Spyderco's Hawkbills: Inside scoop

[JD Spydo]

Spyderco has the best Hawkbills in the entire production knife world IMO. And with the new Superhawk off in the distant horizon about to be in our local knife stores soon we can really thank Spyderco for making these great blades available to us.

There probably isn't a more misunderstood or maligned blade design out there. There are a lot of predjudice people out there that just won't give Hawkbills a chance or just can't even imagine what use they would have for them. So what I would like to do with this thread is for all of us Hawkbill users/afficionados to share what you use your Spyderco Hawkbill for. To list the cutting chores you've found that are done more efficiently with a Spyderco Hawkbill than with a conventional blade. I truly want to dispell a lot of the falsehoods that Hawkbills are unfairly labeled with. For instance I've had people tell me that it is the kind of blade a hoodlum would carry and some people demonize them unfairly.

I've been carrying a G-10 Harpy for quite a while now and It's just as imporant of an EDC blade to me as my very valued C-44 Dyad. My big Dyad and G-10 Harpy are tools I use daily and I would feel a horrible void without either one of them. Not only tell us what uses you have found for them please also tell us which Spyderco Hawkbill you carry and use.

And what would you all want in a Hawkbill if you could design one to fit your needs? What would you like to see Spyderco do in the future?

[Fred Sanford]

Joe, this is a great idea. I appreciate this thread.

Just yesterday I got my first hawkbill, a black Tasman Salt PE. I am carrying it but I have yet to cut much more than paper and a box.

So I will be reading every reply to this thread. It will be an education to me. :)

[JD Spydo]

Joe, this is a great idea. I appreciate this thread.

Just yesterday I got my first hawkbill, a black Tasman Salt PE. I am carrying it but I have yet to cut much more than paper and a box.

So I will be reading every reply to this thread. It will be an education to me. :)

And that's why I did this thread David. I am hoping myself that I will even learn uses for a Hawkbill that maybe I haven't even encountered yet.

And for new Hawkbill users/enthusiasts like yourself to learn from some of us who have had them for a while.

You'll really like the TASMAN. I was pleasantly surprised with the H-1 blade steel. It's held up much better than I anticipated. On top of that the Tasman is one of the very few FRN handled knives of Spyderco's that I absolutely adore. Great choice for a first Hawkbill David :cool:

[dale]

Funny you should bring this up. I am new to the knife world but have recently got involved mainly to pick a SD model for my wife. Went to a local show in Vegas and acquired a new D4 just to see what Spyderco was all about. Since then, I have done some more homework and fnd that the Hawkbill is highly recommended as a SD tool, especially utilized by women. The Civilian seems to be too much for my wife at this time as she and I don't know that much yet about proper handling and what might be a better choice to carry relative to what might be considered "to much" by certain authorities. Concerning your question, I have ordered a G-10 Yellow SE Tasman for the wife but am looking for a little bit bigger model. Please update me with any info. you might have about the Superhawk that you mentioned. Thats the first I heard of it. Hope this helps. Dale

[i.v]

I've also only had my Tasman for a few days but I've already noticed a few things about it.
1. It's wonderful for anything that requires delicate tip work, I used it to tream small leaves from plants around the house and it was so effective.

2. The blade shape does not allow anything to slip as you're cutting, especially really tough materials like think cardboard, plastic or carpet. Once tip is inside it gets burried deeper and sort of 'leads' the material cut to the recurve.

3. The ability to cut rope or hozeis just unmached, they stay inside the curve until cut, it's quick, easy and safe.

4. Very useful for peeling onions and oranges and also, opening up melons :D

That's what I can come up with for now, I'm sure there will be more in the future. I really like my super Tasman :p

[Manix Guy 2]

Joe since Mr. Merlin or a Tasman fits my weak side pocket almost everyday at work it gets more use than my C44 daily . Reason for me is the ease opening boxes , cartons ,and cutting tape as I audit at work . Great tool , but not for everyone or use , but it has to be with me alot . Regards MG2

[Agent Starling]

Well JD Spydohawk, one thing I use a hawk for is opening those wonderfully irritating plastic clam packs. Hawks just tear 'em up! Also for SD. :)
Recently got a beat-up Merlin SE, nice and broken in already so I'd like to see what it can do. Since someone else already broke it in for me that luckily short-circuits the OCD about ruining an expensive knife! Going by appearance alone the curve of the blade seems almost identical to the Harpy, so I'll be curious to see what the difference is. :confused:

Hawk of the future ~

Flat ground PE hawkbill blade, thick like the Chinook II's, curved like P'kal
option of PURPLE or black G-10
compression lock a la Yojimbo
heavy & solid handle like the Chinook II
pointed handle at the end like Yojimbo
ambi clip like the P'kal

maybe call it the Supercharged Screaming Turbo Hawkbill from **** :eek: :spyder:

I'm not sure if having both a compression lock and heavy/solid handle is doable, but I can dream, can't I... :D

Ex Agent Starling

[spydutch]

At my former job I used a Tasman/SE exclusively for about 3 months until I lost it :mad:

The knife was very effective in cutting polyethylene strings, plastic straps you find on pallets to keep things together and heavy tie rips. Furthermore it went through heavy card board like butter.

Maybe I should buy another one instead of searching for yet another D3/SE :o

Man, I surely miss this knife.

I think I'm gonna put my NIB SS Harpy/SE out of it's box, try to ignore the little vertical play :o and start using it.

[JD Spydo]

Well JD Spydohawk, one thing I use a hawk for is opening those wonderfully irritating plastic clam packs. Hawks just tear 'em up! Also for SD. :)
Recently got a beat-up Merlin SE, nice and broken in already so I'd like to see what it can do. Since someone else already broke it in for me that luckily short-circuits the OCD about ruining an expensive knife! Going by appearance alone the curve of the blade seems almost identical to the Harpy, so I'll be curious to see what the difference is. :confused:

Hawk of the future ~

Flat ground PE hawkbill blade, thick like the Chinook II's, curved like P'kal
option of PURPLE or black G-10
compression lock a la Yojimbo
heavy & solid handle like the Chinook II
pointed handle at the end like Yojimbo
ambi clip like the P'kal

maybe call it the Supercharged Screaming Turbo Hawkbill from **** :eek: :spyder:

I'm not sure if having both a compression lock and heavy/solid handle is doable, but I can dream, can't I... :D

Ex Agent Starling

Starling you hit that nail directing dead center. Those clam packs for years I used to curse those things to no end. There were 2 occasions where I cut myself pretty good trying to open them with conventional blades. When I got my first Dodo back in early 04 I couldn't believe how safely and efficiently and precisely that Dodo would open those clampacks. But since then I've opened many of them with the G-10 Harpy too.

BTW which Merlin did you get? Was it one of the older GIN-1 versions or a late 90s/early 2000s versions with ATS-55? Or was you extremely lucky and got one of the very few VG-10 versions? The Merlin truly paved the way for the H-1 Tasman.

That suggestion you just made for made for that "Science Fiction Grade Hawkbill"?? :eek: Where were you when we had the big HAWBILL thread going :D ??? I wish you would have suggested that one before Sal went ahead with the Superhawk. But your heart is in the right place and that's what counts JD :spyder: O

[Dr. Snubnose]

Everyday my FRN Merlin travels shotgun in my right front pocket next to my Yojimbo....My Yo is for SD and the Merlin for all kinds of chores....guess which one spends more out of pocket time...you guessed right the Merlin comes out to play more often...I added jimping to it's spine as a mod and a zip tie thru the hole...sooo if I need it quickly for a chore and my other hand is busy...it snaps open by itself....No chore is complete without the use of a Hawkbill...BTW mine is VG-10...SC-08SBK
Doc :D

[catamount]

I almost always have a PE yellow Tasman (clip removed) in my RR pocket. I mainly use it to open various types of packaging. I have both PE and SE, but the PE just works better for me.

[catamount]

BTW mine is VG-10...

I wasn't aware that the Merlin was made in VG-10.

[JD Spydo]

I wasn't aware that the Merlin was made in VG-10.

There were a few of the VG-10 Merlins. But very few. I think from what I heard that they only ran one or 2 batches of them. The older GIN-1 and the VG-10 both in new condition should be getting collectible at this point. The TASMAN pretty much laid the MERLIN to rest.

Also the MERLIN has gotten pretty scarce in a fairly short amount of time :confused: But that's good; that will help catapult the demand for new Hawkbills

[markg]

Going by appearance alone the curve of the blade seems almost identical to the Harpy, so I'll be curious to see what the difference is. :confused:

I believe the Merlin was a FRN handled version of the Harpy. I would expect them to behave pretty much the same.

Yes, the clamshell packaging, is dead meat with a hawkbill around. I will also add that Cricket makes short work of them too.

I think they make great self-defense knives, however I would argue that they are NOT "training free" fighting knives. To be honest, sticking and stabbing are both pretty primitive and natural forms of edged fighting. To transition to a hawkbill means training. Targeting, and strategy need to be thought out in training. It can be effective, but I don't believe they are "fighting knives for dummies" people often claim them to be.

[JT]

Like I have stated earlier, I'm in a mission to get them all. why- I don't know :)
At first it was the looks. They look like there's a serious cutting power in them. And after you try, You know it's true. So far all the :spyder: have been good for my needs.
Hawkbill or reverse-S do work in so many applications that I bet there's going to be a loooong liste here if everybody chips in, of all the things those "curved ones" get used for.
Myself- I like to use mine,Tasman and Dodo, for cutting and pealing wires, cutting open packages, cardboard, rope, hose, etc etc.. there's a ton of stuff to cut when fixing my old car or my old Kawasaki. Just yesterday cutted some leadfilled noise reduction mat that covers the floor of the car.. easy with a hawkbill.
Hawkbill shape works good for scraping spark plugs too.. Cricket rides as a sidekick.

What would I like to see in the future? ... bring DODO back! :D And even better, make a manix-sturdy version of it too. with steel liners, and a standard clip.
And a lefty Cricket. And bring Matriarch back.. that way I could safe queen my gray one, and get a "user" one for me to EDC. ..sigh.. I wish..

[Agent Starling]

Starling you hit that nail directing dead center. Those clam packs for years I used to curse those things to no end. There were 2 occasions where I cut myself pretty good trying to open them with conventional blades.

Before knives, I used to try to open those clam packs with scissors (duh), then an SAK...now hawks and next time I'll try the Merlin. :spyder: :)

The 2nd most annoying packaging to me is CD shrinkwrap and that sticky strip across the top. :eek: Once I realized any knife could do that job better than my bare hands I saw the light...

BTW which Merlin did you get? Was it one of the older GIN-1 versions or a late 90s/early 2000s versions with ATS-55? Or was you extremely lucky and got one of the very few VG-10 versions?

It's ATS-55 complete w/rust spots, a couple misshapen teeth, scratched up blade and a badly sharpened point. Handle is black FRN. I removed most of the rust spots w/Flitz polish. I could see from the photo that this knife was a bit beat-up but I wanted it anyway! :spyder:

That suggestion you just made for made for that "Science Fiction Grade Hawkbill"?? :eek: Where were you when we had the big HAWBILL thread going :D ??? I wish you would have suggested that one before Sal went ahead with the Superhawk. But your heart is in the right place and that's what counts JD :spyder: O

Funny you should mention that, JD, I have been spending some time reading that thread a little bit each day lately, going from start to finish. There have been so many references to it in these forums, and now my computer is finally allowing me to download large threads like that, so... :cool:

I can't wait to see what that Superhawk will look like! The big shizzle of the hawkbill family...that one will deserve to be christened with a name for sure! :D

Agent Starling

[Agent Starling]

here ya go...

[Manix Guy 2]

Anyone know what type of lock will be used with the next Hawkbill ? Pics do not show what it will be for the future Blade . Need Help ! MG2

[JD Spydo]

here ya go...

NOTHING at all wrong with a Merlin. As a matter of fact I have on 3 occasions recommended either a Merlin or TASMAN for a first Hawkbill to begin with.

That will be a good one for you to learn to use the 701 Profiles on and to get the hang of using the kit to also sharpen other blades as well. That's how I learned to use my 701 was on a really beat up Spyderhawk and a really abused Mariner.

And ATS-55 is good steel. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. I know that VG-10 does beat it out in certain tests but ATS-55 isn't far behind it in overall performance.

That's a good way to get a great USER knife is to just go ahead and get a used one. Actually there are a lot of used Spyderco knives out there that are in excellent working condition.

[JD Spydo]

Anyone know what type of lock will be used with the next Hawkbill ? Pics do not show what it will be for the future Blade . Need Help ! MG2

I had heard that they were going to implement a ball bearing lock on the Superhawk.

The LOCKBACK locking mechanism on my G-10 Harpy does a superb job.

Now Manix Guy do keep in mind that a Hawkbill needs just as good of a lock as does any other conventional folder. I've never had the Lockback on either of my Spyderhawks ever give me any trouble either.

I don't know if it would be practical to make a Hawkbill with a compression lock or not. I'm not sure one would even really need one that sophisticated.

3 years ago when I first joined the Forum in the fall of 04 Sal Glesser had a huge thread going entitled "Let's Talk About LOCKS". It was the very first thread I printed off and kept. I don't recall much if any talk about Hawkbill knife locks. Maybe it's time we do :)