Machete advice?

Will Power

Will Power

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Jan 18, 2007
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Spring may still far off in Scandinavia,but nevertheless the garden will start sprouting and a snake-infested coppice at the back of my place will have to be chopped down.

Usually, I use a petrol strimmer but now I fancy using a decent machete to clear weeds,bushes etc.

What to look for? What types and what sizes? A place selling Bark River gear on the net has some nice looking US made machetes. 18" or 12" Any info about where to get machetes and models? Could do with a sheath too.How about sharpening them any special requirements?

Also, how to DISCOURAGE those snakes from coming into the garden or worse GOING UNDER THE HOUSE :eek: I've heard that mothballs/naptha works is this so? Isn't it inflammable??
 
I use a cheap 20" $ 25.- machete with plastic handle in the South West Florida jungle, wich is probably thicker and nastier than anything you'll see in Scandinavia. The machete can be easily resharpened and is not too heavy. There are surely better ones, but they cost more and you probably don't want to beat the shit out of them. If the cheapie quits, which it hasn't done, so far, you just get a new one.

There are commercial snake repellents out there, both, electric and chemical. The latter is mostly made of naphthalene and sulfur. As far as I know they don't work well. The best way to keep snakes out is to

- Discourage them from entering buildings by sealing all holes in foundations.
- Reduce cover (wood piles etc.) so they can't hide.

I'm not sure if snakes are a problem anyway, most snakes in Europe aren't even venomous. I have about 10 acres of uncleared jungle around my house which is a pefect habitat for diamondback rattlers, coral snakes, water moccassins, and other critters and I see one may be once a year, and then it tries to get away as fast as it can.
 
For clearing weeds and light bush you want a light thin bladed machete such as a Tramontina or Ontario Ecomony model, either one with an 18" blade should serve your needs. You'll need to put a convexed edge on it, the more polished the better and a sheath can easily be made by flattening a section of PVC or ABS pipe. if you want a ton of info, send me a PM and I'll link you up to a bunch of machete tutorials from another forum.
 
I don't know what is available up there, but a good Tramontina from Brazil is hard to beat. Stay away from the Chinese stuff. The Tramontina is made by people who actually use machetes in their daily lives. Ontario has a new thin, light economy line. Their steel is usually good. I have not tried their economy models, but their heavier models are very good. For weeds and light vegetation, I'd recommend an 18" Tramontina or an Ontario 18" economy model.
 
I do all my chopping with a kukri, either 18 oz or 24 oz ,though I haven't used it on snakes .I'd leave the snakes alone unless they are poisonous ! ....BTW the term inflammable should not be used because people with less than good understanding of english may think it means 'not flammable' .It actually means 'flammable' .
 
I have a mid-90's Cold Steel Panga machete, 1055 spring steel. It will take a razor edge and hold it, and its nice and thin. I use it a lot for clearly underbrush on trails in the woods near my folks house and have to highly recommend it. Just the right size, weight, and length plus nice a thin to slice through shit.
 
I had a machete fetish for a while. I like the Tramontonias for light vegitation and the CS versions like the bolo for heavier work like branches. My fave is the CS kukuri machete because it shrt enough to pack and it can cut through thick hardwood branches if you hit the sweet spot. The Tramontonia is probably your best bet but with any machete you will need to do a lot of work on the edge as they neglect that to make them to a price point.
 
I really like the COLDSTEEL line of machetes:thumbup:
I have the kukri & it works great, just the length to pack on your side or backpack.Best part is it only cost about $15.00 U.S.
It comes with an ok edge out of the box (a little rough) but a few swipes with my wetrock & it will shave hair ! I can fill a 20oz water bottle & cut it in half w/one quick swipe !!!!:D
 
I am a Collins guy all the way. They were made to take abuse and be sharpened on almost anything. I have several, if you can find one, buy it! Steven
 
I find Tramontinas, economy Ontarios and Cold Steel machetes all quite decent. The 12" economy Ontario is quite interesting in that the edge angle is very acute, around 10 degrees inclusive. The bevel is about 1/2" wide, and the blade stock is about .080". In addition, the bevel is slightly hollow ground! As a result, the edge can get extremely sharp quite easily. The tradeoff is durability, so the economy Ontario is best used for lighter vegetation rather than heavy chopping. The most chopping I've done with it has been 2" green limbs, which can be chopped through with 2 to 6 chops depending on the type of wood. I did get a ripple in the edge when batoning through a dry knotty piece of wood, which was understandable given the thin edge.
 
mete said:
I do all my chopping with a kukri, either 18 oz or 24 oz ,though I haven't used it on snakes .I'd leave the snakes alone unless they are poisonous ! ....BTW the term inflammable should not be used because people with less than good understanding of english may think it means 'not flammable' .It actually means 'flammable' .
Click to expand...

Thanks for all the advice,the snakes ARE venomous but not deadly- I just dislike them a lot and a neighbour's dog died from a viper bite last year.

Well, the inflammable thing is because British English is different from the American version....that's all:D
 
I have owned the same 18" Ontario U.S. Issue machete for almost 20 years now. It has taken a licking but keeps on ticking.

I have spent the last 20 years trying to find anything that will out preform it and I have failed. I think my dad spent about $15 for it back them with a canvas sheath. I have spent probably $1200-1500 in the last few years searching for something that will do a better job. Not that I need a better job done mind you. It is just that I figuired since my machete was only $15, there must be something better out there. Now that I have money, I wanted to find it. So far no luck. I have bought about a dozen large blades and nothing compares to the machete.

I have only found a few large blades that will sink as deep into wood with one stroke. Those that do are always MUCH heavier than the machete. In fact, only the largest of blade that weight a few pounds were able to out chop the machete. The thing is, the machete does it with a flick of the wrist where the beasts do it with all your might.

I can cut down a 6" pine tree in a few minuits without breaking a sweat. If I tried doing that with one of the large bladed knives or Kukris I have owned, it would be much more effort for sure. I can also clear brush and long grass with my machete. Try clearing long grass with a 3'lb Kukri and see what you think.

I hate to say it but as far as I know, there is simply nothing made that will work like a good 18" machete. It won't do a few things like split logs or pry but it is so good at the things it can do that it makes up for it. You are never going to find anything that does everything well. It is just impossible.
 
I believe what you say about the simple virtues of the machetekgriggs8, can't wait to get started slashind at those weeds!
OK I'll leave the snakes alone but they better keep away from the house, I draw the line there!
Vipers and other snakes are not protected in Finland, they are very common which is amazing when you think of the winter we have(still 2 more months to go) couple of days ago it was -29c still not enough to wipe out hibernating adders!
 
Thanks for posting this thread. I had about 100 ft. to clear in the back of my property, to be able to close a horse fence, and I've been avoiding it like hell. After reading all this machete talk last night, I felt like going out in the morning and getting it done. It took me a while but now all the weeds and shrubs are history. Nice workout. I still have about 600 ft. of heavy jungle left on the other end, I'm probably going to rent a bobcat for this job.
 
I agree! I've never found anything better than the Ontario U.S. Issue machete. The new snake repellents that they've come out with are pretty intresting, but I've never used them. Such as: http://www.gemplers.com/pestmgmt/wildlifecontrol/145578.html I have an unnatural fear of snakes, so I'm right there with you when it comes to them being close to the house! I remember that Newt Livesay made a machete that was highly regarded. http://www.mtsequoyahknives.com/page6.html But expensive! And I don't think he's in business anymore.
 
Yeah, the exercise aspect is a bonus too! Working up a sweat beats breathing in oil and petrol fumes from some strimmer.Also you can fantasize about massacring knife-hating sheeple by the million whilst slicing down weeds and bushes, NOW THERE'S A THOUGHT!
 
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