FR - Hults Bruk Tarnaby - Lyon

Larry - 
 

 Here you go - edit away!
 

 Full html version in the Tests folder at http://tinyurl.com/h2ebnd5
 

 Cheers, Richard
 _____________________
 

 The Hults Bruk Tarnaby hatchet has served me well in the backcountry and at home. It's made me a believer in carrying a hatchet into the backcountry in colder temperatures whenever building a fire is a possibility.
 

 FIELD CONDITIONS
 

 I've packed the Tarnaby on two backpacking trips, each to a Forest Service cabin not far from my home in Montana. A New Year's Eve overnighter, wearing hiking crampons, saw temperatures of about 20 F (-7 C) under overcast skies when we started midafternoon, dropping to 8 F (-13 C) at night and early the next morning. I used the Tarnaby only to split a few smaller logs into kindling, as the Forest Service or a prior guest had stashed a long-handled axe with the firewood supply at this cabin. That served for the heavier work of splitting larger logs.
 

 My second trip was a three-day, two night excursion on telemark skis to a different cabin in late January. Conditions were mixed, from a few snowstorms to bright blue skies, at temperatures from 18 F(-8 C) to about freezing. Here I used the Tarnaby both to split large logs into woodstove-sized pieces (perhaps the diameter of my arm) and to make kindling.
 

 Most of my use of the Tarnaby has been at home, where I must split wood daily for fuel to keep the house warm, as my main heating source of is a large Finnish soapstone stove. In the fall I purchased a large supply of properly-sized pre-split logs; thanks to a severe windstorm in December this I supplemented with blown-down trees that I cut to the proper length (14 in / 36 cm) with a chain saw and pre-split with a borrowed splitter. Most of the wood from either source needs further splitting to get the diameter of the wood to ideal size, about 4-8 in / 10-20 cm. That's my morning exercise. Ordinarily I do this work with a long-handled splitting axe but I have on occasion used the Tarnaby as a test, and I use it every other day or so to cut smaller pieces for kindling. (See "before" and "after" photos below.)
 Beforeafter
 OBSERVATIONS
 

 Ease of use. The heft of the blade and overall feel of the handle seem to be perfectly matched. I haven't really thought about the grip because its dimensions are just right. I simply pick it up, remove the sheath, grip at the throat of the handle, just above the end, and whack away. This fact alone distinguishes the Tarnaby from its predecessor in my woodshed, whose handle I often have to grip closer to the blade to ensure accurate strokes. With leather-palmed gloves I've had no slippage while splitting. The sheath is easy to remove and re-attach.
 

 I've found it easier to stash the Tarnaby in the shovit pocket of my touring pack, with one of the pack straps under the rawhide strap on the hatchet's sheath. A side compression strap will work also but requires a loop to secure the hatchet handle.With pack
 

 Functionality. Almost all of the Tarnaby's victims have been seasoned (aged before pre-splitting) white pine, lodgepole pine, or Douglas fir - lightweights in the firewood world. Hardwood logs are difficult to find here in Montana and highly prized. That's certainly made my chopping jobs easier. That said, I've been thoroughly impressed with the Tarnaby's woodcutting ability. While not as efficient as my splitting axe because of its shorter handle (less leverage) this hatchet is perfectly capable of splitting larger logs into fireplace-sized pieces without undue effort. Use of the shorter handle has sharpened my batting eye, to the point where my accuacy at striking on the grain has improved considerably. At shaving into kindling its performance has been excellent, thanks to a sharp edge and immovable blade. Based upon a visual inspection of the small bit of handle above the blade and "feel" when chopping I don't think the blade has moved a millimeter up or down the handle shaft despite frequent use. Truly outstanding performance.
 

 Durability and Care. This has been great too. I haven't noticed any dings on the blade edge and it continues to hew very well. The sheath has collected a few scrapes and scratches from hiking through the trees but a small application of leather treatment has almost hidden them from view. I wipe dirt from the blade after each use, and rub on a few drops of oil every couple of weeks. I have stored the sheathed hatchet in the cabin on overnights and in my woodshed (covered) at home, to minimize exposure to moisture. I recently treated the edge with a few scrapes on a whetstone, but I don't really think that was necessary.
 

 ACKNOWLEDGMENT
 

 
 My Field Report ends here. Check back in two months' time for my Long Term Report.  Tack sa mycket (that's "thank you" in Swedish) to Hults Bruk and BackpackGearTest.org for this testing opportunity.