- Joined
- Sep 9, 2005
- Messages
- 4,363
A new Collins? They went under in 1965. At least the ones made in CT did. Some were made under license in Guatemala and elsewhere. But they still turn up now and then. When I used machetes at work, we always used the Collins. You could get them at any good hardware store. We never broke any, but some were "liberated" by the workers. I have always preferred the Collins to all other machetes. Not as heavy or brittle as the Ontarios, but more rigid and heavier than the comparably sized Tramontinas and Imacasas, they were "just right" to me. Just enough flex and tough steel. I found some new Collins 14" machetes on ebay and got two. The vendor only had six.
The first thing you notice is the heft. The Collins 14" weighs 14 oz, compared to 10.5 oz for the Imacasa. It is nearly as heavy as the Bark River KSF Custom, which is a cut down and convexed Ontario 18" machete. The Barkie weighs 15 oz. The Collins is just a bit thicker than the Imacasa, about 1/16".
The Ontario, which started at 1/8" is slimmed to about 3/32".
The Collins chops hard wood just a bit easier than the Imacasa, but the Bark River chops best of the three.
All three are great for slashing vegetation, which is what machetes do best. I like the feel of the Collins best.
The Collins chops, batons, slices, and can even do fuzz sticks with a good edge. Wildman is making me a leather sheath for it. Best of all, the Collins was not expensive at all.
The first thing you notice is the heft. The Collins 14" weighs 14 oz, compared to 10.5 oz for the Imacasa. It is nearly as heavy as the Bark River KSF Custom, which is a cut down and convexed Ontario 18" machete. The Barkie weighs 15 oz. The Collins is just a bit thicker than the Imacasa, about 1/16".
The Ontario, which started at 1/8" is slimmed to about 3/32".
The Collins chops hard wood just a bit easier than the Imacasa, but the Bark River chops best of the three.
All three are great for slashing vegetation, which is what machetes do best. I like the feel of the Collins best.
The Collins chops, batons, slices, and can even do fuzz sticks with a good edge. Wildman is making me a leather sheath for it. Best of all, the Collins was not expensive at all.
