Dominicans now manufacture their own machetes under but still generalize the original brand name in the same way Americans speak of Kleenex and Band-Aids. My favorite Dominican brand? Bellota, whose name translates as "big beautiful thing."
Men put it on in the morning as part of their wardrobe but women and children use it too. My host mom keeps one in the kitchen cupboard. No one blinks to see a muchacho walking down the street with a razor sharp colín dangling loosely from his fingers.
It is used it almost everything. With a little imagination a machete an stand in for almost any other tool. A few examples I have seen with my own eyes:
- Chef's knife
- Wood planer: notch cuchilla (blade) along grain of wood and strike the dull side with a hammer
- Hammer: rotate so that the dull edge faces outward and strike the nail near the hilt
- Screwdriver (flathead only)
- Ruler: drag pencil along straight edge
- Scoring stylus: I have seen this successfully used on glass, ceramic tiles, and zinc roofing panels
- Lawn Mower: squat and hack hierba with cuchilla parallel to the ground
- Hatchet: apply sharp edge vigorously to any stick thinner than your bicep
- Riding crop: apply flat of cuchilla to flank of mount
- Garden trowel
Regular use of a colin means regular maintenance with a lima (file). On days when I get up early I will see my neighbors grinding the edge as they prepare for the work day ahead. Over time this changes the shape and size of the tool. My own colín is as broad as a scimitar but I have seen well-used that are now as narrow as a soldier's rapier.
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