1. FORGING

Our axes are made of a special alloy recycled steel with high carbon content. We heat the steel to approximately 1200° C before the blacksmith takes it out of the heat and works it in a large press. 

With 80 strikes per minute, the press has a force of approximately 180 tons in each blow. The blacksmith quickly and skillfully handles the hot steel, which transforms slowly from a square of raw material into a finished axe head. 

When the steel is treated with great force and repeated blows, the material’s structure is changed. This is why Gränsfors’ axes can be thinner, with a broader edge, and sharper than axes made with just one or a few blows. 

The blacksmith finishes their work by stamping Gränsfors Bruk’s label and their initials in the axe head. The initials serve both as a quality seal and to show that there’s a person behind each axe. The blacksmith then hangs the axe head for cooling. 

When we forge the axe head, the eye is slightly compressed and can leave a small fold in the material. This is not a defect but rather a natural result of the forging process, and can be found on several of our axe models.