Ian Moone
ArboristSite Lurker
I tried to open the reviews page but ran into difficulties, so figured I might place it here and if the Mods/Admin wish please feel free to move it to the reviews section.
Back around March 2016 my eldest lad was involved in a road train roll over accident that nearly killed him. He had about 60 tonne all up in a double trailer rig, with very high sides that was badly loaded to one side by the operator of the low loader. In the wet the middle trailer got pushed sideways by the rear trailer while slowing to turn a corner and hit a traffic island and flipped. Truck was GPS tracked - he was doing all of 8KM/hr (~5MPH) at the time.
Lad was very lucky not to be killed.
http://www.bunburymail.com.au/story...r-truck-rollover-in-leschenault-photos-video/
We got the call from Police to say he was in a air ambulance rescue helicopter, with serious head injuries on his way to the Royal Perth Emergency Hospital and he may not make it - which was a heck of a shock.
Luckily for us he has a head like a bowling ball like his Old man and pulled thru fine - with the exception of bad right arm injuries and a lot of broken glass stuck in his scalp etc.
So I knew he had some time off ahead of him recovering and having to go thru physio etc.
Ever since a kid he's loved the bush and fishing, diving, boating, 4WD etc. he loves gathering firewood in the forest with his chainsaw & worked for the Conservation Department as a forest worker and faller etc before getting into long haul trucking, because it pays significantly more (if you can keep it shiny side up).
I knew he was going to have issues being able to swing a chainsaw and axe etc with his now crook arm (he lost a lot of the muscle in his Right forearm when it got crushed/pinned and dragged along the road between the door of the truck & the road).
I also knew he was forever complaining about finding a decent axe to chop/split the hardwood Jarrah rings he was cutting up with his chainsaw for firewood.
So I figured i would order him the best darn axe I could find in the world as a bit of an incentive to get better & stick with the pain and ongoing surgery's and skin grafts and physio etc, so I researched online and decided to order him a Tuatahi Work Axe, because they have a 4 months lead time to manufacture one, and I knew he wasn't going to be back out in the forest any time before that to be cutting and chopping firewood & all the reviews i read raved about them.
I should point out that I am not in any way "affiliated" with the NZ based Tuatahi axe company - other than a very satisfied customer. I don't get any hidden commissions or kick backs (mores the pity) for promoting their product at all.
So I went ahead and ordered one and paid a 50% deposit up front to get the manufacturing process & 4 months wait period commenced ASAP.
I have to say that the guy i dealt with in their office was fantastic - nothing was too much trouble!.
And true to their word about 4 months later the axe arrived.
BUT
Guy in their office was kind enough to send me a couple photos of the axe when it was forged and then when it was ground etc... just to keep my young blokes interest up during the prolonged period!
Just out of the forging process.
Ground to basic shape before heat treating, then grinding out the wings.
As it arrived all ground out wings and Hickory Handle fitted.
Ready for use the first time about August 2016 - you can see the lads arm skin grafts on R Forearm etc have taken pretty well & his melon head is healed up nice enough once we picked mos of the remaining the broken glass out that the emergency department surgeons missed..
This is its first swing in anger at any firewood ~ 5 months after his accident.
And a load of wood split with the Tuatahi one morning!
He is pretty pleased with the Tuatahi work axe with its 22 degree chisel grind - it seems to work pretty well in our local hardwood Jarrah species (which for anyone interested is 8.5 on the Janka hardness scale and weighs on at around 920 kilo's/cubic meter density dry.
Hope that gives some insight into the Tuatah work axes for anyone contemplating an axe purchase any time soon!
Cheers
Back around March 2016 my eldest lad was involved in a road train roll over accident that nearly killed him. He had about 60 tonne all up in a double trailer rig, with very high sides that was badly loaded to one side by the operator of the low loader. In the wet the middle trailer got pushed sideways by the rear trailer while slowing to turn a corner and hit a traffic island and flipped. Truck was GPS tracked - he was doing all of 8KM/hr (~5MPH) at the time.
Lad was very lucky not to be killed.
http://www.bunburymail.com.au/story...r-truck-rollover-in-leschenault-photos-video/
We got the call from Police to say he was in a air ambulance rescue helicopter, with serious head injuries on his way to the Royal Perth Emergency Hospital and he may not make it - which was a heck of a shock.
Luckily for us he has a head like a bowling ball like his Old man and pulled thru fine - with the exception of bad right arm injuries and a lot of broken glass stuck in his scalp etc.
So I knew he had some time off ahead of him recovering and having to go thru physio etc.
Ever since a kid he's loved the bush and fishing, diving, boating, 4WD etc. he loves gathering firewood in the forest with his chainsaw & worked for the Conservation Department as a forest worker and faller etc before getting into long haul trucking, because it pays significantly more (if you can keep it shiny side up).
I knew he was going to have issues being able to swing a chainsaw and axe etc with his now crook arm (he lost a lot of the muscle in his Right forearm when it got crushed/pinned and dragged along the road between the door of the truck & the road).
I also knew he was forever complaining about finding a decent axe to chop/split the hardwood Jarrah rings he was cutting up with his chainsaw for firewood.
So I figured i would order him the best darn axe I could find in the world as a bit of an incentive to get better & stick with the pain and ongoing surgery's and skin grafts and physio etc, so I researched online and decided to order him a Tuatahi Work Axe, because they have a 4 months lead time to manufacture one, and I knew he wasn't going to be back out in the forest any time before that to be cutting and chopping firewood & all the reviews i read raved about them.
I should point out that I am not in any way "affiliated" with the NZ based Tuatahi axe company - other than a very satisfied customer. I don't get any hidden commissions or kick backs (mores the pity) for promoting their product at all.
So I went ahead and ordered one and paid a 50% deposit up front to get the manufacturing process & 4 months wait period commenced ASAP.
I have to say that the guy i dealt with in their office was fantastic - nothing was too much trouble!.
And true to their word about 4 months later the axe arrived.
BUT
Guy in their office was kind enough to send me a couple photos of the axe when it was forged and then when it was ground etc... just to keep my young blokes interest up during the prolonged period!
Just out of the forging process.
Ground to basic shape before heat treating, then grinding out the wings.
As it arrived all ground out wings and Hickory Handle fitted.
Ready for use the first time about August 2016 - you can see the lads arm skin grafts on R Forearm etc have taken pretty well & his melon head is healed up nice enough once we picked mos of the remaining the broken glass out that the emergency department surgeons missed..
This is its first swing in anger at any firewood ~ 5 months after his accident.
And a load of wood split with the Tuatahi one morning!
He is pretty pleased with the Tuatahi work axe with its 22 degree chisel grind - it seems to work pretty well in our local hardwood Jarrah species (which for anyone interested is 8.5 on the Janka hardness scale and weighs on at around 920 kilo's/cubic meter density dry.
Hope that gives some insight into the Tuatah work axes for anyone contemplating an axe purchase any time soon!
Cheers