Had to do some serious yardwork yesterday (perfect excuse) so I picked up a new machete...
It was between this one and the Gerber equivalent, until I found out the Gerber is not a full-tang design.
The blade is super thin, and so is the pommel. Right away I was concerned that it might not stand up to the kind of abuse I had planned for it.
It arrived sharp (enough). Performance was much better than expected. The saw back looks functional but I never needed to use it because this thing was able to take out 2-3" diameter branches with a single swipe.
I cut down a small forest with it in no time. The handle was comfortable and the grip was sure. After a bunch of use on heavy vines, hardwood tree limbs, and miscelaneous plant matter the blade is still sharp. I did hit a rock with it on accident and that rolled the edge in one spot, but machetes aren't made for cutting rocks so I can't really fault it for that.
All said It's the best machete I've owned to date (had about 3 over the years). Comfortable for extended use and holds an edge better than i expected. I got the 18" version for use around the homestead but the 13" version would probably make a decent camp machete or truck knife.
It was between this one and the Gerber equivalent, until I found out the Gerber is not a full-tang design.
The blade is super thin, and so is the pommel. Right away I was concerned that it might not stand up to the kind of abuse I had planned for it.
It arrived sharp (enough). Performance was much better than expected. The saw back looks functional but I never needed to use it because this thing was able to take out 2-3" diameter branches with a single swipe.
I cut down a small forest with it in no time. The handle was comfortable and the grip was sure. After a bunch of use on heavy vines, hardwood tree limbs, and miscelaneous plant matter the blade is still sharp. I did hit a rock with it on accident and that rolled the edge in one spot, but machetes aren't made for cutting rocks so I can't really fault it for that.
All said It's the best machete I've owned to date (had about 3 over the years). Comfortable for extended use and holds an edge better than i expected. I got the 18" version for use around the homestead but the 13" version would probably make a decent camp machete or truck knife.
