Two awesome choppers go head to head (clear winner)
I have to admit that when I got my Himalayan Imports WWII 18-inch khukuri, I was disappointed. I have seen nothing but raves on Bladeforums about these knives. I like modern knives with their perfect lines, so the rough finish on the blade and hand-forged character of the HI turned me off. The wood handle just didn't look tough, it looked fancy.
I also didnt get the purpose of the three tiny fixed-blades then came with it. One didnt even have a sharpened edge.
But the heft spoke of serious purpose, and the guarantee was certainly as good as it gets.
I liked my Gransfors Bruks carpenter hatchet immediately, even though it was a little rusty. OK, this is hand-forged, too, but it feels like it came out of a factory. It also has a wood handle, but it's hickory and nothing seems fancy or weak about it. Ive had it for a couple of months and use it every day to split kindling for my stove. I liked this model because it has more heft and leverage than the wildlife hatchet.
I had been debating what to do with the HI khukuri. I thought of selling it, but the finish on the blade looked so bad (mostly a mirror finish, but it looked like someone had rubbed large parts of the blade with sandpaper) that I thought Id take too much of a loss.
Then a big wind storm hit. Winds gusted up to 80 mph. I made a ton of electricity with my wind turbine and easily rode it out because everything around my cabin is well tied down. Wind storms are common here in the winter. I live off-grid in a remote area of the Olympic Peninsula.
But lots of trees and big branches came down, many landing on small conifers cedars, fir, hemlock and spruce that I had planted. It was going to take a lot of chopping to get all that wood off my trees.
So that became my test: the GB hatchet v. the HI khukuri.
It was quickly obvious that these were both serious choppers. They went through just about anything mostly 1-inch to 4-inch branches. The HI was a little easier to swing, but the handle was slippery. The flared base was the only reason it didnt slip out of my hand. I was wearing gloves that quickly became wet.
The GB was a better chopper, however. Its sharp, and the heavy head adds real oommph. The HI would be a much, much better weapon -- scary awesome -- but in this test none of the branches were fighting back.
I kept switching off between the two. Both worked great, but the GB was obvioulsly more effective and easier to hang onto. I noticed that the rough area on the blade of the HI became rusty almost immediately. So much for selling it.
I thought I was going to say that the contest was relatively even, with the GB coming out a little better. But when I got back to my cabin to oil the blades, I noticed that the HI had two deflections (each about a quarter inch long) along the edge of the blade.
That cinched it for me: The Grandfors Bruks is the clear winner.
I have to admit that when I got my Himalayan Imports WWII 18-inch khukuri, I was disappointed. I have seen nothing but raves on Bladeforums about these knives. I like modern knives with their perfect lines, so the rough finish on the blade and hand-forged character of the HI turned me off. The wood handle just didn't look tough, it looked fancy.
I also didnt get the purpose of the three tiny fixed-blades then came with it. One didnt even have a sharpened edge.
But the heft spoke of serious purpose, and the guarantee was certainly as good as it gets.
I liked my Gransfors Bruks carpenter hatchet immediately, even though it was a little rusty. OK, this is hand-forged, too, but it feels like it came out of a factory. It also has a wood handle, but it's hickory and nothing seems fancy or weak about it. Ive had it for a couple of months and use it every day to split kindling for my stove. I liked this model because it has more heft and leverage than the wildlife hatchet.
I had been debating what to do with the HI khukuri. I thought of selling it, but the finish on the blade looked so bad (mostly a mirror finish, but it looked like someone had rubbed large parts of the blade with sandpaper) that I thought Id take too much of a loss.
Then a big wind storm hit. Winds gusted up to 80 mph. I made a ton of electricity with my wind turbine and easily rode it out because everything around my cabin is well tied down. Wind storms are common here in the winter. I live off-grid in a remote area of the Olympic Peninsula.
But lots of trees and big branches came down, many landing on small conifers cedars, fir, hemlock and spruce that I had planted. It was going to take a lot of chopping to get all that wood off my trees.
So that became my test: the GB hatchet v. the HI khukuri.
It was quickly obvious that these were both serious choppers. They went through just about anything mostly 1-inch to 4-inch branches. The HI was a little easier to swing, but the handle was slippery. The flared base was the only reason it didnt slip out of my hand. I was wearing gloves that quickly became wet.
The GB was a better chopper, however. Its sharp, and the heavy head adds real oommph. The HI would be a much, much better weapon -- scary awesome -- but in this test none of the branches were fighting back.
I kept switching off between the two. Both worked great, but the GB was obvioulsly more effective and easier to hang onto. I noticed that the rough area on the blade of the HI became rusty almost immediately. So much for selling it.
I thought I was going to say that the contest was relatively even, with the GB coming out a little better. But when I got back to my cabin to oil the blades, I noticed that the HI had two deflections (each about a quarter inch long) along the edge of the blade.
That cinched it for me: The Grandfors Bruks is the clear winner.
