The quality of this axe is superb. It is an heirloom quality axe. The materials, craftsmanship and overall quality are on par with or superior to any other production line axe on the market. The leather mask(sheath) is well made with quality leather and buckle, it is well riveted with good quality rivets and they are properly set. The axe comes with Helko Werk's head oil, Helko Werk manual/catalog and the leather mask/sheath. The axe comes with a factory ground edge. with very little honing I was able to quickly bring the edge of the C50 high carbon steel to my preferred sharpness. The handle comes untreated (which I prefer) and finish sanded with what feels like 150 grit, so I lightly touched it up with 220 grit and then xxxx steel wool and 3 treatments of boiled linseed oil. After the final treatment of boiled linseed oil had dried, I rubbed down the handle and the head with "Fix in" wax from Self Reliance Outfitters and then wiped down the handle and buffed it by hand with a clean cotton shop towel and then installed the leather collar guard onto the handle. It turned out beautifully.
About Helko Werk North America Customer Service; In the original Amazon listing that I ordered my axe from, it included a "Metal Overstrike Protector" as part of this package. Upon receiving my axe there was no "Metal Overstrike Protector" included with my axe as stated in the original listing. I contacted Helko Werk customer service and after some correspondence with them and upon further investigation on their part, they were generous enough to send me one of their leather axe collars free of charge in place of the "Metal Overstrike Protector".
So, I must report that they are true to their endeavor to accomplish customer satisfaction. In the future I would buy Helko Werk axes and products with confidence based on their quality, craftsmanship and materials that go into their products and on their customer service.
Furthermore, I have and do recommend Helko Werk axes and leather products for anyone looking to invest in heirloom quality products.

What can I say, the quality of this tool is amazing. I unboxed this axe and immediately checked out the grain orientation in the handle- so far, it seems to be the only negative I have is that the grain is about 25-30 degrees angled away from the head. its a bit more than i am used to. with that said, I seriously doubt it is going to be a problem. The wood looks of high quality. The dimensions of the handle are wide, giving me optimal purchase with a variety of grip positions (I have larger hands) the cutting edge was a solid 4.5/5 on sharpness, a little love with a stone and it should be good to go. I have heard that these axes sometimes need work on the cutting edge, but i got fortunate I suppose. The black forest model is the perfect length for a taller guy like myself who finds that 17-18 inch handles are awkward,( causing me to have to get into janky footing positions as to not whack myself in the leg) but still compact enough to be articulate in my cutting motion and retaining a small footprint on my mountain pack. This axe also has a very wide cutting edge in comparison to the rear of the head, a slight even beard above and below, with a notible and almost "medieval" reduction to the rear.
I know some folks like myself talk about axe's and hatchets having a soul or spirit, whether or not its true is irrelevant. I cannot wait to bring my Helko Werk axe with me to the sticks and build a bond with this wonderful example of fine craftsmanship. This is definitely worth what they are charging. Germany, giving Sweden a run for their money.
UPDATE 3/19/19
Had this axe out for a three day winter bushcrafting trip. The edge was lost pretty quickly the first day- so I took the bastard file to it to reallign the bevel edge and rehoned with a stone. The edge kept sharp after that for the rest of the trip. The handle worked itself slightly loose on the last morning, it had dropped down from 40 degrees F that previous afternoon to almost negetive 5-10 F. So, I set the head in boiled linseed oil and added a single beavertail wedge and it tightened right back up- (I might note that once I got home and got the axe back into room temp, the head could no longer be wiggled) This axe exceeded expectation, wonderful for one handed use debarking and gerdalling larger frozen logs- felling smaller 3-4" pine and aspen was easy but anything girthier than that was quite a chore. Splitting with this axe is not really an option unless you have very small pieces. The axe would just sink into stumps without causing much of a split, but its cutting ability is top notch. I will update again as time goes on.

Great hatchet, would buy again.

This is a one of a kind axe. After much frustration with "splitting" axes getting stuck in rounds, decided to splurge on the Helko Saxon. As soon as you swing it, you notice the difference. I'd compare it to swinging a weight on a string - it's effortless and swings perfectly straight with zero vibration upon impact. Besides absolutely EXPLODING the rounds (not kidding - the rounds fly a good 3-5 feet apart in half each time), the head lands precisely where you aim. You could draw a straight line if you wanted with each hit. It's such a nice axe that I've already purchased the next size down (Spaltaxt) for ease of splitting smaller pieces. If you want big rounds to split with the ease of kindling, this is the axe for you. It's one of a kind and worth double the money they charge for it.
Definitely also purchase 1) the leather overstrike protector, 2) boiled linseed oil, and 3) leather conditioner. The handle comes needing a few coats of oil, and the leather overstrike and sheath arrive dry (natural, so you can condition to the softness of your choosing). This will be the axe of your lifetime, and I give it six out of five stars. Outstanding product.

The media could not be loaded. For starters I was nervous to spend almost $200 on an axe but after struggling with my $40 Collins axe I decided to pull the trigger on a new axe. Let's just say I am not disappointed. This thing is an absolute beast and comes very sharp. It made easy work of a few test rounds even knotted ones it sailed thru way better than expected. Now I'm looking at buying more from their lineup!