Last
summer,
Ontario Knives sent Dave and I a couple of
RD Hawk II's to try
out. Even though the RD is primarily a tactical/breaching tool, they
asked us to find out if it might have any legitimate use as a
woods or wilderness survival tool.
I
was up front in telling Ontario that the tactical-oriented RD might not
do so well out in the bush, but Ontario insisted that they were ok with
that. They said they wanted to find out how it might function if it
were the only tool someone had in a wilderness survival situation. Since
this looked like an interesting project, and knowing Ontario's
heritage
and overall quality, I decided to give it a shot.
RD Hawk Features/Specs
Designed
to be a tactical and breaching weapon for soldiers, the RD Hawk II is
certainly not a typical looking hatchet or tomahawk.
While
one end does have a traditional hatchet bit, the other side, which on
most hatchets would be the place for a poll, has instead a sharp spike,
used to penetrate the body armor of an enemy combatant. I was curious to see if
there was a wilderness use for this spike, as you'll see in the field
testing below.
The
RD Hawk is constructed from a solid piece of 1/4" 1075 steel, which has
a baked on powder coating finish. The steel is a little on the softer
side in order to emphasize toughness over absolute edge-holding, coming
in at 53-55RC, roughly the same as most
Council Tool axes. Overall
length is 12.4", with a cutting edge surface of 3.6".
The
handle scales are made from Canvas
Micarta. The RD Hawk weighs in at 28
ounces without the sheath, 32 ounces with the sheath.
Sheath
The
RD Hawk comes with a very nice cordura-nylon sheath, which I found to
be both functional and durable. It allows secure belt carry as well as
easy withdrawal and replacement.
Comparison Shots
FIELD TESTING
As mentioned at the beginning of this review, our task was to find out
if the RD Hawk had any viable uses in a wilderness situation. We decided
to try it in the following four categories; 1) Chopping 2) Splitting 3)
Fine Carving and 4) Uses for the spike.
Chopping
Due to the steep grind angle and thickness of the edge, which is made to
be stronger for breaching purposes, the RD Hawk turned out to be a poor
chopper considering its weight. The
Gransfors Bruks Wildlife Hatchet,
though weighing 7 ounces less (pictured on the left in the photo below),
chopped much more efficiently than the heavier RD Hawk (right).
(click to enlarge)
The canvas micarta handle on the RD Hawk was reasonably comfortable
during chopping, and felt similar to the handles on Ontario's
Randall Adventure Training (RAT) series of knives.
Splitting
I was able to split 3-4" pine logs with the RD Hawk relatively easy.
Success!
Fine Carving Tasks
I was able to rough out a tent stake without too much trouble, but the
thickness and grind angle of the edge made other fine tasks more
difficult than they were worth. The steel section that runs between the
handle and the hatchet head is also very uncomfortable to choke up on,
adding to the grim prospect of using the RD to make feather sticks, etc.
Uses for the Spike
Surprisingly, the spike turned out to be more useful than I thought it
would. It can used as an ice pick in the winter, as an awl to punch
holes in leather or wood, or as a log puller, as shown below:
Conclusion
Due
to the steep grind and thickness of the edge, the RD Hawk performed
poorly in both chopping and fine carving tasks. The steel handle just
below the head is uncomfortable to choke up on, which hinders its
ability to make feathersticks or do other fine work.
On the plus side, the RD was able to split wood effectively as well as
rough out crude tent stakes. The spike was actually a surprise, in that
it could be used as an ice pick, awl and log puller.
I was curious to see how the RD would perform if I spent some time
re-profiling the edge with a belt sander into a thinner convexed edge.
After about an hour, I got the edge to look like this:
The difference in chopping ability was immediate and dramatic. During
some off-camera chopping tests, the RD actually out-chopped the
Gransfors Wildlife Hatchet, throwing large chips in the process.
If you have access to a belt sander and have some skill in profiling
axes, this might be an option if you'd like your RD Hawk to perform
better in a wilderness environment.
So what's the verdict? Though I can't recommend the RD Hawk as a
bushcraft tool, it would function reasonably enough in a survival
situation to build a shelter, split kindling or make tent stakes. The
spike also comes in handy as an awl or to drag firewood as a log puller,
and during winter, can be used as an ice pick. It also features
Ontario's typical high quality durable construction, and is made in the
good ol' USA.
For more information, visit Ontario Knives at
www.ontarioknife.com/catalog/item/231
About the author
Jason Schwartz is the founder and senior editor of Rocky Mountain Bushcraft. He is a former Red Cross certified Wilderness & Remote First Aid Instructor, and has taught bushcraft and wilderness survival techniques to the Boy Scouts of America, interned with the US Forest Service, and studied wilderness survival, forestry and wildland firefighting at Colorado Mountain College in Leadville, Colorado. Jason has also written for magazines such as The New Pioneer and Backpacker, including writing the "Tinder Finder" portion of Backpacker's "Complete Guide to Fire," which won a 2015 National Magazine Award (NMA). Email him at rockymountainbushcraft @ hotmail.com (without spaces)
