I was at the Commonground Fair yesterday and discovered that Snow & Neally (long time makers of quality axes) that had gone out of business is back in business. S&N ran out of the Bangor Area for quite some time before folding, but it now appears as though an Amish family bought up the business and is now running the business out of Smyrna, Maine.
I was a bit curious though and according to a poster on a "blades" forum who claimed to be related to the family the company plans to return to their roots and use American steel for their axes, but as of June had to buy some ax heads from China (as the "old" company had done in its waning years) to get them by until they find a supplier. According to this poster they are tempering, annealing, sharpening and painting the axes in house though . . . and according to the brochure I picked up they offer a life time warranty on the ax heads.
In any case, thought I would pass on this news. Prices ran from $45 for a belt axe to $74.50 for a Pulaski . . . I must admit I was tempted to get the double bit axe so I could look a little bit like Paul Bunyan . . . if he was short, fat, wore glasses and was starting to go bald.
I was a bit curious though and according to a poster on a "blades" forum who claimed to be related to the family the company plans to return to their roots and use American steel for their axes, but as of June had to buy some ax heads from China (as the "old" company had done in its waning years) to get them by until they find a supplier. According to this poster they are tempering, annealing, sharpening and painting the axes in house though . . . and according to the brochure I picked up they offer a life time warranty on the ax heads.
In any case, thought I would pass on this news. Prices ran from $45 for a belt axe to $74.50 for a Pulaski . . . I must admit I was tempted to get the double bit axe so I could look a little bit like Paul Bunyan . . . if he was short, fat, wore glasses and was starting to go bald.
