Chopping trees with a tramontina 18 inch

S

Seyter

Joined
Jan 2, 2019
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What might happen to the blade if I tried to chop down a 16 inch diameter rubber tree?

Would it ruin or cause some visible crook?
 
While I can't speak for the 18 inch one, I used to beat the tar out of a 22 inch Tramontina when I was a kid. I wouldn't worry about it breaking. I'm not sure though how tough a rubber tree is, maybe use a Fiskars axe or hatchet?
 
Is it soft rubber, like "Stretch Armstrong"? Or hard, like a tire? Either way, drink a bunch of Jolt Cola and do it!
 
  1. I would only attempt such a thing if my life depended on it....16" anything. But I suspect if you wacked on it only enough you could bring down a 16" rubber tree. Rubber trees, house plants if the US mostly, was one of the first trees I noticed in South America gardens/parks. The other was Poinsettias in Mexico. Seeing the native orchids growing in trees was also interesting to me.
 
The machete will not break, but you will definitely do a lot of damage to the edge. Machete's are made of tough low carbon steel and kept soft for toughness. This comes at the expense of edge strength, so the edge will deform readily on hard objects. Soft vegetation is no problem, but a tree with knots will do a number on the edge. The blade itself will not break, or it should not.
 
As others have said, the machete will survive just fine.

The real issue is that it’s simply the wrong tool for the job. The blade is thin and light which makes it fast to swing. That makes it great for light grassy vegetation and even some thicker 1/4”ish woodier stuff (ie. the blackberry bushes in my back yard that are the bane of my existence).

But just as I wouldn’t use a felling axe to trim a shrub, I wouldn’t use a machete to fell a tree, especially one that is 16” diameter.

Can it be done? Yes. Is it efficient? Hell no.
 
I wouldn't even want to chop a 16" diameter tree down with an axe unless it is my only option which generally speaking it is not.... cross cut saws or chain saw job.
 
22-rimfire said:
I wouldn't even want to chop a 16" diameter tree down with an axe unless it is my only option which generally speaking it is not.... cross cut saws or chain saw job.
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No kidding. Not to mention the fact that by the time he gets about 4 inches into the tree that machete will be so blunt that the next 3 inches will take days, lol.
 
Cobalt said:
The machete will not break, but you will definitely do a lot of damage to the edge. Machete's are made of tough low carbon steel and kept soft for toughness. This comes at the expense of edge strength, so the edge will deform readily on hard objects. Soft vegetation is no problem, but a tree with knots will do a number on the edge. The blade itself will not break, or it should not.
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I can chop all but the hardest woods (like black locust) with a Tramontina machete brought to 12-15° per side without any negative impact on the edge whatsoever. In the few cases where edge damage occurs, just a few strokes per side with a stone or file at an increased angle is enough to stabilize the edge. Large trees are a poor target for machetes mostly because they're not the optimum tool choice for it--felling axes or crosscut saws are the manual tool to choose in that context. But machetes can do it, and do it without damage.

Chopping patterns of machetes can handle up to about 5" diameter trees without too much trouble, though they'll still be slower than an axe at that size. 6" and above starts getting much more difficult, but it's still doable if need be. It's mostly a matter of making sure you minimize the contact surface so your force isn't spread out too far across a long length of edge, which robs the blow of penetration. Lots of small nibbles gets you through if it's the only tool you've got.
 
You have had better luck than me. I have turned machetes into serrated edges chopping wood branches. I have never tried chopping a tree though, lol.
 
Cobalt said:
You have had better luck than me. I have turned machetes into serrated edges chopping wood branches. I have never tried chopping a tree though, lol.
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What make/model were these machetes, and how thin were you taking them in the edge? Small diameter dry hardwood branches can sometimes cause issues because of how they concentrate force on one small spot of the blade, but that's not at all typical machete behavior.
 
The one that received all the damage was an old collins. Factory edge. The other was an ace hardware model, not sure the brand. That one was tarrible. Worst machete I have ever had. it damaged so bad I wonder if it wasn't made of tin foil. lol. I guess a tramontina would and should fare a lot better.
 
Cobalt said:
The machete will not break, but you will definitely do a lot of damage to the edge. Machete's are made of tough low carbon steel and kept soft for toughness. This comes at the expense of edge strength, so the edge will deform readily on hard objects. Soft vegetation is no problem, but a tree with knots will do a number on the edge. The blade itself will not break, or it should not.
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Tramontina uses 1070 in its machetes, very tough stuff that is also used for shovels. Not sure about the hardness, but they are quite easy to hone with a fine file. I have a Scandi grind in 1070 by Ivan Campos, a Brazilian cutliero. Likely he used a different tempering process than Tramontina, though; it is the sharpest knife I own.
 
Hardness on Trams is about 52. Collins machetes (vintage ones, at least) are good stuff, but I doubt yours had a "factory edge" or it wouldn't have had much in the way of an edge whatsoever. They didn't come pre-sharpened.
 
It was old. I never knew that tramontinas used 1070. Makes sense why they are so valued. Tough as nails.
 
Pretty much all of the good manufacturers are using 1055 and above. Most use 1070 through 1080.
 
Interesting bit about 1074/75 steel from Ontario knives: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads...s-alpha-series-sp-a-survival-machete.1501985/

"We've found that 1074/1075 is almost identical to 1095, except it doesn't rust as easily and isn't as prone to chipping."

Very plain carbon steel, tough and great bang for the buck. 5160 can be great, especially if you use your knife for car springs.

I have a few Incolma Gavilan machetes. They seem tough but are not particularly soft. And they are so inexpensive ...

I note that Cold Steel is using SK-5 steel in the budget SRK knife. More or less 1085 steel: 0.80～0.90 Carbon. Nice.
 
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