Any problems with horn handles?

D

David Poston

Joined
Jan 6, 2002
Messages
22
Hello all,

I'm new to this forum and new to khukuris as well. I'm getting ready to lay down some money for a HI khuk, my first one ever. It's between a Sirupati and a WWII. (I want agility in a blade but also want a blade that can chop). I'm thinking about getting one with a horn handle, but I wanted to ask everyone first if they have ever had any trouble with horn handles in terms of their durability (e.g. cracks, chipping). If I'm going for durability, should I opt for wood? Let me know based on your own experiences.

Your help is appreciated,
David.
 
Hi David! Welcome to the Cantina:D (another what we call HI Forum-I'll let Rusty explain why as he is the one who came up with the term:))

My experience with horn handles is no where near as extensive as many folks here, but I'll tell you mine just the same. I bought 5 horn handled khuks when I lived in Maui(high humidity) and had no trouble with cracking. Then I moved to maine in the summer--still no trouble. Then I forgot to put lanolin on the handles when Fall rolled around (extremely low humid)and they all cracked. Some quite badly. The good news is that its an easy and permanent fix with epoxy, and there are many experts here that can tell you the best way to do just about anything with horn,wood, and steel. My wood handles ones? They were fine. I prefer the wood for several reasons: doesn't crack(I do put mineral oil into wood, though the woodchucks here are the ones to ask about oils etc.), good grip even when hands are sweaty, and looks great!

That said, Uncle Bill is the best guy to deal with in business I've ever met. And when he says 100% guarantee you should read it as 1000%. Because it is nothing like the so called 100% that you see these days.

I'll let the experts chime in now. Hope this helps!

:)
 
Like MauiRob said, humidity is the factor. My only horn handle is still like new after 2 years or so of use. Has anybody dropped a horn handle Khuk on hard surface? Did it crack?
Best wishes
TD
 
I only have three, one cracked UBDOTD Sirupati, a pristine WWII, and a Puuko with horn scales. What little experience I've had, and a great deal of reading, all indicate that abrupt changes in temp and humidity are the demons. The lanolin concoctions used by horse trainers for dry/cracked hooves seem to be the best preventives and preservatives. One repaired crack on the Sirupati seems to actually be closing, even after it was sealed with super glue. This knife has also survive an accidental whack against a brick retaining wall that gouged the handle but did not crack it. Wood is my preference, just because of the aesthetics, but they are neck and neck in durability, IMO.
 
I think it's a toss up. A cracked handle almost never fails -- it just doesn't look pretty but as Rob suggested it's an easy fix and the experts here can repair a crack so well you can't see it.

For whatever it's worth ten or twelve years ago horn handles outsold wood about 2 to 1. Today wood outsells horn about 3 to 1.
 
Thanks everyone for your input. What do natives typically use in Nepal, and do they experience humidity changes as we might have here in the U.S.? And Bill, if the khukuri is stored in indoors (i.e. in a temperature-controlled environment), do you envision any problem? It's a tough decision on horn or no horn, guys.
 
Wood is most common handle material in Nepal because it's generally more readily available than horn. I store my khukuris under the bed but here in Reno where it is usually very dry when it's dry outside it's dry inside. My ivory handle cracked here -- first crack in maybe 130 years and it made me sick but, as stated, a crack in the handle is not fatal.
 
David,

I prefer wood over horn. It is less shiny, offers a better grip with dirty or wet hands, and in my opion it looks nicer. One advantage of horn is that it does not stain or discolor like wood can. From a maintenance point of view, it is much easier to find wood care products like double boiled linseed oil or tung oil than hooflex.

Storing indoors will like not help much. The problem is the humidity level is not controlled very well. Also, the khukuri will most likely be used outdoors.

Saying that my most often use khukuri (17.5" WWII) has a horn handle. The handle cracked after the first month I got it. It was treated with hooflex soon after. Around christmas it sat in the trunk of my car for 4 days and experience temperature changes of 24 C. The handle did not crack.

Will
 
I much prefer wood over horn for several reasons.
It's easier to reshape a handle if need be for comfort.
Even with a highly polished finish wood is easier for me to hang onto when working with the knife.
I have found that horn works best when it is scuffed up with a nice even pattern with a Scotch-Brite pad.

And though the highly polished horn is very attractive it just doesn't have the warm feel that a beautiful pice of wood has. Even with a simple straight grain wood there are often shadows and lights that play across the surface making it much more interesting than the horn.YMMV:)
 
When I bought my first khukuri, a 16.5 inch WWII, for durability, I had thought that horn would be much better than wood which is why I chose a horn handled one that Uncle had as opposed to the standard wood handled WWIIs. Up until I bought my BGRS, my khukuries had remained horn. However when using my BGRS, I began appreciating the advantages of wood over horn. Last summer, when chopping wood for the fireplace, I found that my horn handled 15 inch Ang Khola would get slippery in my hand because of sweat and when I switched to the BGRS, I found that it would absorb sweat much better and I was able to cut through the wood and still maintain a good grip. My next khukuri is going to be a steel mounted Kesar M43. I hope that the wood handle is standard, although, I'm not sure having seen only a couple of pics. If anyone has a Kesar M43, I would like to know if that is standard and also how you like it in comparision to a Chitlangi or the YCS?

Arvind
 
Originally posted by Arvind
If anyone has a Kesar M43, I would like to know if that is standard and also how you like it in comparision to a Chitlangi or the YCS?

Arvind
Click to expand...

I would also like to see such a comparrison!!!!!!!
I'm almost betting that the M-43 will also cut like a much heavier khukuri.
It would also be interesting to see if the fullers in the YCS and Chitlangi are a benefit in whether the khukuri sticks or hangs up into the wood or not.
 
Hey Arvind, I have a Kesar M43 with wood slabs. They look to be Rosewood and are very pretty. Ever M43 that I've seen come from H.I. has had wood handles and the model had a wood handle so I think Wood is the standard But of course, I could be wrong.

I have a 16" Gelbu Special. The spine is just thicker than the one on my M43. I have not used the M43 so I can't give a comparison, sorry. I will be putting a few Khuks up for sale in the next few days and my M43 MIGHT be one of them don't know yet. If it goes on sale, I'll be asking $145 for it. It all depends on how my finances are in the next few days.

I don't really know if horn or wood will hold up better over time. To me, properly treated horn just feels more durable.
 
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