Machete for under $50.00

Status
Not open for further replies.
kBob said:
...For me what determines a good machete is basically "does it fit your hand when in use."

....Keep your file, steel, or stone in your back pocket while working with a machete and you can deal with about any.
Click to expand...

Most of the normal machetes are 1075 steel or something similar. The difference is thickness, length, and hand fit. I can not say enough about hand fit if you have ever used a machete for more than a few wacks on the occasional branch or small tree. THAT determines my choice. If a less expensive machete fits your hand, more power to you. I prefer wood handles as there are easier to re-shape if needed with a sander. In addition to the wood handled Condor 18" El Salvado machete, I have a molded handle El Salvador (not plastic slabs) also that I got at closeout prices with the sheath. I believe Condor has dropped this design probably due to lack of sales. But it is very comfortable to use. I have a number of Condor's machetes from 14" up to 24". I tend to use the 18" and 16" the most. The others pretty much just hang out. The Condor short choppers are good too for larger wood.
 
Today I used my Gerber Gator and Estwing camper's axe to trim back mulberry branches and buckthorn. The buckthorn is actually on the neighbors property but I chop off any branch that comes onto my mother's property. I don't think anyone planted the buckthorn, just my mom's neighbors neglected their property and one grew up close to the property line. The mulberry trees are on the neighbors property also but the branches grown down and into my mom's property.


But then I came across this mulberry shrub:

mulberry.jpg

Its a mulberry bush with vines growing in it. Neither tool was really making headway on it so I went and got a pruner first to to cut the branches so I could get at it with the axe:

mullberry2.jpg

I bet if I had a good brush axe I could have just chopped away at the base of that thing and cleared it. Instead, I was lugging 3 tools around.
 
Found a couple of pictures. The cane knife or the kurki are the better choppers, but the 12" tramontina is so handy to carry. Used each on this part of the yard that had been neglected. Took several weeks to get everything cleared out.
13939448_10157415100065160_1543673136302842232_n.jpg

14291858_10157524423190160_5569131811030970359_n.jpg

14095853_10157461122535160_4180065195423493015_n.jpg

15135998_10157901366320160_2983882172649175811_n.jpg
 
Spent some time in South America with folks who couldn't afford more than one cutting implement. It was always a machete, but one with a blade length approaching 2 feet, not the largish knives that seem to be popular in the U.S. The only small machete I can recall seeing was one my dad bought me when I was about 10 years old. I say small, but the blade was still about 18" long.

I've seen them used for everything from cutting down large trees to clearing brush, to mowing the grass, to carving small wooden toys. The reason tiny machetes aren't good choppers is because they don't have enough blade heft/length to pull it off. I've cut down trees 10" in diameter with a 24" machete and while it wasn't as fast as using an axe would have been, it was more than adequate for the job. And the machete was a heck of a lot easier to carry around and useful for more things than an axe would be.

I'm not saying that small machetes aren't useful because they are--especially if you can keep some other tools on hand for when a little machete can't hack it. But if you want one tool that will do it all, clearing brush, cutting down small-to-medium trees, etc., something like this is just the ticket.

https://www.knifecenter.com/item/ONCT5/ontario-traditional-machete-22-inch-blade
 
Cold steel is your friend. I have many of their machetes that have been through hell and back and are still fine.
 
Yet another favorable mention for Ontario brand machetes. Very sturdy. Rust-resistant black finish. I have two (12" and 18") and doubt I'll ever need others.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

P
  • Locked
quality machete?
Replies
19
Views
2K
gallo
G
Dirty Bob
  • Locked
Dirty Bob's Machete Project
2 3
Replies
54
Views
5K
Deltaboy1984
Deltaboy1984
Dave Markowitz
  • Locked
Chopper Comparison
Replies
3
Views
759
sm
S
A
  • Locked
Short Machete
2 3 4 5 6
Replies
134
Views
10K
AStone
A
H
  • Locked
Cold Steel Two Handed Machete
Replies
6
Views
902
Zero_DgZ
Z
Back
Top