The Ontario RD Pick Hawk (Edit: Got it! Impressions, questions, and now PICTURES!)

S

Samot

Joined
Nov 1, 2009
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103
Aside from a silly throwing hatchet by Gil Hibben, the Ontario RD Pick Hawk is potentially going to be my first axe. I searched the forum, but only found a couple limited, but positive, comments about the hawk. I personally know Ontario makes good quality products, but I'd like to hear any feedback you guys have on this particular item.

My uses for this hawk will mostly be for light gardening, and maybe hacking up firewood in a suburban area. I'm mostly going to "play" with this hawk. Its primary purposes are to look awesome and fit well into my collection, HOWEVER, I don't like poor quality stuff. I want something that would be solid and reliable in case of an emergency situation, or on the slim chance I ever get to go camping again. So, while I recognize I'm probably over purchasing for my needs, I'd like reviews based on real use.

My second and much more specific question is about the particular model sold by amazon at the link above. In every other picture of the hawk, the micarta handles are a much darker grey. In the amazon picture, they look nearly white. Is this a trick of the lighting, or actually white micarta (I can't find color indicated anywhere on the item page). If anyone knows for sure, I'd really appreciate a response. It's not a deal breaker, I just want to know what I'm getting.

Thank you.
 
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Samot ... I recently purchased one and I'm very pleased with it. I've owned several Ontario SPF knives in the past, and the RD Hawk is right up there with similar craftsmanship and toughness. The spike is extremely sharp and will surely do serious damage to whatever it strikes. The thickness is uniform from head to handle, thus the hawk's weight is equally distributed -- meaning it is not head heavy -- which some might say is a detriment, depending on potential use. The nylon sheath is made by DeSantis Gunhide, and is top quality, securing the hawk with a horizontal snap strap and a double velcro flap up top. When these points are released, the hawk essentially falls forward out of the sheath, rather than having to be drawn up and out. The bottom of the handle ends in a jagged 5 tooth configuration which can serve as a glass breaker. As to the scales, I was similarly confused by online photos. I did see one example which I'm positive had white micarta. The best price I found was roughly 120 including shipping, and my hawk came with light greenish/gray scales. Very nice, with no sharp edges. The only possible negative I can mention is that the grip is contoured similar to a pistol grip shifter. It will only accommodate one-hand use, and is very comfortable in the blade forward grip, but is less so when switching to spike forward, as the contours are now in one's palm. Overall, I think the RD is an excellent value, and should outlive any type of abuse I can conjure up. I'm thinking of purchasing the spikeless RD as well. I believe Foxx also owns an RD, and is considerably more experienced than I in the world of tomahawks. I'm sure he could offer some valuable insights.
 
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Excellent response, thank you very much. I can only hope other responses I get are as good.
 
Samot ... I forgot to mention that the February 2012 issue of Blade Magazine features a cover story on the RD.
 
Nice response Mc5aw! I second everything he said. I will point out that there are better wood choppers. The edge of mine, at least, was sharp but just isn't thin enough to chop like a hatchet. A $40 Marbles double bit has a convex edge and just bites into the wood and throws chips, but it's not made as sturdy(handle is wood). The Ontario RD hawk will eventually get through the same piece of wood, but with more effort. It might just smash the wood instead of cutting.
Tactical hawks are just made with different tasks in mind. With that said, I've thrown mine lots of time, at dead trees, I throw real as hard as I can, without loosing control. It hit handle first and only shifted the scales just a bit. I have absolute faith in the strength of this hawk, it's a bit on the heavy side, I own the non-spike variety. I thought I would take it camping, but for it's weight, no thanks. The Marbles is better for camping, it's weight is all in it's head, so your swing has more impact, cutting the wood deeper with less effort.
I only use the Marbles as a comparison, cause it's the only wood handled hatchet I have right now. I will say I have lots of fun with the Ontario, I'd let anyone else use it, throw it hard, and I have no fear of it breaking.
 
I have one with the spike. The build quality is very good-equivalant to the ranger knives, rtak2 and just about as good as TOPS fit and finish. The micarta scales can be slightly different colors and textures. One has a light olive color and seems very frayed with little bits of canvas poking out all over the place. The other one I handled had a more compressed micarta feel and was darker green in color.
 
Thanks for more great responses. The info about throwing makes an excellent case for its toughness, and I'm much more certain I'll be happy with the Micarta color now. I'm glad to hear all the positive comments on this hawk, now I just need to trade in some gift cards and pull the trigger. Thanks all.
 
This guy has some custom scales by Justin Gingrich, and a much better grind for wood. I still think it's not meant for chopping wood, it's frozen wood, but I've seen other wood choppers cut deeper with each swing. Still a good hawk, just more for breaching, utility, and/or fighting.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2efgEzWIwBw
 
I finally pulled the trigger, but now I'm waiting the excruciating week for delivery. Anyone else have good stories about the hawk to tide me over till it gets here?
 
Samot ... It will be worth the wait. I love my RD more and more. For a one-handed hawk, it really is capable of dong a lot. As $ permit, I will definitely invest in the spikeless version as well. After working my RD through various tasks, the spikeless model will be great for training as I won't have to worry about that spike coming back at me.

Also, here's the follow up video to what Foxx posted. It gives some good close perspective:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNfe6C1HXt4&feature=watch_response

Awaiting your hands-on feedback!
 
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I was trying to get an idea what it would feel like, so I was comparing stats to the cheap thrower I have. I'm happy to hear it's about 4 inches longer and a quarter inch thick, compared to 1/8th. I'm wondering about the balance. I wouldn't be surprised if the balance were even, but I have some kind of expectation of an axe being heavier at the head. Can anyone describe how it's balanced?
 
So the estimated delivery date for my axe was off by nearly a week. Fortunately it was in my favor and I got it today! Let me lead by saying I'm happy with my purchase overall. I only feel the need to lead with that because my first impression of the axe had some negatives.

Obviously the thickness and weight are excellent, but that was to be expected. Handle feel is very nice, also as I would expect from an Ontario (and Micarta). My only negative first impression was concerning fit and finish, which I hold at low importance. There was a ding in the finish near the pick apparent when I opened the package. This is not something I'm concerned with, because it's not going to ride a shelf. In fact after a few minutes playing with it in the back yard, the finish on the pick has come off (as I expected) almost enough to hide the blemish. PICTURE
The other concern I had with finish was that the blade grind seems slightly off, by perhaps one degree. It's only apparent because one side of the ground edge is larger than the other at the top, and it is opposite at the bottom, like the edge is tweaked one degree counterclockwise. After looking at it for a while, it actually seems like the edge is ground in perfect alignment with the handle, but the "cheeks" (am I using the right word?) were slightly off, causing the illusion of a tilted edge. Either way, for practical purposes, it doesn't seem to matter. I chopped with it a few times and it doesn't seem to cause the blade to deflect one way or the other, so I can't see it causing a problem. I just hope it doesn't become more apparent under harder use. PICTURE FROM TOP, PICTURE FROM BOTTOM
Minor negatives aside, this is a fabulous axe. The overall thickness lends balance to the hawk, but it is still slightly towards the head. (Center of balance is at the handle end of the long slot in the body) It came very sharp and chops great, with a profile that really feels like it moves wood out of the way. The pick buries deep with very little effort, and grabs very well for pulling and manipulating wood.
The handle scales are comfortable and grippy when wet (the reason I love Micarta), and the sheath is thick, robust nylon which I look forward to integrating onto my pack.
Edit: Another positive comment about the sheath: I put it on my belt and ran around with it for a while and I raelly like the way it holds the axe very securely. It doesn't allow the handle to beat up your leg. It's not really a "quick access" thing, but it does its job very well.

If I had to change the axe, It would have been nice if the finish had been perfectly symmetrical (concerning the blade grind/cheeks), but just because that's how I am. And it would be cool if the beard were sharpened, since I think it would add functionality without detracting anything.

A few questions:
Does anyone know if the grind/cheek thing will be an issue for performance/use in the future? If not, I can ignore it.
Has anyone sharpened the beard of this hawk? I have a belt grinder, do you think I'd be able to do it on that?
Has anyone stripped the finish from theirs completely? Have pictures? I'd love to see how it looks.


Thanks for reading.
 
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Some more thoughts as I have more time with the axe.

I think I'm going to end up trying to even out the grind of the edge with my belt grinder at some point, but I'd love to hear some feedback on the idea before I do it. I'm sure the edge is straight, and one of the cheeks is slightly off, so I should be able to fix it without messing up the cutting edge.

The body, pommel and top edge of the axe have some pretty harsh edges, if I were making it, I'd have put a small bevel on them to round them out a bit. But if I do that now, it would ruin the black finish. I'll wait till I ruin the finish through use before I make any changes like that.

I read somewhere the gap in the body (or the pommel) can be used as a gas shutoff wrench, which is awesome. It makes me think it would have been cool if one of the holes in the body were hex shaped to allow you to use screwdriver bits. I'm sure there's quite a few tools that could be built into the handle of this thing without compromising its performance. I don't know how to include it without loosing the pick, but some kind of hammering surface would be nice too.

A longer handle, or another handle above the existing one, would probably look cool, and allow you to hold the axe right up under the head so that you do some more delicate cutting with the head (not what an axe is for, but still). Does anyone know if Ontario sells extra or replacement handles?


I'm sure I'll think of more as I get more familiar with the Hawk, but thanks for reading.
 
The edge of mine is off as well. It's to be expected with the Ontario RD line, at least from what others have said, and my three examples. At first, I didn't like it either, but after using it, and sharpening it, I realize I can just correct it a bit over time. Unlike a knife, I don't need the edge to be exact. I would want it to be much better on a wood chopping axe or hatchet. This line was made for hard use, beating through doors and cars.

I used some sandpaper to make my handle scales fit a bit better around the tang, and to make them more rounded, for comfort. I did remove some black in doing so, but mine is a beater. I've been very suprised by how tough it is. I imagine that new scales could be made, that would go all the way up, if you were inclined to do so. I just don't think this was designed for delicate wood work. Plus, it's the same scales as the rest of the RD line.

Sharpening the beard, if you do it, just keep it cool, don't alter the temper.

Glad you like it, for the price it's pretty tough hawk. There are lots of hawks with better fit and finish, better balance, full length scales, and sharper edges(beards as well), but you'll be paying lots more for them. Like these guys...
RMJ Tactical
Winkler Knives 2
Omnivore Blade-Works
JK Knives
 
Yeah, the winkler and this axe here (I like the winkler look but can't afford it) are definitly on the wish list, and the tactical hawk JK is designing might be my next axe purchase because of its quality and price, but I'm very happy with this so far. I'll probably modify it over time, thanks for the tips and the response. I'll take a look at the rest of the axes you mentioned.
 
I'll play with it in the back yard some more tomorrow and take some pics to post.

Edit: I'm also trying to decide how to mount it to my pack. I'll take some pictures and ask for suggestions tomorrow.

Further edit: Another review note. There is definitely a front and a back to the handle grip, but, at least for my hand, the reverse grip for striking with the spike is very comfortable. If my hands were any larger though, I'd probably hit the bump at the bottom and be uncomfortable.
 
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It's picture time!!!

Here is my Pick Hawk (there are many like it, but this one is mine) I went at it with the belt grinder last night to clean it up and I like how it turned out. I removed the coating from the working edge and the tip of the spike, as well as trying to even out the grind I spoke about above.
IMG_20120112_144610.jpg


I then proceded to abuse it.
Here is my first throw at my throwing target (a board stuck in the ground) I hit with the spine and the pick embedded enough to hold it up. No bending or perceivable damage to the pick at all.
IMG_20120112_143702.jpg


My second throw was not nearly as spectacular. It hit pommel first, but did this to the board. If it were needed as a weapon, there is no "right" way to get hit by this thing.
IMG_20120112_143739.jpg


Third shot was dead on and it stuck well, posing for a photo op.
IMG_20120112_143813.jpg


Here I show how deep the pick buries with moderate force (by hand, not thrown) It's in there about 1.5 inches
IMG_20120112_143510.jpg


And how well it grabs. I'm lifting the board off the ground while taking a pic with the other hand.
IMG_20120112_144224.jpg


Some chop tests on a stick of greenish (few days old) eucalyptus. It went through this one in one chop.
IMG_20120112_144004.jpg


I couldn't make it through the thicker part in one shot, but it certainly got in there.
IMG_20120112_144047.jpg


And after all that, here's what it did to free hanging (overripe) fruit.
IMG_20120112_144324.jpg


After these pics, I used the hawk to chop a 3 inch branch off a bottlebrush tree, then used the pick to pull some wood out of a woodpile I need to clean up. I really like how well the pick grabs the wood. I didn't even need to get my hands dirty. Then I washed it off in the pool and dried it. It was not noticeably duller.

Now that I've put it through some more paces, I'm even happier with my purchase and would definitely recommend it to others looking for a similar item.

I tried a few methods of attaching it to my pack, but haven't found anything which allows easy access to it. I'll take some pics later and see what you all think.
 
Here's a pic of the only way I've figured out how to attach it to my 3 day survival bag. It sits there and it's the only place I was able to put it where it is accessible while wearing the pack. It's not exactly ideal, though, since I had to remove my fixed blade from the strap to put on the hawk. The fixed blade is more practical in that position I'm sure. I'll keep experimenting with it, but I'd love to hear some suggestions. If I had time to prepare, I'd just attach the hawk to my belt, but I want to attach it to the bag in case I need to grab and go.

IMG_20120112_195854.jpg



I took it to the grinder again and this time I made some hefty changes to the edge profile. You can't really tell from the pictures, but I made it a convex edge. I'll see if I improved it or ruined it tomorrow when I get a chance to play with it again. I'll say this though, It's sharper than it was when I got it.
IMG_20120112_213031.jpg
 
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Nice pics, looks like a fun day! I think you will prefer the convex edge, hard to tell from your pics really but it looks a bit steep still, you could probably thin it out a bit more.
You might want to file it to get it just right, then blend it with a few light passes on the belt sander.
 
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