- Joined
- Sep 10, 1999
- Messages
- 45
Last Thursday I received the Birgorkha Hanuman khukuri that Uncle Bill posted on 8/13, comparing it to the old style Hanuman. You can see his comments and pictures here:
http://www.bladeforums.com/ubb/Forum53/HTML/000682.html
I won't waste space repeating the specs on this piece, I just wanted to share my impressions.
This khuk is everything Bill said it wasno surprise there. Fit and finish is excellent as we have come to expect. At 2 lbs 2 oz it is definitely blade heavy, and the edge is quite sharp. This is a very beefy khukuri, and though I won't be using it for any work, I have no doubt that it would be an awesome chopper and stand up to anything it might reasonably encounter. The only problem I'll have with the blade is removing the name of the person who special ordered it. My skill with tools is not one of my strong points.
The carving on the handle is very clean and deep. The wood is a very attractive dark color, and feels good in the hand. In keeping with the overall size, the handle is fairly thick, and if it was any thicker I would be unable to get a good grip. As it is, I think it helps balance out the weight of the blade. The overall design is very attractive.
The real surprise is in the scabbard. The pictures Bill posted don't do justice to the embossing. The design is a peacock on the lower portion, and some sort of flower on the upper part, with a border all the way around. It is a very attractive design, and very well executed. The fit of the khuk in the scabbard was extremely tight, and it took some effort to get it out, especially while trying to mind Harry's safety tips. Bill had warned me about this as the dry Reno air had caused some shrinkage. It's been humid here the last few days so we'll see how that affects things.
Bill advised that this rig would not lend itself to carry in the woods, and he was right. By the time the Sarkis put space in back for the karda, chakma and 4 other tools, the scabbard is a full 3 inches thick at the top. There is no frog, and I see no way to attach this to a belt. Behind the scabbard are two sets of triple pouches for the tools, and what looks like a third collapsed pouch behind those. These are all held together tightly, with no space between to slide a belt though. The last pouch-like section extends over halfway down the back, and is nailed at the bottom to the back of the scabbard. This has broken loose at the nail, possibly from the dry weather shrinkage. A leather strip is double wrapped around the whole set-up, finished with the red trimmed buttons you can see in the picture.
If you wanted to carry this khuk on a regular basis you would definitely need to have Terry Sisco make a new sheath for it.
As stated, this won't be a working khukuri, but it's definitely a keeper. To me it seems filled with the special spirit that we've all come to expect from HI products, and is a strong link to another culture. Thanks Bill for bringing these to us.
Mark
[This message has been edited by Mark Weldon (edited 09-04-2000).]
http://www.bladeforums.com/ubb/Forum53/HTML/000682.html
I won't waste space repeating the specs on this piece, I just wanted to share my impressions.
This khuk is everything Bill said it wasno surprise there. Fit and finish is excellent as we have come to expect. At 2 lbs 2 oz it is definitely blade heavy, and the edge is quite sharp. This is a very beefy khukuri, and though I won't be using it for any work, I have no doubt that it would be an awesome chopper and stand up to anything it might reasonably encounter. The only problem I'll have with the blade is removing the name of the person who special ordered it. My skill with tools is not one of my strong points.
The carving on the handle is very clean and deep. The wood is a very attractive dark color, and feels good in the hand. In keeping with the overall size, the handle is fairly thick, and if it was any thicker I would be unable to get a good grip. As it is, I think it helps balance out the weight of the blade. The overall design is very attractive.
The real surprise is in the scabbard. The pictures Bill posted don't do justice to the embossing. The design is a peacock on the lower portion, and some sort of flower on the upper part, with a border all the way around. It is a very attractive design, and very well executed. The fit of the khuk in the scabbard was extremely tight, and it took some effort to get it out, especially while trying to mind Harry's safety tips. Bill had warned me about this as the dry Reno air had caused some shrinkage. It's been humid here the last few days so we'll see how that affects things.
Bill advised that this rig would not lend itself to carry in the woods, and he was right. By the time the Sarkis put space in back for the karda, chakma and 4 other tools, the scabbard is a full 3 inches thick at the top. There is no frog, and I see no way to attach this to a belt. Behind the scabbard are two sets of triple pouches for the tools, and what looks like a third collapsed pouch behind those. These are all held together tightly, with no space between to slide a belt though. The last pouch-like section extends over halfway down the back, and is nailed at the bottom to the back of the scabbard. This has broken loose at the nail, possibly from the dry weather shrinkage. A leather strip is double wrapped around the whole set-up, finished with the red trimmed buttons you can see in the picture.
If you wanted to carry this khuk on a regular basis you would definitely need to have Terry Sisco make a new sheath for it.
As stated, this won't be a working khukuri, but it's definitely a keeper. To me it seems filled with the special spirit that we've all come to expect from HI products, and is a strong link to another culture. Thanks Bill for bringing these to us.
Mark
[This message has been edited by Mark Weldon (edited 09-04-2000).]
