Well, Thanks to Rick and Cheryl of CR Specialties, I got my Becker Patrol Machete this afternoon. My first impression, upon seeing the knife box was "Man, that's gotta be a damn big knife." I opened the box and there it was, an awesome looking piece of craftsmanship that was screaming "Use Me, Use Me!!!" The box was a little misleading, because on opening it, I found the Patrol Machete to be perfectly sized and comfortable to wield. I tested the edge on my forearm and it promptly removed a patch of hair about 2.5" in diameter, the edge was razor sharp along it's entire length with very even grind lines.
On the way home, I stopped at one of my hunting spots to do a quick test with this incredible blade. On woody saplings and dead wood, performance was great. Deep cuts, clean and neat, with a relatively big and easy to hit with sweet spot. 1" saplings severed with one blow. On pithy vines and briars, it routinely cut them almost all the way thru, but they gave at the last fraction of a second and basically folded over on the cuts. I chopped away for about 45 minutes, ungloved, and had no problems with discomfort in the arm or hand, and no hot spots from the grip. Testing the edge after that workout, it still shaves hair readily with absolutely no evidence of chipping or rollover.
The only thing I personally didn't like completely was the sheath. The sheath is reinforced nylon and it fits around the grip perfectly and snaps tight and secure. However, the blade fits into the sheath kind of sloppily? (is that a word?) and it rattles quite a bit. I'm sure the sheath could be restitched to tighten it down on the blade somewhat to minimize this rattle.
Overall, I'm happier than a bush hog in **** with this blade. It's perfect for my applications.
My digicam isn't performing up to specs, so I'll try to post a few pics later tonight or tomorrow.
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It's not the pace of life that concerns me, It's the sudden stop at the end.
On the way home, I stopped at one of my hunting spots to do a quick test with this incredible blade. On woody saplings and dead wood, performance was great. Deep cuts, clean and neat, with a relatively big and easy to hit with sweet spot. 1" saplings severed with one blow. On pithy vines and briars, it routinely cut them almost all the way thru, but they gave at the last fraction of a second and basically folded over on the cuts. I chopped away for about 45 minutes, ungloved, and had no problems with discomfort in the arm or hand, and no hot spots from the grip. Testing the edge after that workout, it still shaves hair readily with absolutely no evidence of chipping or rollover.
The only thing I personally didn't like completely was the sheath. The sheath is reinforced nylon and it fits around the grip perfectly and snaps tight and secure. However, the blade fits into the sheath kind of sloppily? (is that a word?) and it rattles quite a bit. I'm sure the sheath could be restitched to tighten it down on the blade somewhat to minimize this rattle.
Overall, I'm happier than a bush hog in **** with this blade. It's perfect for my applications.
My digicam isn't performing up to specs, so I'll try to post a few pics later tonight or tomorrow.
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It's not the pace of life that concerns me, It's the sudden stop at the end.
