10 in Tramontina to Bowie Mod

pict

pict

Joined
Jan 7, 2003
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2,373
This week I’ve been able to work on a project I’ve had kicking around in my head for a while. I have had this 10 inch Tramontina for about 10 years. It has been through several resurrections as it has alternately been left in car trunks and stored indifferently in my workshop for a year at a time as I have been away in the US. The blade had gotten to the stage of minor pitting at one point.

img5370r.jpg


I wanted to turn it into a large Bowie, give it a wicked convex, and refinish with a vinegar forced patina. My goal was to produce a large Bowie that could ride easily in the trunk of my car for whatever duty a Bowie could be called upon to perform, you get the point. I think it turned out great.

img5369mt.jpg


Here’s a close-up of the patina and the clip point. I didn’t anneal this blade first, I just powered through it with a hacksaw. About 1/3 the way through I realized I wasn’t getting anywhere, checked to find no more teeth on the saw. That clip point cost me three saw blades so don’t let anyone tell you Tramontina’s have a poor heat treat.

The blade length is just under 9.5 inches. I narrowed the false edge a bit but left it unsharpened and gave the edge a full length convex. I’m still undecided about the handle. I shaped it a bit which took off ten years of grime and left it sort of rustic looking. This is going to be a user and abuser. Mac
 
are you back in the US now?
 
First off, the whole thing looks good if you ask me. If you're unsure on the handle though... why not give it that short cord wrap like on the tram golok you posted the other day? I kind of liked the look of that.
 
Very nice Pict. You might have lost a bit of foward weight that would have assisted chopping work, but it will still chop.... plus it now has a better point for despatching animals.

Tell me about the sheath. It looks like this sheath holds just the blade... the handle stays exposed right? If you had this sheath on your belt, are you reasonably confident that the machete would stay securely in the sheath if you were crashing about through the scrub?

If this sheath is not adequate for rough travel in your opinion, what style is better for a short machete like this?

Thanks in advance..... Coote.
 
Joe,

I'm in Brazil now,

Coote,

These sheaths are very typical of what is available for the Tramontina Latin machetes, they just come in longer variations on the same theme.

As they come they are not secure for a short blade like this. I make the opening of the sheath tighter by gluing (epoxy) a small strip of leather inside the opening. This makes them nice and tight, even keeps crap out of the sheath.
 
It looks real good, nice. The Tramontinas are great to mod to any way you want, for the price of them.
 
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