Machete Question

I would say stay away from cold steels machete's unless you want something that is very soft. If you want something soft, then they are very inexpensive :D

I have had 3 machetes by them, all of wich came with dented edges. upon use, all of them dented out readily.

tramontina and martindale are both great companies.

Condor uses 420hc, not 420js. I have not used them, but they look like they would be good if the heat treat holds up from blade to blade.

Himalayan imports is a great company if your doing certain types of work. If you intend on doing very light clearing, such as grasses - you may want to look into a thinner type machete since HI doesn't really make anything thats large thinner then 3/16" thick, unless its a specialized sword like the napoleon saber. If your looking to do light to moderate clearing of wood something like an 15-18" sirupate would be excellent. If your looking for heavy chopping, they have a wonderful range of 15-25" heavy choppers.

That being said, if your willing to do a really keen edge sharpen/reprofile, you could do pretty well with a 15" sirupate and light grasses, but you'd have to get it pretty acute (reprofile past the first blade grind bevel). They are a great company with great products.

If you can rehandle your own machete's, I'd echo the recommendations on trying to find an old carbon machete. You get to use a peice of history, and though you cant know how well the blade is heat treated till you have it, you can find a few superb gems for incredibly cheap prices.
 
I knew this was the right place to come!

I am leaning towards a Martindale,
he wants the hook end to get fruit out of trees, But still wants to wail on Banana trees. They also have Typhoons...

Guyon, I knew you liked Beckers,
but now I have to wonder where you are storing all this edged weoponry?:eek:
Excellent pictures.....maybe I should get one for me while I am at it?:D

I was looking at the HI imports, Noticed quite a following here on BF
The thought also crossed my mind that I might get him 3 different Cold Steel models.....They are disposeable!

That Sheffield looks like it has a lot of miles left in it!!!
I have been on the Bay looking for oldies like that....

Thanks all for getting me going in the right direction.
Will post a Pic of what I send:thumbup: :thumbup:
 
A battle mistress makes a pretty fine machete! I prefer a big knife over a machete for everything except small vines or brambles. The Ka-Bar cutlass/ "machete" is an excellent big knife for those on a budget. You can chop through more easily through thicker branches etc. with a big knife than you can with machete, in my experience.
 
I had a woodsman's pal and I never could get the hang of using the hook on the thin grass around the heat pump where we used to live. I think part of the problem was the grass was too thin. If you go with the woodsman's pal, I'd recommend the long handed one. I've still got a couple of Ontario's (18" sawback and 12" Blackie Collins with D guard). Both have been beat like red headed step children. The handle is loose on the 12", but the 18" has held up well. Both have some horrid chips in the edge from chopping into rocks & such:o I haven't tried one of the Gerber bush hooks, but I've been serioulsy tempted more than once.

If you can afford it get the long handled woodsman's pal, if you want to go cheaper, try the Warden Machete from Onatrio, or just the standard 18". The saw back isn't as useless as you'd think, but does require a little more care when unsheathing.

GregB
 
moonwilson said:
A battle mistress makes a pretty fine machete!
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He is one of those people who doesn't realize they need the best.
When the next Huricane (typhoon) blows through, he will wish he had taken one of these of my hands:eek:
DSCN0398.jpg
 
I like the Woodman's Pal.
but I don't think it is long enough...
and he wants a little Mall Ninja effect:D
 
steelnut said:
He is one of those people who doesn't realize they need the best.
When the next Huricane (typhoon) blows through, he will wish he had taken one of these of my hands:eek:
DSCN0398.jpg
Click to expand...

Oh yeah! I forgot about the AK. That has to be the ultimate "machete"!
 
Jeff Clark said:
Is he your average American WASP who just happens to be posted to Guam or is he an islander who has a reasonable idea of what works on Guamanian vegetation? ]
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Missed your question...

He is a WASP, but has been there for 7 years now.
I can't believe the Nicholson is $5.99:eek: :eek:
 
The Nicholsons used to be made in an old Collins plant in Colombia. I'm not sure since I can't find any locally. I have a Colombian Collins and it is just as good as the old US manufactured models. The Collins blades were made from a harder alloy than most machetes (around 1075 or 1085 carbon steel).
 
Growing up on Guam meant that a machete was a normal tool used almost everyday or at least weekly. With the type of vegetation from the Busse line the best blades for use would be the BM or a SH. The AK is a great blade but a little too long for all round use in the jungle, not to mention when cutting wood for a BBQ or to clear brush with both thick trees and small vines I would rather have the BM or SH. Also try trimming a coconut while holding it in your hand with an AK and it could be a difficult task.
 
steelnut said:
I like the Woodman's Pal.
but I don't think it is long enough...
and he wants a little Mall Ninja effect:D
Click to expand...

I tried the Woodsman's Pal... the long version. I despised it. :o It just didn't work for me. Tramontinas seem good for the money. I think goloks (at least the BRKT version) would be okay for small cane but not enough length for grasses.

Really, I'm the furthest thing from a machete expert. I saw lots of 'em around the sugar cane fields of northern Belize. :p

I would take a look, if possible, at the Woodsman Pal in person before I ordered one. Do a search on the forums here - I think most people had the same experience I did.

Good luck! (I always wondered about the Becker Patrolman Machete too.)
 
Paddling_man said:
Good luck! (I always wondered about the Becker Patrolman Machete too.)
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An excellent choice. It's the big long one right in the middle of this pic (8th from the left, 7th from the right).

BeckerUsers.jpg


Great carbon steel and a solid cutter for brush and even small saplings up to an inch or so.

Problem is... they're selling for $180 to $200 now that Camillus went under. You could buy at least 30 Tramontinas for that amount and never run out of spares. :D
 
steelnut said:
I knew this was the right place to come!

I am leaning towards a Martindale,
he wants the hook end to get fruit out of trees, But still wants to wail on Banana trees. They also have Typhoons...
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Daren Cutsforth is a good source for the Martindales. There look to be at least a couple here with an upswept hook.

http://www.cutsforthknives.com/catalogs/1/MM.htm

However, his site is not working properly as far as I can tell. If you email Daren with model numbers, I'm sure he can give you prices.
 
hehehe... I forgot to add - if you have a limitless spending budget -

bark river makes 2 nice ones if you can find them, tho I cant remember the names at the moment... and theres always hossom :D not great on wood inclusions and small rocks - but insane on light wood thats clean and clear.

the ruck would be pretty dang awesome, but I'm not sure what the balance is like having never handled one, so i'm not sure how well it would do for actual machete work.

I bet you could get bill seigle to make you something incredible :D:D His work is always impressive.

dervish knives also makes some nice high end long blades

and theres always mineral mountain hatchet works if you dont mind half heigth hollow grinds.
 
Oh, Guyon is a twisted puppy, no doubt! I think Ethan Becker sends Guyon cards on his birthday and anniversary.
 
Paddling_man said:
Oh, Guyon is a twisted puppy, no doubt! I think Ethan Becker sends Guyon cards on his birthday and anniversary.
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I wish. I've tried to find contact info for Ethan before, and I looked out for him at Blade, to no avail (he was there). I have a few questions for him.

steelnut said:
WOW....they look heavily influenced by my favorite knife maker;)
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The BK-5 is a Jerry Fisk design. As for the rest, I think Ethan is the primary designer. Not positive though. See, I do have questions...

steelnut said:
Went with the Martindale!
28 inch blade, top in picture.
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That is a looooonnngg blade. You won't even have to stoop to cut brush! Give us a report in this thread when it arrives.

Tony G said:
That is sick!!!:D
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No, this is sick. Think of all the Busses I could have bought.

BeckerGroup.jpg
 
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