Railroad Spike Tomahawk
- Thread starter badlander
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Hard use? With that tiny eye?
No one makes that.
No one makes that.
Hickory n steel
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Why not, if the handle breaks you can put it on any twig in 5 seconds.
On a serious note though, my bal peen Hammers have small eyes and they don't break.
I still don't think anyone makes one though.
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The carbon content of the steel is lower than what's typically used. According to info in another thread, the "high carbon" spikes (which are marked "HC") have a carbon content between 0.20 to 0.30 percent carbon, and the "soft steel" spikes have carbon content ranging from 0.06 to 0.20 percent carbon.
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Why not, if the handle breaks you can put it on any twig in 5 seconds.
On a serious note though, my bal peen Hammers have small eyes and they don't break.
I still don't think anyone makes one though.
Thanks, Hickory. You made me realize that I should elaborate on my answer. Here's an image of a RR spike hawk borrowed from the web - it's pretty typical of what I've seen.
The problem is of course the very short eye. It's going to crush the handle wood very quicky and result in a loose head for the same reason that Hudson Bay axes come loose, only faster. It's discussed in depth here:
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/the-drawback-in-the-hudson-bay-pattern.1152684/
Hickory n steel
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Oh, yep that's definitely a probablem.Thanks, Hickory. You made me realize that I should elaborate on my answer. Here's an image of a RR spike hawk borrowed from the web - it's pretty typical of what I've seen.
The problem is of course the very short eye. It's going to crush the handle wood very quicky and result in a loose head for the same reason that Hudson Bay axes come loose, only faster. It's discussed in depth here:
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/the-drawback-in-the-hudson-bay-pattern.1152684/
Thanks for elaborating.
Railway spikes are great fun to make letter openers & decorative stuff with. But as far as a "real tool", whatever crafted is mediocre at best.
As others mentioned, their low carbon alloy & 5/8"-9/16" profile seriously limits what they can be made into.
As others mentioned, their low carbon alloy & 5/8"-9/16" profile seriously limits what they can be made into.