- Joined
- Jan 29, 2003
- Messages
- 1,568
I was able to spend the better part of this weekend behind a rifle in the outdoors. When I wasn't behind the rifle, I was able to sneak away from the group and test some new tools. Sadly, my camera dies very early during the fun so I don't have near as many pictures as I would like.
The tools I had out with me were 2 new tomahawks from Equinox Coronado (Vector001 here on the forums) and my newest knife from Ray Laconico.
VecHawks
First up I did some playing/fire prep with the hawks. These things are amazing. Vec starts with the very excellent Cold Steel Trail Hawk head and then adds his own handmade handle. These hawks both have his Gen 1 Mk 3 handle. It features lightweight polycarbonate and "propriety slurries" wrapped in hand laid fiberglass. Then the entire handle is covered with 1000 denier Cordura nylon. The head is actually glassed to the handle so it isn't going anywhere.
The shape of the handle is part of the magic with these hawks. The front of the handles is flat and squared off. The sides are also flat. The back is rounded. This makes the hawk incredibly comfortable and eliminates the typical twisting during use that some hawks exhibit.
The first hawk is all black. It has a 23" handle.
The second hawk has a coyote brown handle and a black head. It features a 25 1/4" handle. This also has what Vec calls the "3/4" handle. It is a bit smaller in diameter and feels great. The next hawk I order from him will have this handle.
These chop and peck very well. The wood is shown in the pics was pulled from a wood pile that had been put up more than 3 years ago. It was very hard and very dry. The hawks bit very deeply into it and suffered zero edge damage.
After the camera gave up the ghost I kept playing. I was able to whittle some respectable fuzz sticks with the hawks AFTER all the chopping. In fact they would still scrape hair off of my arms after the chopping. I also found that these hawks really shine in thinner green wood. Limbs pop right off the trunk with a single deft blow. Thanks to the accuracy that the handle design brings, splitting small pieces of kindling off of a larger log with one stroke was no problem.
I can't say enough good about these handles. They really add to the comfort and accuracy of the hawks. Vec has taken a traditional American tool that is extremely versatile and nostalgic and dragged it kicking and screaming into the future. You have to try one of these!
One Tough Laconico
Here is the knife I am talking about: http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=549818
I only got one in focus pic of the new Laconico before the camera pooped out. But it shows the blade on the start of a very long and hard day.
I batoned it into this log (again, very very hard and dry wood) and then straight through the knot that you see about 2/3rds of the way down the log. There was no damage. I then batoned it down the middle of another log and pry it out of the log, splitting off a large chunk. Again, no damage to the Laconico. Next I batoned it halfway into another log. I flipped the log over and drove the knife back out by beating on the handle of the knife with the baton. No damage. After all of that I batoned some kindling off of a smaller log.
The blade would still shave after all of that. I then tried my hand at some fuzz sticks. The convex edge was great at working wood, especially considering this knife is 1/4" at the spine. 2-3" branches could be knocked off in a few quick strokes. Thinner vegetation was no match for it. This knife can do it all. I wish I had more pics because I had a blast with this knife.
Both of these tools are made by guys who are a pleasure to work with and take great pride in their work. You will love the product and enjoy your interactions with the purveyors.
I love good tools!
The tools I had out with me were 2 new tomahawks from Equinox Coronado (Vector001 here on the forums) and my newest knife from Ray Laconico.
VecHawks
First up I did some playing/fire prep with the hawks. These things are amazing. Vec starts with the very excellent Cold Steel Trail Hawk head and then adds his own handmade handle. These hawks both have his Gen 1 Mk 3 handle. It features lightweight polycarbonate and "propriety slurries" wrapped in hand laid fiberglass. Then the entire handle is covered with 1000 denier Cordura nylon. The head is actually glassed to the handle so it isn't going anywhere.
The shape of the handle is part of the magic with these hawks. The front of the handles is flat and squared off. The sides are also flat. The back is rounded. This makes the hawk incredibly comfortable and eliminates the typical twisting during use that some hawks exhibit.
The first hawk is all black. It has a 23" handle.
The second hawk has a coyote brown handle and a black head. It features a 25 1/4" handle. This also has what Vec calls the "3/4" handle. It is a bit smaller in diameter and feels great. The next hawk I order from him will have this handle.
These chop and peck very well. The wood is shown in the pics was pulled from a wood pile that had been put up more than 3 years ago. It was very hard and very dry. The hawks bit very deeply into it and suffered zero edge damage.
After the camera gave up the ghost I kept playing. I was able to whittle some respectable fuzz sticks with the hawks AFTER all the chopping. In fact they would still scrape hair off of my arms after the chopping. I also found that these hawks really shine in thinner green wood. Limbs pop right off the trunk with a single deft blow. Thanks to the accuracy that the handle design brings, splitting small pieces of kindling off of a larger log with one stroke was no problem.
I can't say enough good about these handles. They really add to the comfort and accuracy of the hawks. Vec has taken a traditional American tool that is extremely versatile and nostalgic and dragged it kicking and screaming into the future. You have to try one of these!
One Tough Laconico
Here is the knife I am talking about: http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=549818
I only got one in focus pic of the new Laconico before the camera pooped out. But it shows the blade on the start of a very long and hard day.
I batoned it into this log (again, very very hard and dry wood) and then straight through the knot that you see about 2/3rds of the way down the log. There was no damage. I then batoned it down the middle of another log and pry it out of the log, splitting off a large chunk. Again, no damage to the Laconico. Next I batoned it halfway into another log. I flipped the log over and drove the knife back out by beating on the handle of the knife with the baton. No damage. After all of that I batoned some kindling off of a smaller log.
The blade would still shave after all of that. I then tried my hand at some fuzz sticks. The convex edge was great at working wood, especially considering this knife is 1/4" at the spine. 2-3" branches could be knocked off in a few quick strokes. Thinner vegetation was no match for it. This knife can do it all. I wish I had more pics because I had a blast with this knife.
Both of these tools are made by guys who are a pleasure to work with and take great pride in their work. You will love the product and enjoy your interactions with the purveyors.
I love good tools!
:thumbup:
Look closer.