I had an opportunity to use my villager this past weekend at our camp so here's the review that I had promised Bill. First, as some others had noted, the edges of the butt plate were somewhat sharp; however, it took < 2 min with a sanding drum on a Dremel to eliminate the problem. Sheath work was very good & I had no problem with the blade trying to cut the leather on the draw.
The original edge on the villager was reasonably sharp but could have used a touch up. Nevertheless, I decided to leave it as it was for the purposes of comparison to an Estwing hatchet that also had a less than optimal edge. The third tool I used for my comparison was a CS LTC, albeit with a hair-popping edge.
Thanks to some tree clearing by the electric company, there was more than the usual amount of firewood laying around. All three tools worked really well for limbing off the smaller branches, with both khukris proving easier to maneuver at various angles than the hatchet. I had used a 12" machete for limbing in the past and, although it got the job done, either khukri was much better suited to the task.
One of the downed trees was a cherry that I thought would make a good test object for the tools' chopping ability. I selected a few 3-4" thick pieces and put each of the tools to work cutting off several sections.
The LTC made the deepest cuts, which was not surprising given its sharpness and narrow blade profile. However, it really lodged itself into the wood and had to be backed out several times. (I was reluctant to apply sideways pressure since I didn't want to damage the relatively thin blade.) Because of this tendency to hang-up, it was the poorest overall performer of the three.
The villager also bit pretty deeply but didn't get lodged in and was much better than the LTC at chipping out the wood. Because of the heft of the blade, I didn't hesitate to pry sideways with it a bit as necessary. I was really impressed with this little blade's chopping ability, but would prefer both a longer blade and a longer handle for any prolonged chopping duties.
The Estwing made the shallowest cuts but was the best of the three at throwing chips. I didn't time the cutting exercises or count the number of strokes needed to cut through the wood but my feeling is that the hatchet required fewer strokes and took the least amount of time to complete a cut. Effort, however, is another matter. The hatchet was much more tiring on my hand and wrist than the villager.
The overall chopping performance of villager and hatchet was very close. Although the hatchet was somewhat faster, the khukuri would be my choice of such one-hand tools for prolonged cutting.
BTW, none of the three tools suffered any damage from this moderate workout. I have no way of authoritatively testing their edges, but each seemed about as sharp as when I started -- LTC still popped hair and both others could still scrape it away. I'm not about to give up my Stihl chainsaw, but the villager will take the place of the hatchet in my backpack.
I had thought about cleaning up the villager's grind lines, but will probably leave it as it is with all the character of a tough little beater. I'm looking forward to playing some more next weekend after I put my edge on it.
Now about that khukuri with a longer blade and longer handle...
------------------
Cheers,
--+Brian+--
[This message has been edited by bcaffrey (edited 24 May 1999).]
The original edge on the villager was reasonably sharp but could have used a touch up. Nevertheless, I decided to leave it as it was for the purposes of comparison to an Estwing hatchet that also had a less than optimal edge. The third tool I used for my comparison was a CS LTC, albeit with a hair-popping edge.
Thanks to some tree clearing by the electric company, there was more than the usual amount of firewood laying around. All three tools worked really well for limbing off the smaller branches, with both khukris proving easier to maneuver at various angles than the hatchet. I had used a 12" machete for limbing in the past and, although it got the job done, either khukri was much better suited to the task.
One of the downed trees was a cherry that I thought would make a good test object for the tools' chopping ability. I selected a few 3-4" thick pieces and put each of the tools to work cutting off several sections.
The LTC made the deepest cuts, which was not surprising given its sharpness and narrow blade profile. However, it really lodged itself into the wood and had to be backed out several times. (I was reluctant to apply sideways pressure since I didn't want to damage the relatively thin blade.) Because of this tendency to hang-up, it was the poorest overall performer of the three.
The villager also bit pretty deeply but didn't get lodged in and was much better than the LTC at chipping out the wood. Because of the heft of the blade, I didn't hesitate to pry sideways with it a bit as necessary. I was really impressed with this little blade's chopping ability, but would prefer both a longer blade and a longer handle for any prolonged chopping duties.
The Estwing made the shallowest cuts but was the best of the three at throwing chips. I didn't time the cutting exercises or count the number of strokes needed to cut through the wood but my feeling is that the hatchet required fewer strokes and took the least amount of time to complete a cut. Effort, however, is another matter. The hatchet was much more tiring on my hand and wrist than the villager.
The overall chopping performance of villager and hatchet was very close. Although the hatchet was somewhat faster, the khukuri would be my choice of such one-hand tools for prolonged cutting.
BTW, none of the three tools suffered any damage from this moderate workout. I have no way of authoritatively testing their edges, but each seemed about as sharp as when I started -- LTC still popped hair and both others could still scrape it away. I'm not about to give up my Stihl chainsaw, but the villager will take the place of the hatchet in my backpack.
I had thought about cleaning up the villager's grind lines, but will probably leave it as it is with all the character of a tough little beater. I'm looking forward to playing some more next weekend after I put my edge on it.
Now about that khukuri with a longer blade and longer handle...
------------------
Cheers,
--+Brian+--
[This message has been edited by bcaffrey (edited 24 May 1999).]
