are they real Khukuri?

Azis

Azis

Joined
Dec 4, 2002
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The Khukuri versions by cold steel, Ontario and A.G. Russell look good and they must have sharp effective blades- but they appear as if they are thin. So can these be considered real Khukuri--- besides the fact they are not made in Nepal

Does anybody own one? If so which one and what do you think of it?
 
I have owned a Cold Steel Khuk and a Blackjack Khuk. They are Khukuri shaped knives. I would not call them actual Khukuris. IMHO there is more to a khukuri than just the shape. I presently own about 20 Khukuris. All but two of these were made in Nepal. One of the two non Nepalese was made in India. The other is the mentioned Blackjack. While not a true Khukuri, it is a nice knife. The true nature of a Khukuri, to me at least, is the method of manufacture and the men that make them. It seems to trancend materials and science, and reach more into the nature of the men who make them.
That is the best I seem able to explain it. My words are totally inadaquate to describe what I mean. I tried.:o :)
 
I have a couple of CS kukris. The blades are fairly thin except for the Gurka kukri which is 5/16 I think.

They're sort of like living in an operating room in a hospital. Sort of cold and sterile. Difficult to explain. You'd probably have to try one of each to figure it out. Then again, hand made stuff always has a different feel to it than the mass produced counterpart.

I heard that Louis Armstrong was asked what "Jazz" is? He answered, If I have to explain it to you, you don't have it. (My paraphrase)

Dunno. Try both and compare. There are some that prefer the CS models. Not me, but they're around somewhere.
 
Got one of the Atlanta Cutlery kuks years ago and wasn't particularly impressed. Was kinda leary of trying another but once I saw what a real khuk was I was hooked. Have looked at the CS kuks and indeed they are thin and sterile. Even in the comparison reports the HI khuks beat out the CS kuks. Think I'll stick with the real thing.
 
Originally posted by ArchAngel
The true nature of a Khukuri, to me at least, is the method of manufacture and the men that make them. It seems to trancend materials and science, and reach more into the nature of the men who make them.
Click to expand...

Notice the other mentions of imitations being "cold" and "sterile", and considered Khukuri shaped knives. The lack of a cho, and no sword of Siva on the factory made jobs. Also notice that Indian made khukuris are noted for being poorly made for the most part, rather than being khukuri shaped knives. A well made Indian khukuri is definitely a khukuri.

If this seems difficult to follow, hold and HI and you'll most likely begin to believe in the mystical.
 
Thanks Rusty. Indeed the Indian made khukuris no matter how poor are real khukuris. It is possible to get village khukuris made in Nepal, Sikkim or India that are real khukuris but not the quality of HIs. The Atlantl Cutlery khuks are real but you definitely get what you pay for. Cheap.
 
Mr. Russell seems pretty particular about what he puts in his catalogue, so those Italian made khuk-knives of his must be good for something. By the same token, I have never received a Cold Steel product that didn't do exactly what Lynn Thompson claimed it would.

However, if you get a chance to view Thompson's "More Proof" DVD, he illustrates with complete honesty what one of the drawbacks of a CS khuk is. In one demonstration he chops apart a 2x4 with one of his khuks and it becomes quite an aerobic workout for him. The saber-ground blade gets stuck constantly in the board and most of his effort is spent wrenching it loose. This does not happen with an HI khuk. I tried the same test just for kicks with my 18" AK and got through 2x4s consistantly with three whacks and no sticking. My last attempt did it in two whacks, then I ran out of wood. A strong guy might very well whack through it with one.

I also have an Atlanta Cutlery khuk which I use for tasks which will involve alot of contact with rocks, such as prying them out of tiller tines and planting holes. It also chops well but has the same fault of the CS version. The scabbards that come with these things are practically useless though, and I had to make my own sheath for it. Also, the Karda/Chakma tools that came with it are strictly ornaments and do not even rise to the level of cheap steak knives.

While I am continually amazed at the resilience and precision hardening of the HI blades, the matter might be debated by proponants of other steels, etc. There can be very little argument over the quality/utility of the scabbard supplied with HI products however. In the past I have steered away from products which either did not come in a decent sheath or could not be made to fit in one without some retaining strap or other. The HI scabbard is strong, comfortable to carry and works as intended. If you examine the sheath setups on most of the other "khuks" out there you will probably see that this important aspect is not addressed very well by their manufacturers.
 
The quickest, simplest way to decide is pick them up. If they have heart in them, they are real khuks.

How will you know? Trust me, you'll feel it.
 
To answer the question about "thin" though the fact is that many of the old antique khuks made in Nepal are quite thin.
They also have a unique forgeing detail in that they are the thickest at the bend in the blade and tapers toward the point and the butt.
This puts a lot of strength at what would otherwise be a weak spot in the blade. As thick as H.I.'s are you don't have to worry about the strength in the blade.
The old ones also always had a convex edge which made them less likely to stick in the cut.

I call my CS LTC my bent machette as that's a more fitting description than a khuk.
It's not made to use as a heavy chopper and hence its designation as a LTC.:)
 
soul. These HI khuks are actually blessed by the kamis, that may be worth 1/2 the price alone. That, and hand-forged HI blades are work-hardened, hammered,compacted and made a bit more dense than a stock removal knife can be. Then there's the tempering.

Keith
 
Originally posted by Rusty
The quickest, simplest way to decide is pick them up. If they have heart in them, they are real khuks.

How will you know? Trust me, you'll feel it.
Click to expand...

I picked up a Cold Steel "khukuri" and it just felt dead. It was just another mass produced hunk of steel with a handle. I pick up my BAS or 20" AK and I know they have souls. You do feel it.
 
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