Description
Ginunting or Pisao in similar name for working machete in indonesia that sometime come into various types. Period : Post 1900, Katipunan Era . It is commonly seen in Negros, Bicol region, and some parts of Luzon where most of agricultural products are into sugar cane. The blade curves downwards and edge sometimes concave or with slight belly with a tip much like the scissors’. its blade design purposes is used for cut and pecking sugar canes. Typically as a farm implement bladed tool use for sugar canes, and then found its usage for tactical.
As weapon, it is part of the Philippine Marines’ arsenal, useful in clearing vegetation when cruising the jungles, dressing hunt, preparing firewood, and for self defense. It serves well in close quarter encounters.
We make 2 versions of the Ginunting Pisao. One has a full hand guard and the other has none.
Malcolm (verified owner) –
I’ve owned many swords and cultural knives in my time from wall hangers to fully battle ready live blades. On a scale of 0 to 10 where 5 is a very good wall hanger and 10 is a battle ready blade, the BCI Ginunting/Pisao rates a 8 to 8.5
It is extremely well made with excellent fit and finish and good materials. The Blade is 21 inches of forged 5160 perfectly ground and nicely polished. The false edge is not sharpened. The main edge easily and cleanly slices paper. The grip is ebony and the sheath is mahogany. The butt is cast aluminum and the fittings are carbon steel.
What would it take to move it to the next level? The false edge should be sharpened. The butt piece could be anodized instead of painted and the fittings could be blued instead of painted. The grip is well finished and a bit too slippery and needs to be roughed up for serious work. These are not compliants; just comments.
This blade is a keeper and BCI offers an alternative to TFW, Kahli, and Top Prado. It is a bit more expensive than TFW but appears to be finished better. It is half the price of the least expensive TP blade which are no better finished. The BCI Ginunting/Pisao provides beauty, usefulness, and value.
Gene –
Thank you Malcolm for your comments and suggestions on our BCI Ginunting/Pisao. We will take them into consideration and see if they can be included in our next batch of Ginunting/Pisao.
James (verified owner) –
I received this item a couple months ago and I now tend to favor it over the other blades in my collection. I wasn’t sure how fast shipping was, but it was delivered relatively fast.
As with all my blades, first, I cleaned and sharpened it. The edge was able to be sharpened easily with a quick touch up and it came out very sharp. As sharp as the blade is, I am confident the blade was properly heat treated, though I haven’t done any hard testing yet. The forward curve in the blade, along with the balance and weight of the blade, make controlling it much easier without sacrificing power and durability.
The handle, blade, and pommel, all have a tight fit with no loose parts and no gaps. The hand guard has a tiny bit of flex, but always holds it’s shape. It seems sturdy over all and gives a little more peace of mind with hand protection. The pommel has a nice cultural design and I’m not 100% sure, but the tang looks peened at the bottom. The handle has finger grooves that fit my hand perfectly. Although, my hands are between a small and medium size. I’m not quite sure how large hands would fit over the grooves.
Finally, My personal opinion, I love it! Not just the durable construction and natural handling, but the price was definitely right! If you like martial arts and like a wide range of blade types, Or if you are starting a collection, I highly recommend adding this to your collection.