Tramontina Bolo Machete

Machete. Wooden grip is nice. Basic but useful. Not fancy. Highly recommend.

One of the best you can buy

good machete and very tough

Tramontina machetes are one of the classics for a reason, they are extremely popular all over the world!This 14" Bolo style Tramontina machete with 1070 carbon steel and a hardwood handle, lives up to the hype. Listen guys, it's going to be a little on the rough and unfinished side when you get it, but don't despair! That's actually quite a fine thing, because these tools are meant to be finished to the owners' specifications and needs.The Bolo style machete gives you a little extra weight at the end of the blade, which really helps when chopping the woody type of brush I have here in the northeast of the US. I also have a 12" and a 14" Latin style machete from them, all are great, but this 14" Bolo is my favorite for chopping through thick woody vines and small saplings and getting really close to the ground, she takes a beating and keeps her composure!!! If you're debating between the Bolo and Latin style just get both and try them out because I think they both have pros and cons!I received this machete really fast and I am very pleased with the quality! When it came to me, it had a thin clear poly coating on it from the factory, and a sticker on the blade. I removed the sticker with some blade oil, and spent some intimate time with a bastard file and a Lansky puck to put a hair-shaving edge on her. I plan to remove the poly on the blade at some point with some steel wool and acetone, and then do a force patina on it, but I am in no rush yet! Just some ideas on how you can personalize her! :)The tip will come to you unground, so if you want to put a pointy tip on her you're going to need to do that yourself - but I didn't go that far. I sharpened the entire blade up until the last inch on the tip which I left a little thicker so it can withstand chopping and whacking near/into the dirt when cutting up vines and brush.This blade is 1070 carbon steel as mentioned elsewhere on the internet and it's a good, serviceable material for the purpose of the tool. It isn't difficult to sharpen, but it retains an edge respectably well! It's not quite as hard as Imacasa machete steel, if you are comparing the two brands (they use 1075 I believe)The wooden handle on this machete comes pretty rough and blocky, which is on purpose so you can carve or sand it to your preferred grip. I am a lady with medium sized hands and I shaved off and sanded the handle right away, which didn't take longer than 10 minutes, and now I find it effortlessly comfortable!It only took me the first day I had this tool to fine tune it to my needs and it's been great since!I have been using this machete to chop out invasive plants in my garden and other such yardwork, and I find it a joy to swing and chop through the brush with this baby! I could do it all day, one of the benefits of this shorter 14" length is that the tool is light enough not to fatigue you, also the geometry of the blade allows the heavy front end to chop without any extra effort. She goes through thick brush like it's butter!I paired this machete with the Marbles 14" bolo style sheath, which is serviceable for now. It only takes me a couple minutes to touch up the edge with the Lansky puck now and she is dangerously sharp, so a sheath of some kind is essential.

I’ve only had this machete for a short period of time, but after using it a couple times in the garden, I am extremely happy that I bought it. I’ve used and really enjoy my Tramontina 20” machete and each certainly has its own niche. That being said if I was going to have only one machete for use in my urban yard, it would definitely be this bolo. I really enjoy balance between reach and compactness and the forward heavy, “choppy” blade. The blade is easy to sharpen yet holds an edge decently. I did put an obtuse grind on the distal 1-2” of the tip (totally unground/unsharpened from the factory) and sharpened it up a moderate amount. The majority of the blade comes with a very serviceable edge which I cleaned up (and removed lacquer) with a file then refined a bit more with a stone. I also used shaped the wood handle a bit, using a rasp and some files, so that it is a bit more comfortable for me, then finished it with linseed oil. It was 100% usable when I received it, but now it is even more enjoyable for me to use and I got a fun, small project out of it. This bolo makes quick, easy work out of vegetation up to branches around 1-1.5” and although sub-optimal, will work on things as soft as grasses. I’d buy another with very little thought if I had need for another bolo. Thank you Tramontina!

Well built machete. Initially it needed a sharpening, but after that it worked fine. I highly recommend this item.

Not to knock this thing too much but I recommend going for a CRKT or a Schrade. One bone to pick is that the back of the handle, which runs along your palm, is not flush with the blade. This becomes a very significant hot spot with any extended use.

I cannot see myself ever needing a different machete. As with any machete some work needs to be done to it. I highly recommend sanding the handle making it more smooth and easier to grip. With my grippy gloves I can swing this for hours without having hand cramping. I used this to chop a lot of wood. My elderly father has an overgrown yard (a couple acres with many trees) and I was effortlessly able to chop off limbs and process wood. Some people may say that a machete should not be used for this, but it has worked flawlessly. Despite getting a few chips in the blade from all the abuse I was putting the Bolo through it remained sharp. It has become my favorite tool and I am a knife junkie. You will not regret buying this!The only downside to buying a Tramontina machete is that it does not come with a sheath. I went ahead and bought a Cold Steel Bolo Machete Sheath which is for a larger Bolo than the Tramontina. I had to wrap the sheath in three places with gorilla duct tape and now the machete is held quite secure. The handle will partially be covered by the sheath and not just the blade. Alternatively if you want a custom made sheath google Machete Specialist. Price will be a bit more with shipping but it may be worth it considering you will not be replacing the Machete soon.If you do not have a way to sharpen it, I highly recommend getting a Lansky Dual Grit Sharpener (Lansky Puck) or any sharpeners from Work Sharp.I personally like the Bolo machete shape the best, but google "5 Types of Machetes" and find one which appeals to you.