James grew up on an Ozarks farm where tools like axes and picks were still used in the daily routine and the blades of stockman's pocketknives served their original functions. Receiving his first pocketknife at age four he got it open by himself nearly a year later and spent his formative years wandering the woods with a succession of ever larger knives, a book of matches and a rifle.
A veteran of Vietnam, James also served in Alaska during a stint in the Army, receiving his first intensive culinary training by setting a record for extra KP at Ft. Richardson.
Settling in the Pacific Northwest after his discharge, James crewed on sailing yachts in local races, backpacked hundreds of miles of mountain trails in search of good trout fishing, and occasionally attended college.
His first serious job as a civilian resulted from answering a Seattle Post Intelligencer want ad requesting someone who could lift 120 pounds repeatedly and wasn't afraid of fire. James apprenticed to John Frazier -- the most knowledgeable traditional foundryman in North America at that time -- for the next six years.
Returning to the Ozarks James made his living by growing ginseng on a hand-terraced wooded hillside and selling handmade wood turnery, furniture, sculpture and architectural carvings. James harvested trees from his own land, processing logs into posts and beams and turnery billets with saws, axes, froes and planes. Since many tools he needed were no longer available, James built his own forge from a barbeque grill, a vacuum cleaner and a 55 gallon steel drum, found a chunk of railroad track for his first anvil, and taught himself blacksmithing -- creating his own knives and tools from scrap steel and sweat.
Changing economic pressures eventually forced James back to the restaurant industry in Branson, Missouri, and later to even more success as a maintenance engineer for one of Branson's largest condominium resorts. Finally escaping to Indiana, James now makes his living telling true stories as a freelance writer.
Predator Dutch Shaefer Machete w/ Sheath | High Carbon Stainless Steel Fantasy Short Sword
59 sec read
To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the movie Predator, a detailed replica of the machete used by Dutch Shaefer (played by Arnold Schwarzenegger) and his commando squad was released in a limited production run of 10,000 pieces. This is not one of them.
Built narrower and lighter than the signature version of the Predator Machete, this less expensive reproduction still packs a lot of steel into a nearly accurate 24-3/4-inch machete/short sword. As with the limited edition knife, the upper edge is ground but not sharpened. The cutting edge may not be absolutely symmetrical, and don’t expect the black paint on the center of the blade to be permanent. Some of the decorations here are only temporary if the knife is put to use.
Even so, the knife’s blade may hold up well enough to light chopping. There’s enough 440 high carbon stainless steel in this machete to do some actual work — just expect to resharpen the edge frequently. The handle design matches the movie weapon fairly well, but the workmanship here is more delicate. Polished metal bolsters and pommel should hold up, but the hardwood slabs installed between them aren’t shockproof. Machetes focus a lot of force in the handle if the blade comes up against something solid. Broken grips and numbed fingers are common enough even with machetes made for heavy work.
The nylon sheath will last a while if used with care. The Predator Machete isn’t quite good enough for display, but it could still find a place in the toolkit.
James grew up on an Ozarks farm where tools like axes and picks were still used in the daily routine and the blades of stockman's pocketknives served their original functions. Receiving his first pocketknife at age four he got it open by himself nearly a year later and spent his formative years wandering the woods with a succession of ever larger knives, a book of matches and a rifle.
A veteran of Vietnam, James also served in Alaska during a stint in the Army, receiving his first intensive culinary training by setting a record for extra KP at Ft. Richardson.
Settling in the Pacific Northwest after his discharge, James crewed on sailing yachts in local races, backpacked hundreds of miles of mountain trails in search of good trout fishing, and occasionally attended college.
His first serious job as a civilian resulted from answering a Seattle Post Intelligencer want ad requesting someone who could lift 120 pounds repeatedly and wasn't afraid of fire. James apprenticed to John Frazier -- the most knowledgeable traditional foundryman in North America at that time -- for the next six years.
Returning to the Ozarks James made his living by growing ginseng on a hand-terraced wooded hillside and selling handmade wood turnery, furniture, sculpture and architectural carvings. James harvested trees from his own land, processing logs into posts and beams and turnery billets with saws, axes, froes and planes. Since many tools he needed were no longer available, James built his own forge from a barbeque grill, a vacuum cleaner and a 55 gallon steel drum, found a chunk of railroad track for his first anvil, and taught himself blacksmithing -- creating his own knives and tools from scrap steel and sweat.
Changing economic pressures eventually forced James back to the restaurant industry in Branson, Missouri, and later to even more success as a maintenance engineer for one of Branson's largest condominium resorts. Finally escaping to Indiana, James now makes his living telling true stories as a freelance writer.
To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the movie Predator, a detailed replica of the machete used by Dutch Shaefer (played by Arnold Schwarzenegger) and his commando squad was released in a limited production run of 10,000 pieces. This is not one of them.
