Bent or broken CAKs?

P

Phil Brown

Joined
Jun 2, 2006
Messages
367
Okay, so anyone who reads half the posts in this forum knows the reputation of the HI CAK. It's called the unbreakable knife, it's guaranteed to be indestructible; and if you do manage to violate the laws of physics and destroy it, you get two replacements! So here's what I want to know: has anyone actually done it? This would be a great thread for pics. In a way, I don't want to see any HI khuks destroyed, but at the same time, I'm really curious. Anyone who has done such a thing must be a legend, or a monster. So let's hear it!
 
nothings indestructible... :)
BUT as far as the warranty, imo its only honored to the honorable :rolleyes:
dont buy 5 cak's break em thinken you can get 10 in return :foot:
 
The only HI's that break are those that are tempered incorrectly. You get a few bad production runs every once in awhile in a factory, I don't care who you are it just happens. The only other "break" that I hear about is people who try to chop down trees with thin sword like kuks, they get bent a little and have to learn to straighten knives the hard way (a little bit at a time). I am talking Kobras and whatnot when I say "thin" kuks.

The real kicker is that other kuks never have this problem because they arn't tempered. They arn't even hardened. So if you want a dull metal club, a KLO, Khuk like Object, then there you go.

I have chopped down trees measuring 12" in diameter with a 20" AK, it wasn't some frozen hardwood only an old oak that was dying, ad afterwards it was close to shaving sharp. And an 10" diameter ash with a 23" GRS Yvsa sharpened that really did shave afterwards. Most of the other stuff I do is with firewood and limbing.
I also have a HI Katana, it too can take a bunch of abuse. But you can search the threads for those stories.
 
Jaiofspam said:
nothings indestructible... :)
BUT as far as the warranty, imo its only honored to the honorable :rolleyes:
dont buy 5 cak's break em thinken you can get 10 in return :foot:
Click to expand...
I realize I'm an unknown quantity here, but I still find it a little offensive that your first thought was that I might be trying to pull a fast one. I know it isn't personal; I just hate that the default attitude toward our fellow man has to be distrust.

I wasn't really expecting to hear about khuks that failed under normal use (although with differential hardening, there are bound to be squibs out there). I was more expecting to hear about khuks bent after prying off car doors, or chopping through rebar, etc. Not intentional abuse, mind you, but emergency use/no other tool at hand.
 
Martini said:
I realize I'm an unknown quantity here, but I still find it a little offensive that your first thought was that I might be trying to pull a fast one. I know it isn't personal; I just hate that the default attitude toward our fellow man has to be distrust.
Click to expand...

I know Jai didn't mean anything by it. People here are very protective of Yangdu and Himalayan Imports. Misuse of the warrantee has happened before.

I have never personally had a broken or even bent HI kukri. I have heard of ones that where heavily abused and while they would have chips taken out, they generally live to see another day.
 
Stick around long enough to become known...you'll see why such comments are sometimes made.
 
I gave it my best shot a few years ago, see here. Sorry the pics are down, but you can still read about what I did. The bottom line is that it's essentially impossible to break a CAK that is properly tempered without mechanical assistance. Sure, you can use a six foot pipe over the handle to bend it (MAYBE), but with your bare hands? I don't believe the strongest man alive could do it.

Also, FWIW, I don't believe Jai's post was meant to be offensive. He was just pointing out that these things have occurred in the past and we hope they don't again. Stick around, we like having new folks. :)
 
Martini said:
I realize I'm an unknown quantity here, but I still find it a little offensive that your first thought was that I might be trying to pull a fast one. I know it isn't personal; I just hate that the default attitude toward our fellow man has to be distrust.

I wasn't really expecting to hear about khuks that failed under normal use (although with differential hardening, there are bound to be squibs out there). I was more expecting to hear about khuks bent after prying off car doors, or chopping through rebar, etc. Not intentional abuse, mind you, but emergency use/no other tool at hand.
Click to expand...

im apologize if i may have sounded offensive :o
i just thought i would get the point across that a few have attempted to take advantage of HI's warranty and excellent customer service and it just doesnt fly like that ;) basically if the knife fails under normal use (and you are the original owner who purchased direct from HI) you are good for a replacement or two :)

welcome to the HI forum :D :thumbup:
 
I've been pretty abusive to my CAK at times and never had it feel like it was going to break or bend, or even lose its edge.

I feel fully confident that if I had to get into a tree real fast I could bury my CAK in the tree trunk and use it as a foot hold without hurting it one bit.
 
JStrider said:
I feel fully confident that if I had to get into a tree real fast I could bury my CAK in the tree trunk and use it as a foot hold without hurting it one bit.
Click to expand...

This has been done before by at least a few forumites. I'd recommend working up to it just to be safe.
 
I got my Sher CAK about two weeks ago. I thought my other HI khukris were strong, heavily built knives (and don't get me wrong, they are), but this one is in a league of it's own. My 16.5" WW2 feels like a toy by comparison. The spine of the blade is an honest 1/2" thick at the bolster. I have no doubt at all that I could put the blade horizontally in a vise and stand on the handle without bending it -- and I'm not small. You have to see and hold one of these to appreciate them.
 
Jaiofspam said:
im apologize if i may have sounded offensive :o
i just thought i would get the point across that a few have attempted to take advantage of HI's warranty and excellent customer service and it just doesnt fly like that ;) basically if the knife fails under normal use (and you are the original owner who purchased direct from HI) you are good for a replacement or two :)

welcome to the HI forum :D :thumbup:
Click to expand...
Let me apologize for my knee-jerk reaction. I'm rather sensitive to that sort of thing. I'm the sort of guy who refuses to send food back and if you give me too much change, I let you know. Any implication of dishonesty on my part makes me rather touchy. Apparently, I decided to see an accusation where there was none. :o

Oh, and thanks for the welcome. This is a very friendly and helpful bunch. In future, I'll try not to jump to conclusions so quickly :foot:
 
Don't sweat it.
17.gif
We've all done a little of :foot: from time to time, it's all part of the fun. :)
 
I bashed up a malfunctioning playstation 2 and bent/rolled the edge a bit, but it is only cosmetic and the activity did not dull the blade. I stick to chopping wood now. I don't think it is possible for a human to break a CAK without a lever or machine. Maybe not even then.
 
I wonder what would happen in a contest between two CAKs? Isn't that like asking what happens when an irresistible force meets an immovable object? :D

Eric
 
Welcome Martini! I know if Uncle Bill was here he would get a kick out of your screen name. :D

Your question was a good one. These full tang knives are so strong that under "normal" use it is dang near impossible to destroy them, which is why Uncle Bill said he would send you 2 if you managed to do it. I don't know for certain, but never heard of him having to pay off.

The only thing I have ever had was a grip panel pin on one working a bit loose after a great deal of pounding, but the grip still stayed in place, held there by the laha, and the knife kept going strong.

The only disadvantages to CAK's IMO are that they do tend to transmit vibration a bit more, and in the larger sizes it is easy to make them too heavy, which is why I really like them in the 15 to 16.5" range.

Please stick around and get a couple of knives and let us know about them. (In other words, abandon all hope of ever having any extra $ from this point forward. ;) :D )

Norm
 
I had a chiruwa Ang Khola break on me, probably due to a bad heat treat. Bill offered to make good on the 2-for-1 warranty, but I just took one replacement. Manufacturing or material issues are a problem for any company, and HI's quality control relies completely on the kami's intuition. Every once in a while there's going to be a problem, and it's a testament to the skill and integrity of the people involved that there aren't more. As with anything, you should test it well before you bet your life on it.
 
Gentlemen....a friend of mine has a CAK that just broke...got the email just now....crazy, eh?

How often does that happen? And quite a coincidence! :eek:

I've given mine the beating of their life - with no problems ever.

But this one (his) broke clean at the bolster - bad heat-treat, I guess. *shrug*


Like Bill used to say....a bad kukri is 1 in 100....a bad CAK is 1 in 1000!


I'll try to get my friend to sign up and post a message here w/ pics.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top