>>1431475There's this thing called, "tempering," that takes that into account to make the metal more ductile, regardless of how high the carbon content is. Saying, "spring steel", means you don't know what you are talking about since springs are very ductile. Far more so than axe heads and knives of any kind. that is specifically due to the fact they are tempered to a higher heat than the others. If they weren't they'd snap instantly.
If you have axe head chipping or breaking you either have a shitty brand of axe that isn't properly tempered or you are doing something stupid with it. Like splitting wood with it instead of using a fucking splitting maul like you're supposed to use.
>>1431495It isn't a problem for any type of axe or axe handle since the wood itself isn't frozen in the manner they are suggesting. If it were then it means the wood soaked up extra water after it was dead or chopped down then froze while waterlogged (hint is in the term waterlogged). Mere cold temps even in the -60F range shouldn't be a problem for axes when they are used properly. That means no splitting maul jobs with them. People who have trouble with axe have trouble with technique. They are usually the people who bust the handles on the wood with nearly every strike.
>>1431314Shagbark hickory is just the best in the USA. There are good woods that are all over the UK. The problem is that you need a tree loicense, an axe loicense, and a woodchip permit then get permission from the 3rd son of the land owner prior to taking wood from any tree in the UK.
