Q for ESEE fans; Hatchet, machete, or big blade?

It really depends on what area you are going into. For me living in a desert area the Ax is pretty much a waste. A machete or chopper makes more sense. I prefer a Bolo machete to a chopper most of the time. Most of would i would need to chop would be brush.

That being said if you live in a area with a lot of large hardwoods i could see an ax being a great choice.
 
I live in Michigan and have never really needed a machete, not to say they are use less or anything, there is just not a lot of brush. I carry a small camp axe. I find I get a lot more use out of it and is generally as light or lighter than a chopper. IMO I'll take a axe everytime.

Matt
 
I've begun to appreciate how much my Becker BK10 will do. I usually don't take more of a chopper than that, and I've never felt limited like I sometimes do with a hatchet....
 
gundude73 said:
i have used my machete for various tasks, and it has done everything i needed it to. even going through small trees. i think the hatchet might be too heavy, but will get the job done quicker. the big blade would probably work very well. so YMMV. but right now i am likin my machete.
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This is truth, and what I've been preaching for years. :thumbup:

A machete provides the very best versatility per pound of any tool out there. While it won't split wood or fell trees as fast as an axe (and I think that a machete used properly will fell trees faster than a hatchet) it will certainly still do both while being capable of a slew of other tasks as well. They work great in the north--not just the south. :cool:
 
I believe the hatchet or small axe are the best survival tool. Time is precious when it gets dark/cold/rainy, as is energy and tools' reliability. I find the hatchet more effective (and thus less fatigueing) and generally more reliable than both large knives and machetes. I would take the hatchet for sure.
 
chenko said:
I believe the hatchet or small axe are the best survival tool. Time is precious when it gets dark/cold/rainy, as is energy and tools' reliability. I find the hatchet more effective (and thus less fatigueing) and generally more reliable than both large knives and machetes. I would take the hatchet for sure.
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I may be way off base here, but in my experience if a machete is fatiguing you more than a hatchet then you're doing something wrong.:o
 
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Whatever works. I've got an Estwing 19" Camper's Axe in the trunk of my car. They're $40 something dollars, so if it grows feet and walks off, you can pick up another at the next hardware store down the road.
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
I may be way off base here, but in my experience if a machete is fatiguing you more than a hatchet/axe then you're doing something wrong.:o
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Fixed it fur ya. . .


That being said, it depends on what he's doing and where he lives.

If it's hardwoods, or larger pieces of wood, I'd through it way faster and with less fatigue using an axe than with a machete. If you're dealing with smaller diameter and softer woods or vines, etc, then the machete shines.
 
shotgunner11 said:
While this is very true, there are alot of things that a axe or hatchet can't do at all like brush clearing.

Alot of this has to do with your location. Here in the deep, deep, deep south I almost never encounter hardwoods. A machete or a chopper can blaze through most of the firewood we use here.

Up north where there's less brush and more hardwood, an axe makes alot of sense.
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Hit the nail on the head - it absolutely depends where you are.


In the northeast brush clearing is not an issue and I don't think I would ever see the point of packing a machete.

My gerber sportsman saw is always in my pack even on day hikes - it literally weighs the same as the Izula with sheath and can do a lot!

I do also choose to carry a hatchet for trips more than a few nights or if I'm in a more remote place - either the Wetterlings Small Axe (11"), Large Hunting Axe (20") or S&N Pen Bay (20") reworked by Brian Andrews. They all weigh less than 2 LBS.

With that said, the hatchet is very rarely used and is more of a "comfort" item - I usually have a large fixed blade on me too (6"-8") that sees almost all of the wood cutting detail I ever need - there is usually always enough wood already on the ground up here in the northeast that we get off easy with harvesting...



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All 3 have their uses - the issue is differentiation.

Cool factor aside, is there a way that ESEE could improve a hatchet over a Wetterlings at their price point? Many people (likely not on this forum!) just get a cheap-o at China-mart or the dollar store and hack away...

Machetes are great for what they do, but have some limitations - how can ESEE improve the basic design?

Big knife is, well, a BIG knife. There is always a market for these.

Why not a kukri? How about a tanto?

I would enjoy ESEE expanding its product line as much as anyone else here - I just wonder how they could markedly improve the product and keep the cost competitive.
 
tarditi said:
All 3 have their uses - the issue is differentiation.

Cool factor aside, is there a way that ESEE could improve a hatchet over a Wetterlings at their price point? Many people (likely not on this forum!) just get a cheap-o at China-mart or the dollar store and hack away...
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Not really. The axe is so old, it's pretty much perfected. A Gransfors with far outshine a Tru-Temper, but they are the same basic design, one just refined further in the details.

tarditi said:
Machetes are great for what they do, but have some limitations - how can ESEE improve the basic design?
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Same here, the machete (and its derivatives) are so old they are pretty much perfected in design. What kills them is the cheap sh*tty third world manufacturing, specifically in the handles. The ESEE Lite Machete addresses this. The fairly soft steels they use are what you want for toughness, and ease of sharpening, because they are so thin, you will damage the edge and have to fix it. The thinness also means that the various super-steels probably wouldn't be much of an improvement over 1075.

tarditi said:
Big knife is, well, a BIG knife. There is always a market for these.
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Rambo rules.

tarditi said:
Why not a kukri? How about a tanto?
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I've yet to see a western maker produce a decent kukri, and if they made one right, they'd still be way over the price of one sourced from Nepal.

tarditi said:
I would enjoy ESEE expanding its product line as much as anyone else here - I just wonder how they could markedly improve the product and keep the cost competitive.
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I think Mike and Jeff already concluded that they can't make marked improvements and the ESEE line really covers just about anything you would want to do in the woods (buy an axe to do the one thing they don't cover).

I'm happy that they are going to expand the product line to produce other outdoors gear.
 
In Maine we have a wide variety of potential targets to be cleared, ranging from dense grasses all the way up to hardwoods. An axe may work the best on the big trees, but it can't handle the little stuff like thorny and woody stemmed plants. A machete will take out trees and split wood (albeit with more effort than with an axe) but it will also handle everything else. Machetes work great in the woods, especially for the weight. :cool:
 
Of course I didn't mentioned my terrain is the Dolomites. :) You don't do a lot with a machete there. :p Here's a pic I took a couple of months ago, one morning just after coming out of the tarp (it was -15° celsius):
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I like machetes too, but axes more. ;)
 
where i live an axe is king even though most of the forests are just pine by me

i also far prefer an axe for food prep and camp chores over a machete
 
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