I respectfully disagree with pretty much every statement I've seen you make about the Fiskars. I agree with it performing very well for the price, and that the design is great. Where you're losing me is the "materials are cheap" bit. I have put my Fiskars through somewhere between 8 and 10 cords of wood since last fall, some on a splitting block, and some on the ground. I have yet to have to touch it with a file, sharpener, etc. It has a wicked sharp edge still, and splits as well, if not better, today than it did the day I started swinging it. Sure, it's no secret that the head of an X27 is softer metal than some of your typical axe- or maul-head alloys, but the tool is not designed to split rocks and crack concrete. You seem to be aware of that as you mention it "only connects with wood," but that is what makes me doubt your credibility. There's no way you are chipping your blade-edge on wood, unless maybe you are trying to chop trees down. I'm sure smacking bark and limbing trunks will have a much more detrimental impact on edge longevity, but I don't use my Fiskars for those tasks so I wouldn't know. As I said, I have sent mine through 8-10 cords of wood, some of which was set on the good ol' ground, and I still have no nicks, chips, or dulling. The only way I'm seeing "cheap" as being an accurate descriptor is if we are talking overall cost vs. overall performance. If that's the case, then by all means, this thing is as cheap as Hamm's Beer and peanuts.
Anyway that's just my two cents, which I've been told may be suffering from inflation, depending on the topic at hand. By all means, buy what you like, swing what you want, and have fun. Good day to all and good luck drying out after all this freeze and thaw nonsense we're having here lately.
