Overview
Our sharpening service will provide a good serviceable edge on the blade. The result is typically “very sharp” with a small secondary bevel and a bit of an “apple seed” profile. The resulting edge is somewhat dependent on the particular blade. Some blades will take and hold sharper edges than others and the thickness of the blade will determine how wide the bevel will need to be. We adjust the angle of the edge to suit the specific blade and attempt to get as close to a bevel-less edge as possible without marring the surface of the blade.
The Sharpening Process
The sharpening service is done with a belt sander. The process involves many passes with sanding belts of various grits. The blades are rested between passes to prevent them from becoming hot and damaging their temper. By default we will sharpen as much of the blade as possible including any false edges if appropriate. If you have a different preference, feel free to make that request in the special instructions at check out. We can sharpen only the last half or third of an edge, for example. Our sword sharpening expert has personally sharpened several thousand swords at this point, so will provide you with a professional service.
What the Service is Not
The resulting edge will be “sword sharp” not razor sharp. Our goal is to provide you with a usable edge for cutting practice that will hold up to some use and not require constant re-sharpening. In other words, we intend to provide you with a serviceable weapon, not a personal grooming implement. The service will not provide a completely bevel-less edge. To create that type of edge will necessarily scratch up the blade surface and we lack the machinery and time to provide a full re-polishing of a blade’s surface. A service of that nature would be significantly more expensive as a great deal more time would be required. We do not offer this type of service at this time.
Disclaimer
We make no guarantee that the resulting edge will meet with your expectations. Every blade is different and some will take and hold a sharper edge than others, due to the blade material, heat treatment or geometry. Some customers can also have incorrect assumptions about sword sharpness and improper expectations as a result. All we can say for sure is that the resulting edge will be sharper than the default edge, in most cases, significantly so. We can not provide any refunds for the service once it has been completed, so consider it to be provided “as is”. That being said, if you are unhappy with the product for any reason, we do still allow you to return the item for a full refund, including the sharpening costs under our normal return policy. This does not apply to special sharpening requests, for example if we sharpen something specially for you that does not normally list that option on our site. The vast majority of our customers are happy with the results of the service, so as long as you keep the above mentioned in mind, we are confident you will be pleased with the results as well.
Mark Moore –
One tough little axe… Buy one of each….start a collection…..customize them. They can handle any job you throw at ’em. I know……I own three and love them. …………………..McM
GJ –
Perfect compromise All the cold steel hawks are great. They are small, but the speed at which you can swing them mean the impact they have is great. The pipe hawk is often considered the model that has the perfect balance between weight and usefulness. The quality is pretty consistent, and they are deferentially hardened (even the hammer poll!), which is really hard to find in this price range.
Tip: throw away the set screw and sand the haft in order to get a really good friction fit between the head and the haft.
Jordan (verified owner) –
It’s a great little hatchet. But being designed as a hawk, with the head securing up the shaft instead of down the shaft, I find it not as set and sturdy on the shaft. That little screw in the head to the shaft just isn’t going to hold it. As with anything else, I plan on some modifications to make it great. And this is great for the money. I got it because it was reminiscent of a carpenter’s axe and can definitely be used as a solid hammer (though the head’s a tad small for my skill level) and I got it for that versatility. The head feels very strong and takes a good edge with grinding. You won’t go wrong with it, but Cold Steel offers enough variety of tomohawks that you may find a slightly differently styled one that suits you more. I’m thinking of picking up a variety of them, keep the one I like most and give the rest as gifts to outdoorsy family.