some thoughts on the condor bushcraft parang

disduster

disduster

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recently i picked a condor bushcraft parang. I have been a fan of condors products for a while. I find the to be practical, economical and easy to modify to your needs and wants. When i first saw the bushcraft parang during some of the 2013 shot show videos floating around i said i need one of those. They have been available for a while and i did wait to get one just so i could see if any other opinions would pop about it before i pulled that trigger. Well i finally got one, and since i really haven't seen to much up on the web about this model i figured i would take it for a spin with camp and woods tasks i generally do when i'm out. With lots of pics of course.
some inhand pics to start. The handle is filling. I wear a medium/large glove and found the handle to be very comfy to grip. If in time i find the handle to be to big i can easily shave that polyplastic stuff down and make it easier to grip. I did this on both my condor bolo machetes (12 and 15) and they are great now. The handle has a bit of texture to it, not perfectly smooth but not rough to handle either. If you find it to slick it is no problem to rough it up a little with some sandpaper.
I was pleased over all with the fit and finish of the model i got. Condor has been known to let some stinker slip by. I've always been pleased with what i got from them.





little rough right there by the choil but nothing that bothers me.

what is a blade without a sheath. i think the whole package should come together with the knife and the sheath. I like the sheath that came with the parang and i don't like the sheath that came the parang.
I found it to be a quite tight off the bat and not getting much better with the amount of time i spent with it.
I like the pocket not to big not to small can easily hold a mutitool or stone and no flap to deal with.

The belt loop leaves a little to be desired. Tight and doesn't have much wiggle room. A foldover loop design i would of liked more.


and on the belt. well a wedding strap. Whenever i carry large blades i prefer to use a separate knife belt for easy on and off.

one of the things i like to see whenever a new blade i want comes on the market is comparison pics with other knives i already own. So i took the time sort out some production pieces to post up some side by sides with the parang. if you know what they are you know, If you don't ask.



 
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and on to the tasks this tool was designed for.
The weeds were starting to creep up on my old beater jeep. So they needed to me slashed back a bit. The parang did this no problem. But i would not want to swing this guy all day at brush it does have some weight to it.


took down a sapling along my practice archery lanes, always good to keep them wide.
A couple of hacks at the bottom and down it went. Proceeding to just chop it up at different angles. Pleased overall indeed. The parang can separate green wood.


tried some drawknife action. no problem there.

choked up and cut a notch. done with ease.

finally batoned the stave in half.

next i took the parang up the mountain to find some windfall to chop on. Nothing better to test a chopper on then a windfall oak crown.

no problem with a 4" branch. Generally for something like this i saw or axe. The use the chopper or axe for splitting duties.

Found some seasoned oak and wanted to do some more batoning.
chopped and branch off and split it up.



hammer the parang into the endcut pulled some shaving off the split pieces


I know this doesn't cover to much. But overall i was pleased with the parang and plan on adding it to my tool chest.
The edge held up great. It came with what would call a working edge and still has it. I plan on thinning back the shoulder abit and making in shaving sharp. The geometry is fine but i think a thinner edge will bite better.
The only real con is have to say about it all is the sheath. It got cut up were the edge draws across the throat of the sheath.
I would think overtime this will get worse and maybe cut through the sheath. A full welt or just a 2 piece sheath rather then a foldover design would benefit the parang greatly.


Also i will say i think it's a little big, a smaller version of this style would be awesome. Micarta would also be a great option Condor!
Think i might just get another one, cut it down and put some scales on it. :thumbup:
 
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You like it better than the Pack Golok? I like the blade shape but probably would go with wood handle personally.
 
22-rimfire said:
You like it better than the Pack Golok? I like the blade shape but probably would go with wood handle personally.
Click to expand...

i haven't done anything with the pack golok yet. I got it and the parang at the same time. so i can't really say yet. I prefer the handle on the parang in comparison to the golok. The golok handle is a bit beefier.

longbeard said:
Great review!

One question.....
What handle feels better to you out of the Bushcraft Parang and the orange Eco survivor el salvador? Most comfy/secure/less hand fatigue with extended use.

Thanks
Click to expand...

the parang handle hands down. I like my hand being able to choke up and gradually moving down the parangs long handle versus just resting right in the bottom to begin with like on the eco. I do like the thin flex of the eco though. If parang handle was on the eco that would be great. I say thats why i liking the marble's so much (the top one in the photo and also made my imacasa I believe), my hand can move around on the handle a bit.

thanks for comments folk
ian
 
longbeard said:
Great review!

One question.....
What handle feels better to you out of the Bushcraft Parang and the orange Eco survivor el salvador? Most comfy/secure/less hand fatigue with extended use.

Thanks
Click to expand...

Personally the Eco Survivor (slash El Salvador, etc.) handle is my preferred between the two when taken on their own, but it'll really depend on the blade that the grip is paired with. Strongly curved or broad blades often do well with a curved handle as it increases your ability to resist any torque that comes from the blade when brought out of vertical alignment (angled or horizontal cuts). Ideally this would also be mitigated by the set of the blade in relation to the handle in order to create rotational balance in the hand, but often such isn't the case so the raw extra leverage to more easily resist being torqued out of alignment with your stroke is a bonus.

Also, which one is more comfortable will depend on the swing you use. A heel-stopped stroke (the heel of the palm halting the travel of the grip in the hand) will be more comfortable with the "Speed" handle on the Bushcraft Parang, while the tapered butt of the handle on the Eco-Survivor/El Salvador is much more ideal for an unstopped "handshake" swing where the handle comes to the inside of the wrist. The handshake grip helps put a little extra tip velocity and impulse into the cut which delivers more "oomph" to your swing regardless of if you're tackling wood or vegetation, but does require more followthrough since there's no palm to halt it. For examples of the grip look up the grip used with a Viking sword. Those hilts will murder you if you try to hammer-fist them, and the guard/pommel were considered part of the grip in terms of their function (beyond those functions usually associated with those fittings, that is.)

Just my unsolicited input. :)
 
thanks for the input 42. that all makes a lot of sense. I do like the eco handle. Pinch grip snapcuts and slashes are great with the eco. I just feel like my hand confined in the smaller space between the pommel and the choil. I feel the the longer handles provide more grip options(straight or curved)and don't let my hand sit into a fixed position as much. Like on the marble's or my brkt golok (not pictured above).

not to change to the subject in my own thread. But the handle on your upcoming machete project looks great. The open design with flared butt and top really looks like it gives you a lot of space to move around. I would like to see see that handle on a eco. I believe they use something similar on their bush knife.
What were your thoughts behind using that handle on you design?
 
My decision to use the "Bush Knife handle" was because it both allows you to reverse the machete to use it in a hook-forward manner, as well as to squeeze both hands onto the grip if you need a little extra chopping force or grip security. :)
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
My decision to use the "Bush Knife handle" was because it both allows you to reverse the machete to use it in a hook-forward manner, as well as to squeeze both hands onto the grip if you need a little extra chopping force or grip security. :)
Click to expand...

fantastic, i look forward to picking up your design and enjoying that "bush knife handle".
wish condor would use that handle on some more of their designs. i think it does add more versatility to the blade. :thumbup:
 
The Speed Machete is actually my favorite out of the Condor 2013 releases. Fantastic model.

I think the reason why the "Bush Knife handle" isn't seen on more models is that it's a difficult handle to make attractive with the overall lines of the piece. The Baryonyx was designed with it in mind from the very beginning, but if you were to just try slapping the blades of other machetes on it they'd get ugly and weird-feeling really quick. :D It's a nice grip, but it needs to be designed for. :)
 
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Hello,
is there any distal taper to the blade?
in the pics it looks like little to none. where is the balance point?
great review, thanks for your time and info!!
be safe... Ted
 
TedPalmer said:
Hello,
is there any distal taper to the blade?
in the pics it looks like little to none. where is the balance point?
great review, thanks for your time and info!!
be safe... Ted
Click to expand...

yes, it tapers from a hair under 5/32 to 1/8, not much but some.
the balance point sits right in front of the logo. you can see the logo in the first pic.
 
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Nice write up and pics. I really have been wanting one of these, but have seen mixed reviews of them. I like the overall design though.
 
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