Short survival machete ****Large pics****

RR handle forces the wrist to bend the wrong way. Tape your box cutter blade to frt of the proto to simulate the chisel - ouch (please don't, added to provoke thought).

Steve
(ps, I'll check out your bot next)
 
I know what you mean but as long as you can use the saw side 2 handed (left thumb through the front and right hand partiality on the grip) i think it would work well.

I was think about the sencond design and came up with this:
2011-06-28_16-29-04_821.jpg

For thoughts of you who cant read my terrible hand writing in this iteration of the design the saw is just a hacksaw blade. I have yet to cad it so I don't know if the physics holds up
Do yall think that this would be a good idea?

-Frank the Tank
 
Sorry Frank, I just don't see the utility of that design. There are competing/conflicting design elements that would keep it from excelling as a cutting tool.

Seriously examine and use currently made high performancep cutting tools from each genre - a Silky saw, a bolo/golok/kukri, etc. Look and see what common design elements they may have and try to integrate them, while discarding conflicting. Its going to be tough or impossible to create a multi purpose tool that excels at the various tasks you ask of it. Honestly, if a blade has enough mass to chop, and the right profile, I would not want a saw/axe edge on the back. It almost precludes secondary uses such as batoning and use as a draw knife

Keep thinking outside the box, tho, which is good, and thx for putting your ideas out there.
 
Frank, You've stirred the pot pretty well and got everyone thinking.

And I'm thinking your original design reminds me of the Russian Spetsnaz machete. It even has holes in the blade, though not as large as in your design.

I have a question of others about the angle of the handle to the blade. There are several chopper type knives with angled handles. For instance the kukri, and the Gerber parang. Are these anomalies or have some sort of specialized function that lets them get away with the handles angled to the cutting edge?

- Paul Meske, Wisconsin
 
Angled handles suit me fine. Angled up they promote slashing and drawcuts, down they promote chopping. My issue was with the last two designs handle angle. Ymmv. ;~)
 
Hi Frank , I'm trying to send you a email but I can't find the option to do it so I'll ask you here. Could you make a design on SolidWorks of a loveless drop point style hunter and email the file to me? I got SolidWorks and am trying a few of the tutorials but would like a knife to play around with. I don't know how hard it would be to do for someone who knows what their doing . If it's time consuming or a pain never mind.

Thanks
 
Frank, sorry I had meant to follow up on my first post (because usually "constructive criticism" without following up with some ideas or advice works out to just being a dick :o :eek: ;))... But I get the feeling from your other posts that we're probably just on a different path altogether when it comes to designs and such--- so we'd probably just be speaking a different language on it all anyhow.

Sometimes, I appear to forget that there are no designated roads for the path of a knife maker, and if everybody went down the same path---we'd all be making the same knife.

Sorry if I seemed too harsh with my first post.

Good luck with this stuff... it's a frustrating but awesome hobby/job/addiction! :) :thumbup: :cool:
 
Hi guys,

I came up with this design last night and CADed it today i think it deals with most of the issues that were brought up.
machete.jpg

the grove in the handle is so you can securely lash a pair of branches to the machete to turn it into a pick/hammer. i think this configuration could be a bit unwieldy but i think it would be useful, do yall?
blade%20and%20tang.JPG


Duffy99,
Here you go:
loveless%20drop%20point%20style%20hunter%20render.jpg

solid works file:
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/3207174/loveless%20drop%20point%20style%20hunter.SLDPRT
PDF of pattern:
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/3207174/loveless%20drop%20point%20style%20hunter.PDF

Let me know if the geometry is off I have never gotten to play with one of these blades but I think it looks good.

-Frank the Tank
 
Cool looking stuff...

I would mill out the designs if you have the capability and see how they feel in the hand and work in the field. That will tell you very quickly if they are practical. I don't even think you have to grind a bevel in or anything, just try swinging it and that sort of thing, test the ergonomics.

Just my opinion but I think that handle is going to do in your wrist and the square pommel looks cool but is going to trash your palm fast. Knives that saw on one side are always a compromise, one I wouldn't want to make. I don't want to tell you to ditch the idea, I really think you should keep at it... it could be something new and useful.

Keep up the great work!
 
You seem to have a preference for squared off corners instead of rounded edges. Personally, I think curved edges would make the tool more comfortable to use and more effective.
 
tryppyr said:
You seem to have a preference for squared off corners instead of rounded edges. Personally, I think curved edges would make the tool more comfortable to use and more effective.
Click to expand...

I don't really know if there is any increased functionality with a rounded blade but i do know that making a rounded edge on a mill is more work (and skill than I have) than a square edge.

-Frank the Tank
 
That is pretty much exactly what I was talking about.
The only issue with the full skeletonized blade is that it will be a poor choice for batoning. Since the back is a full sawback, the point is mostly moot.
My only constructive modification, thus, would be to stop the cutout 4"" back from the tip, and make the last 4" of the spine plain (no saw teeth). That way you would have a smooth place to baton the knife. I am willing to bet you baton the knife ten times as often as you saw something with it. It will also baton far better than it will saw anything.
 
Sawteeth on a knife look cool, and that's all they're good for*. If you want function, go with Stacy's advice about leaving a flat (or slightly crowned) area on the spine near the tip for batonning. Then instead of big teeth, put a fairly steep, single bevel on the rest of the spine and serrate it for cutting fibrous material. That might work pretty well... I think. Let me know, I just may try that myself :)

*in the interest of full disclosure, I'm just about to ship not one but two large knives with humungous "sawteeth" on them. In my defense, the client understands their level of usefulness and intends the knives to be basically wallhangers anyway.
 
Frank Lima said:
Hi guys,

I came up with this design last night and CADed it today i think it deals with most of the issues that were brought up.
machete.jpg

the grove in the handle is so you can securely lash a pair of branches to the machete to turn it into a pick/hammer. i think this configuration could be a bit unwieldy but i think it would be useful, do yall?
blade%20and%20tang.JPG


Duffy99,
Here you go:
loveless%20drop%20point%20style%20hunter%20render.jpg

solid works file:
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/3207174/loveless%20drop%20point%20style%20hunter.SLDPRT
PDF of pattern:
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/3207174/loveless%20drop%20point%20style%20hunter.PDF

Let me know if the geometry is off I have never gotten to play with one of these blades but I think it looks good.

-Frank the Tank
Click to expand...

Much appreciated , thanks!

The tang is tapered but I'm not going to nitpick someone going out of there way to help , this is a great start for me to work with. I have no CAD experience whatsoever so SolidWorks is a lot to learn , once again thanks.
 
Flat spot on back and smaller pommel:
machete%202.jpg


Let me know what yall think.

Duffy99 if you can get me lots of pics of loveless drop point style hunter with a ruler next to them I could improve the CAD dramatically.

-Frank the Tank

Edit:
My saw teeth are intended to be fully functional milled teeth.
machete%20saw.jpg
 
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That is much better.
Make two, and I will test one for you.

My only other observation is that the end digging/prying bevel is too shallow. It should be a higher angle than the edge, not lower. (I just noticed this)
I would make it straight across from the corner bevel.
 
I'm going to really cornfuse you by giving two completely opposite stances on your design.

Quite honestly... I hate them all. Ha! You are trying to pack too much into what should be a simple tool. It is too dangerous. You call it a survival tool... in perfect conditions you may get away with only a few self-inflicted injuries. When cold, wet, hungry, injured, blinded... you are asking for trouble with that meat grinder. Simple, no-nonsense, "blades for dummies" is what you want when the chips are down. What if you are seriously hurt and someone from your treking party or a passer-by has to use your tool? It shouldn't need an instruction manual or be intimidating at all... when you are nervous, scared or disoriented you want simple, safe, solid.

There, that was Hyde.... Jekyll says...

Quite honestly... What Hyde thinks really doesn't matter. There are plenty of folks that would see your designs as "perfect". People criticise the WSK Tracker, ATAX, Hawk's Hellion, etc... yet there are individuals using them as we speak. Pay attention to ergonomics, safety, form and function... and have at it. Plus I think the design looks cool!

Rick
 
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Frank Lima said:
My saw teeth are intended to be fully functional milled teeth.
Click to expand...

Not to be a smart alec, but how much experience do you actually have with hand tools, specifically saws? What you pictured is sort of like a rasp, but it's certainly not a saw. Take a look at the "teeth" on a USAF pilot's survival knife: they are of zero use for actually sawing, but do a reasonable job of making square-bottomed notches - about to the depth of the teeth, at which point they simply clog up, and the blade binds in the material.

I don't mean to be discouraging, but it seems to me like you're building a tool around your software capabilities, not aiming your design strategy to an intended use. Of course I could certainly be wrong, the only way to find out is to build a couple and test them..
 
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