Hawk bills

I use my Byrd Crossbill to open blister pack items. Hawk bills are a great way to

get stuff out of packages without ruining the product or slicing up your hand...William
 
Esav Benyamin said:
Recurved blades have much the same effect, which is why serrations on a recurved blade are extra effective.
Click to expand...

I usually bring up the argument that a hawkbill is really just one giant serration. Forgot about that.
 
Despite the thread creator this thread can be salvaged, some nice thoughts in here.

My flaw is I can't really buy a knife I don't consider attractive, wich limits me.
A friend forgot his hawkbilled EDC at my house one day and I figured I'd keep it on me until I saw him again, it turned out to be very usefull.
Slicing is a breeze, especialy for opening taped boxes wich I have to do much too often. As far as defense, who cares. Let's try and develope our staying out of trouble skills and senses of awareness.

I'm a hawkbill convert.

Edit: grammar
 
Hawk bill blades are awesome! My EDC is a Microtech Auto Hawk, and my favorite handmade I have is a Nowicki hand forged hawk. I carry these because thier cutting power is tremendous, and if I ever need a defensive knife, either of these would F&^K you up big time. I have other types of knives, but my hawks are my favorites. It's like having the power of a velociraptor in your hands. (Ok that last statement was a bit far, but you know what I mean.)
 
Gerbarian,

You may want to ask about the available Hawkbill training videos on the Spyderco Forum.
Many of the Civi fans seem to ejoy the learning tools available for their Hawks, and they can give you more of the details on which might be the best video to check out.
Production quality looks a little better than home made on the one I have, But it is a good instructional video nonetheless.

If you want though, feel free to email me in a couple of days. (if I can still find the dvd), I'd be glad to send it to you.
 
I'm an electrician and the hawkbill is the knife of choice. Skinning large cable it can't be beat.
 
This forum is one of the toughest to get banned from. So you gotta figure if Sebenza4Ever got canked, he must have become a real pain. I haven't seen all his writings, but if this is an example, I can understand why.
 
The hawkbill is supported by more than a few "been there done that" folks
like Greg Walker and James Keating so I wouldn't discount them in a SD type
use.

The nice thing about a hawkbill is the tip is curved to insert at the smallest
pressure. So were ever the blade is applied it is going to dig into whatever
material it is trying to cut.
 
...in a fight?It slashes like a razor(with even heavier blow),stabs and pierces like a
dagger,and chops like a cleaver with none of the mentioned specialty weapons' weaknesses?Also whether,hawkbill,tanto,Buck 110,or pukko -isn't it the man and his determination/expertise/intent that makes him formidable?Not what he has in his hand in any particular style/make? ;)
 
Yep- just watch James Keating's DVD on the Civilian, and I guarantee you will never look at a hawkbill the same way again. It's a great defensive blade, not only for slashing, but for control and contour cuts and trapping. I am awaiting my MT auto Hawk as we speak. :)
 
...league as a true expert with a cheap "Ginsu" kitchen knife in terms of deadliness/skill.Now Yoda (all 3 ft.of him)...that's another story.Seriously ,one can't "buy" expertise and the respect that comes with it.BTW-I like hawksbills-not my first choice "when it hits the fan" but useless they aren't!!
 
Almost any equipment will do if you'll do.

I carry a green scaled p-sark everyday and can use it rather well actually.

"Buy" all that a video course can do is show one a technique not a perfect
system of Self Defense. That being said there is alot more to a serrated
Hawkbill then one would think.

And I like the G. Walker tape btw. Maybe I'll check out Keatings it is that
it really opens some eyes on the hawk bill.
 
I was fortunate enough to score a baby hawk from Tom Mayo. I originally bought as a novelty thing but ended up using it mostly for work at the hospital. At first I too thought that the hawbill wouldn't be practical but once I got used to it, it worked out great. Perfect for picking off those stuborn bandages and pieces of tape stuck together. Kind of like having a sharp fingernail. :)
 
As wicked as many people think a hawksbill looks, it is really a safety design. You can hook that blade under a bandage and the sharp edge is now cutting facing directly away from the person.

It does the same thing opening a package. You can cut the tape or twine with the back of the blade down where it can't harm the contents.

Of course, in "kerambit" mode, hooking up into someone, it's not safe at OUCH !!! all ...
 
all this talk about hawk blades has made me want to get one! Damn it! Now I feel an urge. Does the Microtech hawk come in manual? Inquiring minds want to know.
 
Sebenza4ever said:
Guys,
Only a girl would slash.
Click to expand...
Really? LOL
Slashing is part of Filipino knife work.
Slashing is the ultimate defensive method.
Click to expand...
So which is it? Good or bad?

A hawkbill is not my first choice for a defensive knife. However, saying that only girls slash is ignorant.

***Edited - Didn't see that this kid finially got banned.
 
USAFSP said:
Hawk bill blades are awesome! My EDC is a Microtech Auto Hawk, and my favorite handmade I have is a Nowicki hand forged hawk. I carry these because thier cutting power is tremendous, and if I ever need a defensive knife, either of these would F&^K you up big time. I have other types of knives, but my hawks are my favorites. It's like having the power of a velociraptor in your hands. (Ok that last statement was a bit far, but you know what I mean.)
Click to expand...
My stepdad's father hailed from the hills of Tennessee,he was rarely without his hawkbill.Gutting deer and game,cutting anything and several defensive incidents which led to his reputation as "that hillbilly with the hawkbill and he ain't 'ascared to cut ya' with it if you wanna' start something."That was Grandpa Murphy from Possum Hollow,Oneida,Tennessee.
 
Good day, all.

First point: I am the one Barrabas indicated that loaned him the DVD concerning the Spyderco Civilian. It is professionally produced as a training video by James Keating, and well worth obtaining by anyone possessing a hawkbill blade.

Secondly, I am compelled to make an important point concerning the use of the hawkbilled blade as a defensive weapon. Our now-banned friend pointed out that he would not want to use the hawkbill in wartime. I concur. The object in wartime concerning bladeware is generally to deanimate (i.e., kill) an opponent. In the real world that the rest of us live in it is rarely that cut-and-dried. Generally speaking, in a self-defense situation your responsibility is to use the minimum amount of force necessary to cause a cessation in hostility by your opponent.

Short form? You do not ever cut/shoot/stab to kill or to wound; you do these things only to STOP your opponent from trying to harm you. I have over a decade under my belt as a CCW instructor, and this is the mentality I always try to pass on to my students. Hawkbills work admirably in this respect, decreasing your likelihood of killing your opponent while increasing the likelihood that he/she will change their minds about harming you.

I just thought this pointed needed making.

------------------
Respectfully yours,


Hannibal Lecter
 
It's obvious that S4E is attacking Spyderco (the most prolific manufacturer or hawbkills) as much as he's attacking hawkbills in his trollish post. Dr. Hannibal Lecter above makes some excellent points.

As some of you might remember, I was attacked by some gangstas last year riding my bike home, and even though I was carrying a knife, I was unable to use it in my defense. Luckily, short of a few bruises and a black eye, and some wounded pride, I was fine. It could have gone much more badly, both for me, and for the attackers. I prefer not to think about what "could have" happened.

I was left with a delimma though. I'd never carried a knife for the purpose of self defense. I've had a knife in my pocket since I was 15, but only as a tool. Of course, the fact that I had a knife left me feeling more secure that I could use it as a weapon if necessary (until that night), but I'd never taken it that seriously (until that night).

Now, I carry a Spyderco SPOT on the straps of my backpack. It's sort of a hawkbill, albeit a short one. Clearly, it's meant for slashing. However, I feel far, far more safe with this tiny knife in easy grasp than I do with the biggest folder crammed in my pocket.

And this is the point of Spyderco's self-defense styled blades. The SPOT, Civilian, and Matriarch although definitely designed as "weapons", are just as clearly designed to defend, not necessarily to kill. They're "Hit and Run" knives, intended to give the wielder the opportunity to stop an attacker, get away, or give him enough time to get a more appropriate weapon (gun, bigger knife).

See, I don't want to kill anybody. If attacked, I'll do whatever necessary to stay alive, but it's not my intention to be a badass knifefighter and kill everybody. In any situation, the second-to-last thing I want to do is kill anybody. The last thing I want to do is die myself.

Can I kill somebody with my SPOT? Probably, given the right (or wrong, as it'd more likely be) circumstances, but that's not my intention. As Dr. Hannibal Lecter points out, my goal is to stop the attacker and keep myself alive. I feel very confident that my little hawkbill will do that job just fine if needed, and better than almost any other knife out there.

You're welcome to call me a girl if you like. I don't mind.
 
The hawkbill is designed as a utility knife and as a rescue/safety blade. It does not have a straight blade. This gives it two great advantages over every other knife...It's legal under the majority of US knife laws that prohibit (a) dirks/daggers (i.e. straight blades) and (b) knives carried for defense (i.e. non-utility knives.) This alone makes it a safe carry when you don't know the laws.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top