is a cold steel hawk practical

[yoz's friend]

for the woods? or would i be better off with a regular hatchete. thinking that a hatchet would be more durable?

 

[Brad "the butcher"]

head to the axe and hawk forum here for all your info needs. They have sticky's on modded coldsteel hawks and much love expressed.

I have 4 and they are great.
The spetnaz shovel has become my camping and truck edc, sharp and super versatile piece of gear.

There are some other guys around here like Magnussen who use the norsehawk for winter survival training in the canadian north, it handles like an ulu when you choke up.

If you are not building a cabin or splitting 10 inch rounds they will be fine(and fun)

 

[Bushman5]

absolutely a tomahawk can be useful in the woods or dayhikes. Chopping, splitting, throwing for fun, animal defense, human defense.

 

[vector001]

proepr hawks are good general purpose tools, and a better weapon than the other choices IMHO.

most folks don't know how to exploit a proper hawk by using technique, so they carry something bigger, or they just have to have fire logs that are ten inches across, etc.

my basic kit is a folding saw, a long hawk, a small chisel, a long blade, and an SAK or multiplier.

not much i can't do in the field with all those - i'm in hog heaven - and the saw and SAK is just snivel gear....

YMMV

vec

 

[Cpl Punishment]

Of course they are useful. Just learn to use them and don't try to make them into something they aren't.

Plus, if you've ever thought about modding things, CS hawks, and various machetes are cheap enough that if you screw up, you're not out a lot of money.

 

[PayetteRucker]

1050 series high carbon is what cold steel uses in their hawk heads, which is a perfect steel for the application. the 19 inch hickory hafts are strong and feel good in your hand. They are good throwers, and with hawk heads being lighter and thinner than most hatchets and field axes, it allows for more precise chopping and they generally bite deeper than most hatchets. Plus they are a blast to throw. The Frontier, Norse, Rifleman and Trail Hawks are all good models.

 

[August West]

I absolutely love my norse. As has been said, that thin bit bites deep and the steel takes a wicked sharp edge but is soft enough not to break or chip. Good tool for me and the price is great. Chris

 

[markhait]

Cool....I've got one, but haven't done much with it. I guess I'll visit it again!
So whats the proper way of using one?

 

[gregorio]

I tried to split wood with my norse hawk and the profile is wrong for splitting wood, a regular hatchet is much better.

 

[koyote]

The trail hawk is my ideal camp tool. Sturdy? Very. And while the norse hawk is pure fighter, the trail hawk is good for splitting, pounding stakes, cracking nuts, and everything.

I did file the hammer poll flat and waffle face it.

 

[koyote]

I would like to add that KR Johnson, here on BF, makes a wicked french pattern hawk that works well. I use my trail hawk for most camp chores, due to the hammer poll and wedgier splitting permormance. but the johnson is really good for liimbing, scraping, game (our preferred tool for sides when we order them, and ducks), and throwing

 

[Ramm9]

They are good throwers, and with hawk heads being lighter and thinner than most hatchets and field axes, it allows for more precise chopping and they generally bite deeper than most hatchets. Plus they are a blast to throw. The Frontier, Norse, Rifleman and Trail Hawks are all good models.

Glad this came up, we've been talking about some throwing contests at deer camp...which one is best suited for beginning throwers?

 

[vector001]

I tried to split wood with my norse hawk and the profile is wrong for splitting wood, a regular hatchet is much better.

that's because that knifelike style edge of the Cold Steel Hawks are made primarily for softwoods, brother.


ya gotta think indirectly when using a tomahawk for utility if you are really going to enjoy it IMHO...;

next time knock down some small rounds with the Norse and chop them into spikes or wedges, then crack the log with the Norse and pound the steaks through to split the wood.

i do that with the little Trail Hawk head. it saves the edge and you don't ever risk your tool - this is the same thing i do instead of batoning a good knife though wood too. - i rarely risk my tools. - it's not a good survival habit IMHO. test them at home, sure - but don't risk them out in the wild IMHO.


- less weight penalty and better movement with a tomahawk than a hatchet.

hatchets are nice around camp or in a car where you don't have to lug them around or use them for knife chores like with a hawk, but a hawk will always be better for me than a hatchet - i carried a hatchet for twenty years at least before i switched to proper hawks.

in a hatchet's weight class, i prefer a modified Riflemans Hawk, like these (top one and bottom two) - they are better for intricate wood stuff and hunting IMHO than klutzy hatchets, because of the edge geometries that make them suck at splitting without the wedges i mentioned earlier.

i think it's a very decent trade-off.

there are things that you can do to hawks that will make them split better anyways, by shaping the secondary edge at a rather wide angle on the sweet spot, etc.

HTH.

vec