12" AK: The Jeep Khuk

Steely_Gunz

Steely_Gunz

Got the Khukuri fevah
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USPS finally decided to deliver my 12" AK that I snagged during the Uncle Bill Birthday Special this past weekend. I say "finally" because it's taken them close to 5 days to deliver what normally takes two. You HIKV sharks know the pacing feeling that I'm talking about;)

I have to say that it was worth the wait. This is the first "standard" 12" AK that I have ever held....NOW I get what some of you have been preaching for years when deciding between the 12" AK and the 12" Pen Knife. I had a 12" village AK some 3 or years ago. VERY nice, VERY sharp...However, it had a VERY small handle and seemed VERY light weight. I ended up gifting that one. Over the years I have had several 10-14" Khuks that I have bought planned on using them as "small" (in khuk terms) camp knives. A 3 week hike out into the bush is not going to happen to me, sadly. The most camping that I can get my beautiful yet pampered wife to do with me consists of a weekend at a very standard and boring state park (Think Mrs. Douglas from Green Acres without the funny accent or sister that slaps police officers). So, my knife chopping needs are not many.

What I DO need is a small knife (as to not scare the camping neighbors) that will chop wood up to 3", split kindling, and pound in tent pegs. I have a 12" Uncle Bill Memorial Salyan that I would never dream of abusing. I have a 12" Siru...not beefy enough to chop. I have a 12.5" Pen Knife...chops like a demon but will not split wood readily due to its thinner blade. I have a 14" Siru that will chop and split, but it's a little too scary for general camp use. I know I shouldn't be concerned with the sheeple, but I don't want to ruin other folk's fun by scaring them because I'm "over-knifed". Also, since I have acquired an old Jeep CJ5 (lovingly called the Doom Buggy), my packing space is limited.

Enter the Bura-made 12.75" AK. This puppy weighs in around 14-15oz with a 3/8" spine at the bolster of its 7.75" blade. It is thick to the tip, so it will take a fair amount of abuse without getting a "boxer's profile". It has a nice point that is more pronounced than that of a Pen Knife, yet not delicate by any means. The other great thing about this blade is that while it is beefy, the edge is thin and sharp. The curve near the cho is actually sharp enough to do fine work like make fuzz sticks (or more likely marshmallow sticks):thumbup: It is honestly EXACTLY what I have been looking for.

After touching up the edge with a butcher's steel and a strop, I took it to the back and did a little pallet demolition. It chopped through a 2x4 about as well as the Pen Knife. It didn't bite as deep, but the chunks made were bigger. It also split a 3' long 2x4 in two with ONE snap of the wrist:eek: I then proceeded to pry apart a pallet to test the lateral strength. I made several full force smacks to each side. No denting, no rolling, no dulling, no problems:thumbup::D After about 20 minutes of destruction, I had wrecked the very polished look of the Little AK That Could:( No matter... It's now my "Jeep Khuk" that is destine to be used for all manner of uses and adventure. I took some 600 grit sandpaper to the blade to scrape off all the wood marks. This also roughed up the polished parts unmarred by the chopping. I find that a slight satin finish etches better. I mixed up a solution of water and muriatic acid and dabbed it on outside (muriatic acid is nasty stuff:barf: but I have a surplus in the warehouse) It'll just need a quick rinse, neutralization, and a buff. The end results should be a deep gray blade that is less prone to rust with a rugged look to match the jeep:thumbup:

As always, a Thank You to Yangdu for her typical great service, and kudos to Bura for crafting a wonderfully functional and rugged blade. Just when you think that you've maxed out your collection, HIKV takes over:D

Sorry about the lack of pics in my review posts, but my camera is pretty poor quality when it comes to close ups....as are my photography skills:o
 
Sounds like you found a good one. I hope you have great adventures for many years to come.

Thanks for the review.
 
Sounds like a winner. Unfortunately, I gave my brother my Pen Knife about a month before I picked up my Jeep Wrangler. I can definitely understand where you're coming from regarding the lack of space. No more just tossing a Handyman Jack, shovel, chainsaw, come along, and my 18" Chiruwa AK into the back of the truck, along with three weeks worth of junkfood and camping equipment (to get the family by for a weekend, of course)

It seems you're the better man than I regarding scared campers though. Last time I went on one of those camping trips we piled out of my beat up Dodge pick up like the Clampetts, My wife immediately started hacking at all with in reach with a 18" khukuri, my ten year old son grabbed his belt knife and commenced batonning big logs into little logs, and I skidded down on my knees with a bark river and a Swedish fire steel to build our camp fire. Our one camp probably sounded like the Peace Corps rebuilding a recently shelled village for awhile there. Definitely got some looks, but I still thought it was great. I thought the wife looked particularly sexy swingin' my favorite khuk!:D


Ah...but I digress....thanks for the review. Might see about getting a 12-14 AK for my own jeep...:D
 
Thanks for the review Jake. It sounds like it's a real winner.

I know what you mean by the handle size on smaller kukris, I had the same problem until I picked up a 13" balance.
 
My 12" Sher AK was my first Khuk and is still my favorite for the reasons you listed above. Gets by far the most use, especialy this last summer as I have been running a large but mosty wild provincial park. I actualy drew that little AK on a black bear this summer when I was up closing the gate at 11pm (3km from the closest person). I choose to think that the bear left when he saw it was an HI rather than for whatever bear like reason he might have had.
 
Deffinitely am a fan of the 12" and the PK. Where the 15"ers are overkill, they can do most other things very well around the camp.
 
Love the PK. Small ones chop- they just chop smaller things.

No excuses- you must post pix, Jake! :p


Mike
 
Well, you men convinced me. I finally pulled the trigger on a 12" AK just a few minutes ago. Its gonna ride permanently in (on) my Yamaha Rhino. It'll help with trail maintenance and campfire building while out and about. This is my first Khuk, so I'm pretty excited.
Thanks,
Scott
 
Scott, I think you'll love it:) The 12" Khuks are great. They don't quite give you all the full chopping power of a 15" model, but for their size, beef, and strength you can really do a lot of work with them. Let us know how you like it. Be careful...you'll get addicted like the rest of us;)
 
sounds great. you may need to wax it or give it a heavy coating of mineral oil because I've found that my khuks rust like crazy being in the truck instead of inside.
 
I use cooking oil on my tools to help prevent rust (canola oil to be precise). I find that it works well, even if it does get a bit 'sticky' if left on for a long time. I prefer to use food-grade oil because it can come in contact with me, my clothes and any meat that I'm butchering.
 
coote said:
I use cooking oil on my tools to help prevent rust (canola oil to be precise). I find that it works well, even if it does get a bit 'sticky' if left on for a long time. I prefer to use food-grade oil because it can come in contact with me, my clothes and any meat that I'm butchering.
Click to expand...

True. I use mineral oil on all my knives, mainly because its easy and cheap; not that my khuks get used for a lot of food prep. :p (although I've used one on frozen chicken before). My folders and smaller knives get used for food regularly enough that I don't want anything bad on there.

The good thing about mineral oil is that is doesn't get rancid and if you buy the stuff at the pharmacy it is food grade (people take it if they are stopped up :eek:). I think it can still get sticky, although I'm not 100% sure.
 
Oh right.... food grade mineral oil. I always associated the name mineral oil with things like machinery lubricant.

I guess down here I'd call stuff like that 'medicinal parrafin'.

When I was a maintenance engineer at a fish processing factory, we had medicinal parrafin which we used to lubricate some bushes on food conveyors.
 
just as well I'm not the kind of guy who says, "I told you so," to folks.

'Cuz right about now, THAT kind of guy might say something. :rolleyes:
 
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