What kind of edge for a machete?

[Joben]

I got a cheap machete from Walmart.
The grind is hilariously bad, almost literaly square in places.

Since I have to totally reshape the edge anyway...

What type and angle is considered best for a machete?

 

[Roger999]

A convex edge.

 

[smitty0331]

......a sharp one of course! Seriously though, a convex edge would probably be best.

 

[Broos]

With a cheap machete, I don't think it's worth the time to put on more than a belt sander edge - however you can quickest put a good edge on it. And I use it accordingly - roots, digging, low to the ground hacking (things I won't do with nicer knives).

 

[gud4u]

I have one of those Walmart machetes.

The steel is soft, as is the steel of most machetes. The as-bought edge is non-existent, but 20 minutes or so with a mill bastard file will produce a basic edge.

I take the edge first to about a 40 degrees-included edge, then finishing with about a 50 degrees-included final taper. That provides a fairly good combination of a decent slicing edge with fair edge durability. That edge combo works nicely for rough-trimming hedges. The blade will hold up for trimming about 50' of English Privet hedge before touch-up is required.

Technically, that's a compound-taper, but performs the same as a 'convex' taper.

There's little point to further finishing the edge quality beyond file-finish quality. The steel is soft, so count on frequent touch-ups. Once the edge is formed, touch-ups take just a few minutes.

Hope this helps!