I need to conduct some herp. surveys in dense ozark brush, mostly along various forks of the Black River. From what I've seen most of the brush consits of black berrys, gensing, and hard wood saplings (birch,oak, etc.). I have to get in where the they live so I need something effective, efficient, and durable. I don't mind spending money if it will mean that I don't have to worry about spending for the same thing any time soon. I've searched the archives of this forum, some of you have great info and lots of experience. I'am looking forward to your recomendations. Thankyou for your Time.
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Best tool for herpatological surveys in ozark brush
- Thread starter ericras
- Start date
Herpetology,thats a cool field.I'd suggest a pair of Russell snake proof boots,carrhart britches,a small pail for the blackberries,a sack for the ginseng(only dig it after the berries are ripe,only dig the 3 prongs or better,and make sure to scatter the berries so as to propagate the species),oh,i'd make sure whatever knife you carry has a sharp pointed blade to dig out the thorns from the blackberry vines.
The Magician
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Hello and welcome to BF! I also am an Ozarkian. 29 years and still here. I hope you have good luck with your work. I will recommend the Ontario Millitary machete, or the Becker Patrol. Anything other than Wal-Mart brands should be fine.
For some serious Ozark weed wacking, your Becker Patrol Machete at $75 will be a good value for your money, pretty hard to beat.
As an Ozark Escapee I might also suggest going to a local Lowe's or Home Depot store and looking at the Sling Blades/Kaiser Knife/Ditch Blade's they offer. A 4 foot hickory handle with an 18" sharp billhook on the end, I've used 'em for hours on end in my youth clearing briars out of road ditchs for a Kansas Road and Bridge crew. Kansas briar patches and Missouri briar patches are remarkably similar. I will caution you that if you buy a Sling Blade, every comedian in 3 counties will find you and do their 'Slingblade' immitation. 20,000 versions of "Ah'll take me some more of that there potted meat" or "Ah lack tha way yew talk" is the price you gotta pay.
Think about a long handled pair of lopping shears. Not very sexy, but effective briar fighters, and quiet, make much less fuss than hacking thru the brush. In case you're interested in sneaking up on your subjects. I'm just saying.
As an Ozark Escapee I might also suggest going to a local Lowe's or Home Depot store and looking at the Sling Blades/Kaiser Knife/Ditch Blade's they offer. A 4 foot hickory handle with an 18" sharp billhook on the end, I've used 'em for hours on end in my youth clearing briars out of road ditchs for a Kansas Road and Bridge crew. Kansas briar patches and Missouri briar patches are remarkably similar. I will caution you that if you buy a Sling Blade, every comedian in 3 counties will find you and do their 'Slingblade' immitation. 20,000 versions of "Ah'll take me some more of that there potted meat" or "Ah lack tha way yew talk" is the price you gotta pay.
Think about a long handled pair of lopping shears. Not very sexy, but effective briar fighters, and quiet, make much less fuss than hacking thru the brush. In case you're interested in sneaking up on your subjects. I'm just saying.
I like the sling blade and khuk. suggestions. The county I'm working in is large and only has a population of 4000. So hopefully the comedians will be far and few between hehe. I will half to go by canoe to a few spots so I need to keep it light. A local warned me of the very real possibilty of running into some "left-handed cigarette" weed patches that may be looked after, so running may also be another concern.
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Ericras, from an ex zookeeper with reptiles and currant herpticulturest,i would recomend one of the fine machetes made by cold steel good quality ,low cost ,sharp,with a good warrenty to boot.If you want somthing a little better steel and money go with the Becker. good luck! and be careful nice to hear someone whos got similer intrests DAVE:
Of the machetes suggested; cold steel, becker, HI khuck., and the wood's man pal, which one has the best metal to maintain in the field. As a newbie to the higher end of the blade world, I'am completely overwhelmed by the types and properties of modern blade steel. One would jump to the conclusion that the best product would be the hardest most unbreakable steel on the market, but from what I've read on review forums is that after hard work even they will loose their edge. I know enough about knives to know that a sharp tool made of lesser metal will out preform a dull tool made of even the best metal. I will probably be overnighting quite a bit so I would be more comfortable with a blade that I can sharpen by hand with out a piece of equipment that would end up costing more than the blade itself.
What about handle construction. I was on a humanitarian aid mission in Suriname in '95, we used military issued POS's, which loosed at the handle quickly and made us the butt of the Suriname RA's jokes. I don't know the make, but the handles where plastic and bolted on. Does this make them inferior to a molded handle or is it a construction issue. That point aside what is a good material for handles in terms of durablity and weathering. Ounce again thank you all for the valuable info, objective views are hard to find when everyone wants to sell you something .
.You'll love the Becker handle, it's one of the best things about the knife. The RTAK has Micarta scales, tough and comfortable. Wood is also an acceptable choice, be prepared to spend some time with a sheet of sandpaper and some mineral oil if the wood is less than perfect. I have a couple of $5 Tramontina machetes, they're fine for what I wanted 'em for, but the handles all needed some work.
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- Jan 25, 2000
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I will cast another vote for the Becker Patrol Machete. It has probably the best combination of chopping and vegetation clearing ability of any knife out there. It is also built very solid and you won't have to worry about replacing it anytime soon (if ever). The edge is also easily maintained in the field with a DMT folding hone. The edge will hold up much better than a cheap machete and it will be a better light brush clearer than a khukri.
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Again I say HI khukuri. It comes with a sharpening tool, the chakma, for field sharpening. There are not a lot of fancy stones or diamoned hones in the Himalayan regions. The steel is differentially hardened, hard edge, softer spine. The design is several thousand years old and still going, because it works, hard. Ask any one from Nepal.
The Magician
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Sorry guys, I have to disagree with the Khukuri. The things are insanely heavy and will wear you out chopping briars. They may be good wood choppers, but here in the ozarks we need to chop down undergrowth. Thin and springy. A Khukuri is just too thick and heavy. A machete is designed for this. How much does an HI 18" AK weigh? A sirupati?
Cliff Stamp
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The Magician :
[khukuri]
There are a lot of types of khukuris, yes some are very heavy, I think the largest ones go 8-9 lbs. However there are smaller models, the thinner and lighter ones work well on light brush. Check out posts by Tom Holt in the HI forum, specifically in reference to his 25" Kobra.
For berry bushes and the like, a very thin machete works best. I would look for something ~ 1/16" thick, with a comfortable amount of reach, the longest you can handle. Expect to modifify the edge profile to get optimal levels of performance.
If you want to cut the hardwood saplings, this isn't a great choice as it will bind far too much, and the edge will take damage if you hit a branch or knot. You can thicken it of course, but then you lose performance on the lighter brush.
The HI kobra would be a solid choice as well as the PM from Camillus, on the latter avoid any hard contacts with the tip, as it is very thin, use the thicker part of the blade to do any heavy cutting. These don't work as well on the lighter stuff as the thin machete, but handle the woody vegetation better, and stay sharp much longer.
Newt's blades are very solid choices as well. I don't find the pointy swells he sometimes uses functional (see AK for example), but some people prefer them. I would avoid the Ontario RTAK because of past experience with QC issues from Ontario, mine and friends.
The Martindale Jungle knife makes a very good tool for such work as well, just like the PM, avoid any heavy work near the tip. On the Jungle knife the edge is very acute there and you can ripple it easily. It isn't hard to alter the profile though, just increase the angle a little until it stops deforming.
I modified the Jungle knife I have in several ways to increase its abilities. I putting in a high relief near the base, adjusted the angle near the tip to allow light limbing, and sharpened the spine for very heavy work. It is now very versatile over a broad range of tasks :
http://www.physics.mun.ca/~sstamp/images/jungle_knife_mod.jpg
Barteaux makes a very solid machete that performs those tasks well also. Expect some edge work initially to get the blade up to full performance. The heavy duty models are a bit overkill for light brush, but will work well on hardwood saplings.
-Cliff
[khukuri]
There are a lot of types of khukuris, yes some are very heavy, I think the largest ones go 8-9 lbs. However there are smaller models, the thinner and lighter ones work well on light brush. Check out posts by Tom Holt in the HI forum, specifically in reference to his 25" Kobra.
For berry bushes and the like, a very thin machete works best. I would look for something ~ 1/16" thick, with a comfortable amount of reach, the longest you can handle. Expect to modifify the edge profile to get optimal levels of performance.
If you want to cut the hardwood saplings, this isn't a great choice as it will bind far too much, and the edge will take damage if you hit a branch or knot. You can thicken it of course, but then you lose performance on the lighter brush.
The HI kobra would be a solid choice as well as the PM from Camillus, on the latter avoid any hard contacts with the tip, as it is very thin, use the thicker part of the blade to do any heavy cutting. These don't work as well on the lighter stuff as the thin machete, but handle the woody vegetation better, and stay sharp much longer.
Newt's blades are very solid choices as well. I don't find the pointy swells he sometimes uses functional (see AK for example), but some people prefer them. I would avoid the Ontario RTAK because of past experience with QC issues from Ontario, mine and friends.
The Martindale Jungle knife makes a very good tool for such work as well, just like the PM, avoid any heavy work near the tip. On the Jungle knife the edge is very acute there and you can ripple it easily. It isn't hard to alter the profile though, just increase the angle a little until it stops deforming.
I modified the Jungle knife I have in several ways to increase its abilities. I putting in a high relief near the base, adjusted the angle near the tip to allow light limbing, and sharpened the spine for very heavy work. It is now very versatile over a broad range of tasks :
http://www.physics.mun.ca/~sstamp/images/jungle_knife_mod.jpg
Barteaux makes a very solid machete that performs those tasks well also. Expect some edge work initially to get the blade up to full performance. The heavy duty models are a bit overkill for light brush, but will work well on hardwood saplings.
-Cliff