Much difference between 12" machetes and 10"chopper knives

[Shotgun]

Just wondering. I'm looking at the ESEE Junglas and Fiddleback machete specifically but I'm wondering what the pros and cons are for knives of this class in general. Either better then the other at anything?

 

[FortyTwoBlades]

Either will serve you well, but I'd take the Fiddleback personally. Thinner and lighter with a more contoured handle. Other than for stiffness, knives really don't need to be that thick to work very well indeed. Either will do just dandy though.

 

[DrivebyTrucker]

If you can't decide between a large and heavy fixed blade or a thin machete, you may want to look at the two machete type thingies that FortytwoBlades has on his website. They're really cool looking.

In the West and especially in the higher elevations, you could usually just move around whatever is in your way. "Leave no trace" as they say.

If I had the Gladius machete, I'd likely have too much fun chopping everything in sight for the sheer enjoyment of it. Also, I'd be tempted to dress as a gladiator and shout lines from "300".

 

[clich]

The difference is weight. If your hacking at vines and brush all day to make your way through then a machete is better. Thinner, lighter, slices through fauna like butter, but you would be better served to carry another small fixed blade for heavy lifting like making camp. If you are looking for something more all around, that's where a large chopper like the junglas comes into play. Its not as contoured as the fiddleback, actually very blocky, but its tough as nails (not that the fiddleback isn't either) also if you plan on using one of these for all camp chores the shorter junglas will serve you better. Or just get both, pay the rent a few days late and make your own review

 

[Shotgun]

The difference is weight. If your hacking at vines and brush all day to make your way through then a machete is better. Thinner, lighter, slices through fauna like butter, but you would be better served to carry another small fixed blade for heavy lifting like making camp. If you are looking for something more all around, that's where a large chopper like the junglas comes into play. Its not as contoured as the fiddleback, actually very blocky, but its tough as nails (not that the fiddleback isn't either) also if you plan on using one of these for all camp chores the shorter junglas will serve you better. Or just get both, pay the rent a few days late and make your own review

Ah snap...get both! I knew that was coming. LOL

To be honest I don't need another blade I just want something new to play with. My use would be a camp tool for kindling and limbing downed branches. Something to use instead of my hawk. I guess the real question should be "Which is more fun?"

 

[FortyTwoBlades]

Well...the Junglas was made just because people WANTED it, not because they NEEDED it...but I'm just hardline biased towards machetes. I'm an addict--what can I say?

 

[wildmanh]

Shotgun, if you are looking for a new "toy" then check out the 12" Fiddleback machetes. The edges are really nice and the handles are amazing! I have 12+ machetes and my 12" Fiddleback has the best handle of them all. It will cut brush and small branches with ease, carve fuzz sticks and even handle some batoning. By the way, Andy annouced today that he has some 12" and 18" Machetes in stock on his website. If you need a sheath, there are some makers both Kydex and Leather that work with Andy and can full fill your needs.

IMO the Junglas is more of a Bowie then a Machete. Would love to have one some day when I have money to burn. Not because I need it (I have plenty of blades in that size range) but because it's a neat knife and I wants it. LOL!! I tend to use Machetes and Khukris more when it comes to knives over 9" long.

 

[remmmm]

Those machetes looks awesome, but the edge isn't going to stand up to a serious batoning session like the Junglas. Big difference in the quality of the steel. IMO - if your going to go for one of the machetes get an 18" and use it only when a machete is the right tool for the job.

 

[FortyTwoBlades]

Those machetes looks awesome, but the edge isn't going to stand up to a serious batoning session like the Junglas. Big difference in the quality of the steel. IMO - if your going to go for one of the machetes get an 18" and use it only when a machete is the right tool for the job.

Actually, I'd argue that it'll hold up just fine under hard batoning. The difference is the Junglas will have more of a wedging action, so it'll split wood a little faster. I've batoned a Cold Steel Barong machete through an entire tree trunk just to see if I could, and the edge was fine afterward. The Imacasa 1075 used in the Fiddlebacks is even better in terms of steel quality and heat treatment than the CS is. There are NOT big differences between the Imacasa 1075 and the Rowen 1095 in my honest opinion. There ARE differences, but they aren't big ones.

 

[1066vik]

I have both the Junglas and a Fiddleback 12" machete.
haven't done a head to head, but the Junglas has weight on it's side for serious chopping while the Fiddleback has possibly the nicest handles of any knife I own.
for clearing brush, chopping small limbs, etc... neither has a cutting advantage, but the machete is lighter so will take longer to make your arm tired.
for processing firewood over 2" diameter, I suspect the Junglas will be more efficient.

personally, I prefer a 16-18" machete for machete type tasks -- and in fact, an 18" machete will section logs as fast or faster than the 10" Junglas. Saw this proved last weekend - 6" pine log section cut through in 45 seconds with a Junglas and 32 seconds with an 18" Imacasa eco/ESEE lite. (2 different people doing the cutting, but still)

 

[FortyTwoBlades]

Yup! I generally like 16"+ for a machete, especially stuff in the 20" range. You really get a lot of chop per pound at those lengths.

 

[kgd]

I guess I tend to agree with FortyTwoBlades on the machete versus thick chopper knife thing. I tend to find the big choppers too heavy to carry for one and second their weight doesn't really translate into that much chopping effectiveness. What machetes lack in weight, they usually make up for in momentum owing to your ability to generate a lot more speed. Secondly, because they are thinner, they tend to sink in more effectively. I haven't ever chopped with a Junglas but I have worked on a Ranger RD-9. In side by side comparisons with the ESEE Light Machete, the machete easily outperformed the RD-9 on similar sized pieces of wood.

But then again it all amounts to how you use your blade. Rick Marchand does a lot more prying actions when he's busting up chunks of wood and therefore a machete isn't as effective for him as a thicker long knife.

 

[Rick Marchand]

But then again it all amounts to how you use your blade. Rick Marchand does a lot more prying actions when he's busting up chunks of wood and therefore a machete isn't as effective for him as a thicker long knife.

Yeah, Ken.... I got one of them "thick ones".

I agree with machete logic. If I lived in a more temperate area with green woods, I would probably be a machete guy. My favorite areas to be are Boreal and frozen for the better part of the year. I haven't been up there for a while now, though... and I'm feeling the itch.... oh wait, wrong itch.

Where I live now could go either way, I think. Carolinian Forests are a pretty good mix where a big knife or machete would both do fine. I choose the big knife because that is where my heart is right now..... 5-6 years ago would have been different and next month could be time to go full Ulu!! I don't get hung up on blades anymore and just use whatever I feel like...... hmmmmmmmmmm.... I feel a Wilderness Rapier creepin' up.:thumbup:


Rick

 

[stabman]

I haven't ever chopped with a Junglas but I have worked on a Ranger RD-9.

I got that RD-9 from you.
The Junglas beats the living hell out of the RD-9, whether chopping, regular cutting, or batonning.
My brother now has the RD-9 (although I want another one now...), but no one is getting my Junglas.:thumbup:
To me, it is the ultimate outdoors tool. It cuts through green vegetation almost as good as a machete, and it chops through wood like a champ. And it has the slicing ability of a thinner knife due to the width of the blade.
Every boy needs to be gifted a Junglas when they reach manhood.

 

[Rick Marchand]

Hey Stabby... that crazy Sinbad Chopper of yours ain't no joke, neither!

 

[stabman]

Hey Stabby... that crazy Sinbad Chopper of yours ain't no joke, neither!

Yeah, I finally got it out into the woods to use, and for chopping it did a bit better than the Junglas.
It wasn't so great on green vegetation, but it did pretty good for knocking those annoying thorn tree branches off, as long as you hit near the base. Trudging through 30 yards of thorn trees isn't fun without something to cut them away with.

 

[kgd]

I got that RD-9 from you.

Yeah I know, that knife is what got me out of my big chopper phase. But hey, you like them so that is all that counts as long as it works for you. Personally, I really ling the `ting, ting sound of a machete draw cutting through stuff!

 

[Shotgun]

Where I live now could go either way, I think. Carolinian Forests are a pretty good mix where a big knife or machete would both do fine. I choose the big knife because that is where my heart is right now..... 5-6 years ago would have been different and next month could be time to go full Ulu!! I don't get hung up on blades anymore and just use whatever I feel like...... hmmmmmmmmmm.... I feel a Wilderness Rapier creepin' up.:thumbup:


Rick

Yeah that about sums it up. Where I live just about anything will do fine and really is more about what you want to play with. I think I may try the Junglas next just because I've never played with chopper knives really. What I can say is Tram machete's don't like hitting fatwood branches.LOL Huge ding in the blade. Fixable but not something you want in a blade that you want to spend the weekend camping with or the dreaded survival scenario. The grind/steel on my Trail Hawk didn't even flinch with limbing the same tree after.

 

[stabman]

Yeah I know, that knife is what got me out of my big chopper phase. But hey, you like them so that is all that counts as long as it works for you. Personally, I really ling the `ting, ting sound of a machete draw cutting through stuff!

This machete won't make any ting sounds:

 

[FortyTwoBlades]

The manufacturer may call that a machete...but I call it a chopping knife.