The BEST episodes of Ax Men

Every episode of Ax Men ever, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best episodes of Ax Men!

The History Channel presents the first non-fiction show about the lives of the Pacific Northwest timber cutters and the dangers they face. From the same team responsible for Ice Road Truckers, this new series will take a look at the legacy of the pioneers who laid the foundations for future generations of loggers.

Last Updated: 2/29/2024Network: HistoryStatus: Ended
Share:
Rygaard vs. Rygaard
star
8.45
107 votes

#1 - Rygaard vs. Rygaard

Season 5 - Episode 9 - Aired 3/11/2012

After years of infighting, Jimmy and James Smith seek the help of a professional anger management counselor. Gabe Rygaard unveils a bold new plan to run two yarders on the same site. In Oregon, one of Big Gun's greenhorns faces the end of the line. In the swamp, Shelby takes on an assistant who puts him in his place. And in the mountains of Virginia, a new crew of horse loggers is out to show the world that they can run with the big boys.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
This Means War
star
8.41
123 votes

#2 - This Means War

Season 4 - Episode 14 - Aired 3/20/2011

From coast to coast, logging companies are willing to do anything to stay on top. At Browning, the crew gambles on a slipping skyline. In the bayou, Shelby puts his swamp buggy to the test pulling one of the biggest logs of the season. At Rygaard, Craig mounts an assault to get rid of Dave. In Florida, Joe Collins takes the plunge into the black waters of the Suwannee while S&S tries to regroup with the help of local deckhand Casey Roberson. And in Canada, Lemare receives devastating news that could end their season before it ever gets going.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Ax Is Back
star
8.38
131 votes

#3 - Ax Is Back

Season 5 - Episode 1 - Aired 1/8/2012

It's a new season of Ax Men and a new battle for "king of the mountain." Papac returns as reigning king of the mountain, but the stress of maintaining the title pushes hook tender Coatsy over the edge. Rygaard's dangerous blowdown site fights them at every turn. Shelby Stanga needs to start this season strong, but a gruesome accident puts him dead in the water. Veteran Pihl cutter Levi Brown breaks out on his own, and a new yarder company joins the competition. S&S logging returns to Florida to log against new rivals, but infighting trumps the competition.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Burning the Bear
star
8.35
161 votes

#4 - Burning the Bear

Season 5 - Episode 12 - Aired 4/1/2012

In the swamp, the battle between Shelby Stanga and his nemesis Richard comes to a head. On the river, Buck and Swilley's boat goes boom. At Big Gun, one of their greenhorns shows his dark side. And at Papac, Joe and Coatsy bury the hatchet.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Final Countdown
star
8.24
97 votes

#5 - Final Countdown

Season 4 - Episode 18 - Aired 4/24/2011

It's time to finish the season strong. In Florida, the Log-Off is locked in a dead heat, and with Joe and Swilley sidelined after sinking their second boat, Jimmy and James are poised to take the top spot. Swamp man Shelby Stanga's log buyer is due in the morning, but a bite from a water moccasin may kill his plans for success. At Rygaard, Craig kicks Dave off the landing, but one moment of inattention could be the end for former chaser. At Browning, the crew battles a patch of tangled timber, and north of the border, the men of Lemare are racing to stay ahead of winter storms that could shut them down at any time.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Fever Pitch
star
8.20
125 votes

#6 - Fever Pitch

Season 4 - Episode 19 - Aired 5/1/2011

Across logging country, the final push begins. At Papac, Joe Linderborg's reign on the yarder has everyone running scared. At Browning, Jay receives devastating news that could mean the end of his career. On the Suwannee, S&S and Collins almost come to blows over a pair of logs. In the swamp, Shelby mounts his final and most important mission of the season--saving his Log Dog. And at Rygaard, one chaser blows up and bows out of the competition for good.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Tipping Point
star
8.19
127 votes

#7 - Tipping Point

Season 4 - Episode 11 - Aired 2/27/2011

Logging country is coming unglued. Rygaard is a war zone when the battle between chasers threatens to tear apart the entire crew. At Papac Alaska, Joe and Coatsy let the fists fly. In Florida, Jimmy suffers a season-ending injury. In the swamp, Shelby Stanga pushes his Log Dog past the tipping point... and for Pihl, the end is sooner than they think.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
The Final Haul
star
8.18
11 votes

#8 - The Final Haul

Season 1 - Episode 13 - Aired 6/8/2008

Logging's toughest season winds down but the battle is far from over. Jesse questions the future of his family's business as J.M. Browning continues to fall from glory. The Gustafson crew returns to the Challenge, but rumors of a final pullout abound. The Pihl crew wraps Beaver and celebrates a successful year. A member of the Stump Branch crew announces that he will not return.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Fight to the Finish Line
star
8.17
6 votes

#9 - Fight to the Finish Line

Season 6 - Episode 20 - Aired 6/2/2013

In the dramatic Ax Men season conclusion, Shelby hits the lake with a squad of assistants to have one last confrontation with Richard. In Florida, the Dreadknots and S&S struggle to pull enough logs to help out their ailing leader, Jimmy. In Canada, Gord's whip cracking doesn't help as their final site offers lethal challenges. And in Washington, Craig Rygaard and the crew push to finish on time, and Gabe has a surprise for his father on his last day as a logger.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
The Mouth from the South
star
8.13
151 votes

#10 - The Mouth from the South

Season 4 - Episode 15 - Aired 4/3/2011

There's a new crop of loggers in Ax Men country... but fitting in with the old guard ain't easy. In Louisiana, a beauty queen quickly pushes all of Shelby's buttons at once. At Lemare, Steve and the greenhorn butt heads that ends with one of them quitting. In Florida, S&S's newest deckhand gets more Jimmy Smith than he can handle. At Papac Alaska, Joe and Coatsy get a chance to bury the hatchet... but at Rygaard, the bad blood between Craig and Dave is worse than ever and is on the verge of tearing the crew apart.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Down and Dirty
star
8.13
103 votes

#11 - Down and Dirty

Season 5 - Episode 10 - Aired 3/18/2012

The season hits the halfway mark, and everyone is upping his game. In the swamp, Shelby and cousin Belinda are under the gun to find a huge Cypress. In Florida, S&S hires a new diver but says goodbye to an old one. In Montana, the cowboys of Siderius must break in their greenhorn without breaking him for good. And at Rygaard, two yarders bring in twice the wood and twice the trouble.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Untethered
star
8.07
43 votes

#12 - Untethered

Season 10 - Episode 10 - Aired 9/12/2019

Jason Rygaard races to clear a hillside in time to fill four logging trucks; Jay R Harkness fights to control the untethered Tigercat on a steep, snow-covered mountainside; Bucking Billy and his son Hogan battle a forest of hang-ups and widow-makers.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Hell Hole
star
8.05
81 votes

#13 - Hell Hole

Season 5 - Episode 4 - Aired 1/29/2012

At Papac Alaska, the site is turned upside down when the yarder operator walks off in the middle of the day. In Florida, Swilley's determination to beat S&S in the Suwannee River Log Off leads to a life threatening mistake. With their leader still in the hospital, Big Gun Logging loses control of the Ole Keasy site. At Rygaard, the rigging crew is learning safety lessons the hard way. And in the swamp, the bigger they are, the harder they fall.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Fresh Meat
star
8.00
44 votes

#14 - Fresh Meat

Season 2 - Episode 9 - Aired 5/4/2009

New faces are welcomed to the fraternity of men known as Ax Men. Rygaard and Conner Aviation hope their new greenhorns fare better than the last class. At Pihl, a missing cutter sends the crew on a search mission, and tempers at S&S Aqua Logging reach crisis level.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Where's Willy
star
7.99
130 votes

#15 - Where's Willy

Season 5 - Episode 13 - Aired 4/8/2012

On the mountain, Gabe's two-yarder plan goes further off track when one crew member defects to the other team. Big Gun races their tightest deadline yet, while in Alaska, Joe and the new guy get into it. On the river, an accident could take S&S out of the Log-Off for good, and in the swamp, Shelby's trusty assistant Willy goes missing.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Family Rivalry
star
7.97
131 votes

#16 - Family Rivalry

Season 5 - Episode 16 - Aired 4/29/2012

At Rygaard, Gabe's two yarder sides are reunited, but the infighting that's plagued them all year is worse than ever. In Florida, the alliance between Team Buck and James Smith comes to a bitter end. At Papac, Joe's hard-yarding style sends the rigging crew running for cover. In the swamp, Shelby Stanga won't stop until he gets his revenge. And in New Hampshire, two new teams of ox loggers enter the race.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Manhunt
star
7.97
97 votes

#17 - Manhunt

Season 4 - Episode 4 - Aired 1/2/2011

At Papac Alaska, time is running out for missing logger Van Huffman. At Rygaard, Gabe gambles on a helicopter... and loses. At Pihl, rigging slinger Eric Davis is rushed to the hospital after a gruesome fall. In Louisiana, Shelby pulls an all-nighter to save his dog Piss Willy. And in Florida, Collins puts the Smith boys in their place.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Let 'Er Rip
star
7.96
129 votes

#18 - Let 'Er Rip

Season 5 - Episode 11 - Aired 3/25/2012

As the season moves on, everyone's going to greater lengths to stay on top. At Papac, an accident sends one man over the edge of the landing. In horse country, the loggers take to new heights in order to get the final tree of the job on the ground. At Siderius, greenhorn Jesse Kelleher is in need of redemption. And in the bayou, the swamp man gets into a shootout with another logger who's after Shelby's profits.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Man Down
star
7.96
123 votes

#19 - Man Down

Season 4 - Episode 17 - Aired 4/17/2011

As the logging season winds down, the pressure to produce, heats up. In Alaska, a family emergency takes Mark from the yarder seat and with no time for a shut down... Papac calls on the only guy with experience running the massive machine: Joe Linderborg. Meanwhile the men of Rygaard are feasting at the Honey Hole, pulling big wood and riding high. Down south on the Suwannee, Jimmy and James try to close the gap in the Log-Off while Joe and Swilley just try to get back on the water. And in the Louisiana bayou, a ghost threatens to derail Shelby.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
The Ax Stops Here
star
7.96
72 votes

#20 - The Ax Stops Here

Season 5 - Episode 20 - Aired 5/20/2012

It's the nail-biting conclusion of the race to be crowned King of the Mountain. While Papac battles to bring their yarder operator back from the brink, Craig Rygaard forces Gabe to choose between him and Dave. At Big Gun, Levi drops a bomb, while in the swamps of Louisiana, Shelby's in a desperate race to find swamp gold. And in Florida, the Great Suwannee River Log-Off comes to a close, but when Jimmy doesn't like the results, he takes matters into his own hands.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Blast Off
star
7.94
126 votes

#21 - Blast Off

Season 4 - Episode 16 - Aired 4/10/2011

From Canada to Louisiana, desperate times call for desperate measures. At Lemare, a washed out road threatens to trap their logs on the landing... until Gord decides to blast half the mountainside to make new gravel. At Rygaard, Gabe's got a surprise for his crew to put them back on track, while in Oregon, Jay Browning has a close call with a barberchair. In Louisiana, Shelby's bringing in a surprising new assistant: his wife Donna. And in Florida, Joe and Swilley hook a bigger log than they can handle and end up sinking their boat in the process.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
The Reckoning (1)
star
7.93
44 votes

#22 - The Reckoning (1)

Season 2 - Episode 11 - Aired 5/18/2009

The final week of logging's toughest season begins. Impossible goals leave no room for error, as each crew races the clock. While Rygaard and Browning are locked in a fight to the finish, Conner Aviation battles for survival. At Pihl, one man won't survive the week.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Flipping Logzilla
star
7.93
70 votes

#23 - Flipping Logzilla

Season 6 - Episode 6 - Aired 1/13/2013

In Louisiana, the Swamp Man targets a money log, but it s in dangerous territory. At Rygaard, DJ gets put on notice, while in Florida, Brad and Swilley struggle to keep S&S from running off the rails. And from Canada, a new company is about to give them all a run for their money.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
The Final Straw
star
7.91
45 votes

#24 - The Final Straw

Season 6 - Episode 17 - Aired 5/12/2013

Shelby is reunited with his old assistant DaVi and together, they go on a mission to help the people of New Orleans. In Oregon, the Big Gun crew is scrambling to finish up the Grindstone site, but a yarder malfunction leads to near-catastrophe. In Canada, the Lemare company is finally pulling the big wood. But site boss Gord gets greedy and loses a load of logs in a dramatic way. And at Rygaard, the new site is proving challenging. And when Craig loses his cool it pushes him to make a shocking decision.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Day from Hell
star
7.89
126 votes

#25 - Day from Hell

Season 4 - Episode 3 - Aired 12/26/2010

On the edge of America's final frontier, it's every logger's worst nightmare: one of Papac's men has disappeared into thin air. Logging country is rattled to its core when logger Van Huffman goes missing in Alaska's remote wilderness. But when Papac's crew braves the harsh terrain and weather that batters Suemez Island, they find many reasons for concern and few for hope. Down south, the mountain's newbies are in hot water. At Pihl, Leah creates an upender that threatens the entire crew and at Rygaard, Dave's "work ethic" meets Craig's wrath. In Louisiana, Shelby messes with a lethal dose of TNT that could sink him and his swamp friends for good, while the Collins crew lands on the wrong end of a runaway boat.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV