Cold Steel 97SMATZ Smatchet with Sheath

Folks, this is a fine knife. The manufacturer gives an excellent description. Having said that, here are my concerns. First, and yes I knew this when I bought it, the handle is plastic and if wet can slip out of your hands. I'm an army veteran and if I had this knife in combat I'd be concerned about it slipping out of my hands when wet. It does have a hole in the handle for a lanyard so that's good in that you can wrap a length of rawhide around your hand. Rubberized grips would have been a perfect addition, but staying accurate to the original design may have been the main concern.The handle is not riveted or pinned so when you get to hacking I'm not sure how the handle is going to hold.The guard is sweet. You're not going to slip your hand over the guard. Your hand is protected. I would have liked more weight to the knife, but again, they give you the weight in their description.At this price point and for the quality of this knife I would recommend it to a buddy. I'm a tough reviewer so four stars is good coming from me. It's a nice knife and it seems to be made well. I don't think you'll be disappointed with this product at this price point. I'd am satisfied with the product.

This is a nice, durable tool, kind of like a short/light machete but it seems to have been hardened better. Good for moderate brush clearing, and works decently for chopping and batoning. Not as well as my Becker BK-7, but this cost about 1/3 as much. Meanwhile this works much BETTER at brush clearance than a heavy survival or bushcrafting knife (though not as well as a proper machete). Overall, this is a hybrid, not as good at any job as a dedicated tool, but does well at a large variety of tasks. You could even use this as a light sword, the partial sharpened spine and the spear point mean it would do well for stabbing I suppose.It holds an edge very well, and came from the factory with a very nice working edge (not razor sharp, but you don't want that with a heavy chopper IMO). That said, it could almost certainly be honed to a razor edge and maintain said edge reasonably well. The handle is comfortable and grippy. The balance is great, and swinging this does not tire one's arm as much as a larger machete (though you get more done per swing with a machete). For the price, it's a great bargain.

This bolo knife/sword/ hatchet was based on a WW1 British short sword/knife used in trench fighting. The blade thickness is about the same as a U.S. Army 1917 Bolo, but is longer which makes it more usable than the 1917.I had a 1917 and consider it to be basically a compromise knife that did not excel at anything-Poor knife, poor machete and too short for a sword. The Cold Steel product is made in South Africa, and its the typical Cold Steel product we have all grown to like. The sheath is a different story. I've used Cold Steel sheaths on other machetes, and they seem to hold up well. The problem is these type knives are constantly being taken in and out of the sheath when they are being used.This type sheath with the snap strap across the middle of the sheath is worthless because if you leave the strap undone (and trust me you will want to) you can lose the knife or get seriously cut. What is needed is a normal sheath that you can slide the blade into that will secure the knife and keep you from getting cut.Despite the sheath, this is another great Cold Steel product.

This is a real great piece. Cool Steel has done it again. It is extremely sharp so please use it with caution. It feels great in your hand. I can see why the SAS and other Special Forces favored this tool. Not a toy. Not a Trainer. Be careful. This is a real live blde.

Clearly not a museum quality replica but for 19.99 it is closer than it should be. Not a need and likely won't see a lot of use but having read about W.E. Fairbairn and the OSS during WW2 just holding this replica there is a connection felt to that greatest generation

This is a really neat little blade. It's strong and easy little blade. As expected the sheath is garbage but oh well. I ran it through the work sharp and this thing sings. I've had a heck of a time backyard cutting and everything I've thrown it at it's sliced and hacked through with ease. It's a wonderful blade.

I love the snatched itself, but the the sheath sucks. This is an unfortunately common failing with fixed blades.

I got 2 ones a beater other wall hanger

Es un mosntruo de pieza, hace honor a los verdaderos Smatchet pero a un muy buen precio sin escatimar en durabilidad, versarilidad y calidad pero con u toque minimalista muy practico

Pros-Solid construction-Excellent factory edge-Compact and easy to trek around with (compared to lengthier machetes)-Historically-accurate replica/ Conversation StarterCons-The grip gets hard on the hand after extended useCold Steel gets a lot of flak for the construction of some of their knives and bladed weaponry. It's true that they have factories across the world that make their weapons, notably in America, China, Taiwan and South Africa. Some of these factories (I'm looking at you, China) are worse than others.I can, however, say with certainty that the South African factory produces some absolutely amazing pieces. The smatchet came deadly-sharp out of the box, with an even and well-honed edge. I've been using this machete-ized iteration of the WWII smatchet as intended: as a short machete for clearing bush and scrub, as well as light wood chopping work. (No cutting tatami mats, manila ropes or pig heads like in the Cold Steel videos, I'm afraid.) It's fulfilled all of these duties excellently, and after several weeks of hard use (and the occasional resharpening) I have detected only a single tiny knick near the tip of the blade, which I've since smoothed out with a knife steel easily. I haven't cut any soft-bodied objects yet (Zombie-themed ballistics gel dummies are sold at a premium where I live), but I'm fairly certain that it would go through such objects with ease.As others have mentioned, there's moderate issues with the grip due to the materials used. When used as-is, there are certain hotspots near the joint of your thumb and forefinger that will begin to get uncomfortable after prolonged or vigorous use. This can easily be fixed by wearing gloves, applying hockey grip tape, or a combination of the two. I'm sure the truly crafty among us could even be enticed into construct their own after removing the old one. However, the stock grip is still comfortable in the hand when you're just messing around in the backyard.Another thing to note is the length of the blade itself. When worn on the belt at the waist, it reaches to roughly around knee-length on an adult male around 6' tall. A lot of machetes have comparably long blades, which *will* become annoying when wearing them for long periods of time. Either they'll get tangled in undergrowth, or otherwise bang against your leg while walking. Anybody who's gone bushwhacking will know how annoying this can be, especially after several hours with it strapped to your waist. To that end, this machete is rugged, compact and very capable. While other machetes with a higher price tag might perform better, Cold Steel has offered up something that really hits the fine balance between quality and price. Definitely deserves a place in any collection or toolshed.I hope this review's helped inform you towards a good purchase.

Extremadamente filosoEl estilo histórico de esta herramienta la hace muy letal si se utiliza como arma de defensa.Ojo , mucho cuidado !!

Solid, well finished machete. Great for all sorts of chopping and splitting jobs. Based on a WWII Fairburne (Allies) trench knife design. Has a very sharply pointed tip that makes it perfect for stabbing. The combination of chopping and stabbing makes it an ideal home defence weapon. It is just a tool but it can be used to protect yourself and your family. I have purchased a few of these as gifts for friends who appreciate the historical design and a home and RV defence tool.

For the price, this thing is both very usable and durable. I would actually lug this outdoor and use it for anything from digging a hole, light chopping or stabbing anything that needs to be stabbed.