Antlers are great for terraforming. Nevermind repair, the stamina cost is lower. For the same reason Bronze Axe is the best one for chopping wood. You get a little more damage with later axes but till mistlands Bronze is all one needs to chop.

For picking actual stone/ore thou, from limited testing its still better to upgrade due to damage increase. Also while mining its usually easier to get resting buff. Not rested, restING , which gives 400% stamina regen while hacking at rocks. This negates the higher stamina cost downside of better picks.