Competition Thrower

Looking at these axes (I bought 2), my first thought is the handles will need to be replaced. One of the handles has near perfect grain orientation (almost completely parallel to the axe head) but the run-outs on it are a little close together. The other has grain orientation that runs a little more than 45 degrees to one side and has almost no visible run-outs. If you are unfamiliar with grain orientation and run-outs, to put it simply, grain orientation is the direction the grain runs in the handle and run-outs are the arrow/triangle patterns you would see on the side of the handle. These two things correlate to the strength and durability of the handle and the likelihood of it breaking. Now for the throwing review. I actually bought these as starter axes for some people I turned into axe junkies. Normally, I throw a slightly lighter axe than this (about 1.5lbs) with a 14 inch handle, so throwing these took a little bit of adjustment in my throwing position. Some people say that the handles are too slick or they slide out of the hand too easily and that is truly a personal preference, and some who throw axes professionally or who coach it might even warn against putting grip tape on it altogether to avoid the handle sticking in your hand too long. Overall, these are great starter axes but be advised: there is a 50/50 chance of you getting a not so decent handle, so be prepared to put a new one on it. Also, the white varnish on the head does scuff and scratch easily, so you may or may not want to take that off. Update: The two axes I bought here are holding up perfectly. The people I got them for are as stated in the original review, beginners, and they love them. I ordered the starter kit from WATL themselves which included one of these and the Big Axe. This brings my personal collection up to 6 different axes and of them all, this competition thrower is my number 2 in the line up.

LONG STORY SHORT: Great Axe (hatchet) for throwing. Well balanced. Straight, smooth wooden handle. Plenty sharp, and comes with a whetstone for further sharpening. My wife and I went axe throwing at a friend's house and she had so much fun. She was really good at it. Like...a little too good. Borderline scary good ;) Anyway, she loved it, mentioned that "we should build one of these in the backyard" so I did. And then I bought this axe. No regrets....yet. lol PROS: -Smooth wooden handle. Straight at the bottom, not curved like you would find at the end of a chopping hatchet. -Well balanced. Lots of weight in the head, not a lot in the handle. -Sturdy and well made. In our learning, this thing has smacked against the target and flopped to the ground more times than I care to admit....due to our ineffectiveness, NOT due to any flaw in the axe. It has continued to stay in one, sturdy, solid piece. No wobble at the head. CONS: -We only have 1. I'd like about 2 more of these bad boys. Which, I'm sure they'd send to me.....for a price. -The wooden handle is...well...wooden, and if you happen to hit it with a throwing knife by accident, it will splinter. I've used CA glue on it, and sanded it back smooth a couple of times. All this is to be expected. CONCLUSION: BUY. Great quality, lots of fun.

Part of an xmas gift for my friend that loves axe throwing, but also goes to some sketchy abandoned places to do photography/assist his friend with paranormal ventures. He uses it for both lol. Told it was very sharp and a much loved gift and he will probably be buying a second and 3rd one soon.

This thing feels great in our hands, and once we got use to the way the axe goes through the air, we could get it to stick almost every time. Only problem is that even though it's listed as good for beginners, the handle broke in the first hour. We bought two other sets of cheaper( all metal)axes and they have not taken any damage yet. We bought this one because my wife is thinking about getting into the sport, and this is her favorite one to throw,but the handle is concerning.

I bought four of these and gave them to my grandsons for Christmas. We tested them out at a local axe throwing facility. The axes are quality built, nice balance and good value for money.

Great throwing axe, I love practicing with this one

Feels great to throw and ended up being a great Christmas gift, but the handle is degrading rather quickly. Anywhere to purchase replacements?

The axe did not come sharpened and the head was loose. A beginner axe thrower likely will not know how to sharpen the head, and it would have taken hours to do ourselves. The head was loose, which can also be fixed, but come on. If the issue was just a loose axe head, no prob. But coupled with a flat in places and not at all sharp axe head, it gets returned. A rivet cap on the cover fell off, too. *sigh* We bought this for my son, and he opened it on his bday, only to find that it's a POS and unusable. How about some quality control, people? The metal used seems decent, which is why it's getting 2 stars.

It sticks every time you throw it correctly. Didn't drop from the first throw until I had to replace the target board. Nice and thin and sharp upon delivery.

Great axe for throwing, this is our second axe so that more people can throw.

I own several throwing axes/hatchets. This thing works amazing! After many many MANY poor throws, even from many inexperienced throwers that just wanted to try it out, this thing barely even has a mark on it. Countless times, I said in my mind as I watched the axe hit the board, "there we go, that'll break it for sure"...and it's still proving me wrong each time. I've gone through many targets that were worn down to nothing already, and this axe still almost looks brand new, lol. Highly recommend this axe, for new or experienced throwers equally. It brought up my confidence levels a LOT, when it comes to my throwing abilities.

My wife likes it, works well and has a good feel. Easy to throw.

As described. No complaints.