the Last Gen 1 Mk 3

[vector001]

this is the last Gen 1 Mk 3 composite-handled hawk, i reckon.

although the future hawks should all be Mk 4 variants or later, the Mk 3 was a tremendous design IMHO - especially for a head like this one.

any zombie that gets creamed with this lovely Craig Barr Damascus oughtta be honored...! :thumbup:

the brother that ordered it can post his thoughts if he cares to be recognized for his exquisite taste.

i still have some aesthetics to do on it, but the structure is done and i thought you cool cats would like to see something new.

for any buddy who hasn't held one, Craig Barr hawk heads are substantial in mass! they are also hair-flingingly sharp, as near as i can tell, as a rule - this one layed my thumb open with that great rounded bit.

this hawk fought me the whole way so far - which is a good sign.

it feels like a stallion.

although i like a lightweight head compared to this one, the broad cheeks on it help it plane well in a swing, along with the trailing blunted pyramidal spike. - in plain english; it tracks very well - it was hard to resist attacking some wood with it.

i think i am in love with that spike - if that makes me a big hairy fag i don't care - the traps and smashes you could do with that thing and its four false edges tickle my neurons - and it balances so well with the other side of the head.

("i lost it in the mail - yeah! that's the ticket!" vector smashes little devil whispering in his ear.)


it feels like a cross between a battle axe and a proper long hawk.

two-handed technique with this hawk could be interesting.

very interesting.


i tipped the bit up a hair to bring more slice, and to make the spike tangent to the strike arc, which i think will greatly improve it - when you pick it up, you want to chop something, and it doesn't matter much what - that's usually a good sign when judging a proper hawk IMHO.

my dog runs out of the room when i pick it up.

now i am hosed, i have to make another one for myself - er! - for zombies, i mean....

yeah! that's the ticket....



vec

 

[J. Rosa]

That is just beautiful Vec! Makes me wish I would have sent you something too.

 

[Dusty One]

vec,
Very nice looking work. Does look like it would be a nice one to play with !

 

[vector001]

vec,
Very nice looking work. Does look like it would be a nice one to play with !

it is kind of different, in a nice way.

i like what you ordered for my favorite still - this one is getting into axe territory.

it's a hawking axe... hehehe!

i'm a hawk man at heart.

vec

 

[Burningcort]

MINE MINE MINE.....your such a tease.....I can not wait to get it......get back to work you slacker...just kidding.....and if it gets "Lost in the mail".....I will come all the way out there to put cheese in your air vents......

 

[Burningcort]

I saw where you said it would be good two handed..well I am sure it would be but I got myself a new off hand knife...an Ontario RTAK II....I got rid of the Zinc Phosphate coating it had and used Cerakote in "armor black" on it...


wanted to add..i am a huge gorilla of a man 6'4" 300LBS.....hence why I wanted the 30" handle if you know how big an RTAK II is look at my hand for comparison..

 

[vector001]

wanted to add..i am a huge gorilla of a man 6'4" 300LBS.....hence why I wanted the 30" handle if you know how big an RTAK II is look at my hand for

good combo, brother!

i actually owned one of the first RTAKs actually, and have big boney hands.

this handle is about an eighth larger around than i usually make the Mk 3's so you two should get along.

i'll be making some sheaths fairly soon for my machetes - maybe i could make ya a matching sheath for your RTAK.

Cerakote must be great stuff BTW - do you think you could do a base coat of Cerakote, and then put Gunkote highlights over it?

i don't know if that would work. i was thinking of trying it.

vec

 

[CaptInsano]

That is frigging sex on a stick.

 

[Burningcort]

good combo, brother!

i actually owned one of the first RTAKs actually, and have big boney hands.

this handle is about an eighth larger around than i usually make the Mk 3's so you two should get along.

i'll be making some sheaths fairly soon for my machetes - maybe i could make ya a matching sheath for your RTAK.

Cerakote must be great stuff BTW - do you think you could do a base coat of Cerakote, and then put Gunkote highlights over it?

i don't know if that would work. i was thinking of trying it.

vec

gunkote does not stick to well to cerekote...it works but does not hold up as well as gunkote over gunkote...but cerakote makes enough colors that you can do cerakote over cerakote...

 

[CitizenQ]

That sure is purdy Vec. I see those Barr Hawks all over eBay...in your opinion...are those Barr heads quality work?

 

[vector001]

That sure is purdy Vec. I see those Barr Hawks all over eBay...in your opinion...are those Barr heads quality work?

i've only handled two, brother, both of completely different makes.

the other one is a beautiful polished poll hawk, with a slot eye.

the slot eye is largish, but the head, like this one, is really high mass. - whcih shoudln't be taken as a criticism if you consider a few things (to be discussed).

BOTTOM LINE: vector likes them.


i think what makes the Craig Barr heads great is;

(1) the curved bit - which is more forgiving than a straight bit IMHO - that should really sing through things. i got the impression that this damascus head was intended to be hafted a little more perpendicularly to the handle than i did it (i brought the tip up), but the hard changes in mass through the head gave it a little heat-treat warpage (much less warp than most production heads BTW, i am just being excruciatingly specific here) - there is a lot of valid concern about bits being perfectly straight with the mid-line of the handle, but what i have found that this misaligns the poll or spike a lot of times, which causes less than optimal tracking, and is less important as long as one gets the Strike Zone of the bit aligned to the middle axis (which this hawk's bit is) and the lower part of the bit is pointing to within the window created by the edges of the handle.

- in plain english - it looks aligned, but technically it is not symmetrically done so.

most hawks have a little serpentine action going on in them - when you haft the hawk, you want to average the planar changes in the head - a lot of these hawks that are imperfect are way better than perfectly formed heads i have handled.

there is something very Zen about that.


it's easier to show than explain, like most salient points.

when you use it, you know for certain.


the flat sides and front of the Gen 1 series handle makes tracking and wobble greatly decreased compared to a radius-sided handle, so you don't get that feedback/attack in your hand when you zap something unforgiving with a head that isn't laser perfect in alignement or form.

...........

another advantage to brother barr's stuff is (2) they are massive - if you love your hatchet or axe, but want a special hawk, maybe you should consider his stuff - they are good comporomises, from what i have seen so far - they are not hawks IMO - too heavy - but their geometry is like a hawk, when there is a distinct hammer poll or a spike - so you get the increased weight advantages that are indicative of an axe or hatchet, but the increased tracking in non-vertical planes that is indicative of a proper hawk. - stipulating that he nails the heat treat on his heads every time, brother barr's heads' chopping abilities cannot be discussed reliably here, with my limited experience, as the two heads are very different - what i CAN say with reliablility though, is for MY uses of a high-speed woods tool, which is what a proper hawk is to me, the Barr hawks would seem to kick ass. - i like the fine edges, the curved bits, and the elongated, faceted way that he executes his trailing masses; the spikes and polls;

spikes on hawks are way under-utilized for field use, especially in very wet arboreal and hard-rock desert conditions. folks that see spikes as evil (like the whole country of Australia apparently, where they could really be used) - anyone who has used a narrow chisel on saturated wood or unforgiving rock can tell you how much easier it is to get deep into them over using a wider one - simply more psi, per strike - digging animals do not have axe bits on their hands for a reason! they have claws - which are nothing but genetically-placed hawk spikes.

stick with me, fellow-babies - the discussion on spikes relates to the comments of the advantage of mass IMHO;

when you have a massive spike hawk, like this one, some field-uses become extremely pleasant at certain angles - like digging dry wood for a fire out of the bottom of a log that is close to the ground, but allows for a swing - that is a harder practice with a lighter head, of course. - and digging in hard ground is obviously going to be more pleasant with a heavier head (add a long weight-distributing composite handle, and it just gets better).

oh yeah, and zombies.

:thumbup:

.....................

things i don't like about brother barr's hawks (that i have handled) - and these criticsms should be taken as very trivial for the most part! - mostly a matter of personal applications and tastes on my behalf;

1) i am not a fan of the weight. while i can see advantages to the wide cheeks on this damascus head, and the thick cheeks on the slab-sided poll hawk that i also have in my possesson (that's what engineer-types do - they react to what they are stuck with and re-strategize for advantage), - brother barr didn't suspect that these hawks were going to be handled with composites, no doubt, so he had to take the limitations of wood hafts into account with his designs. - they are a lovely mix of machining and forging BTW. - i'd like to see them thinned down overall, with the lengths kept, for my purposes. - but again, if you are an axe man that wants to wade into hawks, but you are a wookie like brother burningcort, and part mule by default - definitely consider these heads (there is an exception with that statement - if i get Sectionals rolling, then a head like this, or a head of similar heavy mass, such as the Cold Steel Rifleman will probably be an optimum choice for just about everyone - those times will be confusing for everyone, when we redfine the envelope, so to speak, and i believe we will) - we will see what we see.

2) (and no one does this as far as i know; ) i'd like to see the edges of the polls and spikes turned 45 degrees, so one faced down, two outboard, and one facing out (or some variation of this, which may be necessitated for cane hawks, poll axes, etc., where the hand strikes the head often) - in a fighting hawk this could be superb, especially for folks that don't have the obvious skill level of brother dwight mclemore, but want some level of deadliness added to the functionality of the hawk, without so much hazard as a dedicated edge pointing down towards the haft, as with some tactical hawks.


don't act bored stiff now, i might think you are a zombie - i've been waiting forever for a chance to whack a zombie, and i have no plans to go to Los Angeles soon.


it sounds like a Craig Barr head can be gotten for a value.

they might be worth testing out for ya.

your bud,

vec

 

[vector001]

gunkote does not stick to well to cerekote...it works but does not hold up as well as gunkote over gunkote...but cerakote makes enough colors that you can do cerakote over cerakote...

i appreciate that - that's what i was suspecting, brother.

finishes are one of the big ones on my list of to-do's - i'd love to do some durable arid camo patterns on the hawks.

vec

 

[Dusty One]

it is kind of different, in a nice way.

i like what you ordered for my favorite still - this one is getting into axe territory.

it's a hawking axe... hehehe!

i'm a hawk man at heart.

vec

Have been watching for an early ATC head to send you. One of these days something will show up....then off to vec

 

[vector001]

Have been watching for an early ATC head to send you. One of these days something will show up....then off to vec

i've got six of the ATC originals right now - very humbling to even see them.

when i get the Mk 4 handle method completely developed (for small-eyed hawks, etc.), i'll show them off.

nothing good comes easily.

vec

 

[Burningcort]

i appreciate that - that's what i was suspecting, brother.

finishes are one of the big ones on my list of to-do's - i'd love to do some durable arid camo patterns on the hawks.

vec

I can do

caustic hot blueing,
fast blue
slow blue
Browning
Gunkote
Duracoat
Cerakote
Electroless nickle
zinc phosphate parkarizing
manganese parkarizing

and a few others

we are really mixing and matching different finishes to see what we cna come up with.....

and I can't wait to see the ATC hawk you finish

 

[Burningcort]

how much longer....its killing me LOL

 

[vector001]

sorry, brother.

my erica is about to ring my throat if i don't get it out the door.

just making some last minute decisions on the aesthetics.

i am just going to finish it today and have it out; if you have any issues we will take care of ya. that's the Happiness Guarantee.

i just want ya to love it.

every buddy who has gotten near it tries to steal it, so i think it's possibly satisfactory.

i just gotta unglue myself from it.

i am a cad, you are a saint.

your bud,

vec

 

[vector001]

alrighty.

no more torture, brother burningcort;

the box is made - and Erica is about to run with it to the post office tomorrow A.M. - like she's on a mission from God, and that's PDQ.

(unless you want to sell it to me - it's not too late to sell it to me. i can take it off of your hands. no, really, i don't mind. )

enjoy it, good-brother! don't let the neighborhood kids use it or you'll never see it again. - har!

it's got a drop of warrior blood in it, so you will never die, while you keep it with you.


and happy de-zombie-fying the neighborhood. :thumbup:

your bud,

vec

 

[Burningcort]

It seems perfect.....I am speachless....thanks for the services you provide...I will of course give it a review....

 

[vector001]

It seems perfect.....I am speachless....thanks for the services you provide...I will of course give it a review....

much appreciated, brother.

we took some design risks in part of the endoskeleton that seemed to work very well with the Craig Barr head.

if you have any issues with it, give us one chance to make it up to ya - we aren't perfect yet, but we are trying our durndest.

i think for a big guy, you should love the hell out of it. it's made for a wookie.


the box is sealed and erica is ready to send that puppy.

i haven't stopped crying from the separation anxiety yet, but that goes with the program here at the humble Hawk Project...:thumbup:


i intend to make a hawk head very similar to it, that you will have to test out for me, brother, for a good comparison.

wish us luck, and pray for us.


talk atcha tomorrow with a confirmation number, i reckon.

we appreciated your excellent friendship during the whole ordeal.

your bud,

vec