Thursday, January 12, 2012

Guns and Gear Review # 10: Aranyik E-Nep machete

Hey folks, your old pal 12-Gauge Chimp here, bringing you a brand new knife review.

As you may have noticed, the knife in question is actually a machete, but not like you'd normally think of. The machete in question is an Aranyik E-Nep machete.

The E-Nep is a Thai machete, similar in style to a Nepalese Kukri, made from 5160 carbon steel, which is the preferred steel for tools that'll see heavy use like a machete. Now, I purchased this knife earlier this month right around New Years and received it about a week ago and paying about 42 dollars US for it. That was pretty quick shipping on the part of the guy who makes the knives. According to the info I was able to find out on this style of knife, the guy who makes this particular knife is either in Hawaii or Thailand, I'm not sure. He hand makes these knives using traditional methods. What is the traditional method for making knives in Thailand ? I have no idea. Anyway, the wood he uses for the handle scales is Red Gum Eucalyptus, which is a pretty nice wood for this purpose.

The blade itself measures about 12 inches with a cutting edge of about 9 inches. The total length of the knife, from the very tip of the blade to the bottom of the handle, is 15 and a half inches. Weight is about a pound and it is blade heavy, which is something you want in a machete. These knives come in five different sizes, ranging from size 0 which is the largest to size 5, which is the smallest. I purchased a size 1 E-Nep and it is huge. I can't imagine what the size 0 E-Nep looks like.

My first impressions of the E-Nep were that one, this is a huge knife and two, it is a heavy knife. The sheath that comes with it is kind of crappy, but I didn't buy the knife for it's sheath. I can always make a new sheath for it or have a custom one made. I haven't gotten to test its chopping capabilities yet because as I write this, there is a bit of snow on the ground and it is pretty cold outside as a result.

I will be doing a video review on the Aranyik E-Nep in the near future so look for that on YouTube in the next couple weeks. I'll also be doing video reviews on some of the other knives and guns that I've reviewed in the past.

Overall, I'm happy with my purchase and can't wait to chop some stuff with it. I would recommend getting an Aranyik E-Nep. It's a well made knife and not too expensive for something that is handmade.

The Aranyik E-Nep Thai machete gets the 12-Gauge Chimp seal of approval.

As always, this is 12-Gauge Chimp signing off.

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