How to fix the little bit of uneven slop at the end: Remove the head and rub a coat of graphite from a pencil on the inside of the eye on the bottom. Then hang the head on the handle. Remove the head again and sand up from where you see the graphite marks. Repeat until the graphite makes a complete ring around the handle. That way there's absolutely no chance of play.
Thanks man, I just bought my first tomahawk like a week ago (Amazon Cold Steel Spike Hawk) and it just arrived the other day. My older brother (who THINKS he knows everything) said that he had replaced an axe handle or two in his life and that I had gotten ripped off with a cheep malformed handle, and a cheap screw to hold it in place (he was right about the screw, but of course I had already assumed that much for myself). And then he told me that I needed to get/make a new handle and attach it like an axe. Instead after seeing your video, I now know that the handle was actually just fine and that it uses a different method to attach the head. So I filed my tomahawk's eye, filed and sanded the handle it came with (which was actually already pretty well, if not perfectly, tapered) and now it fits perfectly, nice and tight with no wiggle at all.
Just stumbled on your video and am sooo glad I did! I've used axes all my life but am completely new to the hawk friction fit style handles...and you explained and demonstrated it perfectly. Thanks so much!!
Great video. I watched your previous videos when I got my pipe hawk. If the wife gets me the Viking axe for Christmas I'll be watching these videos again to make sure that I get it set up correctly. Thanks.
Thank for making this video! Getting ready to seat the heads on the two Cold Steel heavy hatchets that I just bought/received. Just like seating the head on the pick and a mattock. I'm retired US Army, haven't fitted a handle before, used the shit out of them, but haven't make or fitted one, and the last time I saw such my grandfather was doing it. Thanks for your efforts to pass on this knowledge!!
Maybe I'm weird but I kinda like the set screw. If you think about it, the earliest tomahawks made with stone and was roughly permanent to their handles :)
That dark red tomahawk with the carved grooves looks amazing, I'd love to see a more in depth video of that hawk. I'm currently saving pennies for the H&B camp hawk you did a video on, I'll have to let them know where I heard of it
Update on my previous comment. I did get the Viking Hand axe and, after watching your video again, I was able to get a pretty decent fit. Like you I have a little space on the bottom of the head but it's very tight on the handle. Your third video on sharpening the axe was very helpful. I've sanded the handle to remove the finish that they put on. After burning some designs on it I plan to apply some boiled linseed oil to protect it. I'll also be putting some leather next to the head. Thanks.
Great vid man, had this same hawk on my amazon wishlist for a few years now (its been out of stock for like 2 years almost). Finally ordered it the other day and so I'm re-watching this series haha. Super stoked, wish me luck.
Your videos are really helpful. I just buyed my first cold steel tomahawk, and got tired of fitting it, so i used bycicle tube to fit it, and it fits ok,hope it will last some time!
Great Video, I have been banging my head against the wall trying to fit tomahawk heads to their shafts (i ruined my handle by keeping the screw, and re-tightening it periodically; which eventually bit into the wood and caused some splitting). Another method that I discovered (also useful if you are in the woods and do not have access to sandpaper or files etc...) and need to refit the head after some heavy usage; is to take a thin piece of cardboard (like a paper filter tip) and just wrap it around area where the head bites into the wood, giving it a smoother (if temporary) and solid working fit. Best regards!
People are blissfully and kinda painfully ignorant about how friction-fit axes work. And also how, if you know what you’re doing, how AMAZING they are. Vikings didn’t use these kinds of axes “because the technology was inferior back then” at ALL. Vikings still had axes that were compression fit (wedged) too. The reason these kinds of axes were so amazing was because of how insanely easy it was to replace handles, and only have to taper the wood one way. On top of that, you could carry a shorter handle with you, then just REALLY quickly and easily change your 30-inch long light felling (of both trees and men) axe into a 16-inch long bushcrafty hatchet for smaller tasks. Then you’d just >thwack thwack< and pull your short handle back out after you got done with your smaller bushcrafting tasks then throw the longer one back in - and BOOM. You’re back in business for felling relatively medium sized trees and/or KILLIN FOOLS. And you can switch these handles in and out with each other in less than 15 seconds. That’s how EASY they are to use. AND you can technically get two tools out of one axe head.
Righteous! Im customizing a new CS SpikeHawk watching this video. Fitting the handle in fact. Ive determined I got as solid a fit as Im gonna get without it moving up the handle further than I can allow for the Constrictor Knot Im gonna apply above the head. I also crown carved the handle top with my Chip Knife. I still have a gap at the bottom and in one small part at the top. Can even see light through it looking up the handle at a light source. I'm just gonna fire harden my handle, and make pine pitch at same time and bed it. Then Im gonna apply Constrictors in appropriate sized strong tarred cords above and below the head in such manner as head is wedged up against top Constrictor and handle taper. Did a lot of file work as well customizing the head.
@@dtester its not ready to use out of box. Maybe if you are a person who will use it once a month but for someone who takes this seriously, cold steel is doing a shitty job on the handles.. If you do get these axes seated properly, there will be no more meat at the top of the axe handle. They make them too narrow, so you have to buy a new one, quicker.
I have had several lately with really bad handles, two are too narrow to use and I will need to make new handles, I hope this is just a fluke and not the new low standard for the Cold Steel Hawks!
Great to see you back. I was wondering when and IF you were going to buy the new Cold Steel Viking Hand Axe at some point. You did not disappoint ;) Can't wait to see you test it out in the field like you did the tomahawks ;) hint hint ;) As always great video. Nice tips for fixing the handles. Cant wait to watch the other 2 videos. Oh btw, have you seen the tv series Vikings ? Good show. LoL. Oh... If you do decide to video field tests for the Viking Hand Axe, take the Norse Hawk with you too. That way you could compare the two tools... Just a thought.
Thanx for this, my friend...fixin' to order the Cold Steel bearded axe this comin' Friday (payday)...I've noticed in other reviews that the head is secured by just a 'set screw' !!!???!!! I also want to 'customize' it with 'Viking' patterns and a stain...
yay I'm glad you're back thanks to you I've bought a rifleman's hawk and customized it i striped the head and refinished the handle keep up the good video's and have refurbished a couple old hatchets so thanks again
Thanks for this series, it helped so much with my pipe hawk and crkt hawk. The only thing I have to know is what is the axe you are using as an example at 3:08
I have a rifleman's hawk. I purchased it years ago, to keep the head tight I had to place an aluminium shim between the screw and the handle as it was already to small to be friction held a real piece of junk.
Someone suggested to me to soak the Head&shaft in Teak/Lensed Oil to make the shaft swell to fit. I'm going to try it out. I'll let you know if it works or not. Ill try it on my Norse Hawk. Its the loosest of my hawks and has a hard knot at the top i just cant seem to file/sand down. Its like stone at the knot...
+kozulich The smallest one is the cold steel trail hawk with an alder handle, the other small one is the H&B forge medium camp axe with an Amaranth/purpleheart handle. hope this helps you find what your looking for... if not give me a shout back . Good luck and thanks for watching !
I would like to polyurethane my T handle I don't care about fancy I want usefulness. Would you advise installing the handle first then coating the handle. Your thoughts please. I'm glad I found your video so I can do a proper fit. Thank you.
I honestly have no experience with polyurethane. If you want to be able to remove the head I would fit the handle before coating. If you plan on trying to fix the head in place then I would press the head on and then coat the handle. The poly may help hold the head in place, this is generally how most mass produced fixed head hawks are done and some of the custom ones as well, although they typically use a hydraulic press to fit the head to handle. Sorry I cant be more help.
Is there a way to freeze the head and put it on the handle and then soak the handle in some water to make it swell? So the handle slightly expands as it warms up and the wood expands in the water?
Question, is it alright to set it with a big screw? With the set screw hole, I drilled a small hole into the handle, then put the biggest screw that could fit into it. Bout and inch long. It seems to work pretty well. What do you think?
Hey there, watched your 3-video series. Amazing work, thank you very much for recording it. Got a question if you don't mind: I failed to understand how to affix the head permanently (or for as long as possible) to the shaft. I understood that regular axes get shimmed on the top, but this one, having a tomahawk configuration, would have to be different, hence the work shown. But it left me with the question: Are tomahawks supposed to have their heads easily removed by simply tapping on their top? I humbly believe the answer is most likely: Nope :-) So, after reshaping the handle/shaft, how do we ensure the head remains there, if we cannot use the shim method due to the pole being slimmer below the head? Thanks a lot for your time, and once more for the great video series!
Thanks for the compliment, and you have a good question with a tough answer.The Cold Steel hawks have a tapered eye meant to fit on a tapered shaft. The head is designed for the most part to be easily removable without tools. The reason is debatable but still on purpose. Setting aside the historical aspect, in modern times the handle is designed to be replaced if and when broken during competition throwing. I believe the rules stated at one time that the handle had to be removable and of wood construction with an oval shape, I do believe that has changed to include metal and fixed handle stuff now. The principal behind this was that the handle would give and come loose rather than break, and when it did break a new one could be slipped in and you could keep competing. Ok with that out of the way, if the head was permanently attached to the handle would that not make it a hatchet ? One of the advantages of the tomahawk ( not including the ones with fixed heads) is the fact you can remove the head and do other things with it. This is where it gets real muddy water and people start yelling at each other ha ha, what is a tomahawk whats not etc. There are advantages to having a removable head however it requires you to maintain the fitment between handle and eye some people find that distracting. If you want to keep it attached permanently (using it for fighting only) the best way is to use a heavy press and force the head onto the handle. This is how H&B Forge and the gerret wade rebranded hawk is shipped. I have never tried it but I do believe you could replicate this by soaking the handle to soften the fibers and then using a hammer to seat the handle and compress the fibers, when the handle dries the fibers should expand and lock the head in place. Hope this helps, thanks for watching !
@@Scablands_Scavenger Amazing answer, thank you so much for taking the time! I enormously appreciate the historical input as well as the competition details, and of course, the last bit about how those folks make their axes! And yes, you'd be right, I was thinking about making a fight-only axe out of it, because I purchased the "battle axe" version, which comes with the same shaft length, but with a non-bearded, different head. This being said, the handle/head configuration is indeed exactly the same. Now, I'm not sure if these type of axes were made to be thrown, although you should've met my ex-wife, she had the uncanny ability to make any object become throw-able, fortunately, my tv's always been firmly attached to the wall - hahaha!! Anyway, this both funny and sad fact aside, it wouldn't surprise me to learn that northmen could throw any kind of thing should they need to, but even then, for this case I'll try your recommendation on perma-fixing the head - and then I'll get some proper tomahawks and learn how to throw them and everything :-) May you have an awesome day and thanks again for your super response!!
I have a tomahawk head that I cannot seem to make a good handle for. Would you be willing to make one for me if I sent you the head? I would absolutely compensate you for the effort. Thanks, Rick
Nothing, the screw does more damage than good. I will sometimes weld the hole shut but it is not needed. Some peen in a piece of soft metal like copper or brass if you want but there is no need other than aesthetics.
I ordered a tomahawk from ebay and it came with the handle loose from the head, so im suppose to tap it with a mallet ? You would think it would come ready to go.
could be, you can get a straight edge, like a ruler or similar and place it on top of the head in line with the longest part of the eye use that as a guide to see if the blade is skewed one way or another. If it is twisted you may be able to adjust by making your own handle. A quick way to get a blank is to purchase a sledgehammer handle and work it down to fit.
zueiki1.. Once i got my viking axe fitted, im talkin nicely fitted, with no gaps, i didnt have any more room to choke the head up if i needes to. So irritating. They make the handles too small so you gotta buy more of them.
I took the screw out of my own tomahawk and put a wedge in the top to force it to fit. Should i not have used a wedge? At the time i figured it would work fine because it works for normal axes just fine also, would there ever be an instance when a screw would be acceptable? i figured the hex nuts on the tomahawks helped them stay place so I kept them in my norse style hawks (like the one axe and Cold Steel's norse hawk)
lazy asfuch Tomahawks are meant to have easily removable heads. The eye is tapered, so keep in mind it might not be as secure as an axe though it's most likely going to hold fine. It just defeats the purpose of getting a tomahawk instead of a small axe. Screws.. They will only destroy the handle faster. Imagine all the shock going into that little hole, splitting and ripping.. Bad idea.
hey man I love your reviews ! but I have a question, i bought me one a few days ago and I cant take the screw out ! and so I can't make some work on it. do you have any advice?
Hmm, I wonder if its got locktite on it ? try heating the screw up a little with the head of a soldering iron, get it good and hot, then douse with water to make it shrink fast.... sometimes this will free up a stuck screw. Hope this helps let me know how it turns out !
Yes that was a modified Trail hawk, sorry no video on this. Basically just used radius on belt sander to remove some material from bottom of blade, smooth and round edges on hammer and do a plum brown coating.
After taking that ledge off what are your thoughts on heating the head up a bit to get it to expand slightly before pounding it on there for a more snug fit?
I've heard people do the opposite and instead, put their handles in the freezer or outside, if it's cold enough, seat it once it's cold and let the handle expand as it heats up. Don't know how effective it is but easy enough to try out without much risk of ruining any temper on the steel.
BeowWulf Might be worth a shot. Since my last post I tried heating the head and hammering it on (after shaving the rough edges of the handle and the head itself). It did seem to have a very tight fit at first but after 2 throws the head came loose again.
+Sunny Chiba , Hey Sunny the Tomahawk I think you are referring too is a hand forged, made by H and B forge, the model is the Franciscan. The smaller one in the middle is also by H and B and it is the medium camp hawk. Thanks for the interest and I hope this helps, ...... if you order one let them know where you saw would ya !!??
This depends on a few things, first and most importantly is the density of the wood, generally speaking the more rings the denser the wood and it will resist deformation of the head impacting on the wood and slow the eventual working of the head up the handle. Then you have to add in all the other factors like humidity, maintenance ( what you use to treat the handle with) and how hard you use the tool. And last it also depends on storage, do you have large temperature swings between seasonal changes causing the handle to swell... and when the handle swells do you shave the head down to allow the handle to fit again, because this will then shrink in the dry months and cause premature wear and use up "handle head space" . If you store it right and dont trash it and keep it oiled it should last a long time(years), even if you like to remove the head for use often. Hope this helps.
