Hawkbills: PE versus SE?

[JD Spydo]

OK I've talked about this subject before but yesterday I saw a post on a thread that frankly amazed me. One good Brother was talking about how he missed the original VG-10 Spyderhawks from back around 2003. Which without saying is one of my all time favorite Spyderco Hawkbills. He went on to say that he was looking hard for another PE Version of the VG-10 Spyderhawk and said that it performed unbelievably well on a couple of jobs. I'm amazed that he would brag on a PE Version of that great blade because myself I find that plain edged Hawkbills seem to have a very limited scope on their overall uses. I personally find that serrated Hawkbills have much more cutting power on hard to cut items and on general cutting chores they tend to outperform many other work blades IMO.

OK here is what I want to know>> I know that many of you here in Spyderville like Hawkbill knives as really handy companion blades to do chores that your main EDC won't necessarily do well. But in most cases I find the Spyderedged Hawkbills to be much more useful. But if there are any of you who agree with this guy I'm extremely interested to know why? Because hey I can always learn something by asking and if I'm missing out on what I could use my own PE Hawkbills for I would love to know about it.

I personally have used both edge types but overall I've found that serrated Hawkbills tend to be much more aggressive than the PE Hawkbills are. But that's just my take on it and my own personal experience which may not be the truth as others may see it. So I'm willing to hear which Hawkbill edge type you all like and why. Also I wonder more and more if a combo edged Hawkbill would be a good thing to try out? OK tell us which Hawkbill edge type you like the best and why :spyder:

[Evil D]

I wouldn't be opposed to trying one, my only problem is sharpening them since I don't sharpen free hand. Otherwise I see hawkbills as a sort of "wharnie in overdrive" since they sort of perform the same up until the point you use one to "reach around" something like you can do when trimming plants and such. Beyond that both hawkbills and wharnies excel at pull cutting so general use can be pretty similar.

[bearfacedkiller]

Maybe just personal preference. I am not a huge fan of serrations myself. I just jumped on two of the plain edge USN Ladyhawks because it has never been offered before. I would LOVE a PE Ladyhawk in another steel, maybe VG10 or ZDP. Sadly the PE options from the past were before my time and a PE Merlin or Harpy hasn't found it's way into my collection.

[JD Spydo]

I wouldn't be opposed to trying one, my only problem is sharpening them since I don't sharpen free hand. Otherwise I see hawkbills as a sort of "wharnie in overdrive" since they sort of perform the same up until the point you use one to "reach around" something like you can do when trimming plants and such. Beyond that both hawkbills and wharnies excel at pull cutting so general use can be pretty similar.

Hmmm? Interesting comparison Wharnies & Hawkbills. I never ever looked at it from that standpoint. But I do agree with you that Sharpening plain edged Hawkbills is a learning experience. And you better have some patience if you are going to try it. The PE Hawkbill is the hardest blade to sharpen with the possible exception of a couple of big recurves I've also worked on. But once you get a PE Hawkbill sharp it's like having a curved laser in your hand. But even at that it doesn't give you the cutting/shearing power that a serrated Hawkbill will give.

Also interesting that you point out the gardening and landscaping uses of the Hawkbill because I've had several people e-mail me and tell me how useful they are in gardening>> PE & SE both. You are so right about the "pull cutting" aspects of the Hawkbill blades which is one of the main reasons I like them so much. I do find that any blade you can use for pull cutting sure gives you a lot of leverage.

HEy BearfacedKiller!! the PE Merlin and PE Harpy are true collector jewells at this point. They are both harder to find than ever now a days. I think you'll have better luck finding a PE Merlin than you will a PE Harpy. Of all the Harpys I've ever owned and traded I've only had two of the PE version whereas I've had at least a dozen of the ATS-55 PE Merlin models and it's still one of my favorites in SE & PE both.

[The Mastiff]

Joe, Hawks are what serrations were designed for. Or, Maybe it's the other way around. :) Anyway it's about the only way I still use Serrations. Sharp serrations and hawkbills will eat ropes and lines like nothing else.

joe

[mikerestivo]

I have 3 hawkbills and they are each serrated. That's how I like to roll with a hawkbill.

[Archimedes]

I like a serrated knife and think the hawk bills are best when serrated. I feel the hawk bill is more of a self defense tool and not a knife I carry to really cut anything. I prefer to keep the edge factory sharp and unused. I am currently carrying a FRN Stretch in VG10 that is fully serrated and it is really fun to use. It slices amazing with serrations. It is pretty amazing. In the scheme of things when not dealing with Hawkbills I still prefer a plain edge.

[dsvirsky]

I have a PE H1 Spyderhawk I use in the yard. I bought it in plain edge for convenience of sharpening. I also have an old (AUS 8, integral FRN clip) SE Merlin. When it comes to cutting vines and creepers and such, there's no competition -- the serrated edge on the Merlin KICKS A$$! I should have gone with SE when I bought the Spyderhawk. I'll probably pick up a Tasman Salt in SE this summer to replace it (the Merlin works great, but I like the "put it up wet" utility of H1).

[JD Spydo]

I like a serrated knife and think the hawk bills are best when serrated. I feel the hawk bill is more of a self defense tool and not a knife I carry to really cut anything. I prefer to keep the edge factory sharp and unused. I am currently carrying a FRN Stretch in VG10 that is fully serrated and it is really fun to use. It slices amazing with serrations. It is pretty amazing. In the scheme of things when not dealing with Hawkbills I still prefer a plain edge.

Well ARCHIMEDES I remember in the old days you also liked the serrated version of the Lil Temperance>> it seemed like you and Chad were the Lil T's biggest cheerleaders at the time. YOu and Chad along with a few other inspired me to try out the SE Lil T and I loved it.

But on the subject of Hawkbills I do far more with a Spyderedge than I do with my PE Hawkbills. Now don't get me wrong because I'm not saying that PE Hawkbills have little or no use because there are some food prep jobs that I've found that PE Hawkbills work great. But most of my Hawkbill usage is done with serrated blades. Mainly because a lot of my Hawkbill usage has to do with pull cutting some pretty rugged materials. When it comes to vines there is no other knife that works anywhere as good as a Spyderedged Hawkbill.

When you think about it there is a reason that probably 90% of all the Hawkbills that Spyderco makes are serrated. You can't even hardly find a PE Harpy unless you're extremely lucky. And Spyderedges don't need the sharpening and overall maintenance that plain edges seem to constantly need.
I just heard Sal say that they are going to release the Native 5 in SE>> as much as I love my old 440V, SE Native it will be on my gotta have list for sure.

But if any of you do have some really good uses for plain edged Hawkbills then please share it with us. I do want to know if I"m missing out on anything. Now I do find a larger PE Hawkbill like the PE Spyderhawk to be more useful that I do the medium or small sized Hawkbills.

[Donut]

I've seen people post pictures of a bunch of fruit they've cut up with a PE Spyderhawk. I used to ask them how well it worked for that, because I always thought it would be awkward. The answer I always get is, "It works great."

I've been meaning to try it, but I don't have a PE Hawkbill (other than the USN one) and it isn't at the top of my priorities to get one.

[JD Spydo]

I've seen people post pictures of a bunch of fruit they've cut up with a PE Spyderhawk. I used to ask them how well it worked for that, because I always thought it would be awkward. The answer I always get is, "It works great."

I've been meaning to try it, but I don't have a PE Hawkbill (other than the USN one) and it isn't at the top of my priorities to get one.

That's interesting that you mention that DONUT because that's mainly what I've been using my PE Hawkbills for most of the time. I harvest ripe persimmons every autumn and I find that a PE Hawkbill does a great job of processing the fruit on persimmon trees. When persimmons are ripe they have a taste that is out of this world and it makes great preserves and jelly.

I also find that cutting apples away from the core that PE Hawkbills work well too> I also used my PE Spyderhawk to cut away the tenderloin section of a young deer once and it worked great for that as well. However I'm sure a good wharncliffe blade might have worked just as well. I would love to try the Yojimbo 2 on a job like that. Which lends creedence to what EVIL D said earlier in the thread.

[Donut]

I mean like: slicing up tomatoes or cutting up a cantaloupe.

[JD Spydo]

I mean like: slicing up tomatoes or cutting up a cantaloupe.

I bet if I were to use a PE Hawkbill in the kitchen daily I bet I could find many food prep uses for it. But there is one caviat>> and it's like EVIL D said earlier>> for a PE Hawkbill to be effective it has to be super sharp and they aren't the easiest blade to put a quality edge on unfortunately. It's one blade style where the serrated blade is actually easier to sharpen on a Hawkbill.

I'm also getting more messages and from other forums that there are a multitude of landscaping and gardening uses for PE & SE Hawkbills both.

Hey my philosophy simply states "WHATEVER WORKS".

I'm also hoping to see Hawkbills with different serration patterns down the road.

[bearfacedkiller]

I am looking forward to using my PE USN Ladyhawk to do some pruning in the garden this summer. Most pruning knives are small PE Hawkbills. You want to be sure you make clean cuts when trimming your prized tomatoes. :)

Opinel and Victorinox both make very popular and very affordable pruning knives.

[JD Spydo]

I am looking forward to using my PE USN Ladyhawk to do some pruning in the garden this summer. Most pruning knives are small PE Hawkbills. You want to be sure you make clean cuts when trimming your prized tomatoes. :)

Opinel and Victorinox both make very popular and very affordable pruning knives.

I've never used anything made by Opinel but I do own a lot of blades and highly respect Victorinox and their extensive lineup of cutlery. I particularly like the grafting knives made by Victorinox as well as their high end SwIss Army knives like their CHAMP model.

I've even wondered if plain edged Hawkbills would be good for pruning, grafting and other landscaping and tree maintenance jobs.

I also would like to know if anyone has ever used PE Hawkbills in orchards?

[JD Spydo]

I have 3 hawkbills and they are each serrated. That's how I like to roll with a hawkbill.

Yeah I'm of the same persuasion>> because I use my Spyderedged Hawkbills much, much more than I do any of my PE Hawkbills. There is just something to be said for pull cutting and serrations make it much more effective. I've been doing a lot of thinking about EVIL D's mention of Wharncliffe blades having similarities to PE Hawkbills. I'm not sure I completely agree with that assertion but it's interesting to see why he thinks so.

Actually I find that comparing Reverse S blades to PE Hawkbills makes a little more sense simply because their angle of attack is almost the same. It would probably make an excellent thread to compare all Hawkbills with all the variants of Reverse S blades. I have both PE & SE Reverse S blades and again I find the Spyderedges in that group of blades to be far more effective for what I use them for.

[elrond18]

My Spyderhawk and Tasman Salt are both SE and gets carried in my farm regularly. I think SE works best for hawkbills. My only PE hawkbill is a Byrd Crossbill and it just stays in the drawer.

[Bradley]

Serrated Tasman, and a PE ladybug hawk. The ladybug cuts like a laser, whereas the tasman is the more rugged cutter, that I won't hesitate to put to work. Obviously the size difference between the two relate to their uses. However, I could see myself using the ladybug for tasks much larger than it would first seem capable of. I'm liking the ladybug in plain edge, but I think I'd go serrated if I were to get a spyderhawk.

[JD Spydo]

My Spyderhawk and Tasman Salt are both SE and gets carried in my farm regularly. I think SE works best for hawkbills. My only PE hawkbill is a Byrd Crossbill and it just stays in the drawer.

Yeah "elrond18" that's my opinion on the SE versus PE debate as well. I can't even go a day without carrying one of my Spyderedged Hawkbills as a companion blade to whichever PE conventional designed Spyder I might be carrying that given day. The serrated Hawkbill just has a much more aggressive nature about it and it's designed to rip, saw, sever and tear just about any tough or fibrous material you can throw at them.

Not at all knocking PE Hawkbills because that's the main reason I started this thread to see if any of you knew of any other jobs I hadn't tried for a plain edged Hawkbill. I've only found a very few jobs where I thought that the PE Hawkbills have an advantage. Also speaking of serrated Hawkbills I still maintain that the C-111 Captain model would be so much better if they would make a Sprint run of them with the inner arch full serrated. I would imagine that most people that use Hawkbills would be all over that one.