Cold Steal: Magnum Kukri Machete first impressions

[archimedes]

Well the CS Magnum Kukri machete I bought a few months back finally got a work out.

My moms place was getting over run by burrs and thistles and out of 10 acres 1 1/2 was pretty bad.

I started with a two handed old fashioned scythe but found that it needs a bit of space to work and had a bit of trouble hitting the 2-3 inch thick stalks of large burr bushes, it zipped thru thistles like crazy tho.

So out came the Magnum Kukri

The handle gave no blisters over about 5 hours of heavy use although I did use gloves (probably a bit abrasive for non glove extended use will likely wear in though). Nice secure grip, never felt like I was going to have it fly away.

I started with the blade edge stock (very rough ) it cut "okay", after a few hours gave it a free hand touch up with single cut file and it began cutting "well" on the thistles and burrs. I am sure with a bit more work I could get this cutting "good" to "excellent"

I swapped with my brother for his 20ish inch Gavillan machete and preffered the cold steal Magnum Kuk.

The Cold Steal machete material seems quite tough, I dinged numerous rocks , a brick, and a barn foundation with very little blade damage ( expected much worse after each impact) , what little damage came out easily with the file.

I discovered the Kuk shape to make a nice "brush hook" when flipped over for carrying burr bushes to the burn pile , saved me getting my hands in them and the back from less bending over.

The cordura sheath is a waste of hair and teeth.

Overall the CS Magnum Kuk impressed me for the 20 odd bucks I paid and its performance over a heavy 5 hour use session to the point I plan on buying another for the truck, will just need to build a decent sheath for it.

A

 

[goldie]

Their machetes & kukri's are good deals for the money,i have the std & magnum kukri & they work fine,especialy on saplings.i'm waiting for one of their short bowie machetes, that looks pretty good for clearing & chopping brush,too.

 

[knarfeng]

Good to know. Thanks for the report.

 

[MB1]

"Cold Steal: Magnum Kukri Machete first impressions" (post title) ;-) watch out little mistakes cause big troubles.

 

[mariobab]

Good that you're satisfied.I bought mine two months ago,put some wooden grip wrapped in paracord,made leather sheath sharpen it and gone disappointed.On light brush it was OK but when I went on old hornbeam,after some 20 blows it warped.Not much but it did,and edge needed resharpen.So I put it in a vise and straighten it again,sharpen it hanged it on the wall.After your review I`ll give it another chance,with some softer woods though.

 

[Buffalohump]

I bought their mini-Kukri some time ago as a factory second off the website. This version is no longer made, which is a shame, as it is an ideal size for a BOB or 3 day pack.

I have used it extensively on the dense bush at the bottom of my yard and it has held up admirably. The edge does have to be cleaned up and given a light coating of grease if cutting sap-heavy plants though, or it will rust.

After one heavy session I did sustain some blisters to the hand from the Kraton but the design of the grip and the rubber offer excellent retention.

For what I paid it is the ideal hard-use bundu bashing blade. The sheath aint bad at all on mine...