Pioneer Woodworking Tools

Pioneers built cabins, furniture and wagon wheels with a short kit of hand tools and no power at all. Pioneer Settler's list of the woodworking tools they relied on covers the broad axe for squaring logs, the drawknife and spokeshave for shaving and shaping, the adze for hollowing, the hand saw, the brace and auger for boring holes, planes, chisels with a mallet, scrapers, and rasps and files. Below is one good tool you can buy today for each job, with the price checked by hand. No independent reviewer ranked these, so each one is labeled as our pick. Edged tools arrive sharp; keep them sheathed and learn to sharpen them.

One pick per tool

Rank	Product & source	Key note	Price
Broad Axe
Broad Axe	Gränsfors Bruk Broad Axe 1900 (Straight, 4801)Troy's pick (tool from Pioneer Settler's list)	Hand-forged Swedish hewing axe for squaring logs into beams.	~$385Price checked Oct 21, 2026at gransforsaxes.com Buy at North River Outdoors – $385
Drawknife
Drawknife	Garrett Wade Outdoor Drawknife (Made in Germany)Troy's pick (tool from Pioneer Settler's list)	Two-handled blade you pull toward you to strip bark and shave logs, handles and spokes.	~$62Price checked Oct 21, 2026at garrettwade.com Buy at Garrett Wade – $62
Adze
Adze	Garrett Wade Hand AdzeTroy's pick (tool from Pioneer Settler's list)	Short-handled adze with a carbon steel head on an ash handle, for hollowing bowls and troughs and dressing beams.	~$139Price checked Oct 21, 2026at garrettwade.com Buy at Garrett Wade – $139
Hand Saw
Hand Saw	Lynx 22 in Crosscut Hand Saw (10 TPI)Troy's pick (tool from Pioneer Settler's list)	Traditional Sheffield-style crosscut saw with a taper-ground blade and hand-set teeth, for cutting boards and timbers to length.	~$159.99Price checked Oct 21, 2026at woodcraft.com Buy at Woodcraft – $159.99
Brace and Bit
Brace and Bit	Garrett Wade Versatile 9 in Carpenter's BraceTroy's pick (tool from Pioneer Settler's list)	Classic crank brace for boring holes by hand.	~$49.95Price checked Oct 21, 2026at garrettwade.com Buy at Garrett Wade – $49.95
Plane
Plane	WoodRiver #5 Jack Plane (V3)Troy's pick (tool from Pioneer Settler's list)	All-purpose 14 in bench plane for flattening, smoothing and straightening edges.	~$249.99Price checked Oct 21, 2026at woodcraft.com Buy at Woodcraft – $249.99
Mallet and Chisel
Mallet and Chisel	Garrett Wade Chisels and Wooden Joinery Mallet SetTroy's pick (tool from Pioneer Settler's list)	Four French-made chisels (1/4, 1/2, 3/4 and 1 in) with ash handles, a beechwood joinery mallet and a denim roll.	~$99Price checked Oct 21, 2026at garrettwade.com Buy at Garrett Wade – $99
Spokeshave
Spokeshave	Garrett Wade Classic Adjustable SpokeshaveTroy's pick (tool from Pioneer Settler's list)	9-1/2 in flat-sole spokeshave with an adjustable high-carbon steel blade, for shaping chair legs, rungs, handles and spokes.	~$39Price checked Oct 21, 2026at garrettwade.com Buy at Garrett Wade – $39
Scraper
Scraper	Bahco Cabinet Scraper (0.80 mm x 6 in)Troy's pick (tool from Pioneer Settler's list)	Swedish steel card scraper that takes a burnished edge and leaves a smooth final finish where a plane can't reach.	~$15.99Price checked Oct 21, 2026at woodcraft.com Buy at Woodcraft – $15.99
Auger
Auger	Bushcraft Survival 1 in Scotch Eye AugerTroy's pick (tool from Pioneer Settler's list)	Hand auger that bores 1 in peg holes; push a stick through the eye for a handle.	~$36.95Price checked Oct 21, 2026at bushcraft-survival.com Buy at Bushcraft Survival – $36.95
Rasp and File
Rasp and File	WoodRiver 4-in-1 Hand Rasp and FileTroy's pick (tool from Pioneer Settler's list)	One 8 in tool with a flat rasp, a curved rasp, a flat file and a curved file, for shaping and smoothing wood.	~$16.99Price checked Oct 21, 2026at woodcraft.com Buy at Woodcraft – $16.99