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Afghanistan knife
- Thread starter bigborebob
- Start date
Well I am very pleased. This turned out great! Very nice piece. There was a similar situation over on the HI forum where a chap found something along these lines and was fixing to to tacticool it up and go nuts with it. We sort of had to talk him down off the ledge and get him to put it up. It wasn't one of these but old.
I really like that blade pattern a lot. This has been a great thread. Love those neat old knives, guns, etc.
I really like that blade pattern a lot. This has been a great thread. Love those neat old knives, guns, etc.
- Joined
- Nov 29, 2002
- Messages
- 3,229
Ok the kukris probably genuine, but better pictures are needed to be 100% certan.
The problem with listing what I said about a kukri 7 years ago is that infos out of date.....
The marking was the Afghan goverment property marking for thier military equipment at the time. It was often used at Kabul arsenal & actualy has nothiong to do with Mazar al Sharrif arsenal or mosque.
The Afghan copied & used many weapons over the years both govermentaly as well as tribal stuff.
I only know of 6 of these in the world. 2 in Russia, one in oz, mine {England.} & 2 in the states.
The Gurkhas have fought in Afghanistan many times & taken many heads, Id guess thats why the Afghanis ,whether army or tribal were impressed by them.
Heres mine with another more tribal Afghan kukri.
Spiral
The problem with listing what I said about a kukri 7 years ago is that infos out of date.....
The marking was the Afghan goverment property marking for thier military equipment at the time. It was often used at Kabul arsenal & actualy has nothiong to do with Mazar al Sharrif arsenal or mosque.
The Afghan copied & used many weapons over the years both govermentaly as well as tribal stuff.
I only know of 6 of these in the world. 2 in Russia, one in oz, mine {England.} & 2 in the states.
The Gurkhas have fought in Afghanistan many times & taken many heads, Id guess thats why the Afghanis ,whether army or tribal were impressed by them.
Heres mine with another more tribal Afghan kukri.
Spiral
- Joined
- Mar 14, 2005
- Messages
- 124
View attachment 297118View attachment 297119View attachment 297120View attachment 297117View attachment 297116
Well, this has been interesting for sure.
Attached are additional photos.
I've told the owner he may have a very collectible piece and to treat it nicely.
He greatly apptreciates everyone's time and effort in the responses.
Who knows, maye he'll become a member and add to the community.
Well, this has been interesting for sure.
Attached are additional photos.
I've told the owner he may have a very collectible piece and to treat it nicely.
He greatly apptreciates everyone's time and effort in the responses.
Who knows, maye he'll become a member and add to the community.
Hey everybody, I'm the owner of this piece. I'm new here after bigborebob pointed me to the site. Like everyone has said, this could be a cheap knockoff or something of value and collectible. A bit more on the background of where I got it: I was a infantry platoon leader doing a patrol near the Gahzni area of Afghanistan (eastern part of the country in the mountains) and for the life of me can't remember the name of the village as this was in early 2007. While conducting this dismounted patrol, I was talking with some of the local Afghan's and ended up in one of their houses talking about who knows what at this point. While there I noticed this in his house and asked him to show it to me and thought it was a great looking knife and asked if he was willing to part ways with it. Through some haggling on both ends I ended up giving him a Leatherman that I had on my body armor plus I think $20 I happened to have on me. We shook hands on it and went on our ways.
I've kept it as a display piece in my home as a nice thing that people can look at and as a memento of my somewhat explosively fun times in Afghanistan and until not too recently noticed what looked like the makers marks on the blade near the handle. Bigborebob and I work together and know that he's involved in these forums so I asked him if he could help me dig up any information on this. I'm not out to turn a profit on this thing but would like to know more about it, if it turns out to be a replica or cheap knockoff then oh well, it's still a nice memory from my time over there. If it turns out to be something more than that then it's just more history to go along with it.
I appreciate all your help in this. Please let me know if you have any other questions or need any info that I can provide.
I've kept it as a display piece in my home as a nice thing that people can look at and as a memento of my somewhat explosively fun times in Afghanistan and until not too recently noticed what looked like the makers marks on the blade near the handle. Bigborebob and I work together and know that he's involved in these forums so I asked him if he could help me dig up any information on this. I'm not out to turn a profit on this thing but would like to know more about it, if it turns out to be a replica or cheap knockoff then oh well, it's still a nice memory from my time over there. If it turns out to be something more than that then it's just more history to go along with it.
I appreciate all your help in this. Please let me know if you have any other questions or need any info that I can provide.
Well this is not going to be "valuable" in the sense of retiring early off of it...paying off one's mortgage kind of deal. BUT...we are all, sort of collectively coming to understand (in the course of this fascinating thread) that you probably have something quite interesting, probably old, probably real, and probably worth something to a collector.
We've also learned that there is a Kukri tradition in Afghanistan, apparently transplanted there by Gurkha regiments over the years and the Afghans, no strangers to the use of arms, recognized the value of the pattern...and started making them.
In addition we've learned that one thing that distinguishes the Afghan kukri is that nut on the pommel/bell. I am not seeing the karda and chakma included in these very simple sheaths either. They all seem to have that very graceful leaf shape and seem to be what we'd call "full flat grind" in modern knife terminology. Modern and/or Tourist kukris have much thicker blades at the spine and have a wide bevel.
JD, we all appreciate your service to our country in what has been a troubled land for centuries. Glad you're back. We also appreciate bringing this really neat old knife forward for all of us to be excited about. Some of us have lives, some us don't (like me
) so stuff like this is gold.
We've also learned that there is a Kukri tradition in Afghanistan, apparently transplanted there by Gurkha regiments over the years and the Afghans, no strangers to the use of arms, recognized the value of the pattern...and started making them.
In addition we've learned that one thing that distinguishes the Afghan kukri is that nut on the pommel/bell. I am not seeing the karda and chakma included in these very simple sheaths either. They all seem to have that very graceful leaf shape and seem to be what we'd call "full flat grind" in modern knife terminology. Modern and/or Tourist kukris have much thicker blades at the spine and have a wide bevel.
JD, we all appreciate your service to our country in what has been a troubled land for centuries. Glad you're back. We also appreciate bringing this really neat old knife forward for all of us to be excited about. Some of us have lives, some us don't (like me
) so stuff like this is gold.
Last edited:
HoosierQ
Thanks for your comments. Before this was brought up to bigborebob I had no information on this besides it being something I picked up on one of my deployments. I had tried to do some google-fu to see what I could come up with on my own but had little (none) success. Now I just have to convince my fiance that this can actually be displayed in our house not downstairs in the room only I go into
Thanks for your comments. Before this was brought up to bigborebob I had no information on this besides it being something I picked up on one of my deployments. I had tried to do some google-fu to see what I could come up with on my own but had little (none) success. Now I just have to convince my fiance that this can actually be displayed in our house not downstairs in the room only I go into
- Joined
- Jun 20, 2008
- Messages
- 168
Based on where the owner got it, I would say it is less likely to be a fake than if he picked it up in a bazaar or shop that caters to GIs. Whatever it turns out to be, it is still a cool knife with an interesting background.
-Mb
-Mb
- Joined
- Nov 29, 2002
- Messages
- 3,229
Interesting.
Nice way to find a kukri.
The nut is a industrialy made commercial nut such usualy used on a bolt. So at the very least thats been replaced. What diameter is the threaded tang?
If you undo the nut, pics of tang would help.
If good flat unangled , photos can be taken of the whole kukri & handle & closeups including markings & bolster from all 4 sides, That would also help. No artificial lighting neccasary. {It hides to many details.}
Then we can see if the rest of it matches the known manufacturing techniques, for these pieces.
Weights & measures would be also good.
Spiral
Nice way to find a kukri.
The nut is a industrialy made commercial nut such usualy used on a bolt. So at the very least thats been replaced. What diameter is the threaded tang?
If you undo the nut, pics of tang would help.
If good flat unangled , photos can be taken of the whole kukri & handle & closeups including markings & bolster from all 4 sides, That would also help. No artificial lighting neccasary. {It hides to many details.}
Then we can see if the rest of it matches the known manufacturing techniques, for these pieces.
Weights & measures would be also good.
Spiral
Spiral,
I will see if bigborebob can help me out with that. I'll be traveling this weekend and next week and don't want to have you guys wait that long for a reply. I do appreciate all of you wanting to help out with providing more info. Like HoosierQ said, if only this thing could talk.
I will see if bigborebob can help me out with that. I'll be traveling this weekend and next week and don't want to have you guys wait that long for a reply. I do appreciate all of you wanting to help out with providing more info. Like HoosierQ said, if only this thing could talk.
- Joined
- Nov 29, 2002
- Messages
- 3,229
Thats cool, no rush I only check in once a week or so myself, & ive been into thesse Afghan kuks etc. for many years, a few weeks ormonths more or less makes no differance to me..
I d love to authenticate it, but need to be certan, by same differance i dont want to say its a wrong on if its mostly original with a few later repairs.
If you can sort pics & details Ill do my best to give an honest opinion.
My email is spiraltwista@aol.com if email helps clearer photos, discusians on valuation etc. {put kukri in email title.}
It is potentialy valuble as far as kuks go, but yep that just means a good weekend out, nothing life changing.
Spiral