Gear Review: SOG Survival Hawk

Up for review is a pretty nifty little tool brought to you by the innovative people at SOG. This is their survival hawk, and as you can tell – it means business! It’s just over 12 inches overall, with a 3″ 420 steel blade that means business! It comes plenty sharp for most tasks. Is it razor sharp? No, but you don’t want a chopping tool to have too fine an edge. That being said, the aggressive acute angle makes it a good defensive option if all else fails. In addition, the SOG Survival Hawk Hatchet has some textured areas on each side to aid with hammering, and the back of the head has a spike and “nail puller” which I’ve heard tell can also be used to snap aluminum fencing if applied right (similar in theory to an AK47 milsurp bayonet). The harness of the head, for you knife geeks, is rated RC 47-79. Not super robust, but definitely serviceable.

So it’s like pretty much any other ‘hawk right? No not really. It boasts a full tang is encased in the glass filled aluminum handle, and has some nice texturing the farther up the shank you gut to help you gain a more positive grip. But it got it’s moniker “survival hawk” for something a little hard to spot. 

A fire steel lives in the bottom of the shank, which screws out pretty easily, and comes with a lanyard attachment. In addition, the handle is wrapped in paracord, which provides a comfortable grip with a modicum of shock absorption, in addition to being deployable in the field should you need emergency cordage.

The sheath isn’t exactly anything to write home about, but it does the job and is better than many other similar hawks on the market. It also is top loaded, and able to be attached via cordage or webbing to your gear, with a slight cant to make it also able to be worn and walk at the same time. Little touches like this is why I like SOG – they think it out. Between this and the SEAL Strike, you would be set with lightweight survival options in the field.

Check out the SOG Survival Hawk SK1001-CP Hatchet @ Amazon.com

Overall it’s a fine tool, that is feature rich (which seems to be SOGs new deal, and I like it), lightweight, packable, and serves multiple roles – which is great when weight matters.

PROS:
Sharp, aggressive, full tang, comes with a fire steel, as well as a spike, hammer, and other campsite and outdoors necessities. It’s well balanced (although I wouldn’t use it for throwing…You could, but you might end up regretting it).

CONS:
A tad light for big chopping tasks, and the steel could be a touch harder – but I’m only going off the spec sheet. For my uses, it’s be fine – exemplary even.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Alex Castiglione lives in Atlanta, and is an avid outdoorsman and competitive shooter.

His where-abouts include getting after it in his garage gym, practicing martial arts, hitting the trails, or running CrossFit and Strongman competitions for his non-profit, Barbells for Bullies, which holds fundraiser fitness competitions dedicated to aiding Bully breed rescues, dog rescues, or other non-profits with similar missions.