What is a bolo?

wintermute

wintermute

Joined
Oct 18, 2007
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Stupid question: How's a bolo (knife) different than a "normal" machete? Is there a different use for it? That's it. Thanks.
 
Bolos are more leaf shaped or oblong-shaped blades and are used to cut & process heaver woods & cane v. traditional machetes which are used more for greener materials and for brushclearing purposes. Bolos are shorter and have weight/balance towards the front to aid in hacking thru things.

If your life involved harvesting sugar cane or chopping down rattan (v. regular vines), a bolo is better suited.

IMO, bolos come in a wide variety of shapes and are pretty-much similiar to parangs, barong, and similar knives used thruout all of SE Asia.
 
Here's a PI bolo. Blade is about 9.5" with 1/4 in spring steel.

bolo1.jpg
 
I'm planning on joining a trail clearing crew and was looking for something to clear everything up to small branches/bushes. Is a typical Tram machete enough, or should that be saved for just grasses, vines, etc.?
 
The bolo was very popular with US troops during World War I. Many were made by Fayette R. Plumb, Inc. of Philadelphia. They were used in camp and in the trenches, along with chopping barbed wire and the heads off of Huns.

Plumb Model 1917 bolos are not as big as machetes. Maybe a 10 inch blade. I've had my hands on one but failed to take dimensional data. My loss.

If someone were to duplicate the Plumb Model 1917 with modern materials, I think it would sell very well as an outdoorsman's blade.
 
hatchetjack--Have you ever seen bolos like the one you pictured available CONUS?
Lovely looking blade!
thanks
--ho
 
HORACE said:
hatchetjack--Have you ever seen bolos like the one you pictured available CONUS?
Lovely looking blade!
thanks
--ho
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Yes...that one. It was one of those great flea market finds. It caught my eye right away in a pile on a table and the best part...7 bucks!

Pays to get there early.

HJ
 
Hatchetjack,

How thick is that bolo across the spine. Is it thicker than 1/8"

I love that design and plan to try to replicate it. I am thinking of 3/16" 5160 spring steel, but with a longer handle for possible two hander grip.

Paul
 
The bolo originated in the Indonesian Archipelago and was used for agricultural work and for warfare. It employed a weight forward design because the regional vegetation was largely woody and harder to chop than say in South America. The African panga is another weight forward design, but it has a concave up up shape along the spine. Both were used as weapons because they were agricultural tools that were readily available.

There are several traditional bolos available at Valiant. Here's a link so you can take a look: (The bolos are under "Philippines")

http://www.valiantco.com/indexA.html

Also shown on the same page are the Gununting, Pinuti and Barong from Philippino martial arts, as well as the notorious headhunter sword, the Kampilan.
 
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A Bolo is a very scary Asian man who will crush most of us "round eyes" with his pecks. We must not speak of him again. He might hear us and become offended.

Bolo says no.
chong_points.JPG


Interesting fact:
Bolo's real name is Yang Sze. He took the name Bolo from his character in Enter the Dragon. He has been known as Bolo Yeung ever since... AND NO ONE HAS EVER QUESTIONED IT... EVER.
 
jca21 said:
chuck norris could destroy bolo with a round house kick
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Yeah but that's like people saying who the best wrestler is and you say "God could kick his ass." Well of course he could. We meant out of everyone other than God. So let's try to keep it reasonable. Out of all of the NON-DIETY martial artists, Bolo is the most feared bad guy of them all.
 
wintermute said:
Stupid question: How's a bolo (knife) different than a "normal" machete? Is there a different use for it? That's it. Thanks.
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Bolos come in too many different shapes and sizes to discuss how they differ from machetes in terms of shape and size. There are thick, heavy types for chopping wood, coconuts, etc, and long, thin, light bolos for cutting vegetation.

The big difference between the bolos and machetes I've seen is that every bolo I've seen was forged and had either a high grind or a full flat or convex grind while machetes are usually stamped from thin steel and have a small grind on the edge, but that might only apply to mass-produced machetes.

Most Filipinos I know (people actually from the RP) who have seen or used a machete while I was present referred to it as a bolo. I'm pretty sure if you brought a typical machete to the RP they'd call it a bolo.
 
To make things even more complicated, there are "bolo machetes" which are simply stamped out blades (as BL describes above) with large bulbous tips. Incidentally, the African panga is, typically, also a machete, and many current manufacturers produce the shape.
 
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