After 22 years in the fire service, I have been around and use a variety of different tools on the fire ground. The fire service continues to change constantly yet most of our tools have stayed the same.
Working on a ladder truck means we are the tool box for the fire ground. When we vertically ventilate a roof the tools we take up are an axe, saw and a pike pole. Some companies use their pike poles to sound the roof and then after the ventilation cut the pike poke is used to punch in the ceiling below to relieve the some smoke and heat off the firefighters below. The traditional pike pole has a small diameter pole and when you would try to punch in the ceiling below it took multiple and vigorous strike to get only a small portion of drywall to fall.
After much thought, expended energy and frustration I decided to put a plate on the end of the pole to in order to strike a larger surface area of drywall thus dropping larger amount of the ceiling. This idea worked great, but it was difficult to hold on to with the little hook at the end of the pike pole, so I developed a larger hook and larger point to make it easier to hold. Then I found a beefier stock of poltruded fiberglass to use for the pole. Thus, Big Spike was born.
We used it on every fire after that with great results. We could use it to sound the roof and punch the ceiling out below. The engine guys like it so much they asked me if I could keep the point and hook, shorten the pole and put some type of a handle on it to use for interior use…so then I came up with the Little Spike. Both tools are sturdy and do not conduct electricity, they are easy to maintain and they are virtually indestructible. Believe me, I have put these tools to the test in real fire conditions. I have tried to break them and abuse them and they have continued to hold up. The beauty of these tools is there are multiple configurations: fixed and custom pole lengths, different handles and bottom plates, and various hook options. No matter where you work around the country, we can build one or many that will fit your needs.
Lastly, I was hesitant to go forward with manufacturing my tools because I never wanted to produce anything that might fail one of my brothers. But, now after all these years of testing and improving Big Spike, I feel confident these tools will make a difference in your ability to affect the outcomes on fire scenes.
Thanks for the opportunity to help you on the fire ground.
Captain Mike Schamadan
Big Spike Tools are:
Designed, tested and used by working firefighters.
Made from non-heat conducting material called Tenzaloy, making all the tools waterproof, fireproof and maintenance free.
Simple to use requiring zero training and learning curve.
Made in America to be the lightest, most durable and easiest to use tools available for firefighting today
Click Here for Pricing or Call us at (480) 568-4000.
Each BigSpike Tool is assembled and thoroughly inspected by veteran firefighters.
We have never broken a BigSpike tool in over five years of hard use during all types of firefighting operations. So, if yours breaks during a firefighting episode, we will replace it free of charge for as long as we own and manufacture Big Spike Tools.
After several years of research and testing we selected the finest American materials to build the Big Spike Tool. The result: the commercial Big Spike Tool is patented and it is made in America.
We are firefighters and we understand the role of this tool in our work. In our experience any qualified firefighter can use the tool effectively and safely. We want to also emphasize (and our legal advisors insist that we must announce and affirm) before we can sell a Big or Little Spike Tool to you that:
“The Big Spike and Little Spike Tools, like any firefighting tools, are potentially dangerous; and that they must not be used by inexperienced or unqualified personnel or employed in a manner or under conditions for which they are not designed or intended for use.
The Big Spike and Little Spike Tools are intended for use solely by experienced firefighting personnel under conditions where its specialized impact ends are utilized to create openings in walls, ceilings, roofs; to leverage open hasp locks; and, to perform other physical tasks associated with firefighting operations.”
