Adventures with axes. We heat our house with wood cut from our land, and I do a lot of tree felling the traditional way, with my beloved Iltis axe (German - bought it from Lee Valley). About a year ago I bought a Gransfor (Swedish) forest axe - great little axe for boughing, only about two thirds the length of the Iltis. I forgot this size difference and whacked myself on the head taking a swing at a fallen tree. I was lucky it was a glancing blow, but even so I thought I'd killed myself. After years accident-free, felling hundreds of trees with nary even a branch falling on me, I now wear a safety helmet for even the most mundane chopping jobs because I'm afraid of self-inflicted injury. I think I've lost the edge ... must be getting old ...