any machete users?

[Xunil]

I think machetes tend to get anything from a tolerant roll of the eyes to a heavy sigh from many. My take is that if you have a use for one, it's tough to think of a tool that could surpass it for general brush clearance and even reasonably heavy work on timber.

Anyone who reckons they don't need one is absolutely right - they clearly haven't the use for one and so, for them, buying/owning/carrying/using one would make no sense.

Interesting that similar attitudes tend not to extend to axes for some obscure reason.

I was building a hide a few weeks ago in one corner of the field to shoot pigeons who were hammering a crop of sprouts while my mate covered the opposite side. My hide was built and ready (with my Cold Steel Barong) while he was still faffing around with his saw.

 

[ged]

They can be a pain sometimes.

 

[ged]

so, are there any machete users here?

Yup.

any experiences with them in a western European scenario?

Machetes tend to be lighter than some other large-bladed tools because they tend to be used in places where the vegetation is less woody than is often the case in Europe, but there's probably more of it. A heavier blade could tire you needlessly in those circumstances. Having said that I like machetes for things like clearing brush and I have a couple of heavy ones for heavier work at which they excel. All my machetes are cheap ones with full tang construction. One is stainless and if I could get the same thing in a carbon steel I think it would be better. My heaviest machete (a Tramontina) is similar to a billhook in weight and will split small logs easily. Relatively recently I've got hold of some Malaysian parangs and they've been great for the sort of work I do with a large blade (mostly cutting tree limbs) although the jury's been recalled because of safety fears since an accident in South America about which you've probably read. Even though I often use wood as a fuel I can't imagine needing a machete for the sort of things I do when camping, even -- nay, especially -- if I wanted to hide. Of course I wouldn't be hiding from the wildlife. Most freshly cut wood is terrible as a fuel, you're much better off with dry dead wood. If it's dead it breaks very easily so you're unlikely to need a cutting tool, you can just jump on it to break it into pieces. So I never take a machete with me when camping other than to let someone have a play with it or how I sharpen it.

 

[John Fenna]

A golok machete with a reground edge is part of the range of edged tools I have and use, maily for light brush clearing and trimming small branches off trees.
For heavier work I go up to my billhook then axe then saw.
To be honest, my billhook gets a lot more action than my golok machete these days as I find it more versatile for the environment I am in.

 

[Samon]

A golok machete with a reground edge is part of the range of edged tools I have and use, maily for light brush clearing and trimming small branches off trees.
For heavier work I go up to my billhook then axe then saw.
To be honest, my billhook gets a lot more action than my golok machete these days as I find it more versatile for the environment I am in.

I find billhooks very versatile aswell, hence my hunt for a decent one to replace my old axe and machete. A choice of billhook for british woodland is a great tool if you are travelling with few tools, like i often do.

 

[_mark_]

I use an old tramontina, takes and holds a great edge!

 

[Steffen]

i might just get a 12" ontario to compare it to a hatchet for scandinavian use.

what would be a good allround machete for jungle use?
i'm not going there any time soon, but as a kid i was always fascinated with jungle adventures.
and i don't think that fascination has left completely.

 

[phaserrifle]

I've got a "10 tramontina.
but since I've got it, I've not had a chance to try it out

 

[Panama Jungle]

Here is Panama most everyone carries a machete in the countryside - there are lots of different shapes and sizes depending on what it is used for. I have half a dozen of the things. All machetes here have relatively thin, flexible blades honed to razor sharpness. In the jungle your machete blade should be no more than 18 inches long (otherwise the thick vegetation can make it hard to swing properly). A luminous painted band near the handle helps you to find it in the undergrowth when you drop it. They can be lethal in inexperienced hands. The technique is to use a short sharp diagonal chop from the wrist, with no follow-through, and to actively STOP the blade with an upward jerk once it has sliced whatever you are cutting. People who 'follow through' on their machete stokes can slice into their own leg surprisingly easily!

Important to have a robust scabbard for it and always put it away after you have cut whatever you wanted. You do not want to slip and fall with it in your hand!

 

[BillyBlade]

I carry a Condor Golok with me when out in the field, it just makes everything I do so much easier. Great kit. So much less effort to build a shelter etc.

Not great for the small jobs such as firesticking and skinning game, but then I have smaller knives with me for that.

I'm a big fan

 

[tomongoose]

I have a large selection of machetes and bill hooks and for clearing scrub nothing beats my long handled bill hook the short handled ones are great for hedging and I have one for splitting wood by the fire I don't tend to use my machete for much other than poking the fire

 

[Pict]

I use a Tramontina bollo machette that I have had for 30 years I modified it some years ago much like this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVHeKNbRXgc

Recently I made a new sheath for it...

[/IMG]

John
experantia docet stultos

John,

That's my video of the mods. How are they working out for you?

Asking what is the best machete is like asking what is the best golf club. It really all depends on what you are trying to accomplish. In my experience the farther away from the standard Latin pattern machete of 16 to 18 inches you get, the more you lose the jack-of-all-trades quality of the machete. Some blades are very specialized to one particular task or area.

 

[Siberianfury]

i use a leuku (small scandinavian machete) quite a bit, i realy like it for cutting light poles, splitting wood, general camp caft, its also good for clearing brush and butchering game. but to be honest if i where to take one tool, it would still be the ol gransfors.

 

[Pict]

When I'm in North America I carry a 12 inch Ontario. Most of the way I do things involves a machete from years of doing it that way and I can be sort of OCD about life in general. I actually want to break out of that habit when I'm there and learn axe and hatchet skills. In the summer in Pennsylvania the machete actually makes alot of sense as growth can be very thick and you don't have to process much firewood. As a winter tool the machete takes back seat to the axe very quickly. Nobody should look to the machete to stay warm at night.

Here even in winter the overnight lows rarely get down to the mid 40's F and we have a year round growing season. You never need to generate loads of firewood but you can't move around and make camp without a machete to clear the way or open up some living space. I have had many students carry axes and hatchets here and they simply don't get much use if any. Anything you would do in camp with an axe or hatchet here could just as easily be done with the same machete that got you to, and created that camp.