Thanks for the reply's! Love your feedback!
I have a Tramontina and have used it several times to cut through a fallen tree to make way with an ATV. I have not seen the machete do what your pictures indicate. In fact, I only sharpen it once a year..... for camp work day. It holds up well.
I'm not sure what that means for your bolo. I got my father in law a bolo last year and he loves it...... but I have not seen it since last deer season.
Have read and seen more about using machetes for hard work like chopping wood etc. Was curious to see how that performed.
The edge shouldn't roll like that if it is correctly sharpened. I know because this EXACT situation happened to me trying to cut old, dried blackberries. Crafty, how are you sharpening the bolo?
It's still the factory edge. And used a file to put back a working edge (only a micro bevel). Still planning on reprofiling the edge and handle from the day I received it but didn't have the time yet.
That kinda looks like the factory edge, which is usually really thin and often a bit overheated. Those edges are great on green vegetation and light brush, but on harder stuff they'll do just like yours did. Once they're resharpened and the edges become a bit thicker they're much more durable to abuse, and don't lose out too much on the green stuff.
Correct it is still the factory edge. I was curious how the factory edge would perform without modifying it (and didn't have time yet to modify it). When I took them from the package I already noticed that the edge would be too thin for hard work. I used it first for some light brush etc. For the oak I already had some concerns. So after processing the oak I straightened the edge and sharpened it with a file, already with a higher angle than the factory edge, more like a micro bevel. For the Douglas fir I didn't expect such a damage, especially not more damage than what I experienced with the oak. The Douglas branches were much thinner (also green/fresh) and the wood is softer.
So getting edge damage doing harder work with the thin factory edge didn't surprise me a lot. Also valuable in my opinion to learn it's limitations. What did surprise me is that the bolo machete had all this edge damage and the bush machete didn't have any edge damage at all. Both had the same thin factory edge and processed the same wood. This is what made me think, why is there a difference?
Of all the many jungle knives in the world , they all have different uses. I used to have a fine book about the WWII Burma campaign [don't lend knives or books ] .The auther was there and one whole chapter was devoted to knives . They carried many types for many purposes. For heavy work, bamboo etc they used a kukri but they also had an ax. Yes your machete is for light cutting . Dried hardwoods can be difficult ,such as oak. Typical machete use is light stuff and they are sharpened with a file .
The oak branch was still green with leaves, but I wasn't too much surprised finding some edge damage. I think it was about 4" in diameter.
The Douglas fir branches were below 1.5" and caused the edge damage you see in the photo's. I didn't expect that the green douglas branches would cause more damage than oak.
Currently trying to see what I can and can't use these machetes for. And I fully support your statement don't lend knives! Learned it the hard way!
Agreed. I was a land surveyor for about a decade and used machetes almost every day. I have chopped everything from a snake to solid oak and everything in between. Your edge is "too sharp" AKA too thin at the edge for the work you are doing with it. If you want to clean light brush and wetlands type foliage you would be good to go.
If you want to chop hardwood you will need to reduce that edge and give the blade more support directly behind the edge. If it still rolls over you might have a faulty or improperly heat treated blade.
Also something to consider is sharpening one edge more than the other. I worked with a guy for years who kept his edge much deeper on one side than the other. It was around a 70/30 split with the edge deeper on the right side (he was right handed) and it worked very well for him. I tried it and honestly didn't prefer it, but I mention it here because it's just another thing to try and see if it's for you.
I have seen a 9" diameter oak tree felled with a machete. It took a while and a few breaks to sharpen it, but it never rolled and the machete was in service for years after that.
Thanks, interesting thought to create an uneven edge. Might give it a try. I will definately reprofile it to make the edge more durable.
Oh you can chop down trees with machetes. It just takes longer than with a dedicated chopping tool like an axe. Tramontina factory bevels do sometimes come on the thin side, though, which I think compounded with less-than-ideal technique to cause this issue. Small diameter branches concentrate the force being applied due to their smaller radius and I think there was some twisting force due to poor edge alignment. The two combined to torque out the thin edge.
Just hammer it flat and file out any remaining damage and you'll be back in business.
P.S. You're totally right about the trees/scythes thing. Even with a stout snath and a heavy bush blade I wouldn't want to tackle saplings thicker than 1" or so.
Already flattened it again with a hammer, thats what I did after the oak test too
Need only some time to reprofile it now. And I fully agree in that dedicated tools are more efficient (I'm used to bring an axe and saw), but I'm testing and searching the limitations (limitations with respect to efficiency, but also what abuse can it still take without damaging it). And since these Tramontinas are not expensive I can push the limitations a bit further. Trying to learn a lot
Good point about the diameter of the branch!
And good one about the scythe, wouldn't even come in my mind to try that. Haha, my scythe is the largest blade I currently own
Still wondering why the bolo machete got all this edge damage and the bush machete didn't have any edge damage at all after performing the same tasks.
