Big choppers, little help please.

kgriggs8 said:
I have tried several and some have come close but most were not what I wanted. I had a Ranger RD-9 for example that was as strong as you could ask for but it didn't chop very well and it really didn't do the job of a machete at all. It just felt like a big heavy knife. I guess I may want more weight forward? I have tried every HI Kukri and I am giving up on them as well.

I want the knife to be small enough pack into a normal sized backpack so 15" overall is probably max size.
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Which RD9 did you have, I have the older saber ground and the newer (not newest) Full flat grind models. While I like the older one, isn't the chopper the lighter FFG version is. It sure is built like a tank and feels like one hell of a chopper, but it is too thick on the edge to be great....if I had it thined out, that would help greatly. On a light chop using the entire blade it bounces off my picture stump while other blades sink right in. It has potential....but I like a blade to pack a punch right out the box.

That's why I stick with Swamp Rat, Busse, and hopefully today Scrap Yard Choppers.....and the occasional custom thanks to David Wesner, and Bill Siegle.:D
 
Victor L Ross said:
None. I have never used a Busse or a Swamp Rat. I am trying to get a Scrap Yard Dog Father now. I like the cushy handle and the blade looks serious. The price is reasonable as well. I have heavy choppers from Becker, Cold Steel, Ranger, Colt (don't laugh), Ontario, Kershaw, Hopkinson (Golok), TOPS, and Collins. It depends on what I'm cutting as to which is best. The thinner, longer blades are better for clearing and machete use. The heavier, thicker blades have some advantage in chopping wood. I found the RTAK II to be a very good compromise between a machete and a heavy golok. I was only trying to honestly answer a question. I'm sure Busse and Swamp Rat are excellent knives. I hope the poor man's Busse (Dog Father) is not sold out.
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I didn't even know they made choppers, post a picture...sounds like you have a few there...I would be interested in seeing them.
 
Gravelface said:
I didn't even know they made choppers, post a picture...sounds like you have a few there...I would be interested in seeing them.
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Here are a few. The Colt is the one with the slot in the blade.

CHOPPERS006.jpg

CHOPPERS005.jpg
 
Victor H. Ross wrote,
"None. I have never used a Busse or a Swamp Rat. I am trying to get a Scrap Yard Dog Father now. I like the cushy handle and the blade looks serious. The price is reasonable as well. I have heavy choppers from Becker, Cold Steel, Ranger, Colt (don't laugh), Ontario, Kershaw, Hopkinson (Golok), TOPS, and Collins. It depends on what I'm cutting as to which is best. The thinner, longer blades are better for clearing and machete use. The heavier, thicker blades have some advantage in chopping wood. I found the RTAK II to be a very good compromise between a machete and a heavy golok. I was only trying to honestly answer a question."

I am in the same boat you are in. I have tried a bunch of different blades but I am starting to realize that there is not going to be one blade that will do everything I want it to do well. I have to compromise and look for a blade that will do the things I think are important well.

For me, strength is not the key issue. Of course it has to be strong enough to take a licking and keep on ticking but that doesn't mean that it has to be thick and heavy. My 18" Ontario machete has served me for almost 20 years now and it is still going strong. In fact, I would be happy with this one large blade if it wasn't for the fact that I really don't want to have to have a machete in plain sight when hiking and camping. It makes you look like a weirdo in certain places. I may want to stop at a gas station on foot and get a drink. I don't want to walk into a public place with a machete hanging from my belt or straped to my pack. At the same time, I want that utility of having a 18" machete.

I bought the 12" machete from Ontario because people on this forum told me how great it is. It is made well but the balance is all off. It is not quite what I had in mind. I think in order to get the preformance I want out of a shorter blade, it does have to be a little thicker. I am not talking 3/8" thick but clearly the 1/8" steel that the 12" has is not enough. I guess something like 3/16"-1/4" is what I am looking for. Not thinner and not thicker unless it is ground in a way that really reduces weight.

I tried to order the Scarpyard Dog Father but I never did get a response. I guess they are busy or sold out. A repsonse would have been nice though. I am not ruling it out even though it doesn't look like what I had in mind. I will put that on the back burner for now. Maybe later when they get more in.

Right now, the RTAK II looks like what I want. I had the RTAK I so I know more or less what I am going to get.

Thanks everyone.
 
Any of the Zero Tolerance blades by Busse are 3/16th thick and have that magical balance.

Also the Rat Daddy by Swamp Rat has the Full height grind and is a VERY effective chopper.
 
There was a family emergency that is pobably why you never heard back.
They are out of the CG dogfathers but will soon be releasing the LE version.
Battlerats are a heck of a good deal on the secondary market especially with the DF coming out.
 
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