Condor Parang- first impressions.

Md 25v

Md 25v

Joined
Jun 11, 2008
Messages
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I thought the new Parang from Condor looked interesting so I added one to my last order from MacheteSpecialist.com . It is 1/4in thick 1075 carbon steel and has a VERY close feel to my two traditional Valientco Parangs. The Condor Parang is extremely tip heavy, more so than the "real" ones. It is definitely balanced for chopping and would quickly wear out your arm if you used it to clear light brush. The handle was nicely sanded and stained and the edge was fully polished and evenly ground along it's full length. The coating is thick and even, for those of you that care. I'm gonna strip it off and let the blade patina naturally. I didn't like the sheath that was available because I can't stand machete sheaths that have snaps on them (personal pet peeve, nothing wrong with the design) so I made a scabbard out of 2 in PVC pipe. The scabbard is on an adjustable cord for use as a baldric rig. I tried to clear some Multiflora and Green Briar but the forward weight of the Parang quickly made me realize that it was not as well suited to the task as a nice light Tramontina or something similar. I Figured that since it was balanced for chopping then the only way to get a feel for it was to do a bit of sheltercraft and put it through the paces. It cut live limbs up to 2 in thich like they weren't even there. It chopped dead, seasoned branches like a small belt axe, but with the long edge giving the benefit of clearing all the small twigs off the branches once they are cut to length. I threw up the frame for a Wiki-up and half way through I decided to stop using natural Jute cord and switch to vines. I was quite please with grapevine in particular as it was so flexible it could be tied in knots. Here are a couple shots of the Parang, the sheath, and the frame of the Wiki.

Here is the Parang
parang1.jpg


Here it is sitting on the sheath
parangsheath.jpg


This is where the baldric cord attaches
sheath1.jpg


This is the Wiki-up frame
wiki2.jpg


Here's the Parang hanging out while I go look for some small vines for lashings.
021.jpg


This is one of the wraps of grape vine
vinecord1.jpg

vinecord2.jpg


I'll come back next week and start thatching the Wiki. I think that the Parang is a strange tool. It takes large wedge shaped chips out of seasoned wood like a small belt axe. The weight of the blade gives it a lot of momentum and the thick edge has excellent durability while still being slight enough to cut well. I think that it would be hard to find a better machete-type tool for chopping and roughly shaping hardwoods.

PS- after a full session, it no longer shaves but it will still cleanly draw cut paper. I little stropping should bring that right back.
 
Great post, I've been eyeing one of those myself..either that of the Golok. 1/4" is thicker than I thought it was!
 
You don't have to give away your exact location, but I'm interested in an few details.

Just what kind of wood and forest are you using this blade on?

For example I live just south of the Canadian border in Idaho where the vegetation is temperate in the valleys and goes to pine and hemlock covered ridges and mountains up higher.

Just wondering what kind of species your hacking with that Parang and how large of basil vegetation diameter.
 
Thanks for the review. If you could take a picture with your Valiants and specify which models they are that would be awesome...
 
oldpinecricker said:
You don't have to give away your exact location, but I'm interested in an few details.

Just what kind of wood and forest are you using this blade on?

For example I live just south of the Canadian border in Idaho where the vegetation is temperate in the valleys and goes to pine and hemlock covered ridges and mountains up higher.

Just wondering what kind of species your hacking with that Parang and how large of basil vegetation diameter.
Click to expand...

I'm in Maryland. Most of the branches I was chopping were white oak and black ash but there was also some pine mixed in as well.
 
It's only 1/4" thick at the base of the blade--it's strongly tapered. :)
 
Md 25v said:
I'm in Maryland. Most of the branches I was chopping were white oak and black ash but there was also some pine mixed in as well.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the review, I have a few condor machete's and like the looks of this model. Where at in MD are ya? I am in the Annapolis area now.
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
It's only 1/4" thick at the base of the blade--it's strongly tapered. :)
Click to expand...

Mine is not "strongly" tapered. I was expecting the same distal taper as the Condor Golok but the Parang (at least mine) only tapers to .188 in at the tip.



Barrabas74- I'm in Baltimore
 
I use more of a circular cutting arc with the parang to get through green stuff quickly. It follows the same cutting power as a puerto rican grass machete, or Saber fencing if you have ever tried it. If you use the draw cut while doing so, you won't wear out your arm as bad. I went through an old briar stand to get to some metal drums the other day, and used the critter for two solid hours without any soreness. I would have rather had the condor eco survivor for it, but wanted to see the parang through till the end. The other part of the taper comes from the top of the spine to the bottom. I'll play with the tapers to see just how thin they can get it.
 
I'll try to switch up my technique with the Parang and give it another try on the lighter stuff. I do have an Eco Survivor on order though. How much thinner is it than the original run of carbon steel El Salvador machetes?

P.S. Dammit Joe, you're designing way to much cool stuff for condor, and spending all my money. When are the Sapien's knives gonna be in?
 
I ought to have one arriving some time after the 30th. I think I'll like it better than the Bushlore. I love the profile but the thing is so thick I decided to pass on it. Great for a lot of folks, I'm sure, but as far as I'm concerned "thin is in." :D
 
Nice sheath. Since all the Condor bolo sheaths from machete specialists are leftys at the moment I was thinking about doing a pvc version for it as well. Great job. :)
 
Thanks, the PVC is a quick way to get an indestructible sheath. I've made them for a few large knives and machetes I think that I'm starting to prefer them to the "better" sheaths. I'm pretty rough on my equipment and the PVC scabbards hold up through anything. I've also cut through a couple nice leather Condor sheaths by sharpening my machetes till they shave and then not being as careful as I should have when drawing/replacing from the sheath. I'm almost done with the design for a swiveling PVC sheath like the leather ones from Condor.
 
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