Which of these big knives should i get for outdoor use and bush clearing

Of all the recommendations I'd still go for the Ka-Bar Parangatang, I've used it as my main non-ax chopper for as long as I've owned it (except now that I have the Bk20) and it's performed with nary a complaint.

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Zakkaery said:
Hi guys I'm looking for a big fixed blade knife for some bush craft work, specifically clearing bushes and chopping and batoning. Right now i have narrowed it down to three options and would like your opinion which would be ideal and any other suggestions you might think would be a good fit

So the contenders are
a Steel Will 230 Druid https://steelwillknives.com/our-knives/outdoor-series/druid-230.html

or a Kershaw Camp 18 https://kershaw.kaiusaltd.com/knives/knife/camp-18

Edit: After some helpful recomendations I am no longer interested in the Buck Hoodlum and am now also thinking about the two below.
(probably gunna get them all eventually lol)

Ka Bar Parang http://www.kabar.com/knives/detail/203
And
ESEE Junglas https://www.eseeknives.com/junglas.htm
Any help is greatly appreciated
-Zakk
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Condor Golok.
 
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I may be in the minority but in my opinion, the Junglas is a poor chopper. The balance favors the handle more than it should. Try a Condor Kumunga, or any of the Cold steel, Tramontina, Imacasa, Condor or Ontairio machetes.
 
I would like to stay under 250$ Canadian and ideally somewhere closer to about 150$ Canadian but if it's worth it including steel sheath and handle I don't mind paying a bit more, and I will certainly check out what condor has to offer, I do like the golok more the the kumanga from condor
 
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Zakkaery said:
I would like to stay under 250$ Canadian and ideally somewhere closer to about 150$ Canadian but if it's worth it including steel sheath and handle I don't mind paying a bit more, and I will certainly check out what condor has to offer, I do like the golok more the the kumanga from condor
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The Golok is also roughly 1/4" thick. It is a beastly chopper. Very well done. And the leather sheath is excellent for production. I have a Junglas, and I do like the Junglas A LOT. But the Golok is a better chopper.
 
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I make no bones about it. I like Condor stuff. For short choppers, I like the Pack Golok and Village Parang. For something more knife-like, the Kumunga is a pretty good chopper for general banging around in the woods.

I have the regular Condor Golok (actually several of them) and I like it. But when the Pack Golok came out, I pretty much stopped using it in favor of the Pack Golok. For brush clearing, it is very hard to beat the 18" El Salvador machete (my personal favorite). My most used Condor machetes are the El Salvador and discontinued 14" Puerto Rican which is now the 16" Swamp Master Machete. When heading to the woods, I lean toward the Pack Golok and Village Parang for indeterminant chopping, but the Kumunga is much easier to carry. I seldom chop all day with any of these blades.

The Kumunga is similar to the new Kabar Becker BK-20 without the becker handle.

The Condor Moonshiner is similar to the BK-9. If I were only doing some limb clearing but mostly just camping, the Moonshiner or Kumunga would be good choices if you want a big chopper.

The one that I simply never took a liking to was the regular Parang machete by Condor.

I see little need to buy the ESEE Junglas at the higher price tag. Doubt I would consider the Fiddleback Forge machete as it is expensive and they use a Imacasa blank. The blank is good, you're just paying a lot more for finishing similar to the Bark River Golok.

If I were doing a LOT of clearing, I would have a chain saw (probably a pruning saw), a long handled pruner, a hand saw, and a machete. The knife wouldn't see much action at all.
 
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I use all these for clearing stuff, (plus some other old billhooks and ditch blades). My new find is the Skrama, the black one in the middle, see my review on the review page:
IMGP7371.jpg


I also use chainsaws, strimmers and a mini digger.
 
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ursamajor said:
The Golok is also roughly 1/4" thick. It is a beastly chopper. Very well done. And the leather sheath is excellent for production. I have a Junglas, and I do like the Junglas A LOT. But the Golok is a better chopper.
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The Golok is a very heavy knife so it will chop better. I have the golok and their frontier knife as well. I like them but I think the edge geometry is way better for all tasks in the Junglas. The Golok and frontier knife from condor have the thickest edgs on any knife I have. I had to reprofile them to bring them down to reasonable thickness.
 
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The Skrama I like to think as the thinking man's Golock, for it is better in every respect. I carried a Martindale golock when serving for many years and the Skrama is far superior in steel, grind and utility. Never owned or used the Condor one.

I can't recommend the Skrama enough.
 
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GREENJACKET said:
The Skrama I like to think as the thinking man's Golock, for it is better in every respect. I carried a Martindale golock when serving for many years and the Skrama is far superior in steel, grind and utility. Never owned or used the Condor one.

I can't recommend the Skrama enough.
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what is the top one?
 
That is a Blackjack Marauder II from the early 90's (Jerry Younkins Field Knife Evaluations book at the time couldn't rate it highly enough). This is my second, the first stolen. I believe only 500 green handled ones were made, further runs were done in black. Aus6 or 8 I'm not sure??? My first was worked very very hard and did everything demanded of it, which is the reason I found a replacement (took a long time to find). My fresh old one has a custom kydex sheath now. Its an equal to a GB Forest axe, as it has the heft for European forest work.
I have the smaller Marauder I which isn't a patch on its bigger brother.

Now I am not a young as I was I prefer the Skrama or GB Small Forest Axe, or Silky saw!! These are my personal tools for light weight travel rather than everyday full sized tools for heavy duty forestry work.
IMGP7354.jpg
 
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I have been heavily looking into the condor golok, only thing is a I have a thing against buying Chinese products (Taiwan is fine) which is why I didn't just buy the steel will as I do like their knives, so I am wondering about where the condors are made, while checking that out I also ran into the tops machete which looked very nice and was wondering if that'd be a comparable option. Also again thanks so much for the suggestions they have been really helpful.
 
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DPC said:
Steel Will

They look good and have good reviews.

Buck Hoodlum is a stupidly designed, laser-cut overpriced tacticlol knife.

The handle of th Kershaw looks like mallninja crap.


I strongly suggest one of these though...

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Yeah just don't buy one from the guy who displays them on red velvet.
 
Sosa said:
Yeah just don't buy one from the guy who displays them on red velvet.
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Sound advice.

OP, you could also look into a Scrapyard 1111 or 1311. They're no longer in production but pop up with some regularity on the exchange.
 
Some good options so far. To stay in your price range I would agree with the BK9. A quick online search found it for less than $100 shipped in the US.
 
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Well then El Salvador seems like it'd be alright, and pardon my poor knowledge, but what is a Imacasa blank? Is it like a blank blade stamped from one of the factory’s Condor uses?
 
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