TLDR :3/5 stars if i used it out of the box5/5 stars if you put a little bit of effort into itpros:literally the perfect maul head for this weight, nice blend of "super splitter" style cheeks and icelandic beardnice long handle, tall guys like me are constantly on the lookout for a thick long handle, i know you other tall guys let out a sigh whenever you pick up what appears to be a perfect axe/maul and it has a 31" handlehandle is thick and sturdy american hickory, hung with 2x conical wedgethe metallurgy is perfect for a maul, not so soft to require re-profiling/sharpening after every use, and not hard enough to chip easily. i would guess its 50ish HRChooked tip of beard is fantastic to pull/turn even the largest rounds. you will use a hookeroon about 30% less with this maul aroundperfectly profiled and sharpened , way better than my expectationcons:THE STUPID BLUE PAINT!!!!! i could write a book about how bad of an idea this paint is. its a cheap copout answer to a traditional problem, rust resistance. just quench it with oil and call it a day, this paint is pathetic and cheap, and it makes the rest of the product look like big box store trash.the overstrike guard is pointless, its location will never prevent harm to the handle as its way above the beard, either remove it or replace it with an overstrike guard thats 3" largerthe varnish/label glue. another thing i really dont get about modern axe manufacturers. the label glue alone is enough to stop your hand from sliding down as it should, let alone the absurd amount of "dipping" varnish that needed to be removed before i could use itdid i mention i hate the paint? its truly awefulthe company "estwing" has the worst american based customer service i have dealt with in the tool industry. i hope you never have to contact them with an issue, the first one i received was damaged and not hung properly, the amount of frustration i was put through to get a replacement was unrealfawn's foot should be a little more pronounced"estwing" doesnt actually make this maul, they outsource it to another,much better, but smaller american company. i won't name them here, but i assure you that dealing with them was a dream compared to "estwing" customer service.as you can see in the pictures i put some hours into the maul...stripped all the varnish/glue from the handle, torched the fawns foot to add a little tensile strength (keeps it from splintering easily when handle comes in contact with hard surfaces). multiple applications of boiled linseed oil (once a day for a week,once a week for a month,once a month for a year, once a year from then on) till it had the perfect grip to hold and to slide down when using gloves. i removed the pathetic excuse for an overstrike guard and replaced it with a much larger 550 paracord, and last but not least i used a wire brush attachment on an angle grinder to remove the god aweful blue paint. the brushed look is decent, though now its lacking the rust resistance that it should have had from a proper quenching. my overall opinion is if you want a super well designed maul that requires a little work, you can't beat this, the final product after a little work would be worth 2-4x more than what i paid. if you want a ready to use out of box maul, i would go buy a composite handle instead. i have split massive rounds of red/white/red/swamp/pin oak, twisted grain sugar maple, knotty ash, and most of all the dreaded sweet gum, you can rest assured that it handled everything and stayed sharp through it all.

I purchases the 6lb maul axe with the hickory handle and so far she's splitting like a dream! Handle has held up to some very hard burled, knotted oak.

So I haven't used this yet but you should definitely know the handle is huge on this maul. I'm 6'2 230lbs and I have the biggest hands of anyone I know and this thing is hard for me to wrap my hands around. I'm sure it will work but not for most normal people. Maybe for Thoren Bradley.

I’m not a pro but the handle split from the maul head after a week of medium use.

I have a acquired several different splitting mauls over the years. This one stands alone as the best. I prefer a wood handle because of reduced shock. Also, this handle is beefy with nice straight grain wood. The shape of the head seems to really help in splitting. The 6# weight is perfect. I can get greater speed on the head to deliver more force. Yesterday, mi amigo and I split wood for several hours comparing all my old splitting mauls with this new one. This one is so good Im ordering another. Mi amigo always grabs this one first, so I need another for myself.

Works Great with a comfortable handle.

Very pleased with this splitting maul. It has a rugged handle that is more substantial that a typical 6-pound maul handle. I expect this will serve me well for years to come.

At first I was hesitant to buy this because many were saying it was made in India... So I personally reached out to Estwing and asked them if this was a legit axe and website via Amazon... Estwing assured me this was a branch from them. I bought this axe and I can't say anything bad about it! It is solid! The handle and maul is perfect weight combo. Ive so far with-in 2 days chopped up some gnarly read oak that had some really tough twists and knots in them. About a 1/4 cord. I usually do this for exercise. I would recommend this axe to any outdoors man, trying to chop up some thick, tough wood!