just wondering what some of you more experienced people would think about a cold steel norse hawk as a survival tool . ive got two . ive used them off and on for years and they by no means chop as well as say a good hatchet but they sure are light and easy and make for quik use as a weapon . thoughts?
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tomahawk as survival tool
- Thread starter gutsy
- Start date
Not that I'm any sort of expert, but I think it would make an ok supplemental tool to an overall kit at best. If all you had was the Norse Hawk, or just the head, that would be better than nothing, of course.
What's nice about the CS hawks is that the head is easily removed for use int he hand. The Norse Hawk design probably makes for one of the better 'in-hand' users, almost Ulu-like. With a little edge work, the Norse could certainly become a more versitile tool, but as soon as you start chopping a lot with it, that reworked edge would probably disappear.
So, my two cents, yea sure, it icould certainly be usable as a survival tool. But I think there are better choppers out there, and if given a choice, I would prefer to have more than one tool with me in a given situation. On our last camping trip, I used a Marble's Pocket Axe and a Sawvior saw to manage and split 2 nights of harvested deadfall. The Pocket Axe is small, but with encouragement of a baton it works nicely.
Final thought: In a controlled situation (camping, around the yard, etc.), see what you can do with the Norse Hawk. Think outside the box as far as it's usage. Maybe you can mod it into something similar to that handheld axe-thingie that Ron Hood was selling a few years ago. I can't recall what it was called, but it was a cool tool.
What's nice about the CS hawks is that the head is easily removed for use int he hand. The Norse Hawk design probably makes for one of the better 'in-hand' users, almost Ulu-like. With a little edge work, the Norse could certainly become a more versitile tool, but as soon as you start chopping a lot with it, that reworked edge would probably disappear.
So, my two cents, yea sure, it icould certainly be usable as a survival tool. But I think there are better choppers out there, and if given a choice, I would prefer to have more than one tool with me in a given situation. On our last camping trip, I used a Marble's Pocket Axe and a Sawvior saw to manage and split 2 nights of harvested deadfall. The Pocket Axe is small, but with encouragement of a baton it works nicely.
Final thought: In a controlled situation (camping, around the yard, etc.), see what you can do with the Norse Hawk. Think outside the box as far as it's usage. Maybe you can mod it into something similar to that handheld axe-thingie that Ron Hood was selling a few years ago. I can't recall what it was called, but it was a cool tool.
I guess I would prefer a decent hatchet or small axe compared to a tomahawk if I had to make an important choice. I havent handled the type of hawk in question here, but I guess all tomahawks have some similarities.
I have a couple of fairly crude tomahawks, and I have grown to like them. Not the best tool for cutting big logs or splitting firewood, but good for small jobs and maybe hacking into some game if you can't be bothered jointing it with a knife.
It could be also, that I have learned how to chop with them a bit better nowadays. Being a lighter tool, you probably need a bit more speed to achieve a good cut.
If your hawks aren't chopping as well as you think they could, you could try holding them rather lightly by the very end of the handle and practice swinging them fast. You might find that they work better if you give them a finer grind (sharper angle) on the blade.
Because my tomahawks are light and relatively small, they are a lot less trouble to carry than a bigger chopper.
I have a couple of fairly crude tomahawks, and I have grown to like them. Not the best tool for cutting big logs or splitting firewood, but good for small jobs and maybe hacking into some game if you can't be bothered jointing it with a knife.
It could be also, that I have learned how to chop with them a bit better nowadays. Being a lighter tool, you probably need a bit more speed to achieve a good cut.
If your hawks aren't chopping as well as you think they could, you could try holding them rather lightly by the very end of the handle and practice swinging them fast. You might find that they work better if you give them a finer grind (sharper angle) on the blade.
Because my tomahawks are light and relatively small, they are a lot less trouble to carry than a bigger chopper.
Cliff Stamp
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- Oct 5, 1998
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I have a Norse tomahawk, the main problems are that the edge is very thick and obtuse, likely to withstand the heavy impacts from miss throws. To use it for wood working you will really want to take a grinder to it and hack off a lot of metal. There is no problem turing it into an efficent wood cutting tool if you are willing to do some work on it.
-Cliff
-Cliff
thanks guys , cliff i agree withya . i took a dremel to both of mine and i still need to take off some more metal i think . i have modded one a little bit more by taking off all of the finish off the head and making it look a little more traditional . when going really far out in the back woods i usually carry said tomahawk and ranger rd7 in a spec-ops sheath. thanks for the input .
I carried a hawk rather than a hatchet for a number of years - I like the longer helve, and they are fun to throw. In addition to the edge grinding, I find that a leather wrap at the base of the handle gives a more full (and holdable) grip for chopping.
Pat
Pat