- Joined
- Dec 13, 2005
- Messages
- 6,105
Howdy gents!
I posted this over in the axe forum, but since this is more my main hangout and because this hawk is meant for woods duty, I thought I'd post it over here too! There are quite a lot of guys over at that forum who have modded CS Trail Hawks, and since I'd wanted one for a while anyway I decided to pick one up and see how it suited me.
For several reasons, it's worth modding the hawk as it comes. The paint ain't too purdy on the head, and the haft is unfinished. Perfect for alterations! Here is a generic online photo of how they all look when the come in the mail:
Mine after some work:
I say first in the title because this was a lot of fun, and assuming it passes my tests once it hits the woods, I'll be getting a couple more of these to dress up!
There isn't too much about mine that's revolutionary, but the package fits me well and is very simplistic. On the head, I just slowly hand sanded until only specs of black were left in the cracks from the forging. I had originally intended to fully strip it, but it looks so cool and 'fresh from the forge' this way. I think it will still do a good job protecting from rust, since it's deep in the cracks, but of course it will still require a lot of care overall compared to any paint type finish.
I wasn't happy with the edge when I got the hawk, so one of the first things I did was sit down with a bastard mil file and a rigged-up jig to thin it out a lot. Looks like a scandi hawk now! But it will slice like none other and easily shaves me. It's got a slight convex edge to it (fine grit sandpaper on a mouse pad, plus cardboard strop). I don't believe that I've weakened the edge such that a throw or chop will damage it, and even if that happens I'll just take the edge back as far as any dings/dents and have a steeper angle for next time.
The haft was sanded heavily by hand, then three coats of walnut stain were applied. I put three coats of polyurethane on top of that, sanded between each application.
I did a simple paracord wrap at the top and bottom. I wanted a top one to protect from bad strikes and the bottom is pretty much for 'looks' and aesthetic balance. I applied some hairspray on the haft before and after the wrap to help keep them in place a little more securely. I tried doing a 'full' wrap at first, at both the top and across the bulk of the handle, but I didn't like how much fatter the grip was after that (odd, because usually my first complaint about a knife is an overly tiny handle!).
Overall, I like how it has turned out and how it handles right now. I've done some very light chopping around the apartment and a lot of choking up + slicing, and it's performed quite well. The main competition for this is my Fiskars, which makes for big shoes to fill! When I get a chance to take this out (hopefully this week) I will report back on how well I feel it fares in the woods.
Thanks for looking! :thumbup:
I posted this over in the axe forum, but since this is more my main hangout and because this hawk is meant for woods duty, I thought I'd post it over here too! There are quite a lot of guys over at that forum who have modded CS Trail Hawks, and since I'd wanted one for a while anyway I decided to pick one up and see how it suited me.
For several reasons, it's worth modding the hawk as it comes. The paint ain't too purdy on the head, and the haft is unfinished. Perfect for alterations! Here is a generic online photo of how they all look when the come in the mail:
Mine after some work:
I say first in the title because this was a lot of fun, and assuming it passes my tests once it hits the woods, I'll be getting a couple more of these to dress up!
There isn't too much about mine that's revolutionary, but the package fits me well and is very simplistic. On the head, I just slowly hand sanded until only specs of black were left in the cracks from the forging. I had originally intended to fully strip it, but it looks so cool and 'fresh from the forge' this way. I think it will still do a good job protecting from rust, since it's deep in the cracks, but of course it will still require a lot of care overall compared to any paint type finish.
I wasn't happy with the edge when I got the hawk, so one of the first things I did was sit down with a bastard mil file and a rigged-up jig to thin it out a lot. Looks like a scandi hawk now! But it will slice like none other and easily shaves me. It's got a slight convex edge to it (fine grit sandpaper on a mouse pad, plus cardboard strop). I don't believe that I've weakened the edge such that a throw or chop will damage it, and even if that happens I'll just take the edge back as far as any dings/dents and have a steeper angle for next time.
The haft was sanded heavily by hand, then three coats of walnut stain were applied. I put three coats of polyurethane on top of that, sanded between each application.
I did a simple paracord wrap at the top and bottom. I wanted a top one to protect from bad strikes and the bottom is pretty much for 'looks' and aesthetic balance. I applied some hairspray on the haft before and after the wrap to help keep them in place a little more securely. I tried doing a 'full' wrap at first, at both the top and across the bulk of the handle, but I didn't like how much fatter the grip was after that (odd, because usually my first complaint about a knife is an overly tiny handle!).
Overall, I like how it has turned out and how it handles right now. I've done some very light chopping around the apartment and a lot of choking up + slicing, and it's performed quite well. The main competition for this is my Fiskars, which makes for big shoes to fill! When I get a chance to take this out (hopefully this week) I will report back on how well I feel it fares in the woods.
Thanks for looking! :thumbup:
i like it... i have one of those CS trail hawks.... it's a great hawk, especially of the price.... i haven't used mine for much more than throwing and a little bit of kindling chopping....
