Who are the Great Tomahawk Makers?

Don Rearic

Don Rearic

Joined
Oct 8, 1998
Messages
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What is your preference, companies, makers, whatever - gimme what you got, websites, etc. TIA-CIAO :D
 
Two good sites. The first I'm considering even though I like the designs on the second site more. The prices on the second site are quite high for a using 'Hawk. They're beautiful and I think they are worth it if you are a collector - but as a user I don't think I could justify that price.

Thanks though!
 
I got one of the "new" 2 hawks ones a while back. The design of the head is nice but they are way expensive and dull dull dull. Plus the one I got was RUSTED:thumbdn:
 
For an inexpensive beater hawk, you need to look no further than the Cold Steel line. My Frontier Hawk has taken a literal beating and shrugged it off. The Trail Hawk has quite a following and with a little pimping can be turned into a nice tool. See the sticky at the top of the Axe, Hawk and Hatchet forum Here.
 
I like Cold Steel hawks and H&B hawks. However, my favorite is still my Swamp Rat Crash Rat. My precious!!!

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Might be stupid question, but how useful are the hawks for splitting and chopping? How does it compare to a hachet. Always like looking at the CS ones, but didn't know if they are good for use for just throwing.
 
Two real classics are:

H & B Forge
http://www.hbforge.com/products/tomahawks.php

and

Fort Turner
http://www.fortturner.com/store/index.htm

These are hand-forged tomahawks, with heads done the genuine, old-fashioned way--soft steel wrapped around a harder steel bit. Customer service is great both places, though Dana Turner, proprietor of Fort Turner, has really gone the extra mile for me. H&B seems to have been better known for a longer time. Their blades are kind of thick, but the profile from the side is more of what I see as the classic tomahawk shape, with the top of the head pretty much at right angles with the handle. Fort Turner tomahawks are a little less prettily finished, retaining more of the hammer marks. The big difference you'll note with a Fort Turner 'hawk is that the blade is a LOT thinner--almost like on a Cold Steel machine-made tomahawk--and that the side profile of the blade is more of an isosceles triangle; the top of the blade is not perpendicular to the handle, but rises from the eye. I would imagine that the H & B head would be somewhat more durable but also harder to cut with, since it's that much thicker than the Fort Turner blade. That said, I have never encountered any durability problems with a tomahawk by either maker, and for all I know the Fort Turner ones are absolutely indestructible--but my guess is that H & B would be harder to break. The full-size, standard tomahawk by each maker ("Shawnee" from H & B; "Buck" from FT) will set you back $38 and $39, respectively, plus shipping (which is actually a sizable percentage of the cost, so you might think about getting as much of your tomahawk-and-handle-buying as you can out of the way at once, sparing additional shipping fees.) You can also usually find some of each at large muzzleloading events / rendezvous, and possibly save yourself some of the shipping costs. Good luck!
 
sherlockbonez said:
Might be stupid question, but how useful are the hawks for splitting and chopping? How does it compare to a hachet. Always like looking at the CS ones, but didn't know if they are good for use for just throwing.
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I have several hawks, one from Ft. Yutner and a couple from Ragnar. They cut well.

As for splitting, most hawks are weak splitters due to the abrupt transition from the blade to the cheek. So the blade sinks in relatively easily until you come the the swell of the cheek. At that point you are trying to split with a cylinder, not a wedge. However, you typically don't need big wood for a fire or shelter and you can whittle off pieces to get to dry interior wood.

Ragnar used to sell a "Ft. Meigs" model that was a wedge (viewed from the top), but the handle was so small in diameter that it stung to use without gloves.
 
You all should head over to the axe, tomahawk, hatchet forum and take a look at some of the incredible work being done by members like Coal Creek Forge, church&son, Chris John, Kentucky, and others.

Matt.
 
I've been playing around with an RMJT Shrike for a couple of years now, and saving up for a hammer poll.
 
Daniel Winkler is the best hawk maker in my humble opinion. They are expensive, but I do depend on this things whit my life and that of my team mates. Winkler hawks get better with age and use.

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sherlockbonez said:
Might be stupid question, but how useful are the hawks for splitting and chopping? How does it compare to a hatchet. Always like looking at the CS ones, but didn't know if they are good for use for just throwing.
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This is an original 200+ year old belt axe that I found. It is probably one of the smallest trade axe\hatchet\hawks given to the Indians around here in the late 1700's. I also have a Cold Steel Rifleman and New Frontier hawks. The New Frontier is a close replica but quite light compared to an old original. The weight of the Rifleman is much closer, but the Rifleman is butt ugly. The New Frontier is capable for me as a user hawk for chopping etc., but it definitely is on the lighter\moderately effective end of the scale. I still like and use the New Frontier but it has its limitations. On the plus side it's wonderfuly light to pack in a bag.
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