Post Up Your NEW Gear ...

[tknife]

Mora Bushcraft Black has been seeing a lot of use lately. I have pummeled this thing and it is stout for sure

 

[Hammer67]

Thats a beaut. I know nothing of hawks. Is that the british belt axe? Thanks fir sharing.

It's made by Allan Foundry and sold by Ragweed Forge. Very reasonable prices, good quality and great service.

16 oz. head, with a 3-1/2" cutting edge.

Ragnar offers a great variety of historical styles.

 

[Dirtknap]

It's made by Allan Foundry and sold by Ragweed Forge. Very reasonable prices, good quality and great service.

16 oz. head, with a 3-1/2" cutting edge.

Ragnar offers a great variety of historical styles.

Thanks. Is it a good, functional piece of kit for fire prep and bushcraft in general?

 

[Hammer67]

Thanks. Is it a good, functional piece of kit for fire prep and bushcraft in general?

Definitely. It's a very useful design for the backcountry, for a lot of different things. While a 'hawk doesn't necessarily take the place of an axe (nor is it intended to), I'd much rather strap a 'hawk of this size on my pack if I'm heading into the backcountry, than a heavy axe. Here's another pic:

 

[HikingMano]

Do you have a Coldsteel Trail Hawk? If so, how does it compare? So, you didn't have to fine-tune the eye-haft fit at all? How's the grain?

I would guess it's better quality than the Coldsteel stuff.

ETA: Wow, I've never looked at Ragnar's throwing axe page; he's got good info there. The price does sound pretty good for what you get.

 

[Hammer67]

Do you have a Coldsteel Trail Hawk? If so, how does it compare? So, you didn't have to fine-tune the eye-haft fit at all? How's the grain?

I would guess it's better quality than the Coldsteel stuff.

Honestly, I bought a CS Trail Hawk a few years back, and it was the worst piece of junk I'd wasted money on in a long time. I tend to do a lot of homework before I purchase anything, and so many people seemed to love them that I figured it would at least be a decent purchase for the price. It was a joke. Even after hours of trying to re-fit the head, it would still come dangerously loose after a few minutes of light work. They should really be advertised as "kits" for someone who wants to spend time building a 'hawk, not as a finished product , imo. [/rant off]

In contrast, for an extra $20, this 'hawk is night and day. The head fit is excellent and as tight as I could have hoped for. Handle grain is good too. It is a cast head, not forged, but so far I've found no issues. For a simple, solid working tool it is great. And, unlike the "American Tomahawk Company" (Cold Steel), these are actually made in the US.

Going up in price, Fort Turner, 2 Hawks, and a number of others offer forged heads, but you're easily looking at twice the price of the belt axe from Ragweed. I'll probably be ordering one from FT before long...

 

[HikingMano]

Haha, I agree for the most part. Mine still wobbles, and I've just been too lazy to de-burr the eye or fine tune the haft. I got one for the cheap price as well, just to try a hawk. Didn't turn out to be like a Mora experience, haha. My buddy's trail hawk didn't even come with a straight blade! It was actually bent so the edge wasn't even centered. Crazy. You're completely right though, I've seen some nice re-hafted, stripped, etc trail hawks... it really depends on getting lucky with the head and wanting to do the work.

In contrast, I've been very happy with my also inexpensive Fiskars hatchet, at least after I knocked off the bevel shoulders and convexed it.

I just put that hawk on my list. I always see beautiful custom hawks on here from makers, but I would never drop that much on something I don't really know how to use well yet. But at Ragnar's price for Allan Foundry, seems like a worthy starter. :thumbup: How's the edge holding?

I like the FT Trapper Hawk, looks great. And those spike models would make for nice weapons...

 

[Hammer67]

But at Ragnar's price for Allan Foundry, seems like a worthy starter. :thumbup: How's the edge holding?

I like the FT Trapper Hawk, looks great. And those spike models would make for nice weapons...

That's exactly what it is - a good, reliable tool to experiment with that won't break the bank. Edge holding has been good with mine so far. I just take a Lansky puck to it now and then.

And the FT Trapper is exactly the one that I'm looking at as well. But that Spiked Norseman just looks badass.....

 

[HikingMano]

I know, I wouldn't want to face someone wielding that thing, especially if they knew how to use it effectively. Wicked.

Thanks for all the info! :thumbup:

 

[deepfry]

This seemed like the best place to post these.

Just received my new Survive! Knives GSO 4.1 today. I wanted to show some size comparison pics of it next to some other popular outdoor/bushcraft knives of similar size.
Sorry for the low quality phone pics





As you can see it is very similar in size and shape to the BK16, another favorite of mine.

 

[HikingMano]

Congrats! Great score :thumbup: I like those 4" Survive knives, they look like good workhorses. Kiah's kydex really makes it a great package.

 

[Hammer67]

If it's not asking too much, is there any chance you could take some in-hand shots and maybe comparison shots with a Mora or something?

I don't own any Moras, but here is the ULB in hand:

and next to the full-size Bark River Bushcrafter:

 

[HWF]

These arrived today!!

 

[HikingMano]

I don't own any Moras, but here is the ULB in hand:

Awesome, thanks! You can get a full grip on it, so great :thumbup: (I'm assuming your hands are medium or larger.)

The curve in the spine weirds me out a little, but I can live with it.

HWF, nice Fiddleback goodness!

 

[Hammer67]

Two new Blind Horses for the stable:

 

[spike22]

Folding saw with locking ring. Blade is 4.75" (12cm) and weighs in at 4.2oz (118g)

The blade can be locked open or locked closed by twisting the locking ring.

I have not tested it in the field yet, but it feels quite purposeful.

 

[The Warrior]

Two new Blind Horses for the stable:

Beautiful blades my friend.

 

[Hammer67]

The new 'Seek Outside' 6-person tipi and stove arrived today. Decided to go ahead and "blue" the stove and pipe as recommended prior to use. Here's a pic of the stove, with my Laplander for scale:

And of course, that meant chopping a little wood, so I thought I'd put the BHK Muk to use. It batons with a purpose:

and made some shavings to get the fire started with the Bush Baby:

Next week, I'll be hunting turkeys for a week, so the tent and stove will see a lot more use soon. But so far, I'm really impressed with how lightweight the whole setup is (< 10lbs). More to come...

 

[HikingMano]

Sweet, you got to play with quite a few of your new toys Looking forward to seeing the Tipi all set up with a fire going inside :thumbup:

 

[Hammer67]

Looking forward to seeing the Tipi all set up with a fire going inside :thumbup:

Thanks - me too! Sipping whiskey by the woodstove, and sharpening broadheads while it's hovering around freezing outside sounds real good right now...