Uncle Bill,
I apologize for this taking so long, but with all the overtime I've been working, this was the first chance that I had to get out and play since the beginning of the year.
Katana:
The Katana I received was truly a work of art. The fit and finish were excellent, and I don't think that it could possibly have been better balanced. Even the handle seemed as if it had been custom made for my hands. There were numerous inclusions of what appeared to be ash throughout the blade, but no other signs of imperfections. These really didn't bother me, since I purchased this sword to use, and they in no way interfere with the use of the sword. The scabbard was made out of thick leather, fit the sword like a glove, and was an excellent piece of workmanship.
Tarwar:
The tarwar was truly a surprise when I opened the package. The craftsmanship that went into this was truly astounding. The fitting on this sword was perfect. Even where the wood joined the brass, they flowed together like water, and you couldn't even notice the joints. The only thing that I didn't like was that the handle was too thick. I have relativley small hands compared to some of you guys, mine only measure 7.25"x3". The handle was almost too large to allow total control of a forcefull swing, but this can easily be fixed with some sand paper and a little time. The scabbard, well not as beautiful as the one for the katana, was sturdy and well built. It arrived with a crack along the throat, which thanks to the kindness of Uncle Bill, is being repaired at this time.
JKM-1:
The JKM-1 was absolutley perfect. Fit and finish were excellent. The sheath was great, and I think that this will make a great carry along, general utility knife. Even my wife loved it. We have been looking for a knife for her to carry when she comes up into the mountains with me, and after seeing the JKM-1, she decided that she wants to order the Kumar Karda for herself. I'm not sure how this is going to work. Two people in the same house with HIKV. I may have to get a second job.
The JKM-1 was probably the easiest to test. I work as a meat cutter, and decided to bring it to work and try it out. I gutted and skinned three hogs with it, and while it didn't perform as well as my actual skinning knife, I think that it performed better than my CS Master Hunter did when subjected to the same test. No, I'm not putting down the Master Hunter, I'm just saying that given a choice between the two, during a survival situation in the field, I think that I would choose the JKM-1.
The Katana and Tarwar, I brought out into the field and tested. I started out with some test cutting on tatami men. The Katana sliced through them like melted butter. The Tarwar, because of it's greater weight, and thicker blade, had a tendency to send pieces of the tatami men flying before finishing the cut. I next began testing them on branches between 1" and 21/2" thick. With the Katana, as long as I used the proper cutting angle, it had no problem cleanly cutting every branch I tried it on. The Tarwar easily cut through everything, much the way an axe would. I have no doubt that you could use it to cut a tree down, or cut firewood if need be. Both blades held up well, and received no damage. Both remained sharp through all of this cutting. I think one of the most impressive things was that there was a total lack of vibration felt through the handle, unlike most other swords which I have used. The final test, I reserved for just the Tarwar, as I didn't want to push the Katana, testing it on things which a katana was never meant to do (also, I only had one cow skull with me). I used the Tarwar, to cut the cow skull from top to bottom. It easily accomplished this, and still had plenty of power left in the swing. I have no doubt that if this had been a human opponent, he would easily have been split in two. Both are very tough, well made swords that easily handled everything asked of them, and I believe could easily have handled much more. Neither sword received any damage, or had any parts come loose as has happened with some other swords which I have used. I would feel very comfortable recommending both to anyone else, and in using these swords against an actual opponent if needed.
BTW, The Katana was made by Kumar, and the Tarwar by Durba.
[ 03-26-2001: Message edited by: Terrence ]
I apologize for this taking so long, but with all the overtime I've been working, this was the first chance that I had to get out and play since the beginning of the year.
Katana:
The Katana I received was truly a work of art. The fit and finish were excellent, and I don't think that it could possibly have been better balanced. Even the handle seemed as if it had been custom made for my hands. There were numerous inclusions of what appeared to be ash throughout the blade, but no other signs of imperfections. These really didn't bother me, since I purchased this sword to use, and they in no way interfere with the use of the sword. The scabbard was made out of thick leather, fit the sword like a glove, and was an excellent piece of workmanship.
Tarwar:
The tarwar was truly a surprise when I opened the package. The craftsmanship that went into this was truly astounding. The fitting on this sword was perfect. Even where the wood joined the brass, they flowed together like water, and you couldn't even notice the joints. The only thing that I didn't like was that the handle was too thick. I have relativley small hands compared to some of you guys, mine only measure 7.25"x3". The handle was almost too large to allow total control of a forcefull swing, but this can easily be fixed with some sand paper and a little time. The scabbard, well not as beautiful as the one for the katana, was sturdy and well built. It arrived with a crack along the throat, which thanks to the kindness of Uncle Bill, is being repaired at this time.
JKM-1:
The JKM-1 was absolutley perfect. Fit and finish were excellent. The sheath was great, and I think that this will make a great carry along, general utility knife. Even my wife loved it. We have been looking for a knife for her to carry when she comes up into the mountains with me, and after seeing the JKM-1, she decided that she wants to order the Kumar Karda for herself. I'm not sure how this is going to work. Two people in the same house with HIKV. I may have to get a second job.
The JKM-1 was probably the easiest to test. I work as a meat cutter, and decided to bring it to work and try it out. I gutted and skinned three hogs with it, and while it didn't perform as well as my actual skinning knife, I think that it performed better than my CS Master Hunter did when subjected to the same test. No, I'm not putting down the Master Hunter, I'm just saying that given a choice between the two, during a survival situation in the field, I think that I would choose the JKM-1.
The Katana and Tarwar, I brought out into the field and tested. I started out with some test cutting on tatami men. The Katana sliced through them like melted butter. The Tarwar, because of it's greater weight, and thicker blade, had a tendency to send pieces of the tatami men flying before finishing the cut. I next began testing them on branches between 1" and 21/2" thick. With the Katana, as long as I used the proper cutting angle, it had no problem cleanly cutting every branch I tried it on. The Tarwar easily cut through everything, much the way an axe would. I have no doubt that you could use it to cut a tree down, or cut firewood if need be. Both blades held up well, and received no damage. Both remained sharp through all of this cutting. I think one of the most impressive things was that there was a total lack of vibration felt through the handle, unlike most other swords which I have used. The final test, I reserved for just the Tarwar, as I didn't want to push the Katana, testing it on things which a katana was never meant to do (also, I only had one cow skull with me). I used the Tarwar, to cut the cow skull from top to bottom. It easily accomplished this, and still had plenty of power left in the swing. I have no doubt that if this had been a human opponent, he would easily have been split in two. Both are very tough, well made swords that easily handled everything asked of them, and I believe could easily have handled much more. Neither sword received any damage, or had any parts come loose as has happened with some other swords which I have used. I would feel very comfortable recommending both to anyone else, and in using these swords against an actual opponent if needed.
BTW, The Katana was made by Kumar, and the Tarwar by Durba.
[ 03-26-2001: Message edited by: Terrence ]
