What brand of bushknife is this?

W

witchdoctor17

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Dec 23, 2021
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I've been watching this Australian YouTube outdoorsmen for a while now and was wondering what bushknife he uses. Any ideas?
https://imgur.com/a/PE3BrIJ

I'm planning some backcountry trips and need something that can take a beating. Suggestions?

Thanks
-WD
 
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Not sure which brand that is, but it's based on the Hiro brand machete from Japan that was discontinued a few years ago. Schrade and lots of offbrands make copies now. Google search Hiro Machete or Book of Eli machete. The Book of Eli was a famous movie it was in.

Edit - I'd also look at traditional Philippine bolos, some of them are close in shape, cheap, and can take a beating.
 
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Knives like that catch a lot of criticism, here. They're (generally) fine.

But.

If you add the phrase "take a beating" to your post, that knife, and anything else with a shiny polish or "speed holes" is a no-go. Just, forget all of them.

I don't know exactly what blade shape/size you're looking for, or what your budget is. I'm going to give you a couple names to Google, places that make the kinds of knives that you can use to hack trees, dig out roots, ride hard and put away wet.

Antdog's suggestion of Busse Combat is excellent: you can chop apart a cinderblock with one of their knives, but that sort of performance comes at a price, and it ain't a cheap one! I'm going to start lower down on the cost chart.

Himalayan Imports
Imacasa
Tramontina
Ontario Old Hickory
Ontario RAT
ESEE <- yes, some of the RAT knives look a lot like the ESEE knives. There's history between the two companies.
Condor
Terava knives
Finally, TOPS Knives. Not all of them are suitable for general "bushie" jobs, but the "take a beating" part applies to all of them. Well, maybe not the Frog Market....

If you have a moment, W witchdoctor17 , it would help us to know what it is you like about this knife, or what you believe makes it a good fit for your needs.
 
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Shorttime said:
Knives like that catch a lot of criticism, here. They're (generally) fine.

But.

If you add the phrase "take a beating" to your post, that knife, and anything else with a shiny polish or "speed holes" is a no-go. Just, forget all of them.

I don't know exactly what blade shape/size you're looking for, or what your budget is. I'm going to give you a couple names to Google, places that make the kinds of knives that you can use to hack trees, dig out roots, ride hard and put away wet.

Antdog's suggestion of Busse Combat is excellent: you can chop apart a cinderblock with one of their knives, but that sort of performance comes at a price, and it ain't a cheap one! I'm going to start lower down on the cost chart.

Himalayan Imports
Imacasa
Tramontina
Ontario Old Hickory
Ontario RAT
ESEE <- yes, some of the RAT knives look a lot like the ESEE knives. There's history between the two companies.
Condor
Terava knives
Finally, TOPS Knives. Not all of them are suitable for general "bushie" jobs, but the "take a beating" part applies to all of them. Well, maybe not the Frog Market....

If you have a moment, W witchdoctor17 , it would help us to know what it is you like about this knife, or what you believe makes it a good fit for your needs.
Click to expand...
Wow! Thank you so much! I don’t have a budget bc I am selling some collectibles to purchase but am looking for a fixed steel 4-6” blade and or a machete.

The larger wouldn’t be edc obviously but for wilderness training and remote backpacking it will come in clutch. The 4-6” would be my go to and hope to split tree limbs with the use of a rock on the hilt, fillet meat, protection, and cooking. In the end I’m hoping to get one utility knife because I will be pairing it with a hand saw. I live in the US so looking forward to some trekking throughout Washington state and PNW. Busse looks spot on! Thank you so much for the suggestion y’all. These all look too notch so I’ll take my time before making a decision. I wasn’t aware of the steel hardness scale so taking some time to learn about that as well. Do you all recommend AUS 8a for a something of this nature. Sorry to open so vaguely. What a cool community! Seasons greetings btw!
 
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witchdoctor17 said:
Wow! Thank you so much! I don’t have a budget bc I am selling some collectibles to purchase but am looking for a fixed steel 4-6” blade and or a machete.

The larger wouldn’t be edc obviously but for wilderness training and remote backpacking it will come in clutch. The 4-6” would be my go to and hope to split tree limbs with the use of a rock on the hilt, fillet meat, protection, and cooking. In the end I’m hoping to get one utility knife because I will be pairing it with a hand saw. I live in the US so looking forward to some trekking throughout Washington state and PNW. Busse looks spot on! Thank you so much for the suggestion y’all. These all look too notch so I’ll take my time before making a decision. I wasn’t aware of the steel hardness scale so taking some time to learn about that as well. Do you all recommend AUS 8a for a something of this nature. Sorry to open so vaguely. What a cool community! Seasons greetings btw!
Click to expand...
The Busse Combat Hell Razor is so bad*ss! https://www.bussecombat.com/busse-hell-razor-2-competition-finish/
 
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The Gerber versafix would be a pretty good match for that blade in the photo. Now I am not recommending the versafix as a great knife. But it is probably cheap enough to buy and try out.

I have one but haven't really used it. I thought the large size with less weight might be useful. But it has just been sitting in my car doing nothing.

 
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witchdoctor17 said:
I've been watching this Australian YouTube outdoorsmen for a while now and was wondering what bushknife he uses. Any ideas?
https://imgur.com/a/PE3BrIJ

I'm planning some backcountry trips and need something that can take a beating. Suggestions?

Thanks
-WD
Click to expand...

Apparently it is a Sekizo brand but that model is no longer being made from his IG account.
 
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witchdoctor17 said:
Wow! Thank you so much! I don’t have a budget bc I am selling some collectibles to purchase but am looking for a fixed steel 4-6” blade and or a machete.

The larger wouldn’t be edc obviously but for wilderness training and remote backpacking it will come in clutch. The 4-6” would be my go to and hope to split tree limbs with the use of a rock on the hilt, fillet meat, protection, and cooking. In the end I’m hoping to get one utility knife because I will be pairing it with a hand saw. I live in the US so looking forward to some trekking throughout Washington state and PNW. Busse looks spot on! Thank you so much for the suggestion y’all. These all look too notch so I’ll take my time before making a decision. I wasn’t aware of the steel hardness scale so taking some time to learn about that as well. Do you all recommend AUS 8a for a something of this nature. Sorry to open so vaguely. What a cool community! Seasons greetings btw!
Click to expand...

I forgot about Becker! I have no good excuse, either.

AUS 8a should not be your first choice for a timber processing knife.

I'm going to try to not go full Larrin Thomas: in general, you want a "high carbon steel", not a "stainless steel". The stuff they add that makes a steel rust-resistant, also makes it more likely to chip it's edge, or even break clean through under really hilarious abuse. If you were doing a one-off knife where you knew the steel chemistry, and could control the heat-treat, you could get a stainless blade with good resistance to chipping or breakage. But if you're buying an off-the-shelf example, you shouldn't trust industrial processing with your life.

Some flavors of steel to look for:

5160
1095
1080
52100 (this is the steel Busse uses. The other key is their heat treat)

Even D2 steel could be all right, but I've heard that D2 can change it's character widely, with even a fraction of a percent change in the steel chemistry. This was years ago, and steel mills may have improved their process.

If you really want to fill your head with steel chemistry, search up the name I dropped earlier, Larrin Thomas. He's here on the forum. Calls himself the Knife Steel Nerd, and it ain't no bad thing.
 
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Yup...Sekizo knife
4ITqI5.jpg

DwR5r4.jpg
 
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Shorttime said:
I forgot about Becker! I have no good excuse, either.

AUS 8a should not be your first choice for a timber processing knife.

I'm going to try to not go full Larrin Thomas: in general, you want a "high carbon steel", not a "stainless steel". The stuff they add that makes a steel rust-resistant, also makes it more likely to chip it's edge, or even break clean through under really hilarious abuse. If you were doing a one-off knife where you knew the steel chemistry, and could control the heat-treat, you could get a stainless blade with good resistance to chipping or breakage. But if you're buying an off-the-shelf example, you shouldn't trust industrial processing with your life.

Some flavors of steel to look for:

5160
1095
1080
52100 (this is the steel Busse uses. The other key is their heat treat)

Even D2 steel could be all right, but I've heard that D2 can change it's character widely, with even a fraction of a percent change in the steel chemistry. This was years ago, and steel mills may have improved their process.

If you really want to fill your head with steel chemistry, search up the name I dropped earlier, Larrin Thomas. He's here on the forum. Calls himself the Knife Steel Nerd, and it ain't no bad thing.
Click to expand...
Thank you so much for this. I’m copying all this info into a doc. Love learning the science behind crafting steel. Had no idea you had have to consider so much chemistry. Much appreciated Shorttime Shorttime
 
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