Comparison of Machetes?

Love the Condor Puerto Rican (14") which has been discontinued. The Swamp Master is the current one and should be a great machete. I find the hooked shape very useful with woody vegetation. I had to sand the wood handles down significantly (too fat for me) with the Puerto Rican, but with wood it it is just a matter of doing it. I used an electric sander on the handles and finished with boiled linseed oil. Turned out nice. You just have to be willing to do the sanding.
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
I'd argue that there are plenty of differences between even seemingly similar machetes to the point where it makes a tangible impact on performance in different contexts of use, but then I'm also a huge nerd that pays attention to that sort of stuff. :p
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I'm sure, but, the south american indians have been using these things for eons and they are all pretty much the same. The machete is like the AK47. It is not precise, it is not pretty, it does not hold a great edge, but they are cheap and keep on trucking all day long doing what they are supposed to do in terrible conditions. Cheap is the key word here. Springy steel, simple heat treat, low Rc, low cost. Works just fine.
 
Cobalt said:
I'm sure, but, the south american indians have been using these things for eons and they are all pretty much the same. The machete is like the AK47. It is not precise, it is not pretty, it does not hold a great edge, but they are cheap and keep on trucking all day long doing what they are supposed to do in terrible conditions. Cheap is the key word here. Springy steel, simple heat treat, low Rc, low cost. Works just fine.
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Going to have to strongly disagree with you on that point. Ever look through a Central/South American machete manufacturer's catalog? You'll find a wide array of patterns and styles, each adapted to a particular environment and range of tasks.
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
Going to have to strongly disagree with you on that point. Ever look through a Central/South American machete manufacturer's catalog? You'll find a wide array of patterns and styles, each adapted to a particular environment and range of tasks.
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True, the designs are different, everything else is the same. Machetes are designed for soft fibrous materials, more commonly called the jungle. As a child I did plenty of trips into the Amazon(I did not live far from it), so yes, I know a bit about machetes. At the end of the day, the many styles are for modern collectors of machetes. As for what is used, they will take anything they can get, as long as it is long enough to cut brush.
 
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Again, I'll have to strongly disagree with your assertion. Would you, for instance, use a lampón pattern for the same tasks as a sable pattern? A tapanga for the same tasks as a guarizama? A rozador for the same tasks as a cuma? The styles exist for function, not for collection.
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
Again, I'll have to strongly disagree with your assertion. Would you, for instance, use a lampón pattern for the same tasks as a sable pattern? A tapanga for the same tasks as a guarizama? A rozador for the same tasks as a cuma? The styles exist for function, not for collection.
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Yes we will definitely strongly disagree here for sure. The term machete as used today by the purveyors of products means anything. The original term was meant for the classic central/south american style. Today you can get any design you want, I have most of the CS designs and like them all. But my Tramontina can do anything all these others can do.

Definition: "a large heavy knife used for cutting sugarcane and underbrush and as a weapon"

Of course this is my opinion such as you have yours.
 
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To clarify, by machete types I'm referring to true Central/South American machete patterns as sold to field laborers etc. All of those patterns I listed are traditional forms.
 
The term definitely gets over-applied these days to a lot of fantasy pieces made with machete-style construction or to tools better classified as chopping knives.
 
I really don't know why anyone would even try to argue with Ben's knowledge of machetes here. The guy's like a walking encyclopedia on the topic.
 
DShiflet said:
I really don't know why anyone would even try to argue with Ben's knowledge of machetes here. The guy's like a walking encyclopedia on the topic.
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How presumptuous of you to think one person is all knowing and his information is inarguable. I guess no one else in here should speak because only one person has any knowledge according to you. I was using machetes and navajas as a kid in the 70's and using them in places where they were needed and necessary. I saw hundreds in use. But I guess I should just keep my mouth shut and not have an opinion.

I will stick to my fact that for the intended use of the true Machete, design variations make little difference to the overall performance for the intended general use. I am sure many of the designs do one thing or another much better, but the traditional latin style machete does it all well. But whatever. Carry on.
 
I've spent a considerable amount of time in the Carribean as well as South America, and it is my observation that for people that use a machete as a matter of livelihood/every day use, there doesn't seem to be any real rhyme or reason to what is used for what task. I've seen sugar cane cut with Pangas in Jamaica, and I've seen brush cleared with cane knives in Venezuela. If the machete was so specialised as a tool, the average rural person would have to have 6 different patterns on hand to handle all their everyday tasks, just not an option for most rural third world folks. The best machete for the task for them just seems to be the one that they have on hand at that moment. Just my humble observation.
 
That humble observation holds true for many things. Those that are interested in the machete topic tend to have their favorites and they make them work for what they need done. My recommendation is for the Condor Swamp Master (16") in this style. Otherwise my favorite machete is a latin pattern, the Condor El Salvador.
 
While machete patterns have considerable overlap in basic functional capability they are optimized to certain settings. Having an inappropriate pattern usually doesn't prevent you outright from performing a task at hand, but it may impede it compared to the degree of effort required with a more optimum selection. There are competing requirements on the tool depending on the target material it's more geared towards. If mostly using it for lush vegetation and woody stemmed plants, high tip velocity is required, and this can be gained by using a longer blade, reducing the total weight of the tool, and/or moving the balance point closer to the hand. Woody targets are cut through impulse, and this can be improved by using a longer blade, increasing the weight of the tool, and/or moving the balance point farther from the hand. As you can see the only factor that increases in both targets is longer length, but this can make it more difficult to use the tool in choked conditions. As such there are a multitude of machetes that exist on a scale between dedicated slashers and dedicated choppers, as well as a range of lengths, as appropriate for the context of use.
 
Cobalt and FortyTwo,

Fellas, you both present useful perspectives, but I'm not sure that's what the OP was actually asking about.
Seems to me like asking about the weather just to have a couple of guys go off arguing about meteorology.
 
Hahaha--I can understand that. Although the information in my previous post can be used in assessing the suitability of lots of different machetes for a variety of tasks. Consider the weight and length, take a guess at where the balance point probably is near, and you can probably at least make an educated guess at where on the wood/grass spectrum it lands and how easy it'll be to transport to a location and use it in a certain environment. :)
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
Hahaha--I can understand that. Although the information in my previous post can be used in assessing the suitability of lots of different machetes for a variety of tasks. Consider the weight and length, take a guess at where the balance point probably is near, and you can probably at least make an educated guess at where on the wood/grass spectrum it lands and how easy it'll be to transport to a location and use it in a certain environment. :)
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Experience goes a long way, brother.

As for the OP, I think he was asking if the panga was a generally usable pattern, which it most certainly is.
And also which brands are good for the money, which all that have been mentioned here so far are.
 
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Cobalt said:
All you have to do is buy one, most are all the same and put a good edge on it. Most machetes comes with 1050-1060 steel Rc'd to the low to mid 50 range, so they will all behave similarly. I myself like Cold Steel and Tramontina.
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I am hoping to get your guys opinion on this:

Cold Steel uses 1050 on their Kukri. SOG uses 3CR13. Without looking TOO deep into it, the 1050 will be more susceptible to rust and corrosion, right?

What would be the benefit to using 1050 over 3CR13? and visa versa? Thanks!!
 
Ancient thread necromancy here but in answer of the new question the SOG is going to have generally poorer performance by virtue of using both a steel less suitable to the application and having a funky hollow grind, saw back, and overly textured grip.
 
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