Pathfinder Scout Tomahawk, Condor Parang, Nepalese Khukhuri and Colombian machete

[jlgis77]

here is a trick i do for my tomahawk sheth is to spead it open and squrt supper glue along the inside edge where the sharp edge rides..it wont cut thru the sheth for a long time. my hawl is hand fordge and it stays very sharp and ive used the same sheth for 15 years..i do the same for the leather cover on my axxes to.....good vid..

[timwaltham]

i was initially put off the condor parang from hearing about your burrs in the blade but i got one and have spent a week clearing hardwoods, i got a few burrs the first few times even after light chopping but after a couple of sharpening they have gone and i havent experienced any from chopping wood since. looks like it needs a couple of sharpenings to get to the harder steel.

i also have no problem with the handle except for impact vibrations in the fingers after about an hour.

[TheEnglishRedneck45]

@timwaltham Thank you for sharing your experience - it is always good to get as many different people's experiences with such tools.

Can I ask whether yours is the new model or old one? The newer is around 1/4inch thick down the entire length of the blade and is full tang, whilst the older has a tapering tang with a partial tang. They are very different beasts!

I will have a video up comparing the two shortly.

[timwaltham]

@TheEnglishRedneck45 mine is the version with the full tang and is 5-6mm thickness all the way down the blade, im guessing the steel is the same between each version.

it storms through the undergrowth and smaller trees, i was feeling impact stress in the fingers after a 3 or 4 days from wood chopping but apart from that i didnt find the handle too bad except in the wet where i couldnt grip it.

looking forward to your comparison video between the old and new version.

[tomfaranda]

Nice vid. Just a heads up - the kabar kukri is a very high value piece of equipment. Low cost (under $50 US) and cuts like crazy.

[TheEnglishRedneck45]

@tomfaranda Yes indeed - I have heard many good things about Ka Bar's kukhuri. I would someday like to compare this Nepalese one with one of the Ka Bar/Cold Steel ones. Their grinds are very different indeed, and I would be interested to see the adcantages/disadvantages of each in different tasks.

Cheers

[KAPichon]

just slip a piece of bicycle tire tubing over the handle, easy on easy off, you can carry water in it, it weighs nothing, and its alot more comfortable than wood.

[TheEnglishRedneck45]

@KAPichon That's a good idea - thank you KAPichon. The added water-carrying application of it is certainly an attraction.

Cheers

[mbcNOOFS]

Thanks for making this video, i've been very interested as of late how these styles would compare in the woods.

[TheEnglishRedneck45]

@mbcNOOFS My pleasure, and thank you for stopping by. I will hopefully have some more videos up at some point using the new Condor Parang, and a newer version of the Pathfinder Scout Tomahawk. The khukhuri however, will stay as it is - just as I like it!

Cheers

[freddiemjames]

great blades!

[TheEnglishRedneck45]

@freddiemjames Cheers man - some not as good as others, but certainly all hefty pieces of steel.

[768Kayshan]

Great review! I like the outdoor environment..very nice!

[TheEnglishRedneck45]

@768Kayshan Thank you - yeah, I miss the outdoors. Citys are so overrated!

Cheers

[CliffStamp]

One note on the Condor, I have the Golok and the blade tapers in thickness along the length but the edge width stays about the same. The edge near the choil is about 20 degrees per side, reduces along the blade as the stock gets thinner and ends up under 10 degrees per side in the tip. The tip is thus a lot more prone to damage than the edge in the choil area. Is the Parang similar? In any case it should not chip, just roll/dent.

[TheEnglishRedneck45]

@CliffStamp Thank you for that - yes the parang is the same with regards different edge angles depending on where you are on the blade. This is indeed the likely cause of the rolls - however I have spoken to the designer of this, and he suggests that it was just a particularly hard bit of wood that did teh damage, rather than just as a result of just general wear over time.

Cheers for the info on the Golok

[CliffStamp]

@TheEnglishRedneck45 A lot of the time once they sharpen out they tend not to happen again as the factory edges can be burnt from over heating. I would be curious if that was the case here as well.

[TheEnglishRedneck45]

@CliffStamp Ahh really? Very interesting. I shall have to check that out. Incidentally, Condor have said they will send over one of the new ones due to the faults with this one. I shall hopefully have some videos up at some point with that one.

Cheers

[CliffStamp]

@TheEnglishRedneck45 That is good to hear, I will be interested to know how the new one performs and if the old one keeps getting damaged after extended sharpening.

[FATBOYbeast]

what woodland do you use for your bushcraft

[TheEnglishRedneck45]

@FATBOYbeast Just the land around my property - unfortunatley there are some far larger wooded areas literally across the road from my place, but they are protected by a charity called the woodland trust. Good for the area, just not great for me! Thank you for watching

[simonize251]

I love my reground to a convexed edge Ontario machete's! Can't beat em. Their 1095 I love that steel. It's pretty easy to sharpen and they take a beating. Cool video. Wish I was Bushcrafting right now!

[TheEnglishRedneck45]

@simonize251 I must say I have only recently been won over by convex edges, simply due to my previous fear of stropping. Now though, a good convex edge on a well heat treated steel = an incredibly sharp and tough edge, in comparison to a V edge of similar refinement. Most of the blades in this video are convex - the Khukhuri, Parang, and Tomahawk. The Condor just had a bad heat treat, so the edge was destroyed on harder wood. Cheers, and don't we all wish we were bushcrafting constantly!

[drumgodtim]

I am going to be moving to Mississippi (my home state) and have all the woodlands I could ever want to play in...looking forward to getting some videos posted on You Tube...the pathfinder tomahawk is beautiful...did you forget your gloves....OUCH!!!! Your hands are hamburger.... :) Hope to have a kukhuri myself one day.

[TheEnglishRedneck45]

@drumgodtim Khukhuris are superb tools man, they really are. If you get your hands on a good one with a decent heat treat, they are hard to beat for general woods use. Of course, axes are better for splitting wood, smaller bladed knives better for finer, more detailed work, but for general tasks, khukhuris are superb. That is my experience at least, others may disagree. And dam straight - the 'hawk totally minced my hand. My fault though - city boy hands, doing woodsman work. Cheers for watching

[mafundzalo]

good video man! the condor is 1055 steel btw. strange to see that the edge rolled on you. condor usually makes their steel very hard. i would expect it to chip first. p

[TheEnglishRedneck45]

@mafundzalo Interesting, I've heard that the steel is usually better from other users aswell, so perhaps I just got a bad one. Their steel seems to change rather alot - I am definetly wrong with the 1095 carbon steel though, so thank you for the heads up on that. The supplier I got this one from has it down as 1075, but they could very well be wrong. I shall annote it now, thank you for that man. Cheers for watching, and thank you for the kind words.

[mafundzalo]

@TheEnglishRedneck45 Shit man I meant to say 1075 and I don't know why I put 1055. How about that - we were both wrong and now we both agree lol

[TheEnglishRedneck45]

@mafundzalo Indeed man, at least it's sorted now. Cheers once again for the heads up

[mafundzalo]

@TheEnglishRedneck45 No problem brother. I have a condor parang that I am currently testing in preparation for a review, and I will definitely pay close attention to the areas in which you had problems. I haven't got to use it enough to make any conclusions yet, but thanks for pointing that stuff out, I will keep a close eye on the edge.

[Mr45Bullitt]

Great video my friend! I really like that Tomahawk. I watched gunzandgear review too. I have to get one. I'm off to watch your other video on it. Thanks. I think you might need a pair of good gloves.I know those blisters smart!

[TheEnglishRedneck45]

@Mr45Bullitt Thank you man, I appreciate your kind words. Yeah I only recently realised this was identical to his one - that being said, the Pathfinder branded one as it is here is $25 cheaper than the same version from 2Hawks, their Longhunter model. That being said, I hope 2Hawk's quality control is better than Pathfinder's. And yes indeed - gloves would be a good plan!

[laffreux20]

I was going to get the condor parang, i dont think i will after watching this. Thank you!

[TheEnglishRedneck45]

@laffreux20 That's what these are for man! Yeah, I wouldn't recommend it. It could be a simple one off poor heat treat, but I doubt it. That being said, the parang is really meant for light scrub, much like the machete you see here, and it deals with that stuff just fine. But, for the extra weight and cost of the Condor to do the same tasks as a dirt cheap machete, the machete wins hands down.