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Pipe Tomahawks |
Bladesmith Steve Davis of Powder Springs GA smoking Kinni-Kinnick in a Patriot Pipe Tomahawk. Steve claims the authentic tobacco mix nearly killed him.
| Hunter's Moon | Spanish Cross | Patriot |
Why the Pipe Tomahawk?
So who thought of combining a pipe with a tomahawk? No one knows for sure - but it make sense given the time and people involved. Pipes of the period were typically fragile and easily broken in the field. Most of the woodsman and American Indians carried belt axes and smoked some variation of tobacco. The pipe tomahawk was like chocolate meeting peanut butter - a durable pipe that was integrated into a tool and weapon that was already carried. Also the psychology of the pipe tomahawk makes sense. Carl Russell in Firearms Tools and Traps of the Mountain Men argues that pipe, spike and spontoon tomahawks were the natural progression of the iron axe in the American Indian community. As the iron trade axe first make it into North America it was a big hit. A tremendous improvement over stone and wooden clubs, the iron trade axe was a weapon and a tool. Over time the axe's function as a tool became more important and apparent. The more pragmatic the axe became as a tool, the less sex appeal it had a weapon in native societies. Apparently it was difficult for a weapon to be sexy and still be used by your wife to chop wood. Russell concludes that the unusual tomahawks (pipes, spontoons, spikes) were popular because they were not tools. Instead they were weapons first and foremost and ceremonially important status symbols. The tomahawk won back it's machismo factor and kept it for over two hundred years.
Who Carried Pipe Tomahawks?
"Smoak Hawks" were carried by a wide variety of people. Every member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition carried pipe tomahawks. Clark had his tomahawk with a brass pipe bowl stolen on the return trip and the Corps of Discovery completely sidetracked the trip to hunt down the thief and retrieve it. Pipe tomahawks were carried by soldiers in the Revolutionary War. Pipe tomahawks were popular trade items - nicer pieces were used as gifts to important individuals during the signing of treaties. Pipe tomahawks were one of the trade items used by the British to encourage the Chickamauga Indians to attack local settlers in the Chattanooga Tennessee area where I live. (There is a fascinating John Sevier story involved here - maybe I'll put a good version of it on the site soon...)
Nomenclature and Workings of the Pipe Tomahawk
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Pipe Bowl
- The pipe bowl was where the tobacco burned. The bowls were attached a number of ways: Integral Forged (forged from one piece), Forge Welded, Brazed, and Threaded. I almost always use the Integral Forged method.
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Mouthpiece
- The mouthpiece is where the user draws the smoke out. The mouthpiece in the picture above is made of pewter and is made by pouring molten pewter into the haft. The mouthpiece and the circle just above it are connected inside the haft - the round circle helps hold the mouthpiece rigidly in place.
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Haft
- This is the handle of the tomahawk. Also, this is the stem of the pipe. Typically a 1/8" to 1/4" hole runs through the middle of the haft as a smoke hole. This haft is curly maple. Hafts were also made of Hickory, Black Walnut, Ash and Osage Orange.
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Drops
- Drops were both aesthetic and symbolic in nature. Beads, Scalplocks, Feathers, Tin Cones, Claws, and Trade Cloth were all common drops on pipe tomahawks.
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Cleanout Plug
- The cleanout plug is removable from the tomahawk and allows the user to clean out the smoke hole as residue builds up over time. The plug in the picture above is pewter with iron threads and threads into the endcap which is pewter with brass threads. These plugs were also made of iron, silver, brass, ivory and wood. These plugs are often missing on original pipe tomahawks.
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Blade
- This is the business end of the tomahawk. At the very end of the blade is the cutting edge which was often just iron but sometimes steel. My tomahawks are forged from iron with a steel cutting edge forge welded in place.
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Piercing
- Many tomahawks had decorative designs that pierced the blade completely through. Common motifs include hearts, circles, triangles, rectangles and crescent moons. These designs were also commonly inlaid with silver, copper or brass.
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Tack Work
- Brass tacks were added to the haft often by the user as decoration and as grip enhancement. Tack Work is usually seen on 19th century hafts. I use brass, copper and steel tacks in my work.
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Wrap
- Some hafts were wrapped in rawhide, (as shown above) Leather or even trade cloth. I often use a leather wrap on my tomahawks.