I thought I would bump this thread, as I have used machetes quite a bit in the past few years. For background, I started my collection in way, way south Florida when doing field work, so the habitats I was in were more jungle than hardwood forests of the southeast where I currently reside. Our field work typically doesn't utilize a lot of paths and such, so transect through dense woods and swamps is the general norm. And we really don't cut trails...the machetes were mostly used for when things got too thick with vines, or visibility was way down due to palms or other green/shrubby vegetation. As such, most of mine are designed to sporadically cut this shrubby and green vegetation, vines, and tall grass and also to push branches and such out of the way. The field work would sometime be all day and in very thick, nasty stuff, so shorter lengths and light weight were best. Anyway, here's my current collection:
From Top to Bottom:
Fiskars 22" - a good, long blade that's great for grassy and green vegetation given the lighter weight and thin blade. It takes a decent edge too, and seems to hold it pretty well. It's a little long and heavy to carry all day, but not a bad choice. Also, I've seen folks wreck these things on YouTube and such "testing" them, while bashing a possibly dull blade into hardwood oaks, then complaining when it ends up bent. Sheesh...this is plain stupidity as these blades aren't designed to cut hardwood...they are for thin/green vegetation. And for that it seems to really excel...especially with some room to swing.
Corona 22" - modified into a golok/parang style tip, and shortened significantly to about 17". This blade is typical of hardware store machetes...it takes an okay edge (I have learned much more recently, so I may be editing this statement), but doesn't seem to keep it that well, and is pretty floppy in stock 22" form. it feels much better now, and has obviously been painted for visibility (after losing it in the woods). It's probably my least favorite as of right now, but has seen the most use (used a long time before I started my collection and modifications). It has seen some really remote sections of Florida that most people won't ever get to see. It's great for an all-day carry in the woods, and has been used as such many, many times (both pre- and post-modification).
Unknown make, but made in Colombia 18" - cut to reduce the tip to a more blunt edge. I don't need a sharp point, so this increase safety and balance. This steel is fantastic...it takes a razor edge and keeps it really well. It's also light, but strong and stiff. I really like this one, and is one of my favorites at the moment. It's also been painted for visibility. This is a great machete for an all-day woods trek, and currently one of my favorites.
Ontario 22" - The chopper of the bunch by a big margin. I cut it down to get rid of the sharp point, and to reduce weight as this is a big, heavy beast of a machete. It's right at 19" for now, but will likely lose another inch or two at some point. It's been painted with orange engine enamel for visibility. This steel is well known, and excellent. It takes the hardest edge so far, and keep it. I have taken down some decently large exotic melaleuca trees with it in Florida, that would have taken forever with the Corona. I also modified the handle until it fit my hand and felt about right. It's a great all-around machete, but not one I want to carry all day due to the weight.
Tramontina 18" - pretty much unmodified other than sharpening it (might still need some work). I snaded the handle and gave it a few coats of BLO, and it feels very nice. I've ended up with blisters before from the Carona due to the rubber handle, but the oild wood feels great (much like my axes). It will lose it tip at some point as well. The stell, though, seems great and takes a fantastic edge. I'm looking forward to using it soon. I may carry a small piece of sandpaper to sand any hotspots the first few times I use it. But so far it looks like a great machete.
Gerber Gator 10" - unmodified. I bought this after using a friends, and I thought it was a handy little cutter for carrying all day. It's obviously best for green, thin vegetation, and I think it's the same blade as the Fiskars since they are partners or owned by the same company. It takes a decent edge, but the handle is much different than the others, and certainly feels pretty good. It hasn't seen the same use as some of the others, but it seems decent enough. Like the Fiskars, this is not designed for hardwoods work, but cuts green vegetation pretty well. This short blade requires a bit more flick to get the speed up.
So of course, right after I took the photo on top, I decided to replace the nylon lanyard with leather, and drill a hole and add one to the Tramontina as well!
Edit: I also have a cheap-o Coleman machete that currently does not have a handle. It's terrible...floppy and poor quality steel with a bad handle. However, it will be used to practice re-handling, as a few of the machetes above may end up with nice, oiled wooden handles...maybe something exotic when I'm comfortable!
