Got my 16.5' "Blem" Chiruwa AK today..

eraaij

eraaij

Joined
Jan 17, 2002
Messages
191
..and here is my quick initial impression:

- The blade, -made by Bura- is very well done. In comparison with my 15" AK it seems slightly less forward curved (about 3 degrees less), which I like;

- The blade is _of course_ heavier than the 15" AK, but it feels better balanced, due to the weight of more steel in the broad tang, I think. This would allow a bit more control with more delicate work.

- The karda and chakma are both very well done. The problem with this khukri was stated to be some rust on these tools but wiping them clean removed virtually all dirt/rust. No problem at all. What I also like about the karda is that it is a usable size knife.

- The sheat is a bit loose for this khukuri and it almost looks like it wasn't made for this blade: you can move it when sheated. The karda and chakma do not fit very well either. So be it, no big problem.

I either will take this new one or the 15" AK with me when we leave for a two week trip to the Austrian mountains, around march 15th. The blade will do some serious work by building shelters and igloos, splitting firewood, and other fun stuff I like to do when there. I will write a more detailed field report after that.

cheers,
-Emile
 
Emile you can glue a strip of leather in the mouth of the sheath and shim it to fit tighter.

Many thank for field report all the way from Heineken land.
 
Originally posted by Bill Martino
Emile you can glue a strip of leather in the mouth of the sheath and shim it to fit tighter.
Click to expand...

Uncle Bill,

I'll try that if it gets annoying. Thanks again for a great khukuri.

Best regards,
-Emile
 
Make sure you test the blade thouroughly before you go on your trip. Just like any other knife you would take into the bush. It's a good thing. :)
 
We do have a log cabin over there, so building shelters, traps and stuff is basically something I twice a year do for fun and training. I can whack away and return to a safe roof and coffee (or Heineken :D)afterwards.

But if wheater-conditions are ok, I plan to do a two-day backpack tour on snowshoes in the 2nd week and will therefore do the testing stuff before that. If right, the khuk will go with me.

What I would like to find out is if the blade can replace a smaller knife, axe AND snowshovel in my backpack. So you could for example take a khukuri and wave multitool to replace them -- saves a lot of weight, which is always important.

You read lots of stories about splitting wood with a khukuri, which it obviously does very good. I would additionally like to find out how it performs in arctic situations -like digging in snow, ice-hacking, etc. You can do all that more comfortable with a heavy axe and shovel, but if a khuk can do this in an acceptable way (that means without too much loss of energy and speed), it would be a good choice for me for my trips.

Now, there is the tough decision to make wich blade will go with me. I am partial towards the 15" model since it is somewhat lighter. And the 16.5" Bura AK is -again- a very pretty blade to look at :)

cheers,
-Emile
 
Check with Cliff Stamp. He lives up in Canada and has used the khukuri for all sorts of very cold weather work. I think it will do the work of all the tools mentioned but it takes more time to shovel with it than a real shovel.
 
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