Spyderco Forums

Vivi, how many different machetes have you bought and used?

Thinking about the steel, the grip, and at least a 20 inch length, what are the top 2 performers that are still made right now?

I do not want a whippy flexible blade, something more solid. Might even have a tip for piercing something.

vivi wrote: ↑

Mon Aug 18, 2025 9:23 pm

I have a Winkler Belt knife due this fall that'll really blow them out of the water.

Can't wait to hear about that one, Winkler makes some good looking knives. I will be curious what your take on it will be because I have heard a rang of opinions on them. Some people think they are fantastic, others don't like his selection of 80crV2 as the standard steel or think that the cutting geometry is too tactical focused for good cutting performance on a custom knife. Many of his knives are tactical knives so I could see them being a little stout at the edge even if they are high quality knives.

From what I remember when I handled it, they're built rugged but not as thick at the edge as say, the 3V SRK's I enjoy using. I'm sure I'll thin out the edge when I get it,but I don't think I'll be unhappy with the performance based on what I've read and seen first hand.

Naperville wrote: ↑

Tue Aug 19, 2025 4:46 am

Vivi, how many different machetes have you bought and used?

Thinking about the steel, the grip, and at least a 20 inch length, what are the top 2 performers that are still made right now?

I do not want a whippy flexible blade, something more solid. Might even have a tip for piercing something.

My favorite machetes are around 16-18" and thin and whippy. They work better for machete specific stuff. Thicker blades are more work to swing around and fatigue me quicker when cutting foliage. They do have an advantage when busting up wood though.

For something with reach, a secure handle, a stiff blade and a good point, I'd start here:

https://www.chicagoknifeworks.com/cold- ... s-machete/

little thick at the edge and spine for true machete work, but capable of blazing a trail or scaring off a baddie. sounds like it'd fit what you're after.

just double check you get a south african version. some of their machetes, like the 18" cutlass, have switched to chinese manufacture. I've heard they're worse, unsurpisingly.

vivi wrote: ↑

Tue Aug 19, 2025 8:29 pm

From what I remember when I handled it, they're built rugged but not as thick at the edge as say, the 3V SRK's I enjoy using. I'm sure I'll thin out the edge when I get it,but I don't think I'll be unhappy with the performance based on what I've read and seen first hand.

Naperville wrote: ↑

Tue Aug 19, 2025 4:46 am

Vivi, how many different machetes have you bought and used?

Thinking about the steel, the grip, and at least a 20 inch length, what are the top 2 performers that are still made right now?

I do not want a whippy flexible blade, something more solid. Might even have a tip for piercing something.

My favorite machetes are around 16-18" and thin and whippy. They work better for machete specific stuff. Thicker blades are more work to swing around and fatigue me quicker when cutting foliage. They do have an advantage when busting up wood though.

For something with reach, a secure handle, a stiff blade and a good point, I'd start here:

https://www.chicagoknifeworks.com/cold- ... s-machete/

little thick at the edge and spine for true machete work, but capable of blazing a trail or scaring off a baddie. sounds like it'd fit what you're after.

just double check you get a south african version. some of their machetes, like the 18" cutlass, have switched to chinese manufacture. I've heard they're worse, unsurpisingly.

I just bought something and will let you know what I think of it when I receive it.

sharpening up some kiwi 21's. I keep one on my cutting board at home and one in my knife roll, and 3 or 4 pre need back-ups with my chef supplies in storage.



Here they are compared to a z-cut to give ya'll size perspective.




Lots of knuckle clearance. they're only $6-12 shipped a piece depending on where you shop. Really thin geometry, very stain resistant, very easy to sharpen. The one I use at home holds a working edge for months without being touched-up despite the steel being soft.

I can't recommend them to everyone here enough. I have $200 japanese gyutos, $100 western chef knives, Victorinox budget beaters and everything in between. These will outcut a lot of those in terms of geometry. Aogami super will wipe the floor with them in terms of edge retention but the ease of penetration with these Kiwis is pretty much unparalleled.

$8.36 shipped right now on amazon.

now, my new marbles 22" saber machete.

first, receipts:



sheath is lefty for some reason, but for a trunk machete i don't mind. comes with a decent little sharpening stone that feels around 200-300 grit. lots of storage pouches.



here's the machete





edge is well formed for a sub $10 machete



pretty sharp in most places. won't shave but it'd slice paper.



did a few test chops into some recently cut branches about an inch thick, and some seasoned logs. Just wanted to test the edge durability and see how it holds up to being swung straight into a log.



got a small roll in one spot chopping into a knotty seasoned log, otherwise no damage.



Penetrates pretty well, that branch was a bit over an inch thick. Cutting performance will improve after I reprofile it. those were pretty mild swings, mostly just flicking with my wrist and elbow. swung with more effort it could chop through something around 1.5" in a single chop.

Not bad for $15 with sheath.

@vivi

After chatting with you I looked around on the Internet, and ordered a Tops Knives X16 Ginunting. It can do the work of a machete but it is more of a fighting knife from the Philippines. I will keep looking for Filipino tools in the 18 to 22 inch blade range. I saw something more than a year ago but did not buy and now I am looking again.

The Tops Knives X16 Ginunting is 1095. Almost 16 inch long blade, almost exactly what I was trained on for escrima. Pretty heavy. Can pierce and cut/slash. Thinking of sharpening the swedge. Might order another one.

https://www.topsknives.com/x16g

The Ginunting looks like a monster. I have one TOPS knife, it's a Fieldcraft. Nice if you want something overbuilt and don't mind the thickness. I could deffinitely go for less overbuilt, but when I need a "do anything without having to think twice" knife, it is good to have around.

Scandi Grind wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 03, 2025 9:59 am

The Ginunting looks like a monster. I have one TOPS knife, it's a Fieldcraft. Nice if you want something overbuilt and don't mind the thickness. I could deffinitely go for less overbuilt, but when I need a "do anything without having to think twice" knife, it is good to have around.

I have a few other Tops Knives. I have 2 of the pig stickers and one of them is blacked out.

Pictures do not do it justice. The blade is taller than I had anticipated. It is definitely a short sword with a blade length just under 16 inches. The rattan sticks we used for escrima and arnis training were 18 to 20 inches in length so I feel this is just about right for use.

It can definitely be used as a machete in a tight spot, but I think that it is thicker and heavier than most machetes. I'll have to train with it to get use to it.

Some specs:
Overall Length 23.00"
Blade Length 15.75"
Cutting Edge 15.25"
Blade Thickness 0.250"
Blade Steel 1095 RC 56-58
Blade Finish Black Traction Coating
Handle Material Black Linen Micarta
Knife Weight 34.4oz

yep, that looks more of a tactical / defensive weapon than something you'd want to be swinging through brush all day. quarter inch thick. reminds me of my scrapyard dogfather but much longer.

vivi wrote: ↑

Mon Aug 18, 2025 9:23 pm

Donut wrote: ↑

Mon Aug 18, 2025 5:30 pm

vivi wrote: ↑

Tue Jul 08, 2025 12:46 pm

I was a big fan of ESEE for a while but I don't know the last time I reached for one. I like the SRK handle a lot more than my ESEE 4's, and have come to prefer street beats to izula 2's.

I hear you.

I keep an ESEE-5 in the door of my car.
When I am going to take a trip to a local place with forest nearby, I usually toss my ESEE-6 in my bag.

But, I almost never actually use them. I used to visit the ESEE forum and I like watching camping videos.

I still like their designs but they don't do anything better for me than other options I own.

My ESEE 4's are a lot heavier than my spydies - temperance, aqua salt, and street bowie. Not to mention Mora Companions.

If I want something more robust for heavy batoning my SRK's feel better in my hand.

I could definitely get by with an ESEE 4 as my main woods knife. It's a solid design. There's just no compelling reason to carry it over my other knives for me.

Recently added a Condor Mountain Pass Camp Knife to my collection and that's another good option, and I have a Winkler Belt knife due this fall that'll really blow them out of the water.

Maybe I'll do some updated fixed blade photos once the belt knife arrives. Got a few more fixed blades since the last photo, and my machete collection tripled this year. I was getting a lot of use out of them and wanted to explore some other brands than cold steel. Got 3 ontarios, a couple condors, a few tramontinas, some marbles etc.

That's interesting, the 4 always seemed like the oddball to me. The 3 was a good small knife and the 6 was a good big knife and the 4 never seemed like it was good at either.

temp 2 and a ragweed forge puuko



kiddo gives it a thumbs up for making wood shavings for the fire pit



pretty nice knife overall, compares well against mora 511's. good ergos, thin scandi grind, and the blackened finish looks nice. fit and finish wasn't perfect...the tip is ground uneven and the belly to tip part of the edge could have been finished better,but for $12 it's solid.

I'll write up a full review after I spend more time with it. Hopefully shoot some videos too.

vivi wrote: ↑

Mon Sep 15, 2025 7:43 pm

temp 2 and a ragweed forge puuko



kiddo gives it a thumbs up for making wood shavings for the fire pit



pretty nice knife overall, compares well against mora 511's. good ergos, thin scandi grind, and the blackened finish looks nice. fit and finish wasn't perfect...the tip is ground uneven and the belly to tip part of the edge could have been finished better,but for $12 it's solid.

I'll write up a full review after I spend more time with it. Hopefully shoot some videos too.

Very cool! Looking forward to those!

I guess this knife has earned a shout out.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Ozark-Trail- ... om=/search

I paid $2 for one of these at a walmart near a lake. Looks like they've nearly doubled in price!

I bought it thinking it'd be fun to use for edge retention testing against something higher end.

What I didn't expect was it'd be able to cut multiple trash bags worth of cardboard strips....and still keep going.



Normally I stay away from chinese knives.

This one is a blatant rip off of the Mora Companion handle, but with a tacky rubber texture.

The blade is a thin 1mm stock and it was ground a bit less than 15 degrees per side.

The fctory edge was sharp enough to cut, but reflected light. I gave it about 15 passes per side on diamond rods at 15 degrees per side, then about 10 passes per side on the sharpmaker medium rods at 20 degrees.

This edge + the thin geometry has let it cut much more material than I expected.

vivi wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 17, 2025 3:28 pm

geeze, probably not going to get to the mule tonight. this comparison knife just won't quit

So, for $2-3 it seems to be a pretty decent utility knife,if you have no moral objection to buying a chinese copy of another brands design.

I think I would just pony up and pay for a Mora. Despite being 5x more expensive I am willing to take the dive for the Swedish product. I think my wallet can handle that.

That said I think this is an interesting anecdote on how thin blade stock and a thin edge will cut quite well even with super cheap materials. My Dexter paring knife has a bendy little blade and works really well on cardboard. It outcuts a boxcutter because it has more blade length to work with, but isn't that much thicker.

Mora companions are an absolute steal for $10-13, no debate there. But the Mora is 2x as thick stock and a scandi grind. They cut pretty differently going through cardboard.

I'm not buying any more of these knock offs for moral reasons but I have to admit it has good cutting ability. Reminds me of how an Opinel glides through most materials.

I found another one, vivi. Take a look and let us all know what you think of it.
The link will not post here so they key words are:

Jorgensen Utility Knife
Amazon website


Jorgensen Mora like knife. It says the blade is SK 5 carbon steel. Most of the reviews are good. One user gave a low star rating saying he tried using it for butchering fish and salt water use and the carbon steel blade pttted badly and it was very hard to get rid of the rust. Others love it but said the blade is not always centered perfectly but the price and full tang make up for that, and it does not rust badly.

I'll try that out at some point. SK5 steel is a nice budget steel. Tough and very easy to sharpen.

Got a chance to test out two new ones today. My Winkler and a Trench Hawk:



The trench hawk is a lot of fun. Works well for busting up fatwood, and throws well. Someday I'll shoot videos of me tossing it.



The winkler is very comfortable and came quite sharp.



belt knife in green micarta.



their sheaths are gorgeous. kydex with a felt lining and leather out layer. serious step above any other sheath I've owned.






great ergos, fits me well.




I like how they stamp the spine instead of the sides of the blade, and the jimping is a nice touch. Very grippy but not abrasive.



They make a good combo. That said I'll have to try a Winkler axe of some sort down the road.




I compared the Winkler to my Temp 2 and they're both very nice. While the handle styles are a little different they both fit me very well and carve wood nicely. The factory edge on the Wimkler was a touch less sharp and a bit thicker than the high polish edge I gave my Temp 2, so the spydie carved a little better. After some honing the Winkler will be neck and neck with it.



Great day outside overall. Glad we finally got a break from the rain storms. Saw some herons flying above the lake, but no fish out tonight.



Last thing I did was use the Trench Hawk to chop through this trunk that had fallen over one of my trails. Not the best tool for the job VS heavier axe with a longer handle, but it did ok since it was pretty rotted. 5-10 minutes.

I also picked up a Silky Nata Double Edge Outback Edition. Looks awesome!

Took a lot of photos and videos of my Temperance 2 over the weekend while backpacking.

While I sort through those and pick the best to upload, figured I'd share today's fun. Cleaned up a downed tree on the fairway of a disc golf course.



Main tool was a 28" fiskars chopping axe. Been using these for decades and they've never let me down. Despite some bad overstrikes throughout the years the handles have never cracked for me.



Size comparison between tree & axe.



Also used a Cold Steel Kopis machete to clean up the vines and de-limb the trunk. Easier to swing around for small stuff than a heavier axe.





You can see the Fiskars throws some pretty big chips with the factory geometry.




Fun stuff. Always excited to get a chance to use my choppers!

Chainsaws are faster but something about being in the woods swinging an axe satisfies me in a way those don't.

Vivi here is another one. China made Mora like. Tell me what you think:

https://www.knifecountryusa.com/store/p ... ndles.html

It comes with a fire stick.
420 steel