Martindale Golok Knife?

K Williams

K Williams

Joined
Nov 17, 1998
Messages
3,317
Has anyone used the Martindale Golok knife(British issue jungle knife)? Do you recommend it for survival use? Thanks in advance.

 
They are known as "tree beaters" in the British SAS, as they only seem to beat the tree up, instead of cutting it down, hence the popularity of the khukhri with the SAS. Andy Mcnab wrote about it in his second book.
 
If you sharpen 1 up before you use it they're a pretty good knife. The edge they arrive with is pretty lousy.Just work the edge with a newer file and you should be cutting with the best of them in about 15 minutes.
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Bill Siegle
was4u@cs.com

Bill Siegle Custom Knives
http://www.geocities.com/siegleknives
Camp and Japanese Styled Knives a Specialty
 
I have found that with a little work on the edge mine works fine.

It is not a modern super blade, but it is far more that most indigenous people have.

The canvas sheath sucks.

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Thank you,
Marion David Poff aka Eye mdpoff@hotmail.com

My website, guided links, talonite/cobalt alloy info, etc....
http://www.geocities.com/mdpoff

>>--->Bill Siegle Custom Knives<---<<
-http://www.geocities.com/siegleknives-

"To wait for luck is the same as waiting for death." -Japanese Proverb

"Place you clothes and weapons where you can find them in the dark." -Lazarus Long

"We cut things to create things" - James K Mattis
 
The new Goloks have a much better edge from the factory than
the older ones.Very easy to make razor sharp with very little
touch up. The sheath is not the greatest but holds a file and
keeps it at the ready for duty.
 
are you talking about the golok or the current issue jungle knife?

the new jungle knife got a rave review in tk magazine from jeff randall.

cheers, sargey.
 
That was a great article, sargey. In fact, I just re-read it the other day. Jeff definitely raved about the new #4, although he received both a new Golok and the #4 for eval. The #4 got the bulk of the ink, though; about the only mention of the Golok was that he liked the factory edges of both knives, and that they would each easily cut manilla rope. Unfortunately, he didn't do any chopping tests with the Golok, or at least they didn't get printed.

I've seen Goloks in quite a few pictures of British troops and their field gear, but never handled one. After seeing that gorgeous Martindale, though, I just may have to get me one. Kind of a weird tip, though. Probably great for digging, but not for much else. Like I "need" another knife.

sargey, about how thick is the Golok? Please, not in metric, though. I is a poor dumb 'Merican that flunked metric in high school. :~}
 
Hi Guys, The Golok has a carbon blade that has a heavy Distal taper like the "jungle knife" . Thickness is .170 at the handle and tapers to about .090 at the tip. This process makes it lighter and faster but more expensive to produce. I find that using the lanyard you can lower your grip and increase chopping power. The "jungle knife almost has a ball on the end of the handle that really gives you something to hang onto. A lanyard in mandatory .

Take care,
Daren www.cutsforthknives.com
 
CUTSFORTH,Is that a sticker on the black blade blade or is that picture painted on.They definetly look like they are blades for abuse,how well do they hold a edge.And are they just for chopping can they do delicate work also,like cleaning game etc.Im interested.
 
Featherstone, The blades are medium to high carbon steel and
hold an edge yet sharpen easily with the file. Really only a
butchers steel is all I use to line up the edge once in a while.
No need to remove any more metal than you have to. Check out
Feb 2002 Knives Illustrated magazine for an article by Rod Halvorsen
on the knife with the black blade you asked about. The Martindale Paratrooper www.cutsforthknives.com
 
I like those prices, cutsforth. I just may place an order with you in the near future. I like the Golok especially, but have a question. Is the sheath ambidextrous, or can it be made to be used left handed? Being a leftie, it's always hard to find a good sheath. And how heavy duty is the cordura sheath that the Golok comes with? The more I see that knife, the more I *need* another big chopper. And that long "ricasso" in front of the handle seems tailor made for choking up on the blade for fine work.
 
V Shrake, The sheath is right hand carry and not real heavy
duty. But for about five bucks you can buy a piece of Kydex
from a knifemaker supply and make your own custom left hand
sheath real easy. This is a great project for when cabin fever sets in.
Bill Siegle lives in Oregon also and makes some really great
Kydex sheaths for his knives. I think he told me he was going to make one for his Golok. Bill are you out there.....We wanna see that sheath
 
Here you go:D I'd not got around to it and decided to get my butt in gear tonight after seeing the post. I love this knife/machete. It held it's edge in the little bit of testing I've done so far. Definitely on the "must have" list! The sheath is green kydex with a Tek Loc. I've drilled holes to add another tek loc to attach the Golok to the side of my ruck.1 high and 1 low. All in all a very simple design. I used a filler of cardboard when molding to leave some clearance in the thinner section of the blade so it won't bind on the draw.Let me know whatcha think but please don't ask me to make em. I really don't have the time to take on another project right now.
 
Bill, Sorry to put you on the spot like that, but that is a great sheath. Im not up to date on the tec-lok. Is that part of the design molded at the top. Anyway, you have inspired me to order a 4' x 8' sheet of .090 kydex today so I can give it a try. Also I should have some field grade folders done in a couple weeks if you still want one.

Take care,
Daren Cutsforth
 
Thanks for the replies, cutsforth and Bill. I've actually got a bit of Concealex and a couple of Tek-Locks from a fellow forumite, so a "custom" sheath would be do-able. Of course, I'm still in the process of learning how to use this stuff.

Bill, the sheath looks great! The OD plastic really sets off the wooden handle of the Golok. And after reading yet another glowing bit of praise for the knife, I guess I'll have to start saving. About the Tec-Lock. It appears that you've only attached it along one edge of the sheath. Is it stable? I was planning on having 3 attachment points (screws in this case), but it would be easier to just attach the Tec-Lock to the side if it holds up pretty well.

I've seen quite a few pictures of the Golok in the "Combat and Survival" book series, and that got me interested in them. Once I got on-line and found out how easy it is to get all sorts of great blades from all over the world, I haven't had much "discretionary" money left lying around. :~}
 
nothing on TV tonight so I made one up for my Paratrooper too. Here is a scan showing the Tek Loc. It is bolted on to just the one side but I've never had any problems with this arrangement.Daren definitely looking foward to one of those blades of yours:D Take care.
 
Hi Bill,
I made up a couple sheaths and they came out great, I copied
your design so they look pretty much like yours. Im still waiting
for my Tec-locs to arrive. I should be able to offer these for a very good price to go with the Martindales. I still need to design one for the "jungle knife" but that should be pretty easy also.
Just one question on molding Kydex, Do you use neoprene on boards and clamp in the vise or what ? I used some thick terry cloth and stood on it for a few, then used a heatgun to mold for the nice fit. But I like the idea of letting the vise do all the work and get a real nice
fitting sheath.

Take care,
Daren Cutsforth


www.cutsforthknives.com
 
I grab an old towel and fold it so it has 3-4 layers on each side. I heat the kydex , fold it over the blade,and put it between the layers and press down on it for about 3-4 minutes. Meybe not fancy , but it gets the job done:)
 
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