Be-YOING!

[Grant Lamontagne]

That's the sound your eyes make when you first lay them on this thing!  Naturally I was a little excited when the triangular box from Felinevet showed up at my door- I thought it was a giant Toblerone!

Of course a few quick swipes with a Wenger Ranger 57 allowed me access to the box and the monster inside- a brand spankin new Cold Steel Magnum Kukri Machete!  Well this thing is big.  There's really no other way to describe it.  It's big.  I could go on and try to make up cute little analogies about it, but, well it's big.  Really not much more can be said about it.

The Ranger 57 is pictured next to it- and remember, the 57 is a pretty big hand full of a knife as well.  In fact, it wasn't too long ago on this very site that the Ranger series was referred to as a "folding machete."  Well, here's the non-folding type!

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

I'll write a full review once I've had a chance to play with it a bit more.  Did I mention this thing is BIG?

Pictured here is a Becker Necker (thanks again mate!) sitting well within the confines of the blade.  I think the Becker is something like 6-7 inches overall?

The CS is actually quite light for its size and doesn't have a great edge out of the... well not box anyway!  Of course a machete with an edge is a machete that hasn't been used, so that's not terribly important.  It seems to have a good machete edge, and will probably be a very effective chopper.

I will say that I have already contacted Eric at On/Scene Tactical about a new sheath since the one it comes with is horrid.  The blade was actually backwards in the sheath when it arrived, and the plastic side plates near the tip were wedged on the tip of the knife.  Of course given the size and weight along with the "sharp enough" blade, I wasn't all that enthusiastic about giving it a good yank.  Eventually I did free it, but it's not something I want to do on a regular basis.

So far though, it seems well worth $20.

Def

[J-sews]

.......So far though, it seems well worth $20.

Def

For cripe's sake, there must be nearly $20 worth of iron in that freakin' thing! Worst case, if you don't like it, just turn it in to the scrap dealer and get your money back! 

What in tarnation are you planning to do with it?!

[Spoonrobot]

You should come over and we can test the chopping ability in my backyard.



They ain't going no where.

[J-sews]

You should come over and we can test the chopping ability in my backyard.

They ain't going no where.

Whaddya mean?! I thought you were hacking them up into saw logs with your Gerber?   ;D

[Grant Lamontagne]

If I should manage my planned camping trip this year I plan to use it as a large camp knife- everything from splitting some light firewood and clearing brush to pissing off bears before they eat me.

I have that great little Becker Necker for smaller, lighter duties, and I will also bring along a multi and a decent SAK- likely an OHT or the Ranger 57.  I haven't decided on either yet, I'll probably leave that till I am ready to go.  The Ranger's curved blade makes a great show with a firesteel!

Def

[NeitherExtreme]

You should walk around with that in a backpack, and wait till you come across some guy who opens some "huge" overcompensating pocket knife, then do your best crocodile dundee "You call that a knife..." and pull out yours. Then find him a week or two later and find out what he's carrying.  ;D

[Grant Lamontagne]

I doubt there are many more overcompensating knives than this one- 22" overall with a 17" blade and over 18oz... it's a big bugger!

http://www.coldsteel.com/97kms.html

It's actually not as heavy as I was expecting, and is thinner than the old Cold Steel LTC Kukri I had a few years ago.  I could probably swing this sucker quite a few times before I got too tired- assuming I don't accidentally chop off my arm or something equally important.  It'll be interesting to see what the shock of the impact will be like through the handle on this one.

Def

[NeitherExtreme]

They should put one of those "anit-vibe" handles on that beast like Stanley has on some of their hammers!

[Grant Lamontagne]

The handle on these things is kraton, which is basically a really tough synthetic rubber.  I've had a few knives with handles like this before and they all tend to be pretty good at absorbing shock.  The concern with this one is that the blade is lighter, thinner and longer than many others, all of which tends to increase the amount of shock through the handle since the steel doesn't absorb or redirect the impact as much. 

For example, my CS Tanto has a 7 inch blade that is about double the thickness of this one, and unless you try chopping into solid steel or something else as hard, you'll never feel the impact.

Def

[NeitherExtreme]

I'll be interested in hearing how it works out. I wonder if you'll tire out from the weight of it first, or the shock?

[665ae]

How exactly are you going to scare off a bear?  I don't see a bear thinking "Oh crap!  It's a guy with a big knife!  Ahhhh!!!!" 

[Mike, Lord of the Spammers!]

Now that is my kinda sheath knife, I'm really looking forward to the review of this one, especially as its in my price bracket ;D

[Grant Lamontagne]

I didn't say scare off a bear, I said piss him off before he eats me by taking a few swings at him with it!  I'm not silly enough to think that I have even a remote chance of surviving a bear attack with this thing!

A guy's going on a hiking vacation through the mountains out west.  Before
setting off into the boonies, he stops into a small general store to get
some supplies.

After picking out the rest of his provisions, he asks the old store owner,
"Say mister, I'm going hiking up in the mountains, and I was wondering;
do you have any bears around here?"

"Yup," replies the owner.

"What kind?" asks the hiker.

"Well, we got black bears and we got grizzlies," he replies.

"I see," says the hiker.  "Do you have any of those bear bells?"

"What do you mean?" asks the store owner.

"You know," replies the hiker, "those little tinkle-bells that people wear
in bear country to warn the bears that they are coming, so they don't
surprise the bears and get attacked."

"Oh yeah," replies the owner.  "They're over there," he says, pointing to
a shelf on the other side of the store.  The hiker selects  a couple of
the bells and and takes them to the counter to pay for them.

"Tell me something, mister," the hiker inquires, "how can you tell when
you're in bear territory, anyway?"

"By the scat," the old fellow replies, ringing up the hiker's purchases.

"Well, um, how can I tell if it's grizzly territory or black bear territory?"
the hiker asks.

"By the scat," the store owner replies.

"Well, what's the difference?" asks the hiker.  "I mean, what's different
between grizzly scat and black bear scat?"

"The stuff that's in it," replies the store owner.

Getting a little frustrated, the hiker asks, "OK, so what's in grizzly bear
scat that isn't in black bear scat?" he asks, an impatient tone in his voice.


"Bear bells," replies the old man as he hands the hiker his purchases.

Def

[NeitherExtreme]

I know I read an article once where a bear attacked some guy, his dog in turn attacked the bear, and when the bear turned on the dog the guy got out his 6 inch Buck knife, jumped on its back and killed it. The dog lived too So I figure if you bring a big dog and a big knife, you at least stand a fighting chance. Of course a loaded elephant gun strapped on your back might send the bear a mesage as well...

[ringzero]

I know I read an article once where a bear attacked some guy, his dog in turn attacked the bear, and when the bear turned on the dog the guy got out his 6 inch Buck knife, jumped on its back and killed it. The dog lived too So I figure if you bring a big dog and a big knife, you at least stand a fighting chance. Of course a loaded elephant gun strapped on your back might send the bear a mesage as well...

Years ago - so some of the details are sort of hazy - I read an article about a park ranger who was attacked by a grizzly while he was out chopping fire wood with an ax.

He instinctively threw the ax at the charging bear, then dodged behind a tree and began climbing.  After a few minutes in the tree, he realized the bear wasn't coming after him.

He manuevered around the tree trunk until he could see the bear, which to his great surprise was sprawled out on the ground at the base of the tree, not moving.  The thrown ax had split the bear's skull, killing it instantly.  An amazing story, presented as a true story by the magazine that published it, which was one of the outdoor mags.

What are the odds of killing a grizzly bear with an ax?

It can be touch and go for even an experienced bear hunter to kill a charging grizzly with a high-power rifle.

.

[J-sews]

Wow, cool story!

Reminds me of that movie (what was the name?) with Alec Baldwin and Anthony Hopkins, where they end up killing that Grizzly Bear with a sharpened stake. Yikes!

[zackhugh]

The Edge.  Cool flick.

[J-sews]

The Edge, thanks!

Yah, that movie would have been a whole lot shorter and less exciting if those guys would have had Def's Magnum Kukri Machete along! 

[Raukodur]

grizzly bears are pretty amazing creatures, so powerful, built like a tank.

Some park ranger was saying on a TV program that someone left a tiny piece of cheese on the floor of the drivers seat in their land rover (must have fallen down there, no bigger than a small coin) and the smell was picked up by a grizzy which then came, created a bear shaped hole in the passenger seat door, rips the seats out of the way, got the cheese and in doing so had practically demolished this supposedly sturdy off road car.

Hmm, so if polar bears are even bigger than grizzlies, I wonder what they are capable of...

[Grant Lamontagne]

Polar bears aren't only bigger than grizzlies, they are also much more aggressive.

Grizzlies subsist mostly on berries, leaves and the occasional small animal.  Polar Bears are hunters and almost completely carnivorous.

Both beautiful animals, but best respected from a great distance!

Def

[Mike, Lord of the Spammers!]

Polar bears aren't only bigger than grizzlies, they are also much more aggressive.

Grizzlies subsist mostly on berries, leaves and the occasional small animal.  Polar Bears are hunters and almost completely carnivorous.

Both beautiful animals, but best respected from a great distance!

Def

As far as I'm aware polar bears are the only animals to use earthquake technology to snare there prey

awesome...

[Papacat]

Yah, that movie would have been a whole lot shorter and less exciting if those guys would have had Def's Magnum Kukri Machete along! 

...and bear bells.   :grin:

-Papacat

[Mike, Lord of the Spammers!]

So you've had it a while now mate, what are your thought's on it

[Grant Lamontagne]

It's BIG.  Did I mention that?

I haven't gone camping yet, so I really haven't used it yet.  With the nights starting to get colder, I may not manage to get out this year.  We've had a few frost warnings so far, and I hate cold.  I may consider a nice day trip though- head out as far as I can, break for lunch then make my way home in the afternoon, in which case I'll give it a workout.  Failing that I may just take it out for a few whacks to see what happens.

I have to say, it's probably one of the best knives you'll ever get for $20.

Def

[Mike, Lord of the Spammers!]

It's BIG.  Did I mention that?

I haven't gone camping yet, so I really haven't used it yet.  With the nights starting to get colder, I may not manage to get out this year.  We've had a few frost warnings so far, and I hate cold.  I may consider a nice day trip though- head out as far as I can, break for lunch then make my way home in the afternoon, in which case I'll give it a workout.  Failing that I may just take it out for a few whacks to see what happens.

I have to say, it's probably one of the best knives you'll ever get for $20.

Def

How cold is cold where you are

[Grant Lamontagne]

It's actually not really all that cold yet, it's just that the temperature tends to drop from a fairly heavy summer type heat this time of year.  It really only feels cold compared to what we'd been used to.  A couple of weeks ago the temperature was well above 30C almost every day, and now it averages in the high teens and low twenties.  Add in the cool moisture in the air, and night time temperatures that get down into the single digits and it seems really, really cold!

Def

[Mike, Lord of the Spammers!]

It's actually not really all that cold yet, it's just that the temperature tends to drop from a fairly heavy summer type heat this time of year.  It really only feels cold compared to what we'd been used to.  A couple of weeks ago the temperature was well above 30C almost every day, and now it averages in the high teens and low twenties.  Add in the cool moisture in the air, and night time temperatures that get down into the single digits and it seems really, really cold!

Def

Thats pretty much what happens over here , Mind you it can go from -10c to 38c inside of a year over here, so that's must be pretty close to what you get over there aint it

[Grant Lamontagne]

Well being stuck out into the ocean like my province is, we are pretty well at the mercy of ocean winds for our weather, which can change drastically in the course of a day.  I remember the most dramatic example was one year when I was in high school- it was July and I had left early in the morning to go biking.  In those days I could be gone most of the day.  At any rate, it was in the high teens first thing in the morning, and was sunny and clear, so it certainly would warm up throughout the day right?  Wrong.  By lunchtime (when I was pretty far from home) the clouds rolled in and within an hour the temperature had dropped and it started to snow.

Admittedly, that was a bit of a freak storm, and it hasn't happened since, but the days here can easily go from rain to clear to fog, and it's no big surprise to have three or four different forecasts in one day.

Def

[Mike, Lord of the Spammers!]

Well being stuck out into the ocean like my province is, we are pretty well at the mercy of ocean winds for our weather, which can change drastically in the course of a day.  I remember the most dramatic example was one year when I was in high school- it was July and I had left early in the morning to go biking.  In those days I could be gone most of the day.  At any rate, it was in the high teens first thing in the morning, and was sunny and clear, so it certainly would warm up throughout the day right?  Wrong.  By lunchtime (when I was pretty far from home) the clouds rolled in and within an hour the temperature had dropped and it started to snow.

Admittedly, that was a bit of a freak storm, and it hasn't happened since, but the days here can easily go from rain to clear to fog, and it's no big surprise to have three or four different forecasts in one day.

Def

Four seasons in one day? I'm pretty familiar with that ;D