- Joined
- Dec 13, 2005
- Messages
- 6,105
Hi guys!
I recently got a chance to go for a nice dayhike with my gal and my pooch, and was able to play with some new gear. I've got lots of other pics at two threads over in the Wilderness and Survival forum-
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/sh...63#post5422263
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=540854
I wanted to specifically share how the new Trial Hawk performed in some modest tests, so here is an 'excerpt' from the original thread:
Onto the new hotness- the hawk!
I want to start by saying I was really blown away by how this thing eats through wood. Some of that might have to do with the way I reprofiled the edge, which is dramatic. If you see the old thread about my mods, you will see a close up, which looks like a scandi grind. ( http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=539939 )
I really did not expect this thing to compete with my Fiskars, but it really worked through even the hardest wood I could find with ease. The long, thin blade makes for some very deep cuts.
Choking up on the blade was slightly less comfortable than with the Fiskars, but still quite doable. I was able to make some fuzz sticks pretty quickly.
I decided to give throwing this thing a try too, something I would never ordinarily do with a woods tool. I haven't thrown a hawk in ten years, but literally this thing was sticking from the first throw! That's definitely not a testament to me, but to the balance of this hawk. There was no damage overall to any part of the blade or haft during throwing or chopping.
For $20 and some elbow grease, this is yet another great deal in the world of steel. I hugely recommend giving one a try, I was very surprised by how well it worked. The weight isn't terribly different than the Fiskars, and if anything might weigh a bit more (however negligible for most folks).
I was hoping to get to test a bit more gear today, mostly my new Guyot steel nalgene-sized bottle and the filter I got for it, but I ran out of time. I hope to give a review of this next time.
Random bits:
I also forgot how much fire starting with the firesteel was a depreciable skill! It's been too long since I've made some fire, and I could barely get the tinder I used lit with the firesteel. Everything being wet from the snow certainly compounded things, but that's no excuse. I keep a chunk of fatwood tied to my Army model firesteel in the pouch on the RAT sheath, and the fatwood was much easier to light up quickly after getting some shavings. I definitely, definitely recommend keeping a chunk of this with your firesteel for emergencies!!!! Few things are this waterproof/bombproof.
I also was using the back of my RAT7 to get sparks from the firesteel, but after a while realized I was neglecting the best tool for the job. The awl on my Vic Farmer is a vastly superior tool for this. It just reiterates that whenever possible, step back and make sure you are using the right tool for the job (if you have the luxury of having multiple tools!).
I think this is largely the end of my ramblings, so I hope these small reviews were helpful to someone. Let me know if you have any questions I can answer.
Take care! :thumbup:
I recently got a chance to go for a nice dayhike with my gal and my pooch, and was able to play with some new gear. I've got lots of other pics at two threads over in the Wilderness and Survival forum-
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/sh...63#post5422263
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=540854
I wanted to specifically share how the new Trial Hawk performed in some modest tests, so here is an 'excerpt' from the original thread:
Onto the new hotness- the hawk!
I want to start by saying I was really blown away by how this thing eats through wood. Some of that might have to do with the way I reprofiled the edge, which is dramatic. If you see the old thread about my mods, you will see a close up, which looks like a scandi grind. ( http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=539939 )
I really did not expect this thing to compete with my Fiskars, but it really worked through even the hardest wood I could find with ease. The long, thin blade makes for some very deep cuts.
Choking up on the blade was slightly less comfortable than with the Fiskars, but still quite doable. I was able to make some fuzz sticks pretty quickly.
I decided to give throwing this thing a try too, something I would never ordinarily do with a woods tool. I haven't thrown a hawk in ten years, but literally this thing was sticking from the first throw! That's definitely not a testament to me, but to the balance of this hawk. There was no damage overall to any part of the blade or haft during throwing or chopping.
For $20 and some elbow grease, this is yet another great deal in the world of steel. I hugely recommend giving one a try, I was very surprised by how well it worked. The weight isn't terribly different than the Fiskars, and if anything might weigh a bit more (however negligible for most folks).
I was hoping to get to test a bit more gear today, mostly my new Guyot steel nalgene-sized bottle and the filter I got for it, but I ran out of time. I hope to give a review of this next time.
Random bits:
I also forgot how much fire starting with the firesteel was a depreciable skill! It's been too long since I've made some fire, and I could barely get the tinder I used lit with the firesteel. Everything being wet from the snow certainly compounded things, but that's no excuse. I keep a chunk of fatwood tied to my Army model firesteel in the pouch on the RAT sheath, and the fatwood was much easier to light up quickly after getting some shavings. I definitely, definitely recommend keeping a chunk of this with your firesteel for emergencies!!!! Few things are this waterproof/bombproof.
I also was using the back of my RAT7 to get sparks from the firesteel, but after a while realized I was neglecting the best tool for the job. The awl on my Vic Farmer is a vastly superior tool for this. It just reiterates that whenever possible, step back and make sure you are using the right tool for the job (if you have the luxury of having multiple tools!).
I think this is largely the end of my ramblings, so I hope these small reviews were helpful to someone. Let me know if you have any questions I can answer.
Take care! :thumbup:
:thumbup: