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Machete for South Eastern USA Bushcraft?

S

Swampfoxoutdoors

Joined
Jan 23, 2014
Messages
106
Looking for a machete for general camping and bush crafting. I live in North East Ga and camp in the mountains and Piedmont area so hardwoods and evergreens are the main types of trees in my area. Along with heavy briers and thickets. I was wondering which length, style, and brand of machete will best suit my needs. I am kinda leaning towards a latin style machete but up for anything.
 
The Ontario 18 inch machete would be a good overall choice of you want a sharp point, or do what I did and get the 22-incher and cut it back to give a more blunt profile while keeping it decently balanced (I cut mine to about 19 inches, but needs a little taken off to better balance it). They are thick blades, but the steel is great and takes and holds a really sharp edge. It's thick enough to deal with chopping duties on hardwood. I've taken down decent-sized melaleucas with it in South Florida with much more ease than typical latin style machetes due to the seemingly harder/better steel and thicker/heavier blade. One caveat though...you'll need to thin and profile the handle. It's not very comfortable as it comes.
 
I am not familiar with the Fiddleback Forge Machete, but they make great stuff. You might look at OKC RTAK II or ESEE Junglas...while these are not machetes they are big knives the can chop hardwoods better than a lighter weight Latin style machete. They will also still serve the role as camp knife better than an machete. However, you might also check out Condor Knife and Tool as they are known as the machete king.
 
All sorts of good options out there depending on your specific mix of needs. Here in New England we similarly face a wide range of potential targets and it's hard to know in many circumstances if we might be faced with a bunch of tall tick-infested grasses that need to be slashed, to brambles and puckerbrush, and even full-blown trees. I designed my Baryonyx Machete (see signature image) to tackle North American conditions and I use it for just about everything. That being said, the classic Latin pattern is kind of the most generic all-around style and that's why you find it everywhere in slight variations. 14" is generally considered the easiest to pack while 18" is the best "default" length to opt for as a frequent-use tool. I personally tend to opt for 20-24" blades but I'm very familiar with using long blades so it feels natural to me. 18" is long enough for very serious work but not so long that a novice will have trouble controlling it.

Lots of good options out there for you, especially if you can narrow down your spectrum of tasks so you can select a pattern optimized towards those tasks. :)
 
we have a Ontario 18" round here too.good all rounder,me n my wife been usin a condor golok,limbing trees in the driveway/yardwork,the regular one,i picked up,one of the new ones ,full tang,instead of partial,we like the rounded end on the end of the handle for control.sharp/sharp..
 
Sounds like you will be chopping hard wood branches as well as heavy briars, if that's the case you may want to step up to the Baryonyx rather than a Latin style. Given that type of harder use I would suggest you have Benjamin reprofile it for that rather than his racing edge. I have one and love it, beware the blade is fairly broad, 4.5" or so, but does come with an excellent leather sheath that helps with transporting it.
 
I've used Tramontinas for years clearing brush, including chopping through decent-sized mesquites. The plastic handles are better-shaped than their wooden ones, in my opinion.
 
Swampfoxoutdoors said:
Looking for a machete for general camping and bush crafting. ....... Along with heavy briers and thickets. I was wondering which length, style, and brand of machete will best suit my needs.
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FortyTwoBlades said:
I personally tend to opt for 20-24" blades but I'm very familiar with using long blades so it feels natural to me. 18" is long enough for very serious work but not so long that a novice will have trouble controlling it.
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I'm gonna echo 42. If you're actually going to cut into brambles then it's length you want. Minimum 20" blade. My current favorite is a 22" but I've only recently acquired a 26" and haven't had a chance to play with it yet. I suspect it will replace the 22" as my go to machete.

I clear a lot of blackberries here in the NW (Himalayan blackberry and evergreen blackberry). For this work you want to clear a semisphere in front of you just for your own protection from the thorns. The larger that semisphere the less you get bit by thorns. If I go out with an 18" then I come back with bloody arms.

And the 22" is much more powerful for cutting poles and clearing limbs.
 
One more thing - use a lanyard. Keep that tool with you. Don't even think of not using a lanyard if there are other people or pets in the vicinity. A good lanyard increases blade speed and adds power.
 
Personally I find lanyards nothing but trouble. If you're too tired to securely hold your machete, it's a sign you need a break. The very worst accidents happen when the operator is fatigued.
 
Perhaps you use a lanyard differently than I do. I size the lanyard so that my hand slips through easily and I have to give it a twist or two to get it to length. On some strokes I allow the machete to swing slightly on the lanyard, using the hand just to gently guide it. These are some of my most efficient cutting strokes. I can brush trails for hours like this, alternating between my left and right hands.
 
Square_peg said:
Perhaps you use a lanyard differently than I do. I size the lanyard so that my hand slips through easily and I have to give it a twist or two to get it to length. On some strokes I allow the machete to swing slightly on the lanyard, using the hand just to gently guide it. These are some of my most efficient cutting strokes. I can brush trails for hours like this, alternating between my left and right hands.
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I've used a lanyard just about every way you can imagine. My normal stroke is a rolling snap and extension which uses very little energy and delivers a high powered blow and I can work for many hours without issue. However, if the user becomes so fatigued that they actually require a lanyard in order to safely operate their machete, they shouldn't be using the machete at all. And if the blade somehow gets knocked from your hand it's usually better not to have it essentially lashed to your person, as it could swing around and cut you instead of flying away from the body. In some circumstances it can be used to advantage, but in 99.99% of all situations where I'm using a machete or other chopping tool I do so without a lanyard and make sure my strokes move away from myself and others. :)
 
Has anyone heard of a Victory Guatemala CA. Machete. If so any idea on quality ? . It was a gift
 
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