Cold Steel Frontier Hawk 18

Needed something light and portable and this fits the bill. once I've sharpened it and stained the haft. I will try it out & review again.

Firstly, this review needs to be considered in context. This is a project axe, as it comes it's pretty much useless (Hence 4 stars and not 5), however with some TLC this is a really practical tool. I own about thirty axes of various shapes and sizes, including several Gr¤nsfors, however this is the axe I take into the woods with me 90% of the time. If you put the effort in, it's a beauty. I've re-ground the edge, sanded, stained and shaped the handle and made a leather sheath for it, and now I prefer it to most of the £100+ axes I own. It's light, sharp, holds a great edge even after several days of heavy abuse, the long handle gives you a lot of mechanical advantage, and the easy to remove head works great as a tool on its own. This also means the handle is easy to replace in the field if it breaks. There's a good reason why the tomahawk was the Belt carry axe of choice for the American frontier men.

Had one for years, lots and lots of fun, a great throwing object, replaced the shaft twice so far. I can say without doubt I get a 10 out of 10 strike when throwing. But this is not a serious axe, it's lots of fun but be real, Gransfore's, Bruks or Brades or Husquvana ( spell check ) these are real axes.

Heinnie staff replaced mine after the Royal Mail lost it in transit. No qualms or issues just replaced it at no extra cost to me. Excellent contact and customer service. The axe is top notch as you expect from cold steel. All in all very satisfied. Thanks

These hawks are most definitely at the budget end of the market, but to be honest I would expect slightly more. Cold Steels quality control is severly lacking when it comes to their hawks. Loose heads, blunt bits and warped hafts are deemed acceptable. I've seem many that even with the grub screw wobble up and down. So, if you're looking for something ready-to-go, look again, but if you are willing to put a bit of work in you can end up with a useable hawk and have a bit of fun aling the way. Be prepared to sharpen and possible reprofilw the bit, and remove the haft and sand (possible alot) until you get a smooth fit.

A must have for bushcraft/survival/prepping. Way lighter than a full axe.

I have one of these (from the CS website, sorry Heinnie, but you didn't have these in stock back then...). It's a great bit of kit with a little work; First, get rid of the set screw - tomahawk's are supposed to be a friction fit, that's why the eye is tapered. The handle needs a little finishing to make it a snug fit. I filed the burrs off the inside of the eye, sanded the varnish off the handle and gave it several good applications of boiled linseed oil. It's not as heavy as a traditional axe, but it's light enough to carry in my backpack, and seems to handle most chopping tasks a smaller axe should. Surprisingly sharp with a little work. Replacement handles are available - something to think about if you're going to be throwing this one :) Worth the money? Sure. With a little work to tidy the rough edges it's quite a functional tool.

Apart from camp work, it also makes a very decent thrower as the long shaft means that very little effort is required. I certainly have a lot of fun with mine.

I bought this hawk as an alter-native carry to my United Cutlery M48 which, let's face it, does look a tad aggressive, and even a grey bearded oldie such as myself might have trouble getting it past the plods. The Cold Steel however doesn't appear to raise as many eyebrows, and is actually a top rate piece of kit for anyone's money. As usual, great service from the folks at HH.