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CRKT Chogan T-hawk arrived yesterday

R

rwn2000

Joined
Jan 6, 2003
Messages
716
I have to admit that i am not really a tomahawk guy. I've got several and they rarely see any real use, replaced by various hatchets, a CT Hudson bay, or a Plumb boy's axe when camping. Having said that, i love the look of some of the "tactical" one piece hawks and when i saw the price on the CRKT's, i figured it wasn't going to get much better. I ordered the Chogan with the blunt end; i don't think i'll be breaching doors or any CQB so the Kangee isn't for me. It arrived yesterday and I played around a little this morning. On to the pics:

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My normal test for any cutting tool that may end up in my camp supplies is fire prep. Fatwood shavings require a little finesse and splitting 3" limbs into finger size pieces are more on the brute force side, so it's a good test.

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It did a lot better than i expected. Shavings were easy since the head shape allows you to choke way up and use it like a knife. chopping through a 3" dead oak limb was a little work, but not too bad. Splitting was pretty good, but 3-4" branches are probably the limit. The finish seems to hold up well, at least in this limited test. the tang is tapered, from about 1/4" at the head to about 5/32" at the handle end. (my calipers are MIA in my shop, or I'd have exact numbers). I'm happy with my purchase, and it may end up with a permanent place in my BOB. It won't replace my Wetterlings SAW13 in my camp kit, but it is capable of doing the same work, just a little slower in the chopping/splitting category.

randy
 
Randy,

How is the FRN handle feel on hand? How is the choke up feel?
I'm still contemplating on the blunt end vs spiked end as i have quite a number of sharp butt.
 
The FRN is a little rougher than I would like it. I think a sanding block and some 400 grit would knock the little points off in about 5 minutes. On the bright side, it doesnt slip in the hand at all and its probably fine like it is if you wear gloves.

Choking up to make shavings worked very well.

Randy
 
Thank you for the post on this.
For the price these look like a great option for a truck hatchet, or a day hiking one.
 
In typical hawk or hatchet construction the metal surrounding the eye is wider than the handle. This affords some protection to the handle because it opens a split wider than the handle. But on a tool like this where the handle is the widest part of the tool there is no such protection. What happens to this tool when you make an overstrike? How well will this handle hold up?
 
Square_peg said:
In typical hawk or hatchet construction the metal surrounding the eye is wider than the handle. This affords some protection to the handle because it opens a split wider than the handle. But on a tool like this where the handle is the widest part of the tool there is no such protection. What happens to this tool when you make an overstrike? How well will this handle hold up?
Click to expand...

I can't imagine you would smack the wood hard enough to do the handle any harm. It's full tang .25 inch thick SK-5 steel, so probably worst case scenario would be cracking one of the FRN scales and scuffing the steel a bit.
 
Oh I'm sure the steel tang will hold up just fine. It's the scales I'm unsure of - that cracking thing you mentioned would worry me. But I haven't used one. Maybe someone who has can tell us how the scales hold up to overstrikes. I'm wondering if it wouldn't be better to shorten the scales. Think of how an Estwing hatchet is built. Nothing but tang just below the head. Overstrikes are no problem.
 
Square_peg said:
Oh I'm sure the steel tang will hold up just fine. It's the scales I'm unsure of - that cracking thing you mentioned would worry me. But I haven't used one. Maybe someone who has can tell us how the scales hold up to overstrikes. I'm wondering if it wouldn't be better to shorten the scales. Think of how an Estwing hatchet is built. Nothing but tang just below the head. Overstrikes are no problem.
Click to expand...

Gotcha. I'd guess the FRN would mostly flex rather than crack, but if you were worried about it you could remove the scales and cord wrap it.
 
Pegs, the scales dont go all the way out to the tang, by about 3/32". So on an overstrike, I thing the tang would take most of the impact. Especially in cold weather, though, I think the scales could still crack on an overstrike in soft wood. I dont think this would be the best choice for a camp hatchet, whose primary use would be wood processing. No one piece tactical hawk is going to out perform a traditional hatchet with the correct profile in processing firewood.

But it is useable in a pinch.

Randy
 
I think the protruding tang could slide into the split started by the head and then the scales would impact on the sides of the split and get damaged. Most chopping tools like tomahawks, hatchets and axes are made with eye walls wider than the handle which protect against this.

I can see where the long scales would provide a good grip for tasks like making feather sticks and stakes, etc. But a knife could also do those tasks while a hawk or hatchet could handle small splitting tasks.

I guess if nobody is reporting having this problem then maybe it's not an issue. It just looked like a potential problem to me.
 
Nice review, thanks!
I would think that if there was concern with the handle slabs getting damaged, one could cut them off at the begining of the upper grip area just above the hole. Then they could use a flared tube or screws to solidify that juncture.
I wouldn't personally worry as I look at this design as more combat with a utility back up role.
Good looking tool for the price.
 
Lets remember that this is based of the RMJ Stormcrow which was, for lack of better description, a Jenny Wren on steroids. I definitely see it more as a fighting implement than a bush tool. If one were to be really worried about the slabs getting damaged they could replace them with micarta ones or cord wrap it, seeing at the current slabs are easily removable. Just my $ .2...
 
I'm debating whether to make some G-10 scales for mine. I think ArchAngle and Simple_Jumper are correct, it's more of a tactical tool than a bush tool. And that fine, I've got a bunch of tacti-cool stuff; some of it i use and some of it I don't :) I like this one and will keep it. For the price, i dont mind beating it up. I would do things with this one I wouldn't with a real RMJ

Doing fire prep was the only reasonable way for me to test it. If I breach my front door, or hack through the wife's car door, there is going to be trouble. :) just sayin'.

randy
 
Thanks for the review. I had wondered if they tapered the tang, thanks for pointing that out. At that price point I really didn't think it would have one.
 
gregorio, i make knives as a hobby and tapered tangs aren't all that difficult to do. There seems to be some mystery behind tapered tangs but they are no harder to do than grinding even blade bevels. They should be even easier in an automated factory like CRKT uses. Figure the angle of taper needed, make an angled fixture to go on a surface grinder, surface grind the taper, flip the blank over, use a second fixture with double the taper to grind the other side. Index off of the holes in the blank. Should take about a minute, max per hawk, less if they could taper a whole sheet of blanks before going to the waterjet.

randy
 
rwn2000 said:
less if they could taper a whole sheet of blanks before going to the waterjet.

randy
Click to expand...

Therein lies a problem. I've seen photos somewhere of the cutouts, and they are head to toe, so to speak, to save space on the steel. Grinding the taper pre-jetting would leave half the 'hawks tapered the wrong way :eek:
 
I got my CRKT kangee recently

For me this was an impulse buy (I have no need for weapons) and have less expensive choppers that work just as good if not better.

I choose the Kangee simply because I wanted something with a spike, though honestly I would probably recommend to others to get the Chogan for any form of utility because the spike is a danger to the wielder.
I plan on finding a way to "sheath" the spike so the main edge can be used with less worries.

The Kangee Came rather Dull all the way around, Which may be a good thing because it lets me sharpen the main edge and leave the Top of the thing blunt.

Overall the sheath is actually pretty decent. My only minor complaint with the sheath is that it is almost too tight.

I actually really like the FRN handle, I don't find it rough on my hands, though it does nothing for shock.

Overall I am rather happy with the purchase.
 
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Get a small kydex sheath made for the spike which can be retained by an elastic bungee cord around the haft. That way you can still use the blade without the fear of self induced injuries from the spike.
 
I just got my Kangee today. It's a perfect sharpness for the intended tasks. Too sharp, it gets stuck in the wood or chips. It's a hawk, not a knife, it doesnt need to shave paper. CRKT has the tactical market in mind, they're trying to make a light breacher, and knife sharp is just too sharp. I'll admit, I did take the edge up a hair, but it's still not gonna shave paper or the hairs off my arm. Personal preference, of course, individual tastes vary, after all.
 
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