Authentic Nepal kukri's?

[Miller Bros fan]

I'm new to knives and kukri's as a collector and I was wondering if you could help me out?

Are all kukri's from Nepal "authentic" or do they have to come from a specific brand/company?

I know there is GK & CO and Khukuri House. Are those two quality brands that hold up to the abuse? Anything I should be looking out for?

 

[Tsujigiri]

There isn't really a specific brand that makes authentic khukris; they're all made by individual craftsmen called "kamis" using manual equipment and often working old Mercedes truck leaf springs into blades. The companies we see here interface with a variety of kamis to bring these in. Himalayan Imports on this forum is also worth looking at; they're good about specifying which kami made which blade and what type of blade each khukri is.

 

[Bill Siegle]

I’ll throw out Kailash Blades as being authentic. Well made and historically correct designs.

 

[SharpBits]

Himalayan Imports has a sub-forum here and is a good source of information, but they are winding down operations. Kailash Blades also has a sub-forum here and is going strong. If I were in the market, I'd contact Kailash Blades first. Otherwise, used Himalayan Imports blades are a safe bet.

 

[Mk-211]

Kailash Blades will be able to help.

 

[Blaid]

I have 2 from Kailash. They are fantastic offering both "classic" versions as well as newer interpretations. A brand that is next on my list is Tora Blades. They also have an excellent reputation.

 

[oldmanwilly]

If by "authentic" you mean a knife generally resembling a khukuri made by Nepalese craftsmen in Nepal and may have, at one time or another, been issued to Ghurkas, then there is an endless supply of shops and brands that pump out "authentic" khukuris. If that is your definition (and there is nothing wrong with that definition), then please do not conflate that term with good quality.

Concerning the Ghurkas: like most other military units they have historically ordered khukuris focusing more on the price per unit than on the quality of the knife. Over time they have ordered from dozens of shops, often bouncing from one lowest bidder to the next, so if you are looking to order a knife online and the site boasts that it has made khukuris for issue to the Ghurkas, the shop is probably being honest. However, there is no guarantee that the knives issued to Ghurkas are actually good quality (or at least good enough for pedantic knife collectors here on BF).

As mentioned above, Himalayan Imports and Kailash Blades have a great reputation here for offering Khukuris that are excellent quality and ready for tough use. I have also had great experience with knives from Tora Blades and I am sure there are many other outfits doing good work.

 

[Tsujigiri]

Himalayan Imports has a sub-forum here and is a good source of information, but they are winding down operations. Kailash Blades also has a sub-forum here and is going strong. If I were in the market, I'd contact Kailash Blades first. Otherwise, used Himalayan Imports blades are a safe bet.

I hadn't kept up with them lately, that's too bad. It was nice while it lasted!

 

[David Mary]

Kukri's a funny word. So is authentic.

khukuris

khukuris

khukuris

khukuris

Khukuris

 

[oldmanwilly]

Kukri's a funny word. So is authentic.

Hey, wait a minnit... you're not Nepalese!! Still, very nice KLO's.

Kukri*
Like
Objects





*spellcheck wanted to autocorrect this into "Kubrick." Why?

 

[Mk-211]

Hey, wait a minnit... you're not Nepalese!! Still, very nice KLO's.

Kukri*
Like
Objects





*spellcheck wanted to autocorrect this into "Kubrick." Why?

Why don't we go down to the Korova Milk Bar, and talk about it.

 

[oldmanwilly]

Why don't we go down to the Korova Milk Bar, and talk about it.

View attachment 2852270

Blech, I never could stand drinking milk. How's about we go out for stakey-wakes instead?

Now for some khuk pics:

Tora

Kailash Pensioner

I need some more khuks.

 

[Centermass]

Why don't we go down to the Korova Milk Bar, and talk about it.

View attachment 2852270

You can milk anything with Nepals.

 

[Kailash Blades]

I'm new to knives and kukri's as a collector and I was wondering if you could help me out?

Are all kukri's from Nepal "authentic" or do they have to come from a specific brand/company?

I know there is GK & CO and Khukuri House. Are those two quality brands that hold up to the abuse? Anything I should be looking out for?

It can be a bit of a tricky world to dive into can't it? Lots of options and lots and lots of info.
As stated by others "Authentic" can mean different things to different people.

Definition 1: made using traditional methods by traditional makers. This is easily found in Nepal and it's easier to count the exceptions.
- KHHI have used CNC plasma cutting for full tang blades. It's likely that they still do and possible that they do this for other blade styles as well. EN31 (indian 52100) steel was used for such blades instead of the more traditional leaf springs.
- Heritage claim to oil quench rather than teapot quench and use imported metal plate rather than leaf springs.
- We oil quench and also then triple temper our blades in a controlled electric oven. Tempering is not common in Nepal and we may (?) still be the only ones doing it. We make these changes so we can meet western standards for steel performance. We can still perform traditional heat treats on request.

Definition 2: made with designs that are accurate to historical examples. Since Nepal's knifemaking industry became more focused on selling knives to westerners (locally or export) in the later half of the 20th century in some people's eyes many khukuri designs have drifted in terms of core design features and have become less authentic.
If this is your definition then this is trickier than choosing specific houses and is more of a model by model thing. For example we sell some very stringent replicas (FW mk1, salyani, mutiny), some blades that are in traditional and historical styles (sirupate, falo, tin chirra) as well as completely new designs (scourge, bhura, socket khukuri sort of)
Makers that sell the highest proportion of strict historical blade patterns would be Tora (100%) and Heritage (95%).

If you have any questions or are in need of guidance feel free to reach out.

This is a great looking design David! A little bit of kopis in there too maybe?

 

[Steely_Gunz]

The net has opened up the world of authentic khuks wide. HI was doing it so long, they at one one time selling via magazine ads. At one point, that would be my answer. Clearly I'm biased

However, there are plenty of good ones out there. Just stick with a reputable maker. There is nothing new under the sun, and something made via a craftsman pounding truck spring over an anvil on a dirt floor does not make it "better" than a newer version. I'm old school. I cut my teeth on HI khuks 20+ years ago. However, the design is solid regardless of crafts it so long as you use the knife within reason.

Keep in mind, these tend to be knives made in an "old" way. HI kinda pioneered the indestructible khuk thing by making them thick and providing an unlimited warranty. It grew their business for decades. However, at the end of the day, these are carbon steel with differential hardening running at fairly low rockwell.

They have a bit of a learning curve, but after a year or two, they become second nature of you want a hatchet-like knife.

I'm getting to the age where I saw I love my choppers, but I enjoy a less strenuous outing as well.

Best of luck to you.

 

[David Mary]

This is a great looking design David!

Thank you very much Andrew!

A little bit of kopis in there too maybe?

Possibly! As I see it, lines and curves have existed since the beginning of time, and so I just use those, wherever I and the guys I serve feel that they look right. In this case, it was a happy coincidence.

 

[oldmanwilly]

Kailash Blades would you indulge in a slight tangent? I have the impression that traditional khukuris had handles that were shorter and more aggressively curved, much like the handle on my Tora (see below). In contrast, I have the impression that longer, straight handles are a recent development designed to appeal to a largely Western market. Is this at all accurate, or have both designs existed for centuries?

For what it's worth, I prefer the former. The sharper curve locks my hand in tightly so that I have more control and feel more confident when cutting. I find that, when using straighter handled khuks,I focus more energy on just keeping a good grip on the knife and therefore put less energy into my cuts. This is not an issue with the more curved handles.

 

[Miller Bros fan]

It looks like Tora and Heritage are very good quality from those here. Any differences between how those two companies make their khukuris or is it negligible?

 

[d762nato]

Tora makes a khukuri fashioned like the original models of the past. They still use the teapot method with water for quenching. I believe Kailash uses the oil method these days. If you want an exact military replica I'd go with Tora. If you want an oil quenched and updated version go with Kailash. Kailash will make you a khukuri with a lot of options, micarta handles ect.ect. So it comes down to historical or not. I do own several Tora khukuris but can't really speak on the others but have read alot of good things about Kailash. Good luck on your journey. I still need to pick up a Kailash khukuri with a nice kydex sheath.

 

[Kailash Blades]

Kailash Blades would you indulge in a slight tangent? I have the impression that traditional khukuris had handles that were shorter and more aggressively curved, much like the handle on my Tora (see below). In contrast, I have the impression that longer, straight handles are a recent development designed to appeal to a largely Western market. Is this at all accurate, or have both designs existed for centuries?

For what it's worth, I prefer the former. The sharper curve locks my hand in tightly so that I have more control and feel more confident when cutting. I find that, when using straighter handled khuks,I focus more energy on just keeping a good grip on the knife and therefore put less energy into my cuts. This is not an issue with the more curved handles.

I think that it helps in these situations to have a look at dated antique blades and see if there are trends.

I agree that straight handles saw an uptick in the second half of the 20th century. I think that part of this is just that handles got longer as user's hands got bigger- both through sales to westerners and also the Nepalese themselves becoming larger. If you were to measure the angle created between the bolster line and the flare of the rear buttcap these angles are often very similar it's just that on longer handles this occurs over a shorter distance so the radius of the handle curvature is a lot more intense. This can be seen on our blades with small vs large handles.
I think that it is also the influence of the mk5, of which historical examples had really quite straight handles. I think it can be said that a lot of the features of this blade (buttcap style, bevel style, blade shape) became almost the standard for khukuris for some period afterwards in the bulk export and souvenir markets.

I also like the ergonomics of the more strongly curved handles and think that Tora handles are quite comfy. However I think that some tora examples I've seen are so curved and hooked as to be ahistorical for the style they're going for. While there were certainly some handles that intensely curved it was far from as universal as it has seemed in tora's lineup at some points. A look at some of their BSI's compared to original examples sometimes shows a drastically different handle shape for example. I don't think this is necessarily a bad thing as I do believe that for the majority of customers these are more comfortable and locks the hand in nicely. Offering a consistently comfortable non custom traditional handle for westerners is a real challenge and I believe that some modifications should be welcomed. I think that the main thing such handles fix is to get the upper point of the buttcap tip nice and far away form the meat at the back of the palm- pressure at this point can be horrible especially with formed sheet metal buttcap styles as seen on the BSI for example. Alternative buttcap shaping and more generous handle sizing are other means of achieving this goal.

In terms of historical examples of longer handles the hanshee style are very long- to the point that some have speculated that they were intended to be gripped in front of the handle ring rather than using it as a subhilt with the rear portion being counterweight/offhand support. Some of these handles are quite intensely curved but some are really quite straight. Beyond this time I would be tempted to say that broader blades with more tip drop tended to see more curved handles but there are so many exceptions. It's very possible that this was a matter of user preference when getting a blade made. I think that metal handles often had a bit more curve than non metal handles. I kind of associate these blades with india but don't have much reason to make that association. Here's a very curved indian example with a metal handle that maybe helps with that connection.

Take care,
Andrew