Post by SEDstar on Jul 4, 2019 13:16:48 GMT -5
so, a friend gave me two chinese cheap machetes. I related my fun with cutting brush and the old machete with ruined blade broke the handle and i used the KUKRI... he gave me 2 chinese machetes to work with. the ONE was "just for the handle in case the handle fits something" and over half of the handle machete? honest to GOD i dont know HOW you mangle a machete that bad. it looks like it got pulled out from halfway thru a giant chipper shredder, i have NEVER seen the equal of it. (and i have broken lots of stuff to know, lol, this is the work of a PRO not a mere redneck like me)
the OTHER machete? its rusted up a little but it works and is more or less straight, handle still on it for now.
i got lucky and the handle holes on the broken handle machete? fit my old machete. THIS leaves me with how much of the straight part left i can salvage out of the handle machete to make a knife out of. Before i started? i used the "chipper shredder" handle machete and chopped down a few small TREES with it without bending the beat up edge. Once i learned how to swing to use the "good blade left" part, i got into it and really couldnt damage the edge with normal small tree chopping down...
so, its decent treated metal. Is it rockwell 99? no, but not cheese soft either. I am successful chopping down 3" soft scrub trees down. its hard to get a file working too, like the sawblades which work well.
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its more or less a big bowie attempt.
a hair less than 11 full inches from handle base to point tip.
a hair over 6 full inches of blade length.
handle and blade average around 1.5" for width.
thickness is about like a QUARTER. (earlier sawblade blanks were all like a dime)
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pros:
overall? its NOTICEABLY lighter than most big bowies.
while light for a big knife, its just thick enough its stiff and hard.
cons:
got greedy "saving blade" that was straight, and ended up keeping a few bad imperfections.
=========================================
I'll probably try this again with a new machete, i could see a stubby version of this bowie being cool, as well as a slightly longer one maybe. Getting several blanks to re-do my little ones in a slightly thicker metal will be a bonus too.
the OTHER machete? its rusted up a little but it works and is more or less straight, handle still on it for now.
i got lucky and the handle holes on the broken handle machete? fit my old machete. THIS leaves me with how much of the straight part left i can salvage out of the handle machete to make a knife out of. Before i started? i used the "chipper shredder" handle machete and chopped down a few small TREES with it without bending the beat up edge. Once i learned how to swing to use the "good blade left" part, i got into it and really couldnt damage the edge with normal small tree chopping down...
so, its decent treated metal. Is it rockwell 99? no, but not cheese soft either. I am successful chopping down 3" soft scrub trees down. its hard to get a file working too, like the sawblades which work well.
=================================================================================
its more or less a big bowie attempt.
a hair less than 11 full inches from handle base to point tip.
a hair over 6 full inches of blade length.
handle and blade average around 1.5" for width.
thickness is about like a QUARTER. (earlier sawblade blanks were all like a dime)
==================================================================================
pros:
overall? its NOTICEABLY lighter than most big bowies.
while light for a big knife, its just thick enough its stiff and hard.
cons:
got greedy "saving blade" that was straight, and ended up keeping a few bad imperfections.
=========================================
I'll probably try this again with a new machete, i could see a stubby version of this bowie being cool, as well as a slightly longer one maybe. Getting several blanks to re-do my little ones in a slightly thicker metal will be a bonus too.