how thick should a machete be?

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galaxyknives

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Feb 8, 2017
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so recently I've been doing som research on machetes, as I plan to make som myself, but I'm just at a loss by now :confused:

I've seen machetes being anything from 1.35 mm or a little less than 1/16" (tramontinas) to 1/4" or about 6.4mm (ussually called heavy machetes)

now i ask you guys, how thick do you think a machete should be if It's somethink like a latin machete or something in that realm? .

thanks in advance to you guys :D
 
galaxyknives said:
so recently I've been doing som research on machetes, as I plan to make som myself, but I'm just at a loss by now :confused:

I've seen machetes being anything from 1.35 mm or a little less than 1/16" (tramontinas) to 1/4" or about 6.4mm (ussually called heavy machetes)

now i ask you guys, how thick do you think a machete should be if It's somethink like a latin machete or something in that realm? .

thanks in advance to you guys :D
Click to expand...

middle is always a good choice :)
 
Depends. When I sheared Christmas trees as a kid, ours were about .060. Hard to swing all day if they're too heavy. Something that needs to cut woody material, .125 or better sounds right.
 
I'd like something light you can carry all day, but it still needs to be able to cut through some small branches and such. :)
 
I wouldn't go less than an eighth then. Our tree trimming knives would routinely break when trying to cut 3/4 or so wood branches. They would cut a few, if you cut clean, but if they lodged in the branch that's when they would snap. They weren't terribly hard, we sharpened them with files. But even still only suitable for green growth.
 
Depending n the size and use, 3/32 is OK, but a bit thin if you are going to be hacking branches and saplings. I would suggest .125 for those tasks.
If making a short barong type tool, 1/8" is about right. If making a parang type chopper, then 1/8" to 3/16" thick is good.

The other thing that determines the thickness of a machete is the length. A blade over 12" long, and an OAL over 18" is pretty much for the movies.
 
The more useful thickness for machetes is between 3 and 4.5 mm, you can cut brushes, bamboos and is enough resistant to cut limbs, under 3 mm it's too frail and above 4.5mm it will be heavy and tiring after few hours of use, also depends of the blade's length.
 
Well, from my meager experience with machetes I'll add this. Living/traveling thru Guatemala 'n Costa Rico where a machete is a daily tool used by most working folks, their machetes are fairly thin, and never saw a problem with breaking. I have two that I got over 25 yrs ago. One is a short 14" blade and is .096" thick, other is a 22" blade and is .075" thick. I know I got the thin blade while living in Guatemala, and the thicker blade was somewhere in the Islands. Both are just standard cheap working blades from the areas I purchased them. Both blades are fairly flexible, so don't see any danger of them breaking.

Those thin blades slice thru large limbs nicely, and you can sling them a good while without getting too tired. Never saw any need for heavy thick machete blade. If a 1/4" blade is required - get an axe {g}

edit to add: I just checked and the long .075" blade is 55 Rc while the 14" .096" blade is 53 Rc.

Ken H>
 
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A machete is about balance. You want a thinner, lighter weight overall so you can swing it all day, but you want a nice fat belly to move the point of balance forward for a good solid chop.

I use my machete less on branches and more on vines and brush. I like a longer one than others suggested in this thread. It keeps my hands farther from the thorns! :D

Mine is just a hair under 1/8 inch and I like it.
 
I make a lot of machetes. They have 18in blades. In my testing I tried .110in stock and .135in stock. The .135 stock is too heavy. Keep it under 1/8th if you want it to be fast and snappy in hand.
 
I think a distal thickness taper is important in a long cutting blade that you intend to use a lot. You can have a blade with a lot of meat n' taters to it that feels lively and quick, with excellent balance, and it improves all dynamics of swinging it around, including blades with a broad tip.
 
Like anything lots of different opinions. Here's mine. Growing up in Hawaii I've used machetes for as long as I can remember and ended up making my own because everything I could buy was not good enough (pre internet shopping I'm sure some of the custom options out there now are good).

I would worry more about overall design such as shape, length etc and then have that influence thickness.

The blade that rides in my truck and is always with me is about 19 OA, 13 blade, 2 1/2 widest point near tip, 1 3/4 at handle. It has reverse distal taper meaning near the tip it's over 3/16 and 1/8 at start of handle. Excellent for chopping and handles light stuf no problem. It's got some weight but I like that much more than many of the thinner blades that flex, deflect and can't keep up in the chopping department.

Good luck on making something that fits your needs which is the main thing.
 
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Depends on how you define a machete. If it looks like stamped sheet metal with an edge on it, to me that's a machete. Once you start putting on primary grinds it becomes a knife, granted a large one. 3/32" thick or so works good for me if the blade is less than about 14 inches long. Somewhere around 0.06-0.07" for longer than that. I had an 18" blade years ago that was more, and it was ok, but I used it almost daily and got accustomed to the extra weight. To me anything 1/8" and over needs a primary grind and gets pushed into the knife category.
 
Buy a few inexpensive Tramontina and Imacasa machetes and try them. Also try a couple Marbles or Condor of the same pattern, but pay attention to thickness. 1/2 mm difference can be readily felt. As can the tip shape and mass and all that.

I have a square (straight) pattern 12" Thai "machete" sitting next to me. At the handle, it's 1/4" thick, 1 3/16" wide. Halfway out, maybe 3/16" thick and 1 5/8" wide. At the tip, maybe 1/8" at best but 2 1/2" wide. The handle is 7 1/2" long. It is a bit heavy, more like a hatchet. Some are a bit thinner and about 12-14" (or have a very long grip) and are more to my liking. But these are hand-forged, so obviously thicker than a machete intended for light vegetation.
 
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