Bushcraft 'Hawk

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kage

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Oct 25, 2006
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This is my first post in this subforum but I'm a regular on the Wilderness and Survival Skills Subforum. I've decided to try a hawk for weight savings over an axe or hatchet for certain situations and the more easily field repairable handle is a huge plus. I've been digging through the older posts and learning a ton from you guys about tomahawks, but I thought I'd ask the question directly from those in the know before pulling the trigger on a new hawk.

What I'm looking for is a hawk strictly for bushcraft use as another tool in the quiver and will be a part of one of my wilderness trios (axe, hatchet, saw, fixed blade, machete, folder, SAK or multi-tool...situation dictating) . I'm not interested in it for throwing or fighting, but optimal for camp craft, carving, wood splitting, etc. Well balanced for throwing and decent for fighting are a plus, but not a necessity. Well rounded enough to be used as a stand alone tool would be great, in case something happens to my other tools (the stars aligning against me, Murphy gunning for me, my own stupidity and bad luck or what have you).

I had pretty much decided on a Cold Steel Norse Hawk before coming onto here, but now that I'm aware of so many other good companies (Coal Creek Forge, Ragweed Forge, Ft. Turner, Great River Forge, etc.) I'm unsure what would be best.

Also what do you guys consider best for a lightweight field sharpener for a hawk? Convexed edge and field strop or sand paper, sharpening puck, small bastard file, diamond stone or stick, or what?

Thanks for your help!
 
How much do you want to spend?

I'd try a Cold steel that looks as close to what you might want as you can. Reason is, hawks are one of those things that aren't for everyone, not everyone ends up liking them.

For use as a hawk, along with a knife, preferably a long knife, the Trail Hawk is hard to beat. You get a light tool that can penetrate deep, and a usable hammer poll.

If you are truly looking for a hawk that can replace other tools in a pinch, I'd use one with a longer edge. The top of my list for that would be their new pipe hawk, which gives a longer edge, that can be used as a knife in a pinch, and again, a usable hammer poll.

If you do a lot of digging and not a lot of hammering, the spike hawk could help you there.
 
Thanks for the input, Cpl Punishment! The CS hawks are dirt cheap in the $20-30 range but I'd be happy to spend $50 or more if it's worth it (but not $150+ for my first hawk).

I was looking at the Norse Hawk on Magnussen's recommendation and it looks like it would be handy as an ulu, lending it more versatility.

Typically I carry a fixed blade in the 3.5-5 inch range, with more use at the smaller end of that range, as I find them handy for finer work.

If I dig I usually make a digging stick, so I'm no overly interested in a spike. A pole obviously could be very handy for campcraft projects, shelters, etc.

I'll definitely look at the Pipe Hawk, which I didn't look at very hard before.
 
Steve Lilley at Coal Creek Forge on this forum also makes some really excellent poll haks from jackhammer bits.
 
kage said:
Thanks for the input, Cpl Punishment! The CS hawks are dirt cheap in the $20-30 range but I'd be happy to spend $50 or more if it's worth it (but not $150+ for my first hawk).
Click to expand...

Understood. That's why I said try a Cold Steel. They are good enough to see if you like hawks. If you do, then think of what modifications you would make, draw them up and contact one of the makes who makes custom hawks.

Then get in line with the rest of us pestering Vector001 to send in our hawks for the VecHawk treatment.
 
You can't go wrong with Steve at Coal creek, he's a super guy to deal with and will make you whatever you are looking for. Other wise the Trail hawk is a great smallish, well balanced thrower that will split and cut very well. I haven't tried the new "pipehawk" or the spike but either would work for you and are very cheap to get into.

Regards

Robin
 
I would get the CS Trail Hawk. Very versatile and after you use it for a while you're know what you like/don't like about it and can better approach a custom maker if you feel the need to go that route.

I have the Norse Hawk and the ATC fighting hawk, think they're better for fighting (if the zombies ever come) but not as good in the woods as the Trail Hawk. Don't have the other versions so can't comment on them.

Probably should sell the ATC, I have no use for it now. Thought I would use it in the sandbox but didn't so now it's just taking up space.

Was very sold on the Trail Hawk so bought several of them and have been customizing/testing them as I get time. May one day get a custom hawk if I feel the need for it.
 
I would recommend against the CS trail hawk. The bit is veeery long and skinny, and doesn't lend itself to much usefulness outside of fighting and throwing. I'd recommend the CS Norse Hawk or Frontier-the bit's alot wider, much more practical for chopping and splitting. H&B Forge makes beautiful, spectacularly balanced hand forged hawks for 35-40 dollars. I'm in love with their Shawnee hawk for throwing, chopping, carving, digging and other bush tasks. The CS Frontier design isn't too far off from it, so I guess it kind of depends how much you want to spend etc. Either way you will be acquiring way more than what you pay for.
 
I just mounted a CS Norse Hawk head onto a 25" handle and I really like the results.

It's very fast, very agile, and hits with some serious authority. It almost handles like a sword.
 
Thank you everyone for your suggestions!

I've been looking over some of the recommendations and the Trail Hawk looks like it might have too narrow of a cutting edge for my uses, as PayetteRucker pointed out. The Pipe Hawk is similar but with a much wider cutting area, so it might be a winner. The Frontier Hawk looks great for a pole-less design.

The HB Forge Shawnee, Small and Medium Camp Axes all look really great, and the prices are more than reasonable. Their Viking also looks very useful, although pretty large in comparison to the others. Those are definitely major contenders against the CS's. Does anybody have any experience with their Camp Axes?

I definitely like the idea of getting a CS Warhammer handle and customizing the length of a tomahawk.

So what does everyone use in the field for sharpening their hawks?
 
Lansky Puck is GREAT-also handy for buffing out knicks and dents in knife blades as well. It has a course/medium grit combo that when paired with wet and dry sandpaper makes a very cheap, light packable combo. The 3 dollar Smith's arkansas hard stone that you can buy at 90% of hardware stores does a good job as well.
 
small 600 grit folding diamond hone. Iy cleans up with water and you won't find lighter. Fort Turner also makes great hawks around fifty bucks. High carbon cutting bit and mild steel body. Get one made how you want. Barring that, I've found the coldsteel trailhawk perfect for most applications for me in the woods. The drawback of small cutting edge makes it superior to anything else Ive used for hollowing out a log for plates or bowls. I like my custom 11 ounce FT hawk better though. It's lighter, wider poll surface, holds edge longer and 3/4 inch longer cutting edge.
 
aleyn1975 said:
small 600 grit folding diamond hone. Iy cleans up with water and you won't find lighter. Fort Turner also makes great hawks around fifty bucks. High carbon cutting bit and mild steel body. Get one made how you want. Barring that, I've found the coldsteel trailhawk perfect for most applications for me in the woods. The drawback of small cutting edge makes it superior to anything else Ive used for hollowing out a log for plates or bowls. I like my custom 11 ounce FT hawk better though. It's lighter, wider poll surface, holds edge longer and 3/4 inch longer cutting edge.
Click to expand...

Hi aleyn1975,

That sounds like an interesting hawk. Would you happen to have any pics?
 
The bit of the Trail Hawk can be a big plus depending on what you want it to do (there's a reason I mentioned it first).

You DO NOT want a Trail Hawk if:
1.) You want the hawk to replace a knife. If you want to choke up under the head and use it to skin game, slice things, etc, it can be done, but is not easy with such a narrow edge.
2.) If you want an axe with an oval haft. What I mean is, if you want to split large rounds of wood, this isn't your huckleberry. It can be done (it's one of the first things I tried when I got my Vechawks -- based on the Trail Hawk head), but it takes a different technique than just slamming the head into the middle of a round of wood.

However, if you want a light tool and are willing to use a hawk like a hawk instead of an axe, or replacement knife, then it has several advantages:
1.) It's lighter. Less metal = less weight.
2.) You can chop just as efficiently on larger pieces, but you go about it differently. OK, with an axe/hatchet, you're used to fairly wide chunks of wood coming out with each strike. With the Trail Hawk, the hawk bites deep because of the narrow edge. First swing, the head goes in -- on softwood, I have little problem burying it to the front of the eye, on hardwoods, about 2" deep), the first strike will stick. Pull the hawk out, and strike on a narrow angle just behind the first. When you pull the hawk out, a narrow, long wedge of wood comes with it. Repeat as necessary. That's why Vec says hawks "peck" at wood.
3.) If you stick to the methods of the original hawk users, it's efficient. People didn't use hawks to build log cabins. They used full sized axes and buck saws. The general rule of thumb for hawks was to stick to wood the diameter of your wrist or smaller. Depending on the size of your wrist, the Trail Hawk will take that in 2-3 strikes.
4.) Seeing the narrow edge on the hawk, you understand why it's most often paired with a long knife, or machete. A very small knife, back in the day called a patch knife, is also often carried.


But, as always, it comes back to what work you want it to do, and how you are willing to do it.
 
Excellent points by all! Thanks for everyone's input. I think I have more to consider now than before, but it's good food for thought.

I may end up getting two less expensive hawks to see the differences between a narrow vs. wide bit, and a hammer pole vs. no pole. I'm sure if I like them I'll end up with several more, so might as well dive right in!
 
The shorter edge of the trail hawk is what makes it seem limited to me and how I use them. Certainly that narrow bit is great for penetration, but I'm not willing to trade off for it from the wider bit I'm used to using.

With my custom Ft Turner, I have a nice long 3.75" cutting edge. Not only is it good for the aforementioned uses, but I can also use it somewhat like a machete. I'd imagine a wound from it would be like a high velocity chop from a meat cleaver. The head's length is a hair over 6.75", giving it better ability for hooking. Even with it's larger size, it is remarkably agile and quick; mounted on a 23.25" long handle. IMO it's as close to being my ideal tomahawk as I've found.
 
AR_Freak said:
Hi aleyn1975,

That sounds like an interesting hawk. Would you happen to have any pics?
Click to expand...

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