How To machetes use in woody , North-American brush.

[svacua]

Machetes are obviously a good tool for equatorial rainforest, with its spongy vines. But how does a machete hold up to "woody" thickets like what would be found in northern Maine?

 

[beeinak]

I use them here in Alaska (not on frozen wood), and they work great on alders, limbing spruce and birch, cutting roots, etc. I grew up using them in Latin America, so I am sure I will always use one for something.

 

[Huntsman Knife Co.]

I used to make a machete specifically for this called the Fell Beast. They were made from .110 or .125 thick stock, so much heavier than a true machete but still only weighed about 23 ounces. I made them from 52100, AEBL, and 3V and kept the edges in the 58-60RC range to deal with hardwoods. After using one for years, I really believe a machete is the best big blade for pretty much any environment. Going back to a 10in chopper after having swung a 18in blade is disappointing. If I ever have the time and space to make knives again I'd love to put out another run of these.

 

[NapalmCheese]

As much as I like latin machetes for most things, even trimming up small (<=1/4") woody stuff; I think a cane knife is the better option.

I used to trim up the oleander outside of my home with a machete. I got a few looks, but hey, why not?

 

[kobold]

My best ones.

 

[oldmanwilly]

I think FortyTwoBlades has some relevant experience here, especially as a Mainer.

As for me, I like my thin Latin machetes but they just don't do it against hardwoods (or all the gol-damned rocks) in Central Texas. The Ontario 18" and 22" machetes are much more stout and power through thick branches. I think Tramontina also makes long and thick machetes in traditional Latin patterns.

 

[bikerector]

Machetes are obviously a good tool for equatorial rainforest, with its spongy vines. But how does a machete hold up to "woody" thickets like what would be found in northern Maine?

FortyTwoBlades designed one for such locations, the baryonyx machete.

Goloks and parangs do well. The OKC machete was pretty heavy and did well also.

I Would say the baryonyx mschete, condor golok, and SYKCO 1311, are among my favorites, outside of custom. David Mary makes a barax machete that works well also.

A reused photo, but a few of mine that get used in SE Michigan.

 

[The True North]

I use them here in Alaska (not on frozen wood), and they work great on alders, limbing spruce and birch, cutting roots, etc. I grew up using them in Latin America, so I am sure I will always use one for something.

Yep, limbing trees for shooting lanes and chopping roots are my primary uses here in Alberta as well.

 

[Another Shepherd]

I guess my old Meyerco is not a true machete at 0.125 inches, but I have used it a lot for limbing pines and oaks, cutting grape vines and black cherry saplings up to an inch in diameter, and clearing miscellaneous brush in north Florida.

 

[FortyTwoBlades]

The old saying you'll often hear falsely stated is "a machete works great in the South or in a jungle, but up North you need an axe!" However, an axe is really only good for dedicated limbing and felling of woody targets, and it would be absolutely miserable trying to clear puckerbrush, bushes, and any form of lush vegetation with one. Bush hooks and scythes are great for lush or lithe targets when you're on the homestead, but are specialized tools, and if you need to do work out in more remote locations away from the tool shed a machete packs the most general function into the easiest to carry package.

Picking the right pattern of machete largely depends on what you intend on doing with it. Fortunately there is a lot of functional overlap with machetes in terms of the range of targets they CAN handle, but the question is what are they OPTIMIZED for? With as many strokes as you'll be taking during machete work, the efficiency (or lack thereof) does stack quickly! Think about what tasks you'll MOSTLY be doing with it, what tasks you'll be doing SOMETIMES, and what work you'll be doing RARELY (but still require it to be able to handle, if not excel at.) Longer blades are generally best for heavy volume work as they get higher tip velocity while also pushing the balance point and sweet spot forward, improving performance in both lush vegetation and on woody targets, but at the expense of being less portable, nimble (though this can be compensated for with experience), and weighing more. Shorter blades can often still chop well if given a large flare to the blade or stock thickness is increased to give the blade more mass, but at the expense of performance on lush vegetation. In order for shorter blades to do well on lush vegetation they typically need to be made so light that performance on woody targets suffers as a result, as well. In general, a blade of about 18" is your bog-standard "do-all" length that balances performance against portability, but I find about 20-24" really excels in volume work, especially when the right pattern is selected for the job. The issue with longer lengths is that distal taper is essentially mandatory for blades over 18" in length or else they become either floppy or excessively heavy/dead in the hand. This limits the number of manufacturers you can trust for long blades. Imacasa of El Salvador (the parent company of Condor) is my preferred choice, with distal taper, good hardness, a wide range of patterns and lengths, and lots of handle options, including injection-molded polypropylene, which is my preferred type. Other good brands are Incolma/Gavilan of Colombia, Hansa of Ecuador, and Tramontina of Brazil (no distal taper, so 18" or shorter blades only.)

My Baryonyx Machete (a new run of which is in progress currently) was designed with North American temperate zones in mind, with a 16" broad chopping blade and hand-and-a-half handle for handling up to small trees without issue, a usable point/batoning shelf, and a back hook for lush targets that would want to slip off the compact, low-tip-speed blade, holding them aggressively into the edge instead. It has lots of other features and uses, but I won't run a full infomercial here -- suffice to say that it was made as a practical work tool for making jobs in the woods pleasant with the WIDE range of targets and environments we have in our region.

 

[Arathol]

Do yourself a favor and get the right tool for the job. Forget about those overly thick oversized knives that are offered as machetes. Go on ebay and find yourself a nice old Collins with a 20+" blade. You won't be sorry.....I've had this one for more than 30 years, and its cut acres of New England brush, from tall grass and japanese knotweed to small saplings and branches 2 or 3 inches in diameter (oak, maple, Russian olive etc) with no problem.
28" overall, 22" blade, .09" thick, flexible like a reed in the wind but cuts like a laser. All you need to do is learn how to use a small fine flat file to keep it that way....

 

[Vlade]

As most of you know I reside in two different places. I am right now in Puerto Rico, and then when it warms up I'll be going back to North Carolina. Every household in Puerto Rico owns at least one or two machetes. They are a basic way of life for simple tasks such as getting vines off of your fence. Cutting roots and small ,out of control limbs that grow all over the yard from time to time. Also prior to the gun control law changing everybody use their machetes for self-defense as well, I have one in North Carolina and I've never used it because I just don't see any use for it. If I'm looking cut something up in the hills, chainsaw or a good axe. For smaller stuff I would use a hatchet in the heavy woods. Just my worthless two cents I favor Condor machetes though

 

[Cobalt]

I own a slew of generic, tramontina and cold steel machetes. Problem is I organized my garage and now I can't find them

Back in the day, I purchased two condor goloks. They are 1/4 inch thick ish. I hate the feel of the handle and how the knife in general feels, so they just sit.

 

[Vlade]

Has anybody tried a Martindale crocodile? This is what I know about them, they're cold rolled carbon steel, they have three fullers, they're about 18 in Long, they have Beach nut handles. I can get them at the local hardware store for about $12.99 or I could go cheap and get a tramontina for about $7. I think Condor makes good machetes too. But the one I have is pretty much useless for other than it's intended purpose. I have a Martindale crocodile and it is superb. I don't think cold steel or condor could touch it. At least not in real world usage.

 

[Vlade]

Do yourself a favor and get the right tool for the job. Forget about those overly thick oversized knives that are offered as machetes. Go on ebay and find yourself a nice old Collins with a 20+" blade. You won't be sorry.....I've had this one for more than 30 years, and its cut acres of New England brush, from tall grass and japanese knotweed to small saplings and branches 2 or 3 inches in diameter (oak, maple, Russian olive etc) with no problem.
28" overall, 22" blade, .09" thick, flexible like a reed in the wind but cuts like a laser. All you need to do is learn how to use a small fine flat file to keep it that way....

Are they still being made because I haven't seen one in a brick and mortar for over 20 years. But my late father-in-law had one and he said it was the best. Apparently years ago he used to chop sugar cane for a living.

 

[FortyTwoBlades]

Are they still being made because I haven't seen one in a brick and mortar for over 20 years. But my late father-in-law had one and he said it was the best. Apparently years ago he used to chop sugar cane for a living.

No, they are not. There are still technically machetes made that bear the name, but they aren't the same thing. Collins was the king of machetes back in the day. Imacasa is the closest thing to them today but the older Collins models were quite deluxe.

Has anybody tried a Martindale crocodile? This is what I know about them, they're cold rolled carbon steel, they have three fullers, they're about 18 in Long, they have Beach nut handles. I can get them at the local hardware store for about $12.99 or I could go cheap and get a tramontina for about $7. I think Condor makes good machetes too. But the one I have is pretty much useless for other than it's intended purpose. I have a Martindale crocodile and it is superb. I don't think cold steel or condor could touch it. At least not in real world usage.

Martindale can be good but they outsourced their manufacturing recently so I can't speak for their current quality. Historically, though, they've had very good distal taper, steel, and heat treatment, but do need a lot of thinning out, like most machetes do, in order to perform well. But the "courtesy grind" on them is especially shallow and so they'll take a little longer than most to get tuned up. Fortunately you only need to do that work once.

 

[Arathol]

Are they still being made because I haven't seen one in a brick and mortar for over 20 years. But my late father-in-law had one and he said it was the best. Apparently years ago he used to chop sugar cane for a living.

Collins went out of business in 1966, when it sold its factories in Central and South America to Stanley Works. The machetes made after 1966 just aren't the same......
Mann Edge Tool Co bought the name and the rest of the business assets. They made edged tools using the Collins name until about 2003.

 

[Sharp Steel]

The old Woodman's Pal is machete like and can be used for some wood processing, but I think it is considered more of an axe though.

 

[oldmanwilly]

Back in the day, I purchased two condor goloks. They are 1/4 inch thick ish. I hate the feel of the handle and how the knife in general feels, so they just sit.

Same here. The handle isn't the worst part to me, rather the super thick tang tapering into a thin tip and overall short length means it has little useful inertia for heavy chopping. Ironically, it's also ground too thickly to really be useful for grasses and non-wood slashing. I keep mine in my car simply because it's a durable beater that doubles as a makeshift pick/hoe/shovel if I get stuck in a ditch again. Otherwise I just don't find it useful.

 

[Cobalt]

Same here. The handle isn't the worst part to me, rather the super thick tang tapering into a thin tip and overall short length means it has little useful inertia for heavy chopping. Ironically, it's also ground too thickly to really be useful for grasses and non-wood slashing. I keep mine in my car simply because it's a durable beater that doubles as a makeshift pick/hoe/shovel if I get stuck in a ditch again. Otherwise I just don't find it useful.

You put it much better than I did. Lol. But, that's exactly how I feel. My CS SF shovel is more useful to me.