# Machete recommendations



## AT5760 (Mar 2, 2019)

Ok, looking for a machete. It’s going to see a decent amount of use in the yard and clearing trails in the woods. I’d like something that handles brambles and thicker brush. I’m in the Northeastern U.S., so we aren’t talking tropical foliage? Anyone found something that stands up to use and abuse?

My last one was from Tractor Supply and it was pretty toasted after a season.


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## parbaked (Mar 2, 2019)

My machete-fu is weak.
This is the only thing I can think to recommend:


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## StonedEdge (Mar 2, 2019)

Here's my parang, a south-east Asian machete variant. Chopping power of a medium axe but in a much more useful shape. I'm located in Canada close to the VT/NY border so I'm assuming we see the same type of brush, trees etc. 
https://www.instagram.com/p/BpWl05-A_3u/
https://www.instagram.com/p/BpWlUbogcV7/
differentially-hardened truck spring steel 450mm
full tang
mild steel ferrule
Canadian rock maple handle

Just to give you an idea of what's out there


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## orangehero (Mar 2, 2019)

For US Northeast I recommend the following:

http://www.baryonyxknife.com/18cumawgr.html

http://www.baryonyxknife.com/14bomagr.html

For backpacking I prefer the 14" Tramontina as it's thinner and lighter, yet still has good power for thicker brush. For backyard the 18" Ontario is awesome. A golok or parang is pretty sweet too, but it's usually a bit more expensive. On the other hand you have to be prepared to put in a little work with the machetes getting the handle and edge how you want it.


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## HRC_64 (Mar 2, 2019)

AT5760 said:


> ’m in the Northeastern U.S., so we aren’t talking tropical foliage?



IMHO use something more appropriate to your vegitation...generally pruning shears and loppers and a folding saw


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## StonedEdge (Mar 2, 2019)

HRC_64 said:


> IMHO use something more appropriate to your vegitation...generally pruning shears and loppers and a folding saw


That's great for the garden but when we're talking acres carrying more than 1 tool sucks. Chainsaws are the best but they freak my dog out, machete makes no noise


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## HRC_64 (Mar 2, 2019)

StonedEdge said:


> That's great for the garden but when we're talking acres carrying more than 1 tool sucks. Chainsaws are the best but they freak my dog out, machete makes no noise



Carry you're (long-handle) loppers over shoulder...a pair of pruners go in tool belt along with a folding saw /or in pocket...


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## AT5760 (Mar 2, 2019)

The garden tools work ok in the immediate yard area, but a machete works much more quickly on the prickly stuff, particularly in the woods. It’s a surprisingly fast and accurate tool once you get used to it.


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## HRC_64 (Mar 2, 2019)

AT5760 said:


> The garden tools work ok in the immediate yard area, but a machete works much more quickly on the prickly stuff, particularly in the woods. It’s a surprisingly fast and accurate tool once you get used to it.



I can see your POV if you're plowing thru vast banks of junk...


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## inferno (Mar 2, 2019)

The best machete seems to be the bark river bravo machete. its made out of crucible cpm 1v steel. 
https://www.dlttrading.com/bravo-machete-1v-green-canvas-micarta-924


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## Grunt173 (Mar 2, 2019)

Go to the Army,Navy Surplus store and get one of the old military machetes. I carried one for two tours and cut my way through Vietnam jungles while on point. They have to be good if mine took the abuse I gave it.I bought one for the farm and cut through a lot of brush to clear horse trails.No need to spend a small fortune on one.


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## Noodle Soup (Mar 2, 2019)

Anything from Tramontina, Imacasa, or Condor Tool and Knife is good. All made for real jungle pros. ESEE also has a machete they build around a Imacasa blade that is a step up.


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## inferno (Mar 2, 2019)

Nothing will beat bark river cpm 1v. just saying. they wont even be close.


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## playero (Mar 2, 2019)

home depot we buy the cheap ones and abuse them


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## podzap (Mar 3, 2019)

This is what we use: Fiskars brush axe / machete 19":


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## HRC_64 (Mar 3, 2019)

Thats an interesting shape...I do think some of this comes down to what you are actually cutting.


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## podzap (Mar 3, 2019)

HRC_64 said:


> Thats an interesting shape...I do think some of this comes down to what you are actually cutting.



It's a "billhook". They've been around for several thousand years. The design allows you to lop off thicker branches with the base and then pull towards you to strip off the offshoots.


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## Paraffin (Mar 3, 2019)

AT5760 said:


> The garden tools work ok in the immediate yard area, but a machete works much more quickly on the prickly stuff, particularly in the woods. It’s a surprisingly fast and accurate tool once you get used to it.



Yep, you want to keep moving and whacking if you're clearing trail. It's not deliberate slow work like gardening.

I spent a lot of time in Central and South American rainforests with locals clearing trail, and learned to do it myself down there. Most everything in the Tropics is soft and cuts easily, so that's one difference with the US Northeast where you'll be cutting generally harder brush. But I've used the basic Mexican/Central/South American machete on property I owned for a while in the Tennessee mountains with similar vegetation, and it worked okay. For trail clearing with hardwood brush you might be breaking smaller branches and pushing them aside more than cutting all the way through, but that works well enough for clearing a trail.

I'd recommend the "standard" Mexican/Central/South American machete shape with a long enough blade to flick things out of the way. I don't like short machetes, or the ones that are wider near the tip. That's mostly for increased weight on the shorter blades. With a long enough machete, there is plenty of weight in the swing, even with a narrow tip. Long machetes are safer too, less likely to hit your leg when whacking on the move.

Carry a folding saw in your pocket for anything the machete can't handle, but the machete should do most of the work if it's sharp enough. Plan on using a flat file to dress the edge before every time you use it. Cheap machetes are soft steel, very easy to sharpen, but you'll have to sharpen them frequently. You'll probably get some chips and dings in the edge, but just keep sharpening; it won't hurt the performance much. I'd stay away from any exotic knife steels for this purpose. Soft/cheap steel and frequent sharpening is the way to go (IMO).


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## AT5760 (Mar 3, 2019)

I think I’ll get a Tramontina 18”. I feel like a Latin American style will be easier to sharpen than a more heavily curved parang or kurkri. They have great reviews and I can pick one up at Lowes for about $20. A folding saw might be a good idea as well. More compact than slinging the bow saw along.


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## Bert2368 (Mar 3, 2019)

podzap said:


> This is what we use: Fiskars brush axe / machete 19":
> 
> View attachment 49495



I have worn out/destroyed/lost in a swamp several machetes in my life.

Eventually, I realized that machetes completely SUCKED to use just about anywhere seriously overgrown, especially around brambles. Our original poster, AT5760 DID mention brambles...

So now I use the LONG handled version of the brush hook podzap recommended, some call it a "brush axe" or "bank blade". Handle is like a full sized double bitted axe, it's got reach and velocity.

I usually don't have to stoop when using it. When it's even somewhat sharp, 1" soft wood saplings take 1 chop, oaks might take 2 or 3.

(Edit)
While fixing the #$%! snow blower for the 3rd time in three days, I dug out my brush hook. Time to clean the rust and sap off & sharpen it, just in case Spring ever comes again...


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## Illyria (Mar 5, 2019)

I love my Himalayan Imports kukuri. Used it through Central and South America.


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## Dylan (Mar 5, 2019)

Illyria said:


> I love my Himalayan Imports kukuri. Used it through Central and South America.


I’ve never been somewhere so dense I needed a machete, but I used to do a lot of backpack hunting in the forest and almost always had one of these HI knives with me. Such a versatile tool.


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## podzap (Mar 5, 2019)

Dylan said:


> I’ve never been somewhere so dense I needed a machete, but I used to do a lot of backpack hunting in the forest and almost always had one of these HI knives with me. Such a versatile tool.



I used to live in a place where our yard was _infested_ with blackberry. I had to carry a long machete in my car just to get in and out of our driveway during the summer, that's how fast they grew across the ground. I was always afraid I was going to get a flat tire from the thorns.


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## tgfencer (Mar 5, 2019)

I recommend these. I use a Fiddleback Forge fixed blades as my farm knife. Never used their machetes but I've heard good things. Simple steel means it should be easy to sharpen on stones.

https://fiddlebackforge.com/products/fiddleback-forge-machete-field-knife-version


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## parbaked (Mar 5, 2019)

This one is on sale!

https://www.cartercutlery.com/knive...-41-master-smith-101-white-stainless-machete/


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## parbaked (Mar 5, 2019)

tgfencer said:


> I recommend these. I use a Fiddleback Forge fixed blades as my farm knife. Never used their machetes but I've heard good things. Simple steel means it should be easy to sharpen on stones.
> 
> https://fiddlebackforge.com/products/fiddleback-forge-machete-field-knife-version



Interesting that the blades are fabricated and heat treated in El Salvador before FF puts on the handles and hand finishes in US.


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## AT5760 (Mar 5, 2019)

A $1,995 machete? Maybe if I win the Power Ball!


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## tgfencer (Mar 5, 2019)

parbaked said:


> Interesting that the blades are fabricated and heat treated in El Salvador before FF puts on the handles and hand finishes in US.



Yeah, that wasn’t the case last time I looked at them when they were still made in house, which was admittedly several years ago. Still, I suspect the heat treat is perfectly good. 1095 is relatively simple to treat and FF have a pretty demanding/critical customer set.


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## Noodle Soup (Mar 5, 2019)

parbaked said:


> Interesting that the blades are fabricated and heat treated in El Salvador before FF puts on the handles and hand finishes in US.


TOP Knives, PJ Tomes and ESEE all do the same thing. And then there is Condor Tool and Knife that are just a premium line for Imacasa.


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## Paraffin (Mar 5, 2019)

parbaked said:


> This one is on sale!
> 
> https://www.cartercutlery.com/knive...-41-master-smith-101-white-stainless-machete/



Well that's just stupid. And ugly too, like what a city dude would take to the jungle if he had more money than sense, and didn't care about being laughed at by the locals. 

Also, a machete doesn't need a "swedge" or whatever that is on top of the tip, especially if it's a sharpened edge. It just removes metal where it's needed for weight and balance in the swing. There is no utility in an "up flick" if that's what they're thinking of, because that motion works against gravity. It's tiring to make contact with brush that way. You're supposed to let gravity do a lot of the work. A double-sharpened tips is potentially more dangerous too.


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## Grunt173 (Mar 7, 2019)

parbaked said:


> This one is on sale!
> 
> https://www.cartercutlery.com/knive...-41-master-smith-101-white-stainless-machete/


Does medicare pay for that?


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## Bert2368 (Mar 8, 2019)

Shirogami steel for the edge on a brush hook?

Now THIS is a style I had not seen before.

The "hammer head" tip beyond the cutting edge looks like a good design for protecting the cutting edge from chipping if working near a rock, etc., plus putting some more weight out where it will do the most good. I would like to try this one out on a fence line or in the woods.

Don't know about spending $107 but I might try to MAKE a similar tool.







https://www.amazon.com/Round-Hatche...ng/dp/B005039LOI#immersive-view_1552082166711


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## Bert2368 (Nov 21, 2019)

THIS IS NATA KITCHEN KNIFE!














New toy arrived from Japan.

180mm stainless steel Nata, allegedly 59 RHC. Came sharp enough to slice hanging paper, have not tried to shave with it.

After deer season closes, I'm going to take this out and try clearing some property lines and fences with it. It has some serious "heft" to it, very thick spine.

After ordering, noticed they will sell you JUST THE BLADE?! For about 1/3 the price of the tool + sheath? I grabbed a "replacement blade" too. Another handle project coming up.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/SILKY-558-18-180mm-Single-edge-Replacement-Blade-for-NATA-557-18/281988080291?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

(Edit)
W-T-F. Cost me $26.45 for the bare spare blade, guess someone noticed they screwed up on pricing as now it costs $58!


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## Keith Sinclair (Nov 22, 2019)

Have used long Tramontina going through head high grass to get to mango tree. It works well as a swinging blade. It cannot handle Woody material not heavy enough. Light brush is OK. Also have a parang similar to one Stonehenge posted different animal thick in the spine and can put sharp edges on them & can sail through semi heavy brush.


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## inferno (Nov 22, 2019)

bert i just wonder how you are going to use it? the profile seems kinda choppy, like bamboo choppy.


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## orangehero (Nov 23, 2019)

I like this for thicker vegetation northern environments:
http://www.baryonyxknife.com/14bomagr.html

This is good for rainforest light brush type work:
http://www.baryonyxknife.com/bumagr.html

You can go with the 14" machete for compactness and weight savings, but it's not as efficient as the 18".

They don't come with a working edge, as is traditional in machete using communities. It expected that the owner puts their desired edge on with a file and stones. I do a wide convex bevel for the front 2/3 and then a more acute saber grind at the rear 1/3 for fine camp work.


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## Bert2368 (Jan 7, 2020)

inferno said:


> bert i just wonder how you are going to use it? the profile seems kinda choppy, like bamboo choppy.


This is a forestry tool, sold for limbing tree trunks while logging. It works quite well to cut green wood from my brief use so far, can remove a 2" Dia. hardwood sapling with about 4 or 5 whacks, it is more "surgical" than my long handled brush axe. Also a lot easier to carry on snow shoes than the long tool.


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## LostHighway (Jan 7, 2020)

IME in Northern New England hacking brush back with a machete is both hard work and a very temporary fix. _Rosa multiflora, _Asiatic Bittersweet (_Celastrus orbiculatus_), Barberry, Knotweed, Buckthorn, etc. will all rapidly regrow from the roots. Herbicides are one option and hiring someone with a big drum mulcher or Soil Hog is another, neither are entirely environmentally benign but far less damaging with knowledgeable and skilled applicators/operators. I haven't used goats but that is another option worth looking into. If you're set on using a manual hand tool I'd opt for the brush hook over a machete.
Edit: I was initially thinking in terms of a large area with heavy brush. For smaller areas there is an environmentally benign solution that removes woody plants by the root: I own the WeedWrench which is the original design and is no longer available but several imitators have appeared on the market:
https://www.extractigator.com/
https://www.theuprooter.com/
https://www.pullerbear.com/compare.html 
These tools generally will not work very well on soft stemmed plants but on woody plants like Buckthorn or _Rosa multifolora _they work great provided the plants aren't too huge. They will also work on thistles or Burdock if you get them late in the season just before they set seed.


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## Barmoley (Jan 7, 2020)

El Salvador machete is good for brambles. It is heavier, stiffer than regular machete. Also made out of 1075, which is more appropriate to this application than 1095.

https://www.amazon.com/Condor-Salvador-Machete-Polypropylene-Handle/dp/B002CEVSZ8?ref_=ast_sto_dp

There are a few options of handles and F&F. 

If you want a truly powerful chopper, heavy though this works really well.

https://shop.opticsplanet.com/condo..._Jb_dPw1s2-HMP6F1LzuP7g9hq5ADJZkaAtQ3EALw_wcB

The problem with barkriver machete is that the blade is 12" long, too short to work well as a machete. Longer blade is significantly better in this application.


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## Corradobrit1 (Jan 7, 2020)

There is only one Machete. Nice collection of butter knives.....


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