- Joined
- Mar 5, 1999
- Messages
- 34,096
As most of you know by now I don't like to toot my own horn a lot but in this case I'm going to have to abandon that practice. Mr. Rex Lusk has asked me to post his open letter to the forum and I am not about to ignore the request of a customer of ten years and friend who owns about 40 Himalayan Imports khukuris. Here is what he has to say:
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Greetings all. I am not internet capable so I have asked Bill to post this letter for me.
Approximately ten years ago I came across a company which claimed to be importing "Genuine Nepalese Khukuris' from Nepal. Growing up as a young fella in the mountains of West Virginia I was very familiar with knives. I can remember many a day -watching my Grandpa standing on the street talking with old friends while passing pocket knives back and forth. And on some such occasions he came away having traded one blade for another. He was a lumberjack in his early years and having a sharp blade in his pocket was just as natural as shaving or brushing his teeth. Even today, when I visit down South, I can still see the manual powered grindstone that he used to sharpen his axes and touch up his pocket knives. Thus from a very young age I grew to appreciate and to use a good blade.
As I reached my teen years I landed my first job in a local grocery and began collecting knives with my own hard earned cash of $ 1.25 per hour. I was especially enamored with military blades and swords. Therefore when I first saw an ad in a magazine for a "kukri' from India promising to be the real McCoy I ran to the post office for a money order and purchased my first kukri by mail. Having read about the history of the khukuri I eagerly awaited what I thought would be the ultimate in blades. Upon receiving the blade I was quickly disappointed with what turned out to be a piece of scrap metal with a handle attached. I spent more than a week attempting to sharpen the blade which had a flat edge near 1/4 inch thick. Frustrated I
finally sold it to a friend for a prayer believing that I just did not have the touch with blades that my Grandpa had. And so these events repeated themselves several times throughout my teen years as I would break down and order one kukri after another. Finally, after owning three or four and never honing one to sharpness I gave up and determined that the kukri was simply a piece of junk.
Back to events ten years ago, I saw a response to a question in the Letters column of Guns & Animo magazine referencing Himalayan Imports. Now a married adult I was very skeptical as I awaited information in the mail from Mr. Bill Martino- His information was impressive..but I was still not sold. So, I picked up the phone and began to converse with him concerning the khukuris he himself imported from Nepal. It did not take long to realize that he knew what he was talking about and stood behind his products with an honestly that has long since gone by the wayside in our society. And so it began.
Ten years ago I received my first Himalayan Imports Khukuri. Upon opening the package it took but a few moments to realize that I was holding a blade that would make my Grandpa proud if he were alive today. And so it has been from that day forward. Each blade Bill has sent me has proven itself as a truly one of a kind tool that not only looks great but performs up to and beyond expectation. I have never had to sharpen a blade from Himalayan Imports. Each has arrived sharp and ready to be used. Each has been easy to maintain and sharpen. And each has been unique. I once told Bill that waiting for a package from Himilayan Imports reminded me of waiting for Christmas when I was a young boy. I presently have approximately forty Himalayan Imports blades. And it does me proud to know that I not only have a tremendous investment with these knives..but I have something that is handmade with a skill and care that is very hard to find in our world today at ten times the price. These blades have served me well in the past ten years.
Are these blades tough? There are no 'kukris" manufactured or imported that can hold a candle to them. I have performed tasks with these blades that would snap the spine or fold the blade of any other knife. I can remember one highly touted knife that I owned that was advertised as able to penetrate a car door..yet the tip rolled one night as I was breaking up coffee caked in the bottom of a glass coffee jar. I was appalled as this was a blade I carried as backup protection while working a night security job. I have never been disappointed in the performance of a Himalayan Imports khukuri. Try one for yourself ... I did. There is no khukuri on the market today that can even come close to the quality and cutting capabilities of these blades --- none.
It has been many years since those days sitting in a pickup truck while watching my grandpa trading knives in front of the parking meters in Hinton, West Virginia. Over that course of time God saved my soul and called me to be a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. But though my life is invested in service for Christ I still seek to get out into the great outdoors as often as I can. And each time I do so I carry with me a a Himalayan Imports Khukuri, a blade like no other that I have ever owned. So, if you are looking for a blade that could very well be used to save your life if it should ever come to that; or if you simply have an appreciation for those things handcrafted and built in such a way as to truly endure give Bill Martino a call. You will not be disappointed in what you receive.
Sincerely,
Rex Lusk
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Uncle Bill
Himalayan Imports Website
http://members.aol.com/himimp/index.html
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Greetings all. I am not internet capable so I have asked Bill to post this letter for me.
Approximately ten years ago I came across a company which claimed to be importing "Genuine Nepalese Khukuris' from Nepal. Growing up as a young fella in the mountains of West Virginia I was very familiar with knives. I can remember many a day -watching my Grandpa standing on the street talking with old friends while passing pocket knives back and forth. And on some such occasions he came away having traded one blade for another. He was a lumberjack in his early years and having a sharp blade in his pocket was just as natural as shaving or brushing his teeth. Even today, when I visit down South, I can still see the manual powered grindstone that he used to sharpen his axes and touch up his pocket knives. Thus from a very young age I grew to appreciate and to use a good blade.
As I reached my teen years I landed my first job in a local grocery and began collecting knives with my own hard earned cash of $ 1.25 per hour. I was especially enamored with military blades and swords. Therefore when I first saw an ad in a magazine for a "kukri' from India promising to be the real McCoy I ran to the post office for a money order and purchased my first kukri by mail. Having read about the history of the khukuri I eagerly awaited what I thought would be the ultimate in blades. Upon receiving the blade I was quickly disappointed with what turned out to be a piece of scrap metal with a handle attached. I spent more than a week attempting to sharpen the blade which had a flat edge near 1/4 inch thick. Frustrated I
finally sold it to a friend for a prayer believing that I just did not have the touch with blades that my Grandpa had. And so these events repeated themselves several times throughout my teen years as I would break down and order one kukri after another. Finally, after owning three or four and never honing one to sharpness I gave up and determined that the kukri was simply a piece of junk.
Back to events ten years ago, I saw a response to a question in the Letters column of Guns & Animo magazine referencing Himalayan Imports. Now a married adult I was very skeptical as I awaited information in the mail from Mr. Bill Martino- His information was impressive..but I was still not sold. So, I picked up the phone and began to converse with him concerning the khukuris he himself imported from Nepal. It did not take long to realize that he knew what he was talking about and stood behind his products with an honestly that has long since gone by the wayside in our society. And so it began.
Ten years ago I received my first Himalayan Imports Khukuri. Upon opening the package it took but a few moments to realize that I was holding a blade that would make my Grandpa proud if he were alive today. And so it has been from that day forward. Each blade Bill has sent me has proven itself as a truly one of a kind tool that not only looks great but performs up to and beyond expectation. I have never had to sharpen a blade from Himalayan Imports. Each has arrived sharp and ready to be used. Each has been easy to maintain and sharpen. And each has been unique. I once told Bill that waiting for a package from Himilayan Imports reminded me of waiting for Christmas when I was a young boy. I presently have approximately forty Himalayan Imports blades. And it does me proud to know that I not only have a tremendous investment with these knives..but I have something that is handmade with a skill and care that is very hard to find in our world today at ten times the price. These blades have served me well in the past ten years.
Are these blades tough? There are no 'kukris" manufactured or imported that can hold a candle to them. I have performed tasks with these blades that would snap the spine or fold the blade of any other knife. I can remember one highly touted knife that I owned that was advertised as able to penetrate a car door..yet the tip rolled one night as I was breaking up coffee caked in the bottom of a glass coffee jar. I was appalled as this was a blade I carried as backup protection while working a night security job. I have never been disappointed in the performance of a Himalayan Imports khukuri. Try one for yourself ... I did. There is no khukuri on the market today that can even come close to the quality and cutting capabilities of these blades --- none.
It has been many years since those days sitting in a pickup truck while watching my grandpa trading knives in front of the parking meters in Hinton, West Virginia. Over that course of time God saved my soul and called me to be a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. But though my life is invested in service for Christ I still seek to get out into the great outdoors as often as I can. And each time I do so I carry with me a a Himalayan Imports Khukuri, a blade like no other that I have ever owned. So, if you are looking for a blade that could very well be used to save your life if it should ever come to that; or if you simply have an appreciation for those things handcrafted and built in such a way as to truly endure give Bill Martino a call. You will not be disappointed in what you receive.
Sincerely,
Rex Lusk
------------------
Uncle Bill
Himalayan Imports Website
http://members.aol.com/himimp/index.html
