Anyone else super excited for the Szabo Hawk?

[Strong-Dog]

Besides the Endura and Stretch Sprint runs and other folders, my sleeper pick for most exciting new addition is the Szabo Hawk. Anyone else excited for it?

[bearfacedkiller]

I heard that there was a more traditional tomahawk in the works. That is what I am interested in hearing more about. I have little use for a tactical tomahawk. I just don't do a lot of breaching. I guess I am not an operator nor do I do much operating. :rolleyes:

[Drahkis]

Yes, I am excited and I surely want one for myself!

[GoldenSpydie]

I want one, but only on two conditions:

1. It must be able to be easily and consistently thrown at a target.
2. It must be able to chop firewood.

If it can do both of those things, it just may be the perfect hawk/hatchet for me.

[SpyderNut]

I heard that there was a more traditional tomahawk in the works. That is what I am interested in hearing more about. I have little use for a tactical tomahawk. I just don't do a lot of breaching. I guess I am not an operator nor do I do much operating. :rolleyes:

+1

Me too. :)

[JD Spydo]

Anything with Laci Szabo's name on it gets my attention in a good way immediately. I got to meet and talk to the guy about 6 years ago and I was impressed. He truly knows a lot about tactical blades as well as other tactical hardware. Even his chef's/culinary knives are truly an eye popper>> you can see them on szaboinc.com.

One of his great blades I've always wanted was his UUK Lightning model. But all of the stuff he's done in collaboration with Spyderco is top notch in my book.

With all of the craze about tactical tomahawks and hatchets I'm sure that him and Spyderco have designed a superb piece to be sure. I just hope that they make the head with something tough like S7 steel.

[chuckd]

I'm usually one to avoid 'tacti-cool' stuff, but this one interests me a lot.

It might have to do with the Spydie logo, the Szabo collab, and the unique tool type in the tomahawk. This would also be a first for tomahawks, but I feel that in getting my first one, there could be no better than a Spyderco/Szabo collab. Very excited for this one.

[Mushroom]

Very excited for the Szabo Hawk as well! I wish the sheath could be small enough to only cover the sharpened edge, so the blunt side could still be used. Still plan to purchase one though! :D

[Brock O Lee]

...

I just hope that they make the head with something tough like S7 steel.

That was my first thought when I heard about this design in D2, which is not known for impact toughness. I do not see this as a wood processing tool. I am really not sure what I would use it for as a civillian. :confused:

[jmh58]

I heard that there was a more traditional tomahawk in the works. That is what I am interested in hearing more about.

Yes sir!! :cool: John :)

[RSV2400]

I'm thinking this would make a wicked trophy piece for the "Man-Cave" wall. Right between the Klingon battle blades and the Zombie choppers. Perhaps add the MTech Huntsman and call it your Bushcraft/Survival section!
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That curved blade edge, convex 20 to 25 degree bevel on most hatchets or axes this size has been develop from trial and error over hundreds of years. Two straight edges coming to a point, with a blunt angled edge is not going to work for chopping and splitting, nor throwing.

Looks way cool though! They'll still sell; lots of Zombie Hunters out there needing a back-up piece. :rolleyes:

[Bodog]

RSV2400, are you saying this hawk is no better than a novelty? Trying not to judge your statement without clarification.

[RSV2400]

BoDog, yes I was being a bit sarcastic. As a martial arts/armed forces people chopper, I think it would work great (plus it has a nice pry tool for crates and a useful hammer tool).

I'm betting the majority of members here are not active armed forces, though, and need something that can chop or throw with accuracy (traditional camp fun uses). I'm looking at 2 straight edges with a sharp, rather blunt grind (shingle hatchets have straight edges, but a lot steeper edge). I'm not seeing this as a good wood chopper or something that will dig in and stick if thrown at a tree stump or a log end. If you swung hard and dug the ax edge into a log, I'm betting it would be hard to free up, since it doesn't have the traditional curved edge, so it would rock and lift up when you pull up on the handle. I love Laci's design from an artistic standpoint, just think it would be more useful if Spyderco had stayed with a more traditional edge shape and grind.

Please, if you disagree, feel free to get one and take it on your next camping trip and prove me wrong. Like I said, it will still sell, it looks so cool. Bet some young entrepreneur is already dreaming up a quick pull kydex sheath and a back rig (Zombie Hunter back-up piece for the college guys). Sorry if my sense of humor offends you.

[OldSarSwmr]

I'm getting one because I want it.

Dan

[Bodog]

BoDog, yes I was being a bit sarcastic. As a martial arts/armed forces people chopper, I think it would work great (plus it has a nice pry tool for crates and a useful hammer tool).

I'm betting the majority of members here are not active armed forces, though, and need something that can chop or throw with accuracy (traditional camp fun uses). I'm looking at 2 straight edges with a sharp, rather blunt grind (shingle hatchets have straight edges, but a lot steeper edge). I'm not seeing this as a good wood chopper or something that will dig in and stick if thrown at a tree stump or a log end. If you swung hard and dug the ax edge into a log, I'm betting it would be hard to free up, since it doesn't have the traditional curved edge, so it would rock and lift up when you pull up on the handle. I love Laci's design from an artistic standpoint, just think it would be more useful if Spyderco had stayed with a more traditional edge shape and grind.

Please, if you disagree, feel free to get one and take it on your next camping trip and prove me wrong. Like I said, it will still sell, it looks so cool. Bet some young entrepreneur is already dreaming up a quick pull kydex sheath and a back rig (Zombie Hunter back-up piece for the college guys). Sorry if my sense of humor offends you.

I don't think it's been billed as anything other than a straight up martial blade. I wouldn't go deer hunting with a 5.56 AR-15, either, but I'm not going to say that the AR is less than good. I just won't put it into use where it doesn't belong. I don't get where you're coming from.

If you want to reverse it I wouldn't take a single shot shotgun into combat, either. Doesn't mean it can't do what it was designed to do.

You may not like the design or see a need for it in your own life, but that doesn't mean other people are stupid for liking it for themselves. Are you going to say a Noveske AR15 belongs in your man cave hanging next to your klingon prop and Mtech fixed blade and red rider BB gun? Are people stupid for wanting a high end weapon ready and capable of combat regardless if they're going into Iraq tomorrow?

[RSV2400]

OldSarSwmr
You go dude, if they change the edge configuration and make the edge more general purpose, I'll buy one too.

Bearfacedkiller and SpyderNut
I think I'm with you and would like to hear more about the more traditional hawk design in the works.

BoDog
Man, you need to chill a bit. This is a friendly Forum and everyone is entitled to an opinion. This is also a family Forum and some of those "Guests" lurking on the actively viewing lists are kids. You've gone off on somewhat of a rant defending the martial arts/military capabilities of this design. Problem is, not one of the posts in this thread has questioned that aspect of the design (including both my previous posts).

The second post in this thread raises the possibility of a more traditional hawk design and asks to hear more about this other design ("+1" by SpyderNut in 5th post). GoldenSpydie in the 4th post states that he wants one (SzaboHawk), but only if it can be easily and consistently thrown (and I'm assuming he'd like it to dig into the wood target well enough to stay put and be scored), plus that it chop firewood. My comments were addressed to these points and whether this tool could be used in a more general application than the military. I've restated the discussion points because you don't seem to have read the whole thread, or you're not following along well.

I've addressed my concerns about the Hawks use for chopping wood and throwing into a traditional wood target based on blade configuration and edge bevel configuration. If you'd like to counter and believe the hawk would be a good general use tool, please make your point and present some discussion on why you think so. If you would like to raise some other point of discussion, please state what it is and see if anyone else agrees or disagrees. This is a knife forum and your AR and your shotguns don't really factor into the discussion in this thread.

That said, it's a Holiday; the kids are gone, so I'm going to grab a cold one and slip into the hot tub with the Old Lady. Happy Easter gentlemen!

[Michael Janich]

Thanks for the great discussion and your enthusiasm for the SzaboHawk.

We're currently gearing up for the SOFIC Special Operations trade show and Kristi and I were discussing models that we wanted to feature in the full-page ad in the show guide. After taking a hard look at all the new and soon-to-becoming Spyderco stuff, we thought the SzaboHawk might be the best fit. Through a bit of begging, I was able to get one production sample without a sheath that I could beat up for some in-use photos for the ad.

The interesting thing about the SzaboHawk, for me, is the curved handle. By gripping it at different heights, you can incrementally change the angle of contact of the cutting edges. Gripping at the end so the head was higher than my hand allowed me to chop with the full length of the primary edge hitting parallel to the ground. For chopping and splitting kindling, this worked really well. For lighter, more detailed work, like notching or putting a point on a stake, choking up on the handle put my hand more on the same level as the primary edge, shortened the lever, and gave me more control with the same angle of edge engagement. Choking up all the way allowed me to work with the primary edge like a wood chisel--push cutting for detailed work.

Where the difference comes in from a chopping perspective is when you do more of an extended, combative swing. The arc of the handle causes the point of the two cutting edges to impact first, creating shearing forces in both directions. An old galvanized trash can allowed me to play with this aspect of the Hawk's function. Piercing the sheet steel of the can was ridiculously easy and both the edge and the TICN coating held up very well. Combatively, this type of chop will be the most likely strike to be delivered by the SzaboHawk. Suffice to say that it does it really well.

The hammer surface is small but very functional. I wouldn't use it for nails, but hammering tent pegs and aiming stakes was no problem. The reverse curve of the handle is a little awkward at first, but I found choking up closer to the middle of the curve easily mitigated that.

With photos successfully shot, I had to satisfy my own curiosity to see how it throws. With the exception of a few custom Tru-Balance throwing knives handmade by the late Harry McKevoy that I have in my collection, I don't typically throw high-dollar stuff, but if I was going to speak authoritatively about the SzaboHawk, I wanted to speak from real experience. I can honestly say that the SzaboHawk is one of the most fun-to-throw hawks I've ever used. The reason is that its curved handle and heavy, solid tang give it a much more "centered" balance and a faster spin. Throwing distance for a single spin was about 12-13 feet, versus the 20+ feet I typically need for a traditional straight-handled hawk. Despite the flare at the handle butt, the release was smooth and easy and, after one failure to stick on the first ranging throw, it stuck beautifully every time.

I really enjoy my job, but sometimes much more than others. This was one of those times...

Stay safe,

Mike

[Johnnie1801]

Hi Mike, thanks very much for the detailed review. Is there any chance that you or Kristi could post some of the photo's you took for the ad here on the forum? Would be great to see them alongside your review :)

[GoldenSpydie]

Thanks for the review, Mike. :)

Have you tried throwing it with 2 full rotations? That is what I normally do with straight-handled hawks. I am worried that the weight created by the metal handle might not allow it to be thrown as far as a traditional wooden hawk.

It sounds like most of our fears about chopping have been mitigated--thanks! And like Johnnie, I would be interested to see your pictures, if possible.

[VashHash]

One thing I like about throwing hawks is after you get more comfortable with them you can do some really fun throws. Half spins, underhand, 1.5 rotation. Just keeps it interesting for me.