Machete and Knives

In my country when a local goes into the woods he brings a gulok, not a knife. A gulok closely resembles a machete but is a lot thicker. It is used for clearing bushes, cutting firewood, digging, butchering animals, woodwork almost everything. So it's not surprising that the very first blade I bought when I came to settle in the USA is a machete.


Ontario 12" machete.


I use the machete for woodwork, such as splitting wood for one. I know other bushcrafters use an ax, but all my life I've been using a gulok. Maybe if I have an ax, I will use it instead.


The machete is used to chop lechon. Lechon is a roasted pig and is ever present in most Filipino celebrations.

I read a lot of articles about bushcraft and most recommends a knife for survival tool. Of course what blade you carry largely depends upon where you are going. Back home a large blade like a machete is highly recommended. But in my present environment, I agree that a knife is more appropriate. I had no choice but to look for a knife, and that wasn't easy. Too many knives to choose from but quite frankly because of budgetary constraints, I opted to the affordable Moras.


Mora 840mg Carbon Clipper 3 7/8" blade .079" thick.I have Mora Craftsman Triflex Carbon Blade Knife 780 and the Mora 510 but I like the Clipper the most. The length and width of the blade is just right for me and the handle with rubber no-slip grip is just great.


I split a small branch of wood with my knife by batoning.


For woodcarving, I use the Mora Laminated Carving Model 120 above. Very sharp 2 1/4" blade and birch handle. One knife I wanted to acquire is the red handled Mora Viking 640. But my recent check with Ragweedforge website it is out of stock and the product is discontinued. I should have not dilly-dallied and bought it several months ago.These Moras I ordered online from Bensbackwoods. Order arrives fast, highly recommended. Below are the other knives I use when my main knife cannot do the chore at hand.


SAK Hiker. I like the Hiker mainly because of the saw, good for cutting small branches when I'm woodcarving or whittling.


And last but not the least, Sheefield multi-tool. Cheap but dependable, I have been using this for more than 10 years now. Some knives are for collecting and some knives are for using. These are the knives I use around the house, and carry with me when I go hiking, biking or camping.

That's all folks!. Thanks for reading.