Machete!!!

[carolinaman]

Hi there all,

This may seem like kind of a lame thread, but what is the most widely used knife/tool in the world?

I think it may be the Machete? Of course, I own several because they are so cheap and versatile. You may think it a bit eccentric, but I got my first one almost 40 years ago when my parents were returning from Puerto Rico brought my brother and I both machetes as "souveniers". They were sold there commonly for use in Suger Cane Fields and as common implements.

I have bought three of the Cold Steel South African versions of this versatile and inexpensive tool.

I have used one on several occasions when hunting and setting up in a very brushy location not unlike the several places here in coastal SC where the terrain is low, sometimes swampy and filled with heavy thickets.

I also lived in Hawaii for a couple of years and used one to clean back the brush from the fence and property line. I have cut grass so tall and heavy that it actually left "dings" in the edge.

Do you own one? And do you use it occasionally?

Chris

 

[mete]

There are 'jungle knives' everywhere there is jungle .That is the proper generic term. Machete is only one of those . I have a machete but don't use it , prefering my kukris which get heavy use.

 

[mec]

Got to have them. I used one just this morning. I started out with an army surplus collins in the 1950s and now have this South African Cold Steel. The old ebony grips were good. then for a while the KMart machettes had plastic grips that were sharper than the blades. The rubberish grips on the Coad Steel are just about perfect.

 

[Sunray]

"...Do you own one?..." Yep. A 1943 manufacture, Legitimus Collins & Co. with the original scabbard. It goes with me on every camping trip and is far more useful than any hatchet. I can cut brush and saplings much faster with it than a buddy of mine can with his chain saw too.

 

[Jacobus Rex]

A machete or "hack knife" as they are some times called here is an essential tool in the Big Thicket of East Texas. I prefer the longer type machetes for real work. The shorter ones are good for truck carry and occasional light use.

 

[carolinaman]

Hi there,

I enjoyed your post and the history lesson on the Texas "big thicket" country and remember reading about it in Louis L'Amours westerns. I never conjoured up a machete as a useful tool.

I can see how it would be there.

Best,

Chris

 

[p35]

They work great on Himalayan blackberry, which is a terrible weed here in the Northwest. Better than a hatchet for limbing too. They do get addictive!

 

[Omni04]

using one of those was probably the only time i didn't mind doing landscaping for my parents. I saw my mother outside with trimming sheers attacking these thick purple stalks around our fence. Took me 20 minutes to do our entire property which would of taken eons with those stupid trimming sheers.

 

[clt46910]

I carried on for years while backpacking instead of a axe. Just seemed a lot more useful to me then an axe. Much better for clearing brush for a campsite and worked just fine for gathering firewood.

 

[Atticus]

This is my early Christmas present from the kids (they had a little help ordering it haha).

 

[KaceCoyote]

This is my early Christmas present from the kids (they had a little help ordering it haha).

How ya like it?

 

[Atticus]

I like what I see and feel so far, but I haven't had a chance to use it yet. I agreed to leave it as new till Christmas. It seems to be well balanced, and the workmanship and materials are very good. I like the leather ring handle a lot. I'm undecided on the handguard, I'll have to see how that works out. I plan on taking it out with me for the muzzle loader deer season (two days after Christmas), so I'll try to post something here after I try it out.

 

[kahr404life]

Long ago, I was sent to El Salvador by uncle sugar. The one thing that really surprised me (other than the #%#* heat ) was everyone carrying machetes. I observed little kids on 3 wheelers (donated big wheels of course ) with machetes tied across the handlebars, an old man with a shoulder holster machete, and even a cow (real scrawny ) with two machetes tied around it's neck (farmer to lazy to cary them I guess?). Where ever I saw people most of them had a machete (I was located in the West Virginia of El Sal.:banghead: ) I even witnessed a good domestic distrubance where I thought the wife was going to behead her just got caught cheating husband (El Sal. army grunts I was with thought that it was very funny ). Maybe they had a better idea about machetes than I realized at the time.

 

[Skofnung]

I use them all the time. I've got old ones, new ones, and lots in between.

The one that gets used most often these days is a little 12" Tramontina jobbie. Tramontina is a little hit or miss in the QC department, but I have two good ones. Just got lucky I guess.

My overall favorite is a 1944 stamped Tru-Temper with smooth green plastic scales. That old boy has seen LOTS of use.

One that I don't like (and paid the most for) is a Stainless Linder machete. It's heavy, and it doesn't hold an edge worth a toot. The weight wouldn't bother me if the thing would not get dull in short order.

They are great at what they designed for. All told, I finf an axe to be a far more versatile tool.

 

[22-rimfire]

I have yet to find one that the handle doesn't hurt ya more than using a pocket knife for the same job. That Cold Steel model may just be the ticket for truck carry out in the country when you need to cut a few limbs to clear shooting lanes, or cutting a path to make it just a little easier to get to your deer stand location through briars and brush. For serious work, a small chain saw works a whole lot better.

 

[rocky]

I use my mil. issue machete for clearing brush while hiking, camping and kayaking backwater rivers and creeks.

 

[22-rimfire]

Machette: Changing the subject a bit, but what is the best way to sharpen a machette? file? Stone? Grinding wheel? Is there a trick to it?

 

[dasmi]

I do have a machete.
I found it in the trunk of a used car I purchased, under the carpet...
Oh, and I just ordered one of these.
http://www.knifecenter.com/kc_new/store_detail.html?s=CS97KMS

 

[JShirley]

I don't have a machete. I've had at least one, and usually 2 or more kukuris since...hm...my first "kukri like object", a Cold Steel, in 1993. Currently, I have a HI WWII 16.5" and BGRS 17". Both terrific models.

John

 

[glockamolee]

Mr Machete

Kahr404life mentioned the machetes in El Salvador, and their uses. Well, I also was sent to the region, in this case Honduras (1984).

The machete was THE most common tool used. I carried my chrome plated, souvenier machete everywhere I went, as I couldn't carry my M16 off duty, in town.

 

[CrisOR]

They work great on Himalayan blackberry, which is a terrible weed here in the Northwest. Better than a hatchet for limbing too. They do get addictive!

At certain times of the year, the blackberries are really springy and have a bad habit of bouncing back and wrapping around body parts. I got one of these Raspberry Cane Cutters and it works really well. It's not as satisfying as the machete, but you won't lose as much blood.

 

[p35]

To answer 22-rimfire's question, there was a thread on that subject a while ago. The consensus seemed to be that you use a file. For initial sharpening of the Harbor Freight machetes ($2.50 on sale, which they often are) I use a belt sander. The Cold Steel one gets treated a little better. Bottom line, they aren't precision tools.

 

[rustymaggot]

Machette: Changing the subject a bit, but what is the best way to sharpen a machette? file? Stone? Grinding wheel? Is there a trick to it?

how i do it is use a bench grinder with the guards removed. then i sharpen it so the grind marks go down the blade. very little chance of the grinder kicking the blade out when you use it that way. then i fine tune the egdle with a large flat file. i hold the file down on a stump and draw the blade across it in a way that removes any burr.

most of the machette's ive had were junkers but the old one i have that says made in england is the best ive owned. held a edge forever before needing sharpening. i dont like how blunt the angle of the edge is on most blades so i take em down a bit more acute. thats the real reason i use the grinder at all. i like a nice thin edge.

also, a trick ive learned to keep blisters from comming up is to cover your hand with duct tape as a protective layer. lets your fingers be ungloved and maintain articulation while protecting your palm from blisters.

 

[AStone]

Last one I owned/used was ~35 yrs ago when I was a kid. Had a cheap one I bought in an army surplus store in downtown Memphis. Loved it. Carried it for those kid explorations into my local woods, chopping sapplings to build forts & tree houses.

Since then I've used axes, finding them more useful. I like the weight of an ax for chopping wood, and rarely need to cut {choose one or more: sugar cane, blackberry thickets, jungle underbrush...}

If I had to cut any of the above, maybe a machette would be good.

For now, I'll take my SAK, my Benchmade, my SOG Seal Pup & a nice ax.

Nem

 

[22-rimfire]

Thanks for the machete sharpening advice. I really get frustrated trying to sharpen them and then they often loose their edge so quickly.