The Optimist

The Optimist

Pre-Order
$450.00
$450.00
  • A top view of The Optimist canoe by Best Made Co., packed with camping essentials—a green backpack with a 5160 carbon steel Hudson Bay axe, an orange life jacket, and a fishing net. NEW
  • The Optimist axe by Best Made Co. with a wooden handle and sticker sits on a green backpack inside a red canoe, surrounded by outdoor gear—ideal for the prepared canoeist's next camping adventure. NEW
  • The Optimist by Best Made Co., featuring a wooden handle and colorful label, rests on a green backpack with black straps in a red container. Its head is forged from American 5160 carbon steel. NEW
  • A close-up of The Optimist axe by Best Made Co., featuring a wooden handle, resting on a green backpack with straps and black plastic buckles. NEW
  • A hand-forged axe by Best Made Co., The Optimist, features a wooden handle and an American 5160 carbon steel head with a colorful label: THE OPTIMIST HUDSON BAY AXE. NEW
  • A close-up of The Optimist axe by Best Made Co. features a wooden handle and a 5160 carbon steel blade engraved with "USA," set against a plain white background. NEW
  • A close-up of The Optimist by Best Made Co., a Hudson Bay axe with a wooden handle, durable 5160 carbon steel head, and colorful sticker label on top, shown against a plain white background. NEW
  • The Optimist by Best Made Co. is a single-bladed Hudson Bay axe featuring a 5160 carbon steel head and a long, curved wooden handle, shown on a plain white background with a label attached near the top of the metal head. NEW

The Optimist

The Optimist

$450.00
$450.00

The Hudson Bay pattern was never meant to bring down big timber. This is the canoeist's axe, built for traveling light, limbing, splitting kindling, or starting campfires. From put-in to take-out, it's a lifeline in the wilderness and an important piece of history.

Since its 17th-century origins, the Hudson Bay pattern has thrived in the northwoods of Canada and the United States. Its slim handle and light head are what made this axe the companion of voyageurs and backwoods guides alike. To hold one is to hold an icon: a fixture on The Grand Portage, The French River, or The Boundary Waters.

It's also a remarkably precise tool. The compact head invites a closer grip. A hand choked up under the cutaway cheek makes this tool ideal for the finer work of carving and splitting kindling. The Optimist is forged in limited quantities from American 5160 carbon steel in New Castle, Indiana, hung on a 30-inch Appalachian hickory handle, and secured by a Wickett & Craig leather blade guard.

This is a pre-order and ships in September 2026.
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The Optimist is forged from 5160 high-carbon steel by Nathan Brandt at Farm Smith, who, since our relaunch, has guided every step of our axes' manufacturing. Each axe head is ground and sharpened by hand, and the handles are turned from American hickory, in-house, by Nathan, to our specifications. Every axe is securely stowed in a branded corrugated box with our signature Wickett & Craig bridle leather blade guard.

The Hudson Bay pattern traces its lineage back to the French trade "Biscayne" axes carried into the Canadian interior in the 17th and 18th centuries. The defining feature is the cutaway cheek, which kept the axe light and easy to re-handle in the field, hundreds of miles from the nearest forge. Everything about the design served the demands of life in the backwoods.

By the 19th and early 20th centuries, Canadian and American axe makers had adopted and refined the form, and the Hudson Bay forever became a fixture of countless traplines and canoe routes. We are proud to write the next chapter of this storied tool.
5160 high-carbon steel, Appalachian hickory
- 30 inches
- 2lbs head
- 3.3lbs total weight

Cleaning: Clean the axe head after use. Remove sap and dirt with steel wool or acetone-soaked cloth. Avoid water; it promotes rust. Wipe the handle clean and dry.

Oiling: Oil the axe head with a thin coat of boiled linseed oil to prevent rust. Wipe off excess. Oil the handle periodically to prevent drying and cracking. Do not dispose oil rags in garbage, let dry outside first.

Sharpening: Keep the axe as sharp as possible. Sharpen as needed with a stone or file, maintaining the correct bit profile.

Storage: Store the axe in a dry place with the blade guard on for safety.

Regular maintenance: Inspect regularly for wear or damage, especially where the head connects to the handle. Address any issues promptly.

Consult Buchanan-Smith’s Axe Handbook for more detailed guidelines and tips.
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