Hammer poll or spike?

JayGoliath

JayGoliath

Joined
Mar 27, 2010
Messages
4,988
When it comes to choosing a spike and a hammer poll for a utility i'm lost.
From what i read on forums hammer poll for quick recovery upon application/ camping purpose and spike for deadly approach.
It was always said that the back spike could be dangerous to user.

Maybe i'm being naive to have everything in a tool?

switch_axe___switch_by_obsidian_asphodel-d3f4edu.jpg


On your daily use, which one do you prefer and what do you use for it? :D
 
A hammer poll is deadly in itself. On the end of a tomahawk's long handle, you essentially would be bashing someone with a lightweight warhammer.
 
Depends on the area of use. I'm not military, swat, or NSA, etc.. I camp, and I like to have fighting hawks for personal-home defense. For camping, I have been looking at the Jenny Wren, Winkler's Camp Axe, and something like Coal Creek Forge's Toma-Axe. Those have a hammer poll, which can be used in many ways. It will break glass, bones, drive tent stakes, wooden wedges into logs, and maybe break cinder block if need be. It can help preserve your edge and be batoned if need be.
As far as spikes and camping, well it's not that useful. I see this as more of a weapon, less of a tool. It could have applications in combat, puncture tires, metal drums, start a hole in sheet metal, and other inventive things.
I have the Winkler Sayoc on order, and for me it's a weapon, meaning it won't be chopping wood. It's a self defense, pure fighting weapon, with little utility. Again, if need be I could breach a door, window, car, puncture a tire, if it were a life or death moment.
You'll probably get different answers from guys with different daily activities, from Afghanistan, to Ed Wood, to the bushcrafters. All are options for the great tomahawk.
 
I had a good degree of success last winter using a CS Warhammer to bust thick ice on my driveway. The spike really tore that ice up.

And no, it isn't a paved driveway. It's gravel.
 
Spikes are very usefull in the bush. They are great for drilling holes, scraping a groove into wood and many other shelter building applications if you just think of how you can use it. Having a spike is also great for breaking ground or digging a drainage trench. When I'm in the bush I have found hammering a peg is not something that needs done all that often, and if it does a rock works just dandy.
 
Blunt force of a hammer poll can be as equally as deadly as a spike. I believe the spike arose as a way to puncture heavy metal armor plate and mail. As with any tool, it will be dangerous unless you know how to use it. It may take some caution in getting used to a hawk with a spike, but once you learn how to operate it safely it can be a fantastic tool. I use the eye of my hawk for pounding all the time, and have grown used to it. Personal preference, I think I'd take the poll.
 
Japanese shirt, asian bike gang jacket, androgynous boots, that's gotta be some sort of Final Fantasy weapon.
 
The only function I could see (before what zombie mentioned) for a spike in the woods is as a pickeroon for dragging logs. If you only had a hawk and nothing else.. then I could see some merit to a spike since you can hammer things with rocks, sticks, etc.

For tacitical/martial arts purposes... I just don't have enough experience. With my own martial skills... I would be amazed if I had the presence of mind to contemplate which end of my hawk to use in a close quarters fight. But that is just me. As an artist... things like spikes give yet another dimension to play with.
 
I could see a spike on a tomahawk being a good winter companion in the mountains, as it could break holes in frozen stream\lakes for water and fishing and it could double as an ice axe if one started slipping. Outside of that I'd prefer the hammer pole. In winter though, I am definitely interested in trying one.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top