Hello from Oz & a question

[Raksasa]

Hi All,

My name is John & I live in Sydney, Australia. First post here.

I have a British Army issue Kukri from the late 60's that my uncle gave me when I was 12 years old.

It has no regimental marking on it as it came from the stores in the British Army Jungle Warfare Training centre in Johor Baru, Malaysia, where my uncle was stationed at the time as an SM in the UK Gloucestershire Regiment.

He had it chromed to protect me from the edge.

I would like to try and restore it and was wondering what is the best way to remove chrome plating from it, and the best way to sharpen it.

Picture below.

All help appreciated,

Raks (John)

 

[Karda]

Welcome Raksasa !
You could sand the chrome back off, but i wouldnt, as it could serve to protect the blade from rust and was probably put on it for that purpose also. If it were me i would leave it as is, for momento/heirloom sake and use it for display.
I would buy another for actual use.

If you wish to sharpen it, there are some threads in the Himalayan Imports forum, in the "Link Library" sticky. Any other questions you may also have can be answered by our very knowledgeable forumites.

 

[Raksasa]

Cheers Karda for your response.

I don't intend to use it. I just wanted to restore it as a tribute to my uncle, who is dead now, and saw active duty in Korea with the British Gloucesters.
He was taken prisoner of war for about 2 and a half years after the Battle of Solma Ri.
He received a US Presidential Citation, and was offered a commission in the field which he turned down (was a Sergeant at that time ).

I will take your advice re leaving the chrome, but I'll check the sharpening link for the little knives as I think I sanded off the coating when I was a kid (some black stuff ???), and wouldn't mind getting them to look look better.

Can anyone help with what I should use on the black leather scabbard & the brass tip to get it looking new ???

Cheers,

Raks.

 

[Karda]

Cheers Karda for your response.

Can anyone help with what I should use on the black leather scabbard & the brass tip to get it looking new ???

You are welcome , John!
For the brass i usually use Nevrdull, but most metal polishes such as Simichrome, Flitz, Noxon, Maas, Wenol etc.... will do.
For the scabbard leather the recommended treatment is usually black shoe polish.

 

[Raksasa]

Thanks again for you help, Karda.

I think I will eventually display it after basic clean up.

Cheers,

Raks (John)

 

[Karda]

That would be the best way to honor your Uncle, whom sounds like he was a great soldier and nice man, and whom thought well of you.
There is much to read here at Bladeforums, lifetimes of education.
Enjoy!

 

[Raksasa]

Thanks Karda.

Yeah, he was my favourite uncle. I met him again when I went to England in the 80s. I couldn't believe how much of a peaceful, gentle & friendly man he was, considering he had been through hand to hand combat (after ammo ran out ) at Solma Ri (on the Imjin River ), with officers dying around him, the Gloucesters outnumbered. He had a long career in the British army: ended up as an RSM, was at Sandhurst as an SM, also at Checkpoint Charlie in Berlin, did paratroop jumps etc.
He was eligible to apply for a Beefeater postion once he left. He ended up working with Army Cadets in UK after his army career, where he finally accepted a commission, until he retired. He is also mentioned in one or two books about the Korean war.

He also made friends with many Gurkhas during his time at Johor Bahru. I think he gave me the knife because I wrote to him about my Father having taken me on a bus charter (my father was the driver ) where he transported a group of Gurkhas to and from a Tattoo in Sydney in the 60s, and took me along. I had a great time with them. Very friendly & humorous people.

He also gave me one of his sergeant's stripes that he wore in combat, with the Presidential Citation patch sewn on. If you see what looks like fading rust stains on it (photo below ), I think they might be blood stains.
He married later after giving me this and the knife, and I just recently sent the stripes to his son in the UK, who served in Desert Storm. He was very pleased to receive it.

Sorry to ramble on, but I have been feeling a bit nostalgic, and am missing him.

Cheers,

John

 

[Yorkshire Boy]

Perhaps your uncle knew Don "Lofty" Large? He served in the 1st Battalion Gloucestershire Regiment, fought at Imjin river and was badly wounded and captured. When he returned to the UK he joined the SAS and had a long and respected career with them.

He wrote "One Man's SAS" (1987) and "One Man's War in Korea" (1988) which were reprinted as one volume "Soldier Against the Odds: From Infantry to SAS" (1999).

Sadly he died in November 2006 at St Michael's Hospice in Hereford, age 76.

 

[Raksasa]

Hi Yorkshire Boy,

Is Lofty a relative of yours ? Sorry to hear he has passed away.

I don't remember many of the names my uncle may have mentioned when I discussed his Korean experiences with him in the 80s.
Except Colonel Carne, who spent most of his POW time in solitary confinement and carved a Gaelic cross in stone with a nail (?) to keep his sanity whilst he was incarcerated.

Knowing the sort of man my uncle was, I think he would of have ensured he knew as many of the men in the regiment as humanly possible, esp. as they were going into active duty.
Therefore I would assume he possibly knew him.

My uncle was also involved in the Regiment's association.

Here is a photo of him, visiting the battle memorial plaque in Korea in 1970 (?). He is the one pointing.

Just for anyone who is interested: the Glosters were the most battle honoured British regiment. They were also the only British regiment to wear a beret back badge (see my above photo of Sgt stripes - the lowest badge on the right with pin and Sphinx ).
They earned the right to wear this back badge from duty in Egypt in the early 1800s where they fought Napoleon and stood back to back in 2 single lines as they were attacked from multiple fronts by the enemy. A lot of history there.

Cheers, and all the best Yorkshire Boy,

John

PS I forgot to mention that my uncle's name was Norman Tuggey.

 

[FTO_dude]

theres a show called "pawn stars" about a las vegas pawn shop.
if it has taught me one thing and one thing only its that owners should never ever ever perform restorations on antiques.
It will cut down any value it has as an antique down to a third of its original value

 

[Raksasa]

theres a show called "pawn stars" about a las vegas pawn shop.
if it has taught me one thing and one thing only its that owners should never ever ever perform restorations on antiques.
It will cut down any value it has as an antique down to a third of its original value

Thanks FTO Dude. I was thinking of leaving it alone, except for polishing the scabbard and the metal bits on the handle for display.

To be honest, I don't really care about what the Kukri is fiscally worth, it is irreplaceable from a sentimental point of view. I will leave it to a relative for keeping in the family.
I would prefer it was never sold.

Cheers,

Raks