Hi everyone,
Once my exams are over in late May, myself and a Beninese friend of mine are planning to visit his village for a few days. Apparently, local village blacksmiths often make machetes. In fact, I already have one of these handmade choppers (blade from leaf spring I think, grip from truck tire) and it has proved quite effective in dismembering coconuts. However, I just picked it up in a rural market, and didn't get to see how they're made and who makes them.

When I asked my friend, he said I probably could have the smith make me one to my own specifications, and have it ready within a few days. now, these guys are probably no Angus Trims or anything, but I imagine they can make a decent, tough machete. the machete (or "coup-coup") is very important in village life, being a traditional all-purpose tool and weapon (yes, people still get killed with them).

I've seen evidence of a variety of edged weapons in the history of Dahomey and the surrounding area: straight double edged "takouba" swords purchased from the Tuareg, as well as a wide variety of short, broad, falchion-like weapons. my friend informed me that to this day villagers buy takoubas as a status symbol and self-defense weapon. they seemed to be generally thought to be superior weapons, but I'm waiting to get one of those until I go to Niger next christmas, which is where they come from and where I'll have a wide selection to choose from.

As far as design goes, I was thinking something pretty simple and utilitarian, maybe a bit longer than most of the types I see around here, say upwards of a 24" blade. as for the blade shape itself, I've had a number of ideas floating around, as there are a variety of types I've seen in use. maybe something with a broad leaf-blade (see the eben swords carried by the kings of Benin) or slightly recurved.

the thing is, there are so many relevant designs to draw from: falcatas, dadaos, falchions, kukri, "maciejowski choppers", etc. etc.

But there are people here who know much more than I do about what makes a good machete or cutlass-like weapon/tool,
so what do you think?

Cheers
Dan

I don't know how much this will help you (and I'm certainly not a machete expert), but if I were going to have a custom machete made, I'd consider something like this sketch. Very kukri-like, but longer and not quite as curved. I'm thinking something around 30" overall and about 1/8" thick for something like this. :)

With regards to the handle, how about something like a dussack or falcata.

Keep the cross-section simple and the general lines within the smiths experience.