I've always wanted to try and see the exact angle and thickness that my various HI blades have. Might also be useful to others when planning a purchase, given the differences between kamis.
I figured instead of trying to take photos of the blades themselves, and wrestle with light and reflections, it would be easier to gently press the edge at the sweet spot into clay, then take a photo of that. Some of them were a little blurry, and hard to tell the front from the back, so I added lines.
First, the control group, a Benchmade 42 with the factory 40 degree edge.
Next, my absolute favorite blade of any kind, in the entire world. My Giant Chitlangi Bowie, by Vim. 24.25" long, 59 ounces. Absolutely amazing, about a 20 degree angle! No wonder this thing cuts like a demon. This is one of the ones that really "called" to me, the instant I saw it.
My Bura Tibetan short sword. 31.5", 43 oz. Surprisingly, a rather axelike 50 degrees, though with a very clear "appleseed" profile. I actually think Sher or maybe an apprentice put the final edge on this one. I'll probably thin the edge out with a diamond hone later, but it will most likely take a very long time. I reprofiled the tip on this one, and it took a solid hour of grinding with an x-coarse diamond file, to remove literally about 0.1 to 0.2 mm of metal! Bura does excellent work all around, but the heat treat is where he really proves himself as the royal kami.
My ultra-light Chainpuri, by Sgt. Khadka. 18.5" long, 15 ounces. The handling is like no other edged weapon or tool I've ever held. About 35-40 degrees, and very subtly convex.
A normal 21", 33 oz. Chitlangi by Vim. Unlike the Giant Bowie, about 35-40 degrees, with a moderately pronounced convex edge. He made this one rather thick and heavy by Chitlangi standards, the spine is a hefty 0.516" thick.
A 15" and 18 oz. Sher Sirupati. Rather thick and axelike, even thicker than the Tibetan. About a 60 degree angle. Definitely a candidate for thinning out.
My Bura Dukti sword. 27.5" long and 28.5 ounces. I noticed that the two Sher Duktis I saw for sale awhile ago, that caused me to order this one, were 36 and 37 ounces! Sher still likes making them heavy. This one's rather wedgelike, and 40 degrees. I initially thought there was a reverse distal taper, but it turns out I wasn't measuring very carefully. It actually stays the same thickness until about 4" from the tip, at which point it goes from 0.20" thick to 0.26" pretty rapidly, which concentrates quite a bit of weight in the tip.
Finally, an entry level katana, Paul Chen I think. About 35-40 degrees, and you'll notice the amount of convexness is pretty similar to Sgt. Khadka's grind.
I definitely learned a lot tonight.
I'm more determined than ever to make a 20" "Super" CAK from Sgt. Khadka be my next purchase. I think after that, a normal size 15" Chitlangi bowie by Vim. Just need some dough.
I figured instead of trying to take photos of the blades themselves, and wrestle with light and reflections, it would be easier to gently press the edge at the sweet spot into clay, then take a photo of that. Some of them were a little blurry, and hard to tell the front from the back, so I added lines.
First, the control group, a Benchmade 42 with the factory 40 degree edge.
Next, my absolute favorite blade of any kind, in the entire world. My Giant Chitlangi Bowie, by Vim. 24.25" long, 59 ounces. Absolutely amazing, about a 20 degree angle! No wonder this thing cuts like a demon. This is one of the ones that really "called" to me, the instant I saw it.
My Bura Tibetan short sword. 31.5", 43 oz. Surprisingly, a rather axelike 50 degrees, though with a very clear "appleseed" profile. I actually think Sher or maybe an apprentice put the final edge on this one. I'll probably thin the edge out with a diamond hone later, but it will most likely take a very long time. I reprofiled the tip on this one, and it took a solid hour of grinding with an x-coarse diamond file, to remove literally about 0.1 to 0.2 mm of metal! Bura does excellent work all around, but the heat treat is where he really proves himself as the royal kami.
My ultra-light Chainpuri, by Sgt. Khadka. 18.5" long, 15 ounces. The handling is like no other edged weapon or tool I've ever held. About 35-40 degrees, and very subtly convex.
A normal 21", 33 oz. Chitlangi by Vim. Unlike the Giant Bowie, about 35-40 degrees, with a moderately pronounced convex edge. He made this one rather thick and heavy by Chitlangi standards, the spine is a hefty 0.516" thick.
A 15" and 18 oz. Sher Sirupati. Rather thick and axelike, even thicker than the Tibetan. About a 60 degree angle. Definitely a candidate for thinning out.
My Bura Dukti sword. 27.5" long and 28.5 ounces. I noticed that the two Sher Duktis I saw for sale awhile ago, that caused me to order this one, were 36 and 37 ounces! Sher still likes making them heavy. This one's rather wedgelike, and 40 degrees. I initially thought there was a reverse distal taper, but it turns out I wasn't measuring very carefully. It actually stays the same thickness until about 4" from the tip, at which point it goes from 0.20" thick to 0.26" pretty rapidly, which concentrates quite a bit of weight in the tip.
Finally, an entry level katana, Paul Chen I think. About 35-40 degrees, and you'll notice the amount of convexness is pretty similar to Sgt. Khadka's grind.
I definitely learned a lot tonight.
I'm more determined than ever to make a 20" "Super" CAK from Sgt. Khadka be my next purchase. I think after that, a normal size 15" Chitlangi bowie by Vim. Just need some dough.
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