chopping?

RescueRiley

RescueRiley

Joined
Mar 22, 2006
Messages
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I've played around with different chopping tools over the past year or so machete, axe, and now a large knife...was wondering what you all use...and why, ALhough I think the machetes and large knives are nowhere near as effective at chopping hardwood as an axe I like the added versatility of a knife edge and a point ...
 
i have used machetes and hatchets/axes pretty extensively, but have not used a knife designed for wood chopping, just some large kitchen knives pressed into service.

it really depends on the medium. most of my chopping is in hard and soft wood, and i normally go for the hatchet/axe, becuase the weight carries the blade further and the thicker edge pops out the chips well without wedging (most of the time ;D)

i do have plenty of brambles and wild grape vines and other bushy things aorund that need hacking sometimes and i normally reach for the machete. it gives me reach (so i don't have to stand in the bush to hit it) which is nice when i am hacking at prickers. it also slices through the light stuff well because of the low resistance provided by the thin blade. i have chopped wood with it before, but it is really not optimixed for it. wedging alot and putting alot more force into it are the two things that don't do it for me. perhaps with a shorter, thicker machete (which really is your third point, the large knife)

in my limited experience, i prefer a hatchet to the large knife, because the large knife becomes so specialized it loses alot of utility. with an axe i am carrying just enough edge to cut with. with a big blade i am carrying a whole lot of extra steel that is not doing much, and because of the cutting edge angle, is not good for finer tasts most of the time. something like a tom brown tracker, but with different edge grinds, would be the best compromise. a thin edge at the handle, and a thicker chopping edge out nearer the tip. then it would make sense to me.

overall, heading into the bush for who knows how long, i would take a 3/4 axe. good chopping ability, not too too much weight, versatile, etc.
 
well, most of the time I use a chainsaw:D

But I love using big knives even more, (carbon neutral choppers) usually a 12" chitlange khukuri. I also have a sweet forged, laminated japanese bowie knife which is a beauty. When I figure out how to get photos going I'll start posting some pictures in here.

I hardly ever use an axe even though I have a couple of really nice ones.
 
Hi Riley-

I'm a fellow on the fence about a few issues, too. I try to keep perspective on a few different things though, for me personally.

First, I always expect an axe to be the best at chopping wood. It's made for it and has every advantage. It should be a '10' on any comparison scale. The problem is a full axe doesn't do much but chop, and weighs a lot too. This nixes it for backpacking, for me.

A hatchet is the next best thing, and can often be much more versatile. I'd cite the Fiskars in this regard.

Next best bet is a saw. I love 'em because they're light and fast and quiet, and usually cheap. Problem is that they only work up to a certain thickness, or else you have to play lots of games trying to work your way around the diameter. Still, a very handy and frequently used item.

Then the large fixed blade, commonly called the choppers here. I've got the kabar bowie, like you, as a good example of this. So far, I think it's doing a great job of chopping, as much as a knife could be expected to do. The advantage lies in it's versatility. Unlike an axe, it can easily be used as a draw knife, to precisely split wood, brush clearing or cutting saplings, and it's often safer.

The machete seems great to my mind in certain environment, but in the woods there are just too many things that work better. Great tools, but tools for select environments. If I lived further south I'd always have my tram on me.


There are some things I know will always be on my person: a good folder (Vic Farmer), a ~4" fixed blade (Koster bushcraft right now) and 'something big'. I'm constantly torn up about what it will be, usually between the kabar bowie and the Fiskars. Both are great at a lot of things.

Right now I'm planning on bringing the farmer and koster, and then including the Fiskars saw and the kabar bowie and seeing how things go for me. Either way, it's overkill, but the good kind.

Hope that barely coherent rambling was helpful. :D

Oh, if you are in an area where living and dying (or being miserable) depend on getting lots of good firewood, and that wood is just about always timber sized, then an axe is likely the only way to go. Environment dictates tools.
 
The firewood I find myself gathering around here tends to be wrist-sized or smaller. For this an axe or a hatchet is not really the best tool IMO. For clearing vegetation (blackberries, salal, etc) a machete makes quick work of creating a campsite, shooting lanes, whatever. Softwood is much more common than hardwood here and it rarely gets cold enough to 'freeze' the wood, so a sharp machete is a great all around camp tool. I've found the 18" Tram is great to work with but a bit of a bear to strap to a pack so I've ordered a 14" bolo and a 12" machete. I've got a folding pruning saw that sees a lot of use as well (I'm actually thinking about making a wood and bone handle for it...)

Were I heading to the BC interior or points north, I'd likely swap out the trusty Tram for a light axe, especially at this time of year. I agree with Spooky though, that an axe is kind of a single purpose tool. With my Trams, a few inches of the edge closest to the Handle is sharpened to a more acute angle to make it better for finer work. Machetes also make excellent drawknives. I think this kind of utility would be tough with a single-bit axe.

Personally, I've gotten away from packing large knives, so I probably wouldn't be looking for a big chopper to do both light and heavy work. A combo of a 4" or so sheath knife and a machete seem to be 'just right' for me. As mentioned though, it depends where you are.
 
Google is a great "search function" for non paying members, it works amazingly well. I've used it on many occasions and I think it actually works better than the local one. :)

As for choppers, its been done to death, and will most likely be done many more times.

Short answer, use what you like to use and run with it.

Not literally of course! :eek:
 
I have for chopping....RTAK II and Estwing axe, just picked up an OD Green Swamp Rat Chopweiler...have yet to use it but it will not be long > LOL ....
 
I use a 13-1/2" HB hatchet that I recently acquired at a gun & knife show. Before that, I was using a couple of small hatchets I inherited - nothing fancy, just small, sharp hatchets.

I never had a "chopper" knife, so I recently invested in a Bark River Canadian Camp. Prior to that, my largest "heavy" knife was a BRKT Bravo-1. I haven;t used the Camp knife yet, so we'll have to see how it goes. I suspect it'll be just fine though.

This thread needs a photo or two ((( :D )))

HBaxe-01.jpg


Bravo-Camp-Northstar.jpg
 
yeah I know its done to death

but

I have to cut hardwoods more than I like

my axe is good but carting it around is a hassle
My hatchet is good but it doesnt have the weight and the cutting edge is shorter than I like

I have a bunch of machetes but they are a compomise , big knife made a bit softer than I like to allow for it not to chip when ya hit stuff thats not meant to be ... and yeah , I do hit that kinda stuff specially with the 24 inch job ... but dam , its fun to use :)

I made a seriously big knife out of leaf spring , it did very well ... its just uglier than sin and it scares people

then I bought a valiant co survival golock

man , am I glad I bought that knife !!
it is seriously a good chopper , suited to hardwoods , aussie hardwoods , like iorn bark and wandoo , gidgee and mallee , it eats them ...

gotta add tho , its also one of the most expensive knives I ever bought too :)

but its got style , looks , and it works dam well ...

only problem is its too pretty to use ....
 
my suggestion get either a 16.5inch chiruwa khukuri or a 18inch ganga ram from himalayan imports, ive taken down good sized trees with ease with my chiruwa plus its thick enough to be used as a substitute prybar and if you can break it you get 2 free of charge
 
Depends on the trip. I think hatchets completely rule for many things but I love my Matindale #2. I'd have to swing the hatchet like a windmill to clear thorns, nettles .etc and it makes much harder work of harvesting bedding ferns and so on. Further, I don't do that camping with the deck chair, folding table and swingball. I tend to a much more low impact approach. I'm interested in warming me, not chopping logs as big as me to warm the village. On that, my #2 often gets priority over the GB.

Ignore the banananarna – just to give a quick flavour of something I was up to a couple of weeks back:

moonskobn11sx7.jpg

moonsko31xx3.jpg

moonsko21zd9.jpg

But on a different out I'll be all Buffalo gear and Gortex and the GB will be laughing at the #2 that had to stay home.
 
Lots of choices for chopping. I'm playing with this right now-
DSC01818.jpg


This is a Gerber Brush thinner which I modded by removing the hook and shortening the handle.

The blade on this knife is a bit over 1/8" thick, and also quite wide so there is lots of support behind the edge.

Because the blade is thin, it is lightweight, but because the blade is thin, it chops quite nicely.

This is also a very lightweight knife because the handle is hollow. I made up a sheath for it:
DSC01833.jpg


Nothing fancy but quite tough and lightweight. The steel in these thinners is good quality and will take a good edge and keep it for reasonable use. Paired with a smaller utility knife, it would be my current choice for camping, etc.

Andy
 
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