BAS Review

[Vampire Hunter D]

I had the chance to give my BAS a good workout this weekend. I was both disappointed and pleased with the end result.

The Target: A 8" x 3/4" scub oak log to warm up, followed by a 1 1/2' x 8" in diameter monster log.

I started on the small piece and took it with one chop. I was kind of surprised, thought it was cool. My strategy was to start chopping on one of the natural cracks. After about six chops the vinegar etch finish wore off. So much for that. I spent about 10 minutes doing this and the log only laughed. So what I did was chop into the split with all of my might, then I found a scub oak club and started pounding away on the spine. I buried it deep and started twisting, wrenching and prying. I did this about three or four times and was able to split it in half and then into quarters.

The Damage: Tip was bent to a wavy 45 degree angle. The blade was fairly dull. The finish was gone. Cracks from hell all over the horn handle. I was sweating like a beaten mule and bleeding from my left hand where I nicked myself on a downward chop. It made quite the sight, woodchips everywhere, blood on the log and the blade... it was beautiful.

The Fix: I brought the BAS to work and used the vice here as an anvil to hammer the blade straight. It took about six minutes and was very easy to do. Just left a few hammer marks. While I was doing this I remembered that I read that farmers would sharpen their scythes by hammering the edge back on. So I tried it. I just carefully tapped the edge and to my surprise it worked ! It wasn't hair popping sharp, but there was definately a usable edge. I also did the superglue thing to the handle. I just need to polish it. I've never had the superglue fix fail, but this is the worst I've ever seen a handle get. So we'll see.

The Conclusion: After this I learned quite a bit. I've never had to hammer a tip back to true and I now know the limitations of the blade. Normally I'd never try to chop a log that big, especially with a little BAS, but the challenge was nice. I hope you enjoyed.

- D

 

[Rusty]

Thanks for report.

So while you used and even abused it, it didn't fail, and though bent, was later hammered back to true. Horn suffered cracks, later fixed with superglue.

Sounds to me like you're an easy to please customer.

Nice touch adding the peening to sharpen. Have to ask Yvsa if this could be useful on edges that are underhardened and start to fold. Wonder how much work it would take to work harden an edge - maybe not in one sitting, but say do some hammering after each use, then hone or strop - over the course of maybe a year?

 

[Yvsa]

Nice touch adding the peening to sharpen. Have to ask Yvsa if this could be useful on edges that are underhardened and start to fold.

Just goes to show you that there is nothing new under the sun.
In the khukuri FAQ.......

"Yvsa's ruminations on sharpening a khukuri

Snipped large fragment....
I think I can safely bet that under those conditions that we are going to learn to use the khukuri in such a way as to maintain that edge with the Least Amount Of Steel Removal!!

Long ago and in places not so far away our ancestors used all sorts of iron implements with steel edges forged onto them. Good Steel was precious and sometimes hard to come by! Take a scythe for instance. The edge was maintained much the same way the khukuri is. One difference is that the steel along the edge was not filed or honed off if it became dinged or nicked up badly. The scythe was laid on an anvil or rock if need be and the steel was carefully pounded back into shape. Sometimes a scythe was even sharpened in this manner. By laying it's edge on an anvil anyone that had experience with using the blade could take a hammer and tap tap an edge onto it. This edge could shave you! I imagine that at one time the original edge may have been put on this way to save the precious steel.

One of the reasons I got to thinking about all this is what Uncle Bill has stated at different times.
Quote, paraphrase: "It isn't usually to far back to the house where a file and stone for sharpening are kept and if a khukuri becomes dull enough that it can't be sharpened in the field, it is taken back to the house and fixed." Unquote.

Using the scythe as an example shows that steel doesn't have to be that hard to perform exceptionally well. However it has to be tough. Cutting harder and harder materials means that the steel must be harder in order not to deform.
Another good modern day example is the Ontario version of the Bagwell Bowie Knives.
It is stated in the information about these knives that they are unusually soft for a knife of it's size. The reason being is that they are very nice "Fighting" knives and they are designed to cut clothing and flesh.
Hitting a bone hard with one would probably ding it pretty good. The important thing is that the knife Is Not Going to Break!!
The article or other information I read about them states that they are Not good knives for people who are wanting a "combat" knife as they are too soft to stand up to that kind of abuse.

Addendum:
The potential problem with extended work hardening is that it's possible to over time develop such a hardness that edge chipping could result. But that shouldn't happen for quite some time.
Hard to tell these days without the experience of the past. Your great, or great great grandpa could no doubt tell you though.

 

[Vampire Hunter D]

Rusty,

I guess I am easy to please. I buy them as users, and I don't worry about keeping the mirror finish or anything else. I just beat the crap out of them on whatever I intend to use them on. My WWII has taken much worse. I just hope the glue holds, otherwise I'll have to resort to a 550 cord wrap.

Yvsa,

Good info and thanks. One of the things that I've come to appreciate abou H.I. blades is the fact that they won't break. I've really hurt some of them, but I've never had a fail. And they're pretty easy to fix.

- D