What's up with all the chopping

We could sell tickets perhaps.

Folks, you don't want to miss...

CHOP OFF 2008
 
We had a khukuri khonvention a few years ago and I brought a bunch of stuff and we chopped up all this wood and then had a fire later on that night and drunk beer:thumbup:
 
skammer said:
That was funny LMAO:D

Not only does the knife work better a hatchet just bounces off small diameter wood barely cutting it.
Whos buying the airline tickets haha.

Skam
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I don't know what kind of hatchets these people are using, but I can tell you in all honesty, I have never had a problem with that.

Now I have been using a hatchet, or axe since I was about 9 YO, so I have a lot of experience with them, and know how to profile an edge as well.

I have chopped frozen limbs up to 3-4" thick with no problems. I have also used a hatchet to cut thousands of apple tree limbs (worked on a apple orchard every summer from 16 yo till I was 20). Apple wood can be dense, and hard. The bark is kind of rubbery, and with the correct edge profile, a hatchet works great.

Not sure I have ever had a hatchet "bounce" off a small diameter branch.
 
Hatchets work well on small diameter stuff for me. Where they fall short is in the splitting department. With a baton stick, a big knife does well in both regards and also does a nice job of trail blazing when necessary. I've used one in this latter capacity quite a lot when scouting new areas for deer hunting.

Look, I'm not saying I don't like axes or hatchets. They're great. For chopping/splitting wood by hand, nothing beats an axe. But if I want to go mobile, a big knife offers me some advantages I like.

Axes2.jpg
 
IMO if a hatchet has a steep grind it can bounce off unless you get your angle just right.

However GB's or stuff like the Reeves doesn't really have that problem.
 
hollowdweller said:
Guyon,

From this pic it's obvious you hate hatchets and don't want anything to do with them;):D
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Exactly...... so save yourself the turmoil and send them all to me ASAP. :thumbup:



HD did bring up a good point. A steep, blunt edge on a hatchet is like trying to cut tissue paper with a nail file.

There is a knack to profiling a hatchet edge to do the job your asking of it.

However Gransfors Bruks, Wetterlings, and customs like Reeves come with a profile that lends itself to deep, biting cuts. Very little profiling needed.

Guyon..... your point about "trail blazing" is spot on. An axe is almost usless when it comes to clearing brush.
 
Here's my take on it.

Pound for pound a hatchet will almost always out chop a big knife.

On small wood a small saw MAY beat that hatchet AND the knife.

On trail clearing and brushwhacking a big knife will trump the hatchet because it is dual purpose. It won't chop as well, but like was said previously you have more cutting edge so less chances of glancing and easier to aim than a hatchet:thumbup:

I'd say a big knife is a bit easier to split larger wood with because you can use it like a froe.

I seldom carry a big knife camping and backpacking because I don't need to machete. I do carry a hatchet because I like fires and for the weight it's the fastest chopper. This summer I seldom used my hatchet backpacking. It was so dry I could cut small stuff with my belt knife and have a fire hot enough to burn the biggger peices in half in no time. Only when it rained some did it come into play.

I seldom carry a hatchet at home because my main use in my woods is trail clearing and for that nothing beats a khukuri/big knife.

Have I missed anything?
 
You all are driving me nuts. I'm in the market for a chopper. At first I thought some kind of a Khukri, then I thought a hatchet, and now I don't know. :confused:

Dang it! So much steel to try, so little time. What's a guy to do?
 
tarmix101 said:
HD did bring up a good point. A steep, blunt edge on a hatchet is like trying to cut tissue paper with a nail file.
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I have this Fort Meigs Nessmuk by Ragnar. It's ungodly sharp but it is not quite as an efficient cutter because the angle is steeper.

On one hand that makes chopping slower an more of a chance of glancing.
On the other it splits stuff better and and won't bind up in the wood so it's six of one half dozen of another:D
 
bulgron said:
You all are driving me nuts. I'm in the market for a chopper. At first I thought some kind of a Khukri, then I thought a hatchet, and now I don't know. :confused:

Dang it! So much steel to try, so little time. What's a guy to do?
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Quick and dirty answer. Buy one of each.;):D
 
hollowdweller said:
I have this Fort Meigs Nessmuk by Ragnar. It's ungodly sharp but it is not quite as an efficient cutter because the angle is steeper.

On one hand that makes chopping slower an more of a chance of glancing.
On the other it splits stuff better and and won't bind up in the wood so it's six of one half dozen of another:D
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Agreed. One more reason to own a small double bit hatchet. Like I said before, I keep one edge with a steep, fairly blunt edge for hard wood, and my main splitting edge.

The keener edge is for very clear wood, chopping limbs, and I can even use it for fuzz sticks it's that sharp. Doesn't work as well as a knife, but will do the job.
 
bulgron said:
You all are driving me nuts. I'm in the market for a chopper. At first I thought some kind of a Khukri, then I thought a hatchet, and now I don't know. :confused:

Dang it! So much steel to try, so little time. What's a guy to do?
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Don't make your decision for another 12 hours.... I have a khukuri review going up that you may be interested in.
 
bulgron said:
You all are driving me nuts. I'm in the market for a chopper. At first I thought some kind of a Khukri, then I thought a hatchet, and now I don't know. :confused:

Dang it! So much steel to try, so little time. What's a guy to do?
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Just buy a hammer ;)
 
CanDo said:
Don't make your decision for another 12 hours.... I have a khukuri review going up that you may be interested in.
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Oh cool. PM me when you get it done, please, so I don't miss it.

My big complaint with khukuri's is those handles they come with. I've never held one, but they look quite uncomfortable. But then, that might just be an excuse to play around with re-handling the thing....
 
tarmix101 said:
Quick and dirty answer. Buy one of each.;):D
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Ooooh, oooh, this is just ... just ... just far too tempting....

:D

Just the other day my kids were asking me, "Daddy, why do you have so many knives?"

I wonder what they'll think if I add a hatchet and khukiri to the mix.... :confused: :D :cool:
 
i really hate carrying anything heavy if i dont have to. i just usually carry my rd7, necker and a folder . if i was way up north i would consider a saw and axe i guess . the big stout rd7 is good at getting to the fat wood , botoning and prying wood apart .down here in the south we have tons of downed pine trees due to the pine beetle infestation.
 
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