Bolo Machetes Compared

Horn Dog

Horn Dog

Joined
Sep 9, 2005
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A lot of outdoorsmen like bolo machetes. They are shorter than traditional latin-style machetes with a wider blade near the tip, which makes them good choppers and diggers. Today, I did a comparison of some of the bolo machetes available. Left to right, we have the Cold Steel, Condor, Tramontina, Windlass, and Becker. The Becker is no longer being made, but there are still quite a few of them out there.
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The Windlass and Becker are on the right. These are heavier and thicker than the others, being 3/16" thick. The other bolos are much thinner, less than 1/8" thick or about 2.5mm. The shortest are the Tramontina, Becker and Windlass with 14" blades. The Cold Steel is the longest with a 16" blade. The Condor has a 15 3/8" blade. So all these are longer than the 12" camp machetes, but shorter than the traditional 18" to 24" blade machetes.
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To keep things as evenly matched as possible, I put a good fresh convex edge on all of them, except the Condor which came with a polished convex edge.
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I spared this little area from the bush hog, just to test machetes.
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First up is the popular Tramontina Bolo, an inexpensive machete from Brazil with wood handle and carbon steel blade. I put a convex edge on mine and reshaped the handle to fit my large hand.
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Next, the action.
 
The Tramontina is the lightest of these, weighing about 13 oz. It handles very well, quick and fast in the hand, nearly as good as the 18" Tramontina for slashing brush.
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Next up was the Cold Steel. The handle was fat and blocky, so I trimmed it a bit. It is noticably heavier and not as fast in the hand, but it is very good on the thicker, woodier brush. It will work you, though. It weighs 16 oz.
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I really hate this handle. The steel is 1055 and it takes a good edge. Next I used the Condor. It is just a bit lighter than the Cold Steel at just under 16 oz. Steel is 420HC German stainless. The handle feels much better and it slashes well right out of the box. Not as quick as the Tram, but not bad at all.
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The Becker did surprisingly well at slashing brush. I put a really good edge on it since I last used it, and it really did well. It weighs just over a pound and does a number on the stubborn and wirey live oak. It is made of 0170-6C high carbon steel, and takes a super edge. The handle is quite comfortable for me.
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It did well, but the cheaper Tramontina was easier on me.
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And finally, I used the new Windlass Cobra Steel. It is supposed to be 1095 steel, but I don't believe it. It acts more like a stainless, throwing no sparks during sharpening. It is the heaviest machete here, weighing 20 oz. The handle is very large and comfortable, and the machete does well considering its extra weight.
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I somehow managed to nick the edge hacking the tough live oak into the dirt.
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Overall, I'd say the Tramontina did best in machete work, with the Condor a close second. But I had to do a lot of work on the Tram to get it to the performance level of the Condor. Next up: chopping.
 
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I have the CS version and I like it a lot. You hit it on the head with your description. Because of the weight and design a shorter tool can still posses the chopping/slashing properties of a much longer tool. I always keep one in my camping gear. I want to pick up the Condor next. I have three Condors now and am becoming a fan of their products. Thanks for your post.
 
Did you notice any diffrence in the edge retention???? Have you tried them on harder wood.. Some basic work to build a small shelter or something like that... You got a good veriety (sp) of blades there. Im sure you got your favroit one from them all. Which one is it for you???

Sasha
 
nice review so far, looking forward to the chopping...

i handled a CS machete once, with the stock handle...even in my large hands it was way too huge...i wouldn't have felt confident trying to hold onto it while swingnig.

loving the 1x30...i notice your purple belt curls up too. its weird...but it works! it does make it tricky to get in close to the bevel edges without hitting handle or messing up the nice clean lines on some knives though...
 
With the light machete work out of the way, time to see which one does best at chopping wood.
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The Tramontina has always impressed me as a good chopper. Like most machetes, it can sometimes bind in the wood, but it chops well.
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It chopped through this maple is just a few whacks.
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The Cold Steel and Condor did just a bit better in chopping, though.
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Since I last chopped with it, I gave the Becker a new and improved edge. Before, the Condor PR Panga out chopped it. Today the Becker outchopped every machete here, except one.
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The chop-off king for a day goes to the Windlass, the heaviest machete here. As long as you hit the wood with the belly or sweet spot, that recurve just digs in deep.
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Overall, I'd have to say that I'd prefer using either the Tramontina or the Condor. The Condors are the best out of the box machetes I have used so far, except possibly the BRKT, which isn't in this review because it isn't a bolo.
 
sasha said:
Did you notice any diffrence in the edge retention???? Have you tried them on harder wood.. Some basic work to build a small shelter or something like that... You got a good veriety (sp) of blades there. Im sure you got your favroit one from them all. Which one is it for you???

Sasha
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Only the Windlass showed any edge damage after all that slashing and chopping. I didn't show it all. Too busy whacking away. I would say that all of these are softer than the Ontarios, except the Becker, and need a touch up more often. But they are easy to touch up with a steel or ceramic rod in just a few passes. The Becker has the hardest steel in this group, and it will take the keenest edge. Machetes really don't need to be shaving sharp to work well. The 1055 CS and the Becker will take the sharpest edges.
 
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Can the CS handle be ground to mold your hand? Is there excess handle material to make it more ergo?

I have a similar knife which I ground out deeper grooves in the handle and made it really comfy.

Thanks for making me aware of these guys.
 
Wow nice review! Thank you for taking the time to do it. I was thinking about getting one of those Tramontina bolos in the future, but it's hard to find a sheath for them. My friend has the condor bolo also and he loves it.
 
One important thing I forgot to mention is price. The cheapest, the Tramontina is one of the best. But it does not come with a sheath or a good edge. The handle requires a bit of work to make it comfortable to use, but since it is wood, anyone can carve or sand it to shape. It sells for $6.00 to $10.00 depending on where you buy it. The Cold Steels are usually $16.00 to $20.00, but you have to pay about $11.00 extra for a sheath. CS has great handles on their latin models, but the bolos and pangas have these huge fat aweful handles. The steel is good and it takes and holds a better edge than the Condors. The Beckers are quite expensive and no longer available. They came with a great handle and sheath. Seems like I paid nearly $80 or so for mine a long time ago. The Condors cost from $40.00 to $50.00, but they come with a good convex edge, a comfy handle and a nice leather swing sheath. The Windlass is new. I got mine from Atlanta Cutlery. The handle is superb and it came with a decent riveted leather sheath. The edge was better than most machetes but not as good as the Condor's. It sells for about $60.00. It has good balance and swings well for its weight. It is made of mystery steel. :D
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i'd be interested in hearing what windlass has to say about the steel in their blade...its interesting that its not throwing sparks even though its advertised as 1095...

i'm thinking, based on what you said about damage in woody vegetation, that maybe you have to sharpen back into the good steel some...you might be grinding and chopping with some softer steel from too much heat when grinding...
 
siguy said:
i'd be interested in hearing what windlass has to say about the steel in their blade...its interesting that its not throwing sparks even though its advertised as 1095...

i'm thinking, based on what you said about damage in woody vegetation, that maybe you have to sharpen back into the good steel some...you might be grinding and chopping with some softer steel from too much heat when grinding...
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No, I dunked it in water frequently. The steel isn't soft, whatever it is. It acts like a stainless.
 
no i didn't mean you put too much heat into it, but at the factory when grinding an edge on it they might have got it too hot, like alot of people complain about moras etc...

huh...that's interesting anyways. have you tried rubbing some apple or lemon juice on it to test its corrosion resistence? if its 1095 you should see an almost instant patina, otherwise its probably stainless like you are thinking...
 
That's what I love about this place, it's hard not to learn something every day. Even for old geezers.
 
psy-ops said:
Can the CS handle be ground to mold your hand? Is there excess handle material to make it more ergo?

I have a similar knife which I ground out deeper grooves in the handle and made it really comfy.

Thanks for making me aware of these guys.
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I did some pretty radical reshaping on the CS Panga. The tang is pretty wide and I hit it and decided to quit. The Bolo has the same handle. I did manage to shape it a little.
 
A bit off topic, but what belts do you use to reprofile and sharpen your machetes? I have one I need to fix up.
 
it looks like he using the same belts i use for grinding all kinds of steel and other things too...

http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2&p=48040&cat=1,43072

i personally suggest getting the 80 grit over the 40 grit for alot of stock removal...i found that the 40 grit lost alot of bite really quickly, and that the 80 grit cut a little slower to start with but kept cutting for alot longer. your mileage may vary, just thought i would let you know.
 
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