>>1927857>>1927852I should expand on this a little because it begs a question I have yet to answer. The purpose of a poll is to provide a counterbalance to the axe head, allowing repeatable accuracy. This is because if you were to look at an axe head from the top, you can trace the toe of the bit back to the poll, and it will be "perfectly" centered. Axes without polls are very unwieldy, hard to keep accurate, and can fatigue you much more quickly. The extra weight and how that weight is balanced is there solely to aid in the force generated by the swing, as well as keeping the head from wobbling through the air while it is being swung. Again however, some are hardened with the intention of it being used as a hammer, but most are not. That being said, I use a 4lb jersey pattern that I keep in my shop to drive wooden wedges into axes im restoring. I would never use it to hit another piece of metal unless it was my last option though.
