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The Best Episodes of Ax Men

Every episode of Ax Men ranked from best to worst. Let's dive into the Best Episodes of Ax Men!

The Best Episodes of Ax Men

Danger is a full-time job for these brave men who put everything on the line each and every day to retrieve the Pacific Northwest timber...
  1. Background image for Shelby Strikes Back
    9.4/10(7 votes)

    #1 - Shelby Strikes Back

    S9:E1

    Swamp Man receives an order from furniture designer Brandon Morrison to find logs for a table and benches that he plans to donate to the local Boys & Girls Clubs of America chapter. After the search gets off to a slow start, Shelby and Brandon venture deep into the swamp and start finding valuable wood for both the table/benches and some lamps that one of Shelby's neighbors needs for her house. Brandon assembles the pieces with help from an old friend; after he and Shelby deliver them, he suggests that the two may be able to work together again in the future.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  2. Background image for Judgment Day
    8.8/10(8 votes)

    #2 - Judgment Day

    S4:E6

    Logging country is turned upside down when one of the mountain's best bows out. At Papac, the men suffer under the reign of a new yarder operator. At Rygaard, it's machinery gone wild when a half-baked plan goes bad and threatens to take out a fellow man. In Florida, Jimmy and James are hunted by a venomous snake, while in Louisiana, Shelby is hunted by an old foe.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  3. Background image for Battle for Survival
    8.6/10(8 votes)

    #3 - Battle for Survival

    S4:E5

    It's a battle for survival in logging country. In Bayou country, Shelby's nighttime mission brings him face-to-face with an alligator. In Florida, Jimmy and James push their luck to get one of the biggest logs in the Suwannee. At Rygaard, Dave goes down with an injury, while at Papac Alaska, the Colonel goes out in a blaze of glory. The tides are turning in logging country... and after tonight, nothing will be the same.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  4. Background image for Chopping Block
    8.4/10(8 votes)

    #4 - Chopping Block

    S3:E7

    Loggers are fired, and one disappears; Shelby takes a risky job searching for a sunken raft of logs; and Jay Browning gets some bad news.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  5. Background image for The Reckoning (1)
    8.3/10(10 votes)

    #5 - The Reckoning (1)

    S2:E11

    The crews rush to meet their goals as logging season nears it's end, and one logger is let go.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  6. Background image for Manhunt
    8.3/10(9 votes)

    #6 - Manhunt

    S4:E4

    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 P* Willy. And in Florida, Collins puts the Smith boys in their place.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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    The 20 WORST Episodes of Ax Men

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  8. Background image for Damage Control
    8.3/10(9 votes)

    #7 - Damage Control

    S5:E2

    Swamp Man Shelby Stanga is hired to remove a log from private property, but complications lead to disaster. Infighting reaches a fever pitch at S&S Aqua Logging, while the competition has a run-in with Mother Nature. A familiar face returns to Papac, much to Coatsy's dismay. Gabe Rygaard takes Dave out cutting, but things go awry. And the rookies of Big Gun Logging are adding to their ranks.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  9. Background image for The Reckoning (2)
    8.1/10(10 votes)

    #8 - The Reckoning (2)

    S2:E12

    The season two finale finds a fight erupting within one crew. Elsewhere, Jimmy has trouble with his barge, and a pair of crews are facing disasters.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  10. Background image for Storm Season Strikes
    8.0/10(10 votes)

    #9 - Storm Season Strikes

    S1:E3

    As a storm closes in on the Oregon coast, the Ax Men race to stay one step ahead. Jesse continues to push the J.M. Browning crew to meet its looming deadline, while muddy roads trap trucks on their way to the Stump Branch site. Robby battles for control of the Gustafson crew. Pihl Logging feels the effects of the slumping lumber market.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  11. Background image for Storm of the Century
    8.0/10(8 votes)

    #10 - Storm of the Century

    S1:E11

    The town of Vernonia is declared a disaster area as the worst storm in 25 years pounds the Oregon coast. Members of Pihl and Stump Branch are forced to flee. Jay Browning can't be found. Darrell must act fast to save his house from falling trees as the town of Astoria descends into a blackout. The future of the logging industry is in jeopardy.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  12. Background image for "By Air, Land and Sea"
    8.0/10(9 votes)

    #11 - "By Air, Land and Sea"

    S2:E3

    A helicopter logging company makes it's presence know in the competition; Dustin tries to convince his father into returning to Pihl Logging; a member of the Rygaard team must face his fear when he has to climb a 100-foot tall tree; Jimmy and James watch their prized log fall through their hands.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  13. Background image for Moby Dick Strikes
    8.0/10(9 votes)

    #12 - Moby Dick Strikes

    S2:E4

    R&R Conner Aviation have to make a decision to either keep their workers safe or to amp up production; Jimmy and James battle a deadhead log known as "Moby Dick."

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  14. Background image for Fresh Meat
    8.0/10(8 votes)

    #13 - Fresh Meat

    S2:E9

    The crews receive some new loggers. Then, a search is conducted when a cutter disappears. Also, tempers flare among the aqua loggers.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  15. Background image for Ax to Grind
    8.0/10(11 votes)

    #14 - Ax to Grind

    S3:E1

    The third-season opener introduces new locations as crews begin work in the summer. In addition to sites in the Pacific Northwest, loggers will battle the terrain and heat of Florida and Louisiana.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  16. Background image for Day from Hell
    8.0/10(8 votes)

    #15 - Day from Hell

    S4:E3

    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.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  17. Background image for Episode 2
    8.0/10(8 votes)

    #16 - Episode 2

    S9:E2

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  18. Background image for The Big Hit
    7.9/10(10 votes)

    #17 - The Big Hit

    S1:E4

    Across Northwest Oregon, the Ax Men continue to grind it out. Storm season arrived with a vengeance--shutting some crews down while others struggled to stay afloat. Now a bigger storm is brewing. The stalled housing market's effects are hitting the Ax Men hard. Jobs will be shut down; men will be put out of work. This week, the housing market hits home.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  19. Background image for Deeper into the Swamp
    7.9/10(10 votes)

    #18 - Deeper into the Swamp

    S3:E2

    Greenhorns are tested by Rygaard; Jay Browning hires a new yarder operator; and an argument brews between two members of the Pihl crew.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  20. Background image for Risk and Reward
    7.8/10(10 votes)

    #19 - Risk and Reward

    S1:E2

    Just days into the fall logging season, the Ax Men are already being put to the test. J.M. Browning races to meet a big deadline. Stump Branch Logging tempts fate by jury-rigging their old equipment. The Gustafson Company races mother nature as they attempt to build a road to access their logging site. Father teaches son the lessons of logging as the men of the Pihl Company haul in the forest's cash crop.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  21. Background image for Market Meltdown
    7.8/10(9 votes)

    #20 - Market Meltdown

    S1:E5

    The loggers of the Pacific Northwest perform what is said to be North America's most dangerous job. Watch as the men react to news of upcoming layoffs. Gustafson Logging tries to get back on track, Browning Logging races to meet a big deadline and Pihl Logging needs to finish the Pig Farm Job. Despite Melvin's best efforts to keep up with his old equipment, Stump Branch Logging loses one of its most important machines.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  22. Background image for Initiation Day
    7.8/10(9 votes)

    #21 - Initiation Day

    S2:E2

    After just starting the race, men from the groups begin quitting; Jay Browning's big financial gamble shows that it won't pay out; the Aqua Logging crew attempts to reel in what could be a once in a lifetime catch.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  23. Background image for Clash of the Titans
    7.8/10(8 votes)

    #22 - Clash of the Titans

    S2:E10

    A new pilot endangers the helicopter when he becomes reckless. Bad weather delays the aqua loggers; and a greenhorn attempts to prove himself.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  24. Background image for Alaska
    7.8/10(8 votes)

    #23 - Alaska

    S4:E1

    The fourth season of Ax Men returns and this year, the stakes are higher than ever. Father-and-son team Craig and Gabe Rygaard are back to take down reigning top dog J.M. Browning... but newcomer Papac Logging is gunning for both of them. Braving a remote island off the coast of Alaska, these guys play by their own rules and will stop at nothing to conquer one of America's final frontiers. Pihl Logging also returns, this time with a secret weapon whose arrival shocks the entire crew. While the mountain's top dogs battle it out in the northwest... in the other corner of the country, the aqua loggers also return. Jimmy Smith is back to reclaim his son and challenge rival Collins to a Log-Off in the black waters of the Suwannee River, while swamp logger Shelby Stanga is on a mission to find an assistant in the backwoods of Louisiana. It's the start of the most explosive season yet in the race to get the country's green gold and get out alive.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  25. Background image for Sink or Swim
    7.8/10(8 votes)

    #24 - Sink or Swim

    S4:E2

    Rygaard tries to tame two monsters at the same time--the super-juiced Mean Bean and the downhill site on which it's deployed. Pihl's greenhorn must prove herself to the crew but a deadly mistake could cost her everything. Jimmy encounters trouble on his way to the river. Shelby and his new assistant take drastic measures to unearth a monster log. And at Papac, tempers boil over, sending one man running for the hills.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  26. Background image for Fallout Zone
    7.8/10(7 votes)

    #25 - Fallout Zone

    S4:E10

    As the season reaches the halfway mark, logging country is feeling the pressure. In Florida, Swilley gets hooked in a pile of rusty metal while Jimmy and James ride a wave of high times. At Rygaard, Gabe puts his entire crew on the line when he decides to fall standing trees from directly under the skyline. In Oregon, Pihl's greenhorn lands on the wrong end of a 2,000-lb falling tree, and in bayou county, Shelby launches a dangerous nighttime mission in a part of the swamp known as "Alligator Alley".

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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Best Episodes Summary

"Shelby Strikes Back" is the best rated episode of "Ax Men". It scored 9.4/10 based on 7 votes. Directed by Unknown and written by Unknown, it aired on 11/22/2015. This episode scored 0.6 points higher than the second highest rated, "Judgment Day".