Tomahawk Grind!

[Semper Fi1985]

What type of grind do you prefer on your tomahawk and axes? and for what purpose? also do you like your hawk to be razor sharp or just sharp enough?

 

[killa_concept]

The majority of my axes (25"-32", 2-3.5lbers) have pretty typical convex grinds like any heavy impact bladed tool should. These ones I tend to get hair shaving/paper-push cutting sharp, but the edge isn't particularly refined (I only sharpen these up to 600 or so grit then give them a strop on a leather belt). Admittedly they don't even need that sort of edge since with heavy chopping tasks, so long as you're not working with an incredibly blunt edge, it's more the blade profile that dictates the depth of the cut. It's really more a matter of habit for me since I like to keep all tools at least this level of sharpness.

However, I profile my hatchet and small axe (a 10" wetterlings and 19" GB SFA) in a manner I doubt many people use: I give them a flat grind on my dominant side and a convex on the opposite. I also sharpen these to the level of my knives (finish on a 12,000 grit natural waterstone and strop on a chrom-oxide loaded piece of balsa followed by a strop on rawhide). Since a picture is a bit more descriptive, I sharpen them like so being left-handed:

The logic here is that I tend to use these two axes a lot more for very fine tasks (such as carving) than I do heavy chopping. The flat, almost-scandi grind on my dominant side affords me a lot more control and precision - to the point where I can make feather sticks fine enough to catch a spark. The convex side though, keeps more metal behind the edge than a standard V-profile so that if I do happen to need to chop or split something with them, the chances of rolling the edge is a fair bit slimmer.

I know this might seem excessive for some, but it's been working great for me :thumbup:

 

[Square_peg]

Very thoughtful. I like it.