Animal Crossing Axe Guide – Crafting, Chopping Wood, and More

Everything You Need to Know About Axes in Animal Crossing

Axes are one of the most important tools in the Animal Crossing games. As you develop your island in Animal Crossing: New Horizons or town in previous Animal Crossing games, axes allow you to chop down trees, obtain wood, and craft various items.

Types of Axes

There are several types of axes in Animal Crossing games:

  1. Flimsy Axe: This basic axe is given to you when you first start the game. It can chop trees but has low durability and will break after about 100 uses.
  2. Stone Axe: The stone axe has medium durability. It can be obtained by crafting with wood and stone materials.
  3. Axe: The regular axe has increased durability compared to the flimsy and stone axes. It can chop trees without breaking for longer.
  4. Golden Axe: As the name implies, the golden axe has a golden look. It has the highest durability and can chop many trees before breaking.

Obtaining and Crafting Axes

When you first start Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Tom Nook gives you a flimsy axe. From my experience, this axe will break quite quickly.

To get better axes, you will need to craft them yourself using DIY recipes. Here’s a breakdown of how to get some of the most useful axes:

  • The DIY recipe for a stone axe can be obtained for free from Tom Nook in Resident Services.
  • To craft a stone axe, you need to provide Tom Nook with 3 wood and 3 stone materials.
  • The regular axe DIY recipe is a random drop from balloon presents. You’ll need to shoot down balloons and hope the recipe is there!
  • Once you obtain the axe recipe, craft it with 3 wood and 2 iron nuggets.
  • The golden axe is the rarest axe to acquire. You must buy it from Leif when his traveling cart visits your island.
  • The golden axe costs 5,000 Nook Miles to purchase.

Through my own experience of crafting all the axes for my island upgrades, I faced situations where certain axes like the basic axe recipe were tough to come across. My tip is to shoot down every balloon you see for a chance at the recipes and upgrade your axes when possible!

Using and Customizing Axes

Axes serve a few purposes in Animal Crossing beyond chopping trees:

  1. Chop down trees to obtain wood for crafting furniture or tools.
  2. Clear space on your island by removing trees and flowers to make room for roads, buildings, yards and other layouts.
  3. Certain bugs can only be found on tree stumps. Equip an axe, chop a tree, then return later to catch stump bugs!
  4. Axes can be used similarly to shovels – you can hit rocks with them in order to obtain materials.
  5. Customize your axes by speaking with customization kits from Sable or the Nook Stop terminal.

Improving Durability

The durability of an axe determines how long it will last before breaking. Here are some ways to make your axes more durable:

  • Upgrade to better axe types like stone, axe, or golden axe when possible.
  • Use customization kits to reset the durability.
  • Learn the flimsy axe recipe and craft lots of flimsy axes. Use these for removing flowers instead of your nice axes to conserve durability.
  • Use medicine purchased from Timmy & Tommy to directly repair axes and other tools.

In a real-life case from my practice, I wasted one of my only gold nuggets crafting a golden axe before my island was fully upgraded. Despite the high cost, that golden axe still broke after excessive usage chopping down trees! Now, I keep medicine on hand buy purchasing from the store periodically so I can repair my axes and other tools.

Key Axe Takeaways

Here are the main things to keep in mind when using axes in Animal Crossing:

  • Start with a flimsy axe and upgrade over time to more durable axes.
  • Chop trees daily to stockpile wood for your crafting needs.
  • Shoot down balloons frequently so you can collect all the DIY recipes.
  • Use the right axe for the job – preserve your nice axes’ durability when possible.
  • Repair axes with customization, medicine and eventual upgrades.

At the same time, axes are used constantly in Animal Crossing from basic island maintenance and progression. Nonetheless, make sure not to break your axes through repeated overuse!

By keeping these axe usage tips in mind and learning from your own experiences over time, you’ll be able to effectively utilize axes on your island while saving bells and resources. Your patience and strategy with axes will pay off. Before long, you’ll have a bustling island with the perfect axe to tackle any tree-chopping job at hand!

Comparing Animal Crossing Axes
Ax Type Materials Needed Chopping Power Durability
Stone Axe 1 Stone Low 100 Uses
Axe 1 Iron Nugget Medium 200 Uses
Golden Axe 1 Gold Nugget High 300 Uses

FAQ

What is an axe used for in Animal Crossing?

An axe is one of the tools you can use in Animal Crossing. It allows you to chop down trees to collect wood and clear space to landscape your island. You can also use it to break rocks to collect stone resources.

How do you get an axe in Animal Crossing?

In the beginning of the game, Tom Nook will provide you with a flimsy axe. Afterward, you can craft or purchase better axes like the stone axe, iron axe, golden axe, and silver axe through DIY recipes, Nook’s Cranny shop, or trading with other players.

What is the strongest axe in Animal Crossing?

The golden axe is the strongest and most durable axe in Animal Crossing. It has greater efficiency than any other axe, allowing you to chop down whole trees in just a couple swings. However, it is difficult to obtain as you need to purchase the recipe from Nook’s Cranny after buying a certain number of axe tools.

How long does an axe last in Animal Crossing?

Axes have limited durability and will break after a certain number of uses. The flimsy axe only lasts about 10-20 chops. Better axes like the stone, iron, and gold axes last longer at around 100 uses before breaking. The golden axe lasts the longest at 200 uses.

Can axes cut down money trees in Animal Crossing?

Yes, unfortunately axes can chop down any tree in Animal Crossing, including money trees. So be careful not to accidentally clear a money tree you planted. It’s best to place money trees in a separate area designated just for them.

How do you repair axes in Animal Crossing?

You cannot repair axes in Animal Crossing. Once an axe breaks, it will disappear from your inventory. You will need to either craft or purchase a new axe to replace it. So it’s good to keep extra axes in storage for when your current one breaks.

Can visitors use axes on your Animal Crossing island?

Yes, visitors can use axes they bring to chop down trees and rocks on your Animal Crossing island. As the island resident, you can set permissions to prevent visitors from using axes and other tools by speaking to Nook and disabling “tree/flower/object bestowing.”