I ordered five of these hatchets from Bailey's Power Equipment for my groomsmen and they all came with the Swedish rendition of the book unfortunately. They were also from the same maker, "MM." They came with some slight dings to the handle just behind the beard of the axe head, which was a bit of a disappointment. It wasn't anything serious enough to send back though. There was slight differences in edge length, showing that they are in fact hand made. There are also several cosmetic differences between each axe in the profile of the head. It makes them just that much more personal and unique. The handles are all incredibly well seated in the head. Each edge was razor sharp, though one had a very small (1/16'' or so) flat spot in the upper corner. It would easily sharpen out in the first sharpening, whenever that may be. I haven't used one yet, but it seems like it'll last a life time.

Small, fits in the hand hatchet. The fact it is a Gransfors Bruks automatically tells you its hand made, top of the line and will arrive razor sharp. I paid about $100 bucks for the finest made hatchet in the world. Its tough and super sharp. The quality of the steel is the best. Only the best steel can be sharpened to this degree of sharpness. Its about a foot long total, comes with a nice sheath and can be carried in a back pack very easily. Its great for chopping up kindling and would be good to have in the event you needed to defend yourself while out in the wild. If you don't have a firearm, this little hatchet would be far superior over a knife of any size. And should you forget your razor, hey, just be careful cause this baby is sharp. If you are the type to cut your own Christmas Tree, this hatchet would be perfect so long as you're not going too big. I believe this hatchet has the same head as the Small Forest Axe, just a shorter handle. My main reason for this purchase is to take it along on my motorcycle camping trips, it packs super easy.

I ordered five of these hatchets from Bailey's Power Equipment for my groomsmen and they all came with the Swedish rendition of the book unfortunately. They were also from the same maker, "MM." They came with some slight dings to the handle just behind the beard of the axe head, which was a bit of a disappointment. It wasn't anything serious enough to send back though. There was slight differences in edge length, showing that they are in fact hand made. There are also several cosmetic differences between each axe in the profile of the head. It makes them just that much more personal and unique. The handles are all incredibly well seated in the head. Each edge was razor sharp, though one had a very small (1/16'' or so) flat spot in the upper corner. It would easily sharpen out in the first sharpening, whenever that may be. I haven't used one yet, but it seems like it'll last a life time.

The head is beautiful on the hand axe, the workmanship on the handle is terrible. The lanyard holes were not countersunk on one side of the hole and had major splinters on both sides that needed to be sanded smooth. Other areas of the handle were finished and required sanding to remove splinters.
For the money spent not really impressed with the overall quality. When delivered the head had areas of rust and the edge was dull, needed touching up to get it hair popping sharp. The accompanying booklet is a joke unless you read German lol , won't be buying any other Gransfors Bruks products. The other Gransfors Bruks two axes that I own were delivered in perfect condition and very sharp.

As for form and function once sharpened and handle smoothed out this is a really functional piece of kit. Takes the place of a Bushcraft wood prep knife for my outdoor adventures. No need to carry a fixed blade knife for fire prep this hand axe will split kindling, make curls and preform cutting chores during shelter construction better than a dedicated fire prep knife. This allows me to carry a smaller folding knife for food prep although this hand axe would work if pushed for food prep by choking up on the handle / head when razor sharp. Well worth the weight and space in the pack.

Four stars because this is a valuable tool for camp and Bushcraft, one star deduction was going to be two due to poor workmanship but the usefulness of the hand axe won out,

This is my second Gransfors Bruks and is the companion to my GB Swedish Carving Axe. I have owned (and used) my carving axe for over 10 years. It is still like new- razor sharp and ergonomically correct. A joy to hold and use...my secret treasure.
It is the 'ONE TOOL' I would grab if I could only have one tool.

This GB hand hatchet is also known as 'Kuben'- meaning 'bowler' or a tool used to carve bowls.
There is a reason GB axes are legendary, and five star....they are the finest hand forged tools you can own, bar none !
From the fit and finish of the hatchet head, the superior quality steel to the short chubby and rough ergonomically correct hard hickory handle....perfection !
Mine came from Germany, with 'The Axe Book' printed in German. I don't care...
Because I now own two of the finest tools made in the world.

Expensive- NO ! These are not expensive if you consider quality, ease of use and the fact that these tools will exist long-long after you are gone. Heck- my Swedish Carving Axe is worth a lot more now than what I paid for it.
These really are heirlooms- functional tools for use now, and that someone else in future generations will also love too.
Remember- Buy right, and you don't have to buy twice !