please contact us.

Does this axe come supplied with a leather sheath?

Does this axe come with a steel wedge?