Favorite machete pattern for ____ is____?

TheDandyLion

TheDandyLion

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Mar 27, 2013
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I have been shopping for a new machete to keep in my shop and I have really been intrigued by the extensive variety fo blade patterns, For my particular purposes I'm lookig at a Carribian Bolo by Imacasa But I want to know what your favorite machete is, fo what? Why?

Thanks
~TheDandyLion
 
My favorite pattern is the latin because that's what I grew up with. I can easily take down trees with it because I'm comfortable using it. My favorite latin pattern is the 12"-14" trail machete from Tramontina because it's light enough to use as a camp knife but long enough to cut vines out of the way all day, making it a great combo with a hatchet or hawk.

I also like the bolo for heavier hitting, but if you really want weight behind the blade you want a cane or beavertail machete, or what Cold Steel calls their "heavy machete". It will bite deeper than almost anything else with that thin, heavy blade.

FortyTwoBlades recommended the Imacasa Rozador 20" to me as a perfect tip heavy bolo style. I think he has a review somewhere if you want to google it. I still prefer the Latin because I live in the south and encounter softwoods and heavy brush more than hardwoods. The lighter/longer the better for that purpose.
 
I love the Filipino bolos ,esp. the Jest bolo ,I have a few and they usually have a distal and tapered tang plus they have unique handle materials recycled tire and Carabao horn.
They are easy to use ,most have really decent balance ,basically feels like your swinging a lot smaller machete than you really are
 
18" Ontario for clearing trails at deer camp. Chops down small 3-5" trees easily, as well as limbs and briars with a flick. $25ish
I have a Svord Golok for my hunting pack to trim shooting lanes on the ground.
 
Hi all,

I like at least an 18" size Machete, however, I REALLY like the 22" size Machete. I'm 6',3" tall with longish Arms and I find that the 22" Machete seems to fit the sweet spot.
One reason I like a longer Machete is I find it's just handy to "lift, push aside, push down and/or cut" brush as I walk through the woods. I also find it useful when I examine/move/poke about things on the ground. A long Machete is also excellent for clearing those "no see em" Spider Webs as I walk in the brush. God, I hate it if I walk face first into a Spider Web lol.

HARDBALL
 
This is my preferred all-'rounder, but of course I'm a bit biased. :D

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However, for more task specific work I generally like 20"+ distal tapered blades with flared profiles. Rozadors, pangas, etc., often with a partial back edge on the point. For trimming and landscape work as well as "just in case" carry I really like my Mora #333. I have around 30+ machetes and they all have their own strengths and weaknesses. What I grab depends entirely on the task, and often the environment and situation are so specific that the choice can't be clearly painted with a broad brush. I do find myself using the Baryonyx Machete for most of my general uses just due to the range of tasks and targets I designed it for, but my general preference when workable is a LONG machete.
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
This is my preferred all-'rounder, but of course I'm a bit biased. :D

1150945_578311648876966_1943393239_n.jpg


However, for more task specific work I generally like 20"+ distal tapered blades with flared profiles. Rozadors, pangas, etc., often with a partial back edge on the point. For trimming and landscape work as well as "just in case" carry I really like my Mora #333. I have around 30+ machetes and they all have their own strengths and weaknesses. What I grab depends entirely on the task, and often the environment and situation are so specific that the choice can't be clearly painted with a broad brush. I do find myself using the Baryonyx Machete for most of my general uses just due to the range of tasks and targets I designed it for, but my general preference when workable is a LONG machete.
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So, uh, when can I haz one? I've put off getting any heavy machetes waiting on this puppy.
 
My favorite all around profile for just about any task is a clip point mod of a traditional latin style. I pick a spot about 8 inches back from the tip and clip the blade from there to the end, leaving it with a point 2/3 of the way up from where the old top was. On one of my shorter versions I also sharpened the back side for the first 6 inches by the tip. Gave it a fairly steep bevel, and now works as a light duty wood splitting side so I don't have to kill the thinner edge on rough work.
 
Ontario,they are stiffer and handle heavier underbrush better. If you are going to be chopping grass you would something thinner. I honestly find that the Ontario's 1095 takes a better edge that lasts longer than other machetes I've used..
 
RemyKaze said:
So, uh, when can I haz one? I've put off getting any heavy machetes waiting on this puppy.
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Sooooooooooo soon. The first run is done, importation docs all squared away, and I'm sitting here waiting for payment instructions to complete the transaction. Should be getting that taken care of this week if all goes well, then it'll just be about a week or two after that. This is all providing that no wrenches get thrown in the works, but I don't foresee any at this stage. :)

TWBryan said:
Ontario,they are stiffer and handle heavier underbrush better. If you are going to be chopping grass you would something thinner. I honestly find that the Ontario's 1095 takes a better edge that lasts longer than other machetes I've used..
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That's 'cause they run them so dang hard. If they ran them any thinner they'd snap left and right--hence why they aren't ground as thin as the old ones from several decades back.
 
I'm fond of the Golok for woodwork, and find my Condor Golok to chop all out of proportion to it's size. For lighter foliage, and moving through brush, the latin style machetes are ideal for me.
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
Sooooooooooo soon. The first run is done, importation docs all squared away, and I'm sitting here waiting for payment instructions to complete the transaction. Should be getting that taken care of this week if all goes well, then it'll just be about a week or two after that. This is all providing that no wrenches get thrown in the works, but I don't foresee any at this stage. :)



That's 'cause they run them so dang hard. If they ran them any thinner they'd snap left and right--hence why they aren't ground as thin as the old ones from several decades back.
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Sweet!
 
I also became used to a latin pattern machete (18 inch blade) by Martindale or Tramontina. As one person has posted, you can use these all day and, if necessary, cut down small trees. Most of my experience has been in the Pacific islands, where vines and weeds need to be cleared from food gardens.

I might point out that the latin pattern has a point, not for stabbing but needed to pry out the meat from a coconut shell. Such a machete is great for almost everything, except for heavy wood cutting. While I have never used a golok or parang or khukri, I can see where these heavier knives might be useful for certain tasks - cutting ironwood ("equesitum") is one task almost impossible with thin, light machetes. The light machetes, though, can be used all day long with little fatigue.:cool:
 
I keep trying different blade shapes, and I coming back to the Latin pattern. It cuts as well as anything, and it goes in and out of a sheath without goofy snaps.

Of course thicker blades weighted near the tip 'chop' better. But if you want to chop, follow the thick-blade/weighted-tip thing to its logical conclusion and get an axe. There's a reason lumberjacks didn't use machetes.
 
I like my bolo machete for the big stuff, expeditions or the unexpected.

I prefer my Khukuri for yardwork or lighter bushwork.
 
The most useful machete i have are my two long Cold steel (Lasher) latin machetes
I have beaten the snot out of the first one and it keeps goin
I wish they just had a little smaller handles... i am certainly getting a two handed model despite that

Tha blade shape of my All Terrain Chopper kinda sucks... it is bent back in an unelegant manner
 
Oblio13 said:
I keep trying different blade shapes, and I coming back to the Latin pattern. It cuts as well as anything, and it goes in and out of a sheath without goofy snaps.

Of course thicker blades weighted near the tip 'chop' better. But if you want to chop, follow the thick-blade/weighted-tip thing to its logical conclusion and get an axe. There's a reason lumberjacks didn't use machetes.
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Except clearing brambles with an axe SUCKS. ;)

If you're doing dedicated felling and splitting, yes an axe is the way to go. Machetes are (generally) more broad-spectrum tools. It all depends on the prioritized mix of targets you'll be tackling, and that determines the ideal pattern. :)
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
Except clearing brambles with an axe SUCKS. ;)

If you're doing dedicated felling and splitting, yes an axe is the way to go. Machetes are (generally) more broad-spectrum tools. It all depends on the prioritized mix of targets you'll be tackling, and that determines the ideal pattern. :)
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Still trying to figure out how to buy the Baryonyx and an axe at once...but I'm in perfect heavy machete territory, the South. I guess I just need to pick up one of yours and find out. I'm gonna wait for your response to my query about which edge in the other thread, however.
 
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