The axe is a fundamental tool to master. A first step is to learn how to sharpen and strut it. A badly sharpened axe is an axe that bounces into the wood and injures the lumberjack if the posture is incorrect. A sharp axe penetrates the wood and extracts beautiful chips that will return to the forest or be charred for the forge.

This one was sold for 5 euros on eBay and arrived in pretty good condition. I offer you some images of the steps of his fitness before going back to work. (The best moment of the video is at 8:35 - 9:00)
Its shape is very special, and surely corresponds to the axes to bark the cork oak. Its neck and finesse interest me to cut the green wood on the ground. The geometry of axes is a vast subject and there are hundreds or even thousands of different shapes. I think I can say, but I may change my mind one day, that there is no ideal form. Or the ideal shape would be that of an axe for which we have projects and experiences: it is subjective.

The Italian axes (Rinaldi - "Calabria" for example) are thin, wedge-shaped and have a straight edge, while the Franco-German axes (Ochshenkopf - "Iltis Europa") are also thin but with a flared edge, on their side the Scandinavians are in between (Gransfors - "Scandinavian axis"), slightly more convex in shape. Americans and Australians will prefer heavier, thicker and less flared axes (Council Tools - "Dayton") than those of European continentals. This list seems to give clues to the best local forms, but its forms have changed for decades and will change again when village blacksmiths start to produce axes again (yes I believe it).

For my part, I appreciate the French style axes or "tomahawk" (you hit the handle in the eye of the axe, from the top); that do not exceed 2kg (including handle); thin-bladed. Whether the shape is flared or not, I have not yet seen the difference, even if in theory a flared form tends to penetrate more but also to get stuck more often. My choices are related to the forest that surrounds me: small-diameter hardwoods, many of them dry chestnut trees standing in dense forest. Heavier axes would be pretentious, tiring and thicker blades would not penetrate a dead chestnut tree.

To close the loop, beyond the shape of an axe, it is the way in which it is sharpened and handled that has the most consequences on its cut.