Gerber Gator Golok Machete

Very Good for cutting firewood/small trees/thick branches – I needed a Machete for cutting kindling and firewood when camping, so this review is just my opinion after having this machete for a small period of time, first off, this machete is fairly heavy which will limit the amount of swings that you will be able to do compared with most other lighter machetes before it will tire some people out, this is… Read more

due to the thickness and weight of the blade which is about 7mm thick. Ideally suited for chopping heavier branches, a cross between a brush machete and a small axe. In other words, it's a chopper.

It is made from black oxide coated MN65 steel which is probably comparable to 1065, this steel is not tempered as hard as other blades, but it will be tougher and be able to handle the solid hits against harder timber, so should not chip or deform easily. I found that when used on light flexible branches it would tend to push them away or break them off rather than slicing them off like a thinner blade would unless you had the room to make a very fast swing. The heavy blade contributes to not being able to get the speed.

Gathering firewood, I have the largish chainsaws for cutting logs, but they are a bit of overkill to use them when trimming up the smaller branches and getting kindling ready to start the fire for which this machete is ideally suited for. If you need one to clear a path through lighter scrub and weed then there are better and lighter ones for that task, but for heavier branches this one is quite good.

It comes with a nylon sheaf with two D rings and a Velcro covered patch on the handle to lock the machete into the sheaf and hold it in place. The grip handle is rubberized to enable a good grip and a wrist cord to help stop the machete from flying away should you lose your grip on the handle. I can't stress enough the importance of a wrist strap/cord when cutting, especially if using gloves.

Many years ago, I was wearing gloves and was clearing blackberries on a property, took a big swing and the machete twisted in my glove on contact and I lost my grip, the machete flew out of my hands and nearly hit a child who was walking about 10m away, so don't think that it can't happen, use the strap!

Overall I am pretty happy with it so far but have only had it for a short time, I may need another different, but lighter type of machete better suited for clearing thinner vegetation as this one is too much of an overkill and not designed for that sort of work, but for the work that I need this one for it should do a good job.

Having said all that, only time will tell how good it withstands cutting timber and whether or not it will keep the edge, resist bending and chipping and see if it was worth buying or not! If I can, I will update this review at a later stage.

Cheers.