If you've picked up a copy of Issue 11 of our print magazine, you may have spotted the “Contest Alert” about the Woodman's Pal at the bottom of our Editor's Letter. Even if you haven't already seen the contest alert, we'll give you the details right here and now. But before we tell you about the contest, you should know what the Woodman's Pal is.

The Woodman's Pal Military Premium model. Enter the contest for a chance to win this tool!

Invented way back in 1941, The Woodman's Pal is a unique tool that was designed to combine the best characteristics of two common bladed implements: the axe and the machete. Artist and engineer Frederick Ehrsam, of Victor Tool Company, wanted a single tool that could both clear brush like a machete, and chop wood like an axe. The design he came up with was dubbed The Woodman's Pal, and it quickly became popular among forestry and agriculture professionals.

A surviving Woodman's Pal tool from 1944.

However, The Woodman's Pal wasn't just popular with civilians, it was also adopted by the U.S. Armed Forces. Designated “LC-14-B”, the tool was used by the U.S. Army Signal Corps for land clearing in World War II. The tool continued to see use in the Vietnam War, where it was standard issue in survival kits for all air crews, and it's still being used by military service men and women to this day.

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Today, The Woodman’s Pal is hand-crafted in Pennsylvania by family-owned and -operated Pro Tool Industries. Not much has changed about this historic tool design since its inception in 1941, but the design is turning 75 years old this year, and Pro Tool Industries is open to some new ideas.

So, if you've got an idea to improve The Woodman's Pal, click the link below and submit it. Pro Tool Industries will review the ideas, and select their top two. The company says each of these two winners will receive a special Woodman's Pal Military Premium Model #284 with a leather sheath. Better yet, the tool will be custom-engraved with the winner's name!

To submit your design idea for a chance to win, or to read more details about the contest, visit The Woodman's Pal 75th Anniversary Redesign Contest page.

Written by Patrick McCarthy