Gerber or Cold Steel Bolo?

V

Voltz

Joined
Jul 30, 2014
Messages
6
I've been looking to find a machete to suit my needs and the bolo style fits. I have it narrowed down to two, the Cold Steel Bolo Machete and the Gerber Gator Bolo Machete. I haven't been able to find much comparing them so I thought I would ask on my own. What are your thoughts on which is better?
 
Definitely the cold steel. 1055 is superior to whatever type of 420 they have in that Gerber.
I'd reccomend a tramontina bolo above those two through.
 
The Gerber is 1050 and I heard the handle is much better. Would 1055 make that much of a difference?
 
There may not be much of a difference in steel composition between 1050 and 1055, but heat treat is hugely important. Cold Steel knows how to heat treat their budget steels right - Gerber does not.
 
I've seen people's Gerber machete blades break right in front of me own eyes. I'm no expert, but I'd go with the Cold Steel, hands down.

Here's some video proof:

http://bit.ly/WNMimT

http://bit.ly/1zx8nnn

http://bit.ly/1nKlxtH

Honestly, just search "Gerber fail" on YouTube and you get about five full pages of Gerber products failing epicly. Gerber has some great products, but a lot of their stuff falls short.

The machete skyhorse recommended looks pretty good. I'd look into that if I were you.
 
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Anyone know anything on specifically the Gerber Gator Bolo because to my understanding, that one is actually full tang.
 
Of the two go with Cold Steel BUT I am another in favor of the cheaper but superior Tramontina. Couple years ago I got a set of five Trams for less than $30!!! Great machetes.
 
amg137 said:
There may not be much of a difference in steel composition between 1050 and 1055, but heat treat is hugely important. Cold Steel knows how to heat treat their budget steels right - Gerber does not.
Click to expand...

^--- This! Plain and simple. :thumbup:
Cold Steel makes much better value knives and machetes than Gerber.

Gerber hasn't made decent steel for decades.
 
Cold Steel. Of course, you could get a Condor bolo for a little bit more, which comes with a great sheath and an edge...
 
I would recommend either a Condor Or Imacasa bolo. Either one is much better than the Cold Steel or Gerber for just a few dollars more. You can also pick up one of the orange Marbles bolos very cheap and they are also excellent and made by Imacasa under the Marbles label. The Tramontina bolo is not bad and better than Cold Steel or Gerber but I still prefer Condor or Imacasa. You can buy any of them from baronyx.com or machetespecialists.com.
 
Voltz said:
Anyone know anything on specifically the Gerber Gator Bolo because to my understanding, that one is actually full tang.
Click to expand...

It seems you're wanting the Gerber to be good, but its not. Mutually agreed here that its sub-par to just about everything in its class. Get one of the machetes mentioned on this thread instead, you'll be much happier with the quality of the product.
 
Alright, with all the suggestions I've decided to go with the Cold Steel. I was wanting the Gerber to be good due to its looks and grip but it appears that's all its good for and when it comes down to it, its all about use not looks. Thank you all for your suggestions!
 
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