Was looking to buy a hawk to use while hunting and in camp.  I saw a video on the Cold Steel Frontier hawk and was impressed.  What others are out there?

I have an American Tomahawk that I take on occasion...especially when I go into Cohutta.

Ron LaClair makes a nice one also.  He's a sponsor so you might check out his web page...he has a banner on the PowWow you can click and go straight to his site.

I like my Shrew Hawk and my Vector Hawk, now a Shrew head on a Vector shaft would be about perfect for me......

If you want a tomahawk You can't go wrong with an H&B Forge Shawnee

     http://www.hbforge.com/products/tomahawks.php    

I don't carry a tomohawk hunting but I do carry a Gransfors Bruks Mini Hatchet.  Unfortunately the price on these things has more than doubled since I bought mine.  They go for $160 now and if I needed another I'd grit my teeth and pay the premium--but just barely.

   http://gransforsaxes.com/mini-belt-hatchet.html?gclid=COTcq6-0wqoCFeoEQAodJks06Q    

I will say they are superbly made and literally come shaving sharp right out of the box.  I've used mine to split deer and elk pelvis bones among other things and its only needed some touching up on a leather strop to keep it sharp enough to shave with.  You literally could field dress and skin an animal with the axe if you had to.  Its that good...  Here's a nice online review of the GB Mini Hatchet

http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=43205&pagenumber=

If you want some hand made artisanship along with some real functionality look at Beaver Bill's Forge products.  His bag axe is similar in price and quality to my Gransfors Brux mini hatchet but looks kinda kool.  He also makes some awesome, historically correct tomahawks.

 http://www.beaverbill.com/pollshawks&axes.htm

Love my cold steel trail hawk.

Hand forged razor sharp and holds an edge....





God Bless,  Pierre

I would also check out Lee Reeves out of Oklahoma

http://ssidders.tripod.com/id358.htm

Great Product, scarry sharp.

I own a caper, skinner and belt axe made by him.

Top Notch

I made  a bit of kindling with an old Norlund hatchet. It pounded  a few tent stakes and helped dress some game too.

Those Swede axes are nice but the strong Euro really makes them expensive

I have two of Ron's Shrew hawks and I really don't think you can get better, especially for the money.  I carry one a LOT.

The ONLY wish I have is that they would make a Shrew hawk with a bit thicker handle.
ChuckC

I have a couple of H&B Forge hawks... the large one with a poll end makes a great camp tool.

For carry, I use a "bag axe" made by "Beaver Bill" Keeler.

Marble #6 axe

Sorry,  Marble's #009, hunters axe.

The sharp kind.      



Or a similar model in a hammer poll version.

QuoteOriginally posted by ChuckC:
I have two of Ron's Shrew hawks and I really don't think you can get better, especially for the money.  I carry one a LOT.

The ONLY wish I have is that they would make a Shrew hawk with a bit thicker handle.
ChuckC

The nice thing about hawks is that you can keep a nice handle (the one that comes with it) for show and make your own from local limbs to use.  Want a thicker one - make it (bonus points for using the Shrew Hawk *without* a handle when making a new one).

I've got a CS Trail Hawk and one of Ron's Shrew Hawks but honestly, I find myself taking my Becker BK9 more often.  It chops as well as or better than the hawks (though admittedly my hawk technique is weak) and it snap cuts small branches MUCH better.

 

I like both of those hawks, but I like Ron's better.  Man, thing takes a good edge.

I have to agree on the handles...but not just thicker...but thicker on the butt end...so the hawk wont fly out of your hand in this southern heat and humidity.

Lee Reeves Belt Axe.  This is what I would use if I had $205 to spend on a hatchet.   :D  

What a work of art though.

I'd recomend leaving the axes at home and taking a folding saw....but then I'm not as much of a romantic as some folks.

Get yourself a gransfor brux hunters axe.

Another option for 'thickening' up your handles is to wrap the bottom end with paracord or leather and so forth.  You might also consider drilling a hole in the butt of it and adding a lanyard if you are concerned about losing control of the tool.

Not sure how the mods feel about it so I won't post it here without permission, but there is a thread on another forum with hundreds of ideas for mods to the CS trailhawk - but they apply to others as well.

If a hawk slipped out of my hand when I was swinging it, I don't think I would want it attached to my arm by a lanyard.
   

God Bless,
Nathan