First off, Bolo works as intended, a machete. Nice weight and overall balance with full tang. Comes relatively sharp yet you can spend a few minutes and sharpen as a sharpening stone is included along with a fire rod and striker. Quality sheath and sling round out the package.
Great bang for the buck when comparing to other machetes.

I can't say anything bad about this blade. I was a little nervous about the 3CR stainless steel, but it has been and excellent blade. It's a BIG piece of steel, so it might not be for everyone; kind of heavy to swing around all day long. It's definitely a conversation piece when you whip it out. I think this blade is better for moderate chopping than small stuff, but then again, it did a good job of trimming my neighbor's pandanus plant that was encroaching on our dirt road.

Batoned through many six inch pieces of locust wood. Split and chopped out fat lighter sticks from a pine stump. Chopped down a 4 inch poplar tree that was growing into the power lines. This isn't a machete, it's an axe in disguise with a longer blade.
Pros;
Really thick and heavy for the size.
Handle is awesome for any size hands with gloves or without.
Blade edge didn't roll or chip with very hard use.
Doesn't have the crap powder coat finish on many things of this cost.
Sheath is usable with extras. The diamond stone and ferro rod are not bad at all.
Cons;
It wasn't sharp the whole edge, had to re do. Can get it hair popping sharp, though. Large ish radius hollow ground before the final edge.
It isn't a classical jungle machete; it's too thick (4mm), and heavy for clearing small brush. Also too short.
Not good for attaching to a backpack in common uses. Mostly because it's too heavy on long treks.
Overall;
It's a great chopper for clearing up woodland areas. It's easily used as a hatchet. Not great for small foliage jungle clearing and the such, but will do the job.
Have experience with the 3Cr13 steel. If done right it's about the same as 1055. Takes a crazy sharp edge. Since the steel is rather soft to withstand abuse, expect it to dull more quickly. So what, doesn't need to be a scalpel.
Basically,it's a giant bushcraft knife after years of steroid abuse, but still has the balls.

I just received my Schbolo.....I love this thing My first schrade product. I read all 72 reviews, and because the good reviews out weigh the bad I gave it a shot. With tax and free shipping to NJ, I paid $42.17 and received it in I believe 4 days. Since they were originally introduced a couple of years ago I noticed a lot of complaints. Well if you look at the picture of everything most of them have been addressed. The fire rod now comes attached to a little rectangle of steel so you don't have to use the spine or blade. It now has a belt loop that comes with a strap and a second lower loop that you can strap to your leg. The sheath seems rugged as *expletive*. And if you really wanted to you could use a D ring and clip it to where the top shoulder carry strap connects for a make shift belt loop but now there is no need but it is still possible. With the earlier models I IMHO would drill and melt 2-4 holes and use some paracord to make a belt loop. I took it out back and chopped down a small annoying tree with a circumference of at least 4 inches in a couple minutes. Than I took a full 20 oz water bottle and cleaved it in half. Brought it inside and it cut paper like it was just out of the box. The best part is you could use the blade or sharpener as a reflective signal. The fire rod works amazingly with the added striker. And the sharpener will work on other knives but seems especially made for the schbolo. And now they have added a lanyard that comes with. No its not true 550 paracord but better than 1/2 the crap inexpensive knives come with. If you have not bought one of these or were on the fence, now is the time.

I was really skeptical about this blade until I saw PreparedMind101's review of it on YouTube. SO I decided to get one and see for myself. I can always use a good machete, right? And there were lots of good reviews on it, so why not? WOW, am I one HAPPY CAMPER! (Literally). I already have an SCHF9 and then saw the PM101 review of the SCHF42. Both of those blades had blown me away and the fact that they both complimented each other so well for my needs, I thought, "What else could I possibly want if I was stranded and had to build a shelter for myself or my family?" That was when I realized that as good as the F9 and F42 were, they were not the best blades for chopping really thick pieces of wood, for a raft or a substantial, long lasting shelter. But I wanted something not as bulky or heavy as an axe. I was even looking at a Smatchet like Matt Graham carries, but the F9 could already fill that mold for the most part. Then, I get a large box from Amazon much sooner than I expected and inside...

This SCHBOLO goes above and beyond what a machete, or hatchet can do and it does it well. The handle feels awesome. Comfortable and grippy with no hot spots. I would have no problem digging out a canoe or bashing tent stakes with the flat of this monster blade. It's big, it's heavy, (but not bulky or difficult to wield) and it's tough. The weight does all the work so it's much better than a typical machete. Perfectly suited to the chopping and slashing I need it for. And SHARP! Keeps an edge very well so far. It sliced paper right out of the box and for some reason, the front part of the blade is magnetic! Great for picking up nails, etc... and then pounding them in with the flat of the blade if I have nothing else at hand. I would have absolutely no problem getting to day 21 on "Naked & Afraid" with this puppy, (but I won't subject you to the horror of that vision.) This is one helluva CHOPPER that's for sure. No vibration, or bending. If you want a machete on steroids, then this is exactly what you need.

Now, the sheath... I've seen a lot of bad talk about it and I can't speak for earlier issues of this blade, but mine came not only with the long strap, but it also has two loops on the back that have what I assume are leg straps with quick release buckles. These can also be used to attach to your pack. Also included are the diamond sharpener and Ferro rod. The Ferro rod also now has a 90 degree piece of thick steel attached for scraping sparks and it works great. Yes, the sheath is nylon but it seems to be well made and should last at least long enough for me to get a kydex system made for it. The swivel clips holding the strap onto the sheath will probably fail quickly, but a few loops of paracord should take care of that. It's not the best sheath but it is far from the worst, especially compared with the crappy sheaths you get with machetes. The sharpener and Ferro rod make up for any shortcomings as far as I'm concerned. You can keep the SCHBOLO sharp, cut a bunch of stuff down and then set it on fire to dispose of it in one handy package. Like I said... this blade rocks! WHAT ELSE could you possibly need?

I will be adding to this review if anything comes up, so check back down the road.

Oh, and I have decided to name her "SCHBOOPIE" as I think another Family Guy fan might have named theirs also. For my hard earned money, Schrade has become THE BEST VALUE under $50 in the survival/woodcraft field today. BUY IT! You will love it!

"SCHBOOPIE!"