Last fall during a camping trip in central Wisconsin, I was trying to start a fire. I had a bundle of firewood and a hatchet. I opened the bundle, selected a nice dry piece of wood, set it on end, and lined up my hatchet for the first swing. That first swing landed with a thud and barely made a dent in the wood. Hack after hack, I chopped away with little progress. My wife was standing by watching as I began swearing to myself. I finally gave up and decided to rely on massive amounts of lighter fluid to get the camp fire started.

Fast forward to my birthday this past December. My wife is notorious for buying gifts then telling you what it is before you even receive it. This time was different and she fought the urge to spoil the surprise. I opened the gift bag and pulled out a brand new hatchet! I was not expecting it at all and after that frustrating day at camp in Wisconsin, we never talked about it again. She has a knack for being a thoughtful gift giver.

The Fiskars X7 is the hatchet I didn’t know I needed. It’s balanced just right and perfectly weighted. It’s also incredibly sharp. The main issue with my previous hatchet was it was never very sharp, even when brand new. I sharpened it several times as well but it never seemed to make much of a difference.

I was eager to try my new toy. The first time we made a trip to the family cabin, I put it into action. There’s a woodshed we have filled over the last few years with chunks of split oak and hickory. We cut them in about 12″-15″ lengths so they fit easily in the small wood stove in the cabin. I wanted to chop some kindling to fill the wood box as well. I was thrilled when the second swing of the Fiskars hatchet melted right through the dried oak. From there it was easy to keep splitting into smaller and smaller pieces for kindling. Starting a fire has never been easier.