Four companies of loggers risk their lives to chop down timber while dealing with mechanical failures, brutal weather and rugged terrain in the Pacific Northwest.

J.M. Browning strives to meet a big deadline; Stump Branch Logging tempts fate by jury-rigging old equipment; Gustafson races the weather to build an access road; Pihl Logging hauls in the forest's cash crop.

Storm Season Strikes. 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.

Some crews shut down while others struggle to stay afloat after stormy weather arrives with a vengeance; the stalled housing market hits home for the loggers.

The news of upcoming layoffs worries the men; Gustafson Logging tries to get back on track; Browning races to meet a big deadline; Pihl Logging is under pressure to finish its Pig Farm job.

Two of Oregon's logging giants, J.M. Browning and Gustafson Logging, fight to survive; Jay Browning must make tough decisions; smaller outfits find winning strategies.