• Preorders are LIVE for the 2024 BladeForums Traditional Knife

    Traditional Knife Information Thread - make sure you go in there and read up.

    Requirements: Be a Gold or higher member or have been a member of the forums since 6/2023 with at least 100 posts in the Traditional Forum. Preorder is for people who live in the continental US only, international orders will be separate.

    Delivery expected in Q4 2024, hopefully before the holidays.

    User Name
    Serial number request

Hi! Khukuri Newbie!

S

Sundsvall

Joined
Jun 25, 2002
Messages
1,559
Hi,

Been on BF for a few months. First time in the HI forum.

I've been looking for a good camp knife and wood chopper.A friend suggested that I check out the HI Khukuris.

I like using the big knife the most - so it seems the Khukuri is the ultimate big camp knife.

I've spent some time reading through the older threads and have an idea of what I want to get. It is going to be between the Chiruwa AK and the 18" AK. The 20" AK looks good too, but will be too heavy for carry. I might buy to for car camping.

Got a couple of questions.

I like the AK. Don't know if the Chiruwa AK's handle is too small for my hands.

I don't have "huge" hands, but they are a little larger than others my size. BTW, I am 200lbs 5"10". Palm width is approximately 4.5".

Also how is the shock dampening with the full tang Chiruwa AK handle?

Right now, the Chiruwa looks like the winner because of the slightly smaller size.

Also, does the sheath protect the blade from rusting because of the wooden internal housing?

I like the Kothimoda as well, how does it compare to the AK? Is it 1/2" thick as well. I noticed that I just missed the plain sheath Kothimoda by a few hours.

Thanx.
 
Welsome to the Cantina. I don't know how much wood chopping you have to do but the Chiruwa AK certainly should take care of most of your chopping needs at a camp site. I don't recall the weight of that 16.5" knife. I would guess without going to the store site that it will weigh in about 2 lbs.. For a camp knife I would take a BAS or a 15" AK. With your 4.5" palms the length of a handle might be of concern but, I think I would think about the diameter of the handle too. I can grip a 2" pipe with a good over-lap on thumb and middle finger. but I wouldn't want a knife with that kind of handle.

My first khuk that Uncle Bill advised for me was the 15" AK. Through no ones fault my second khuk arrived at the same time. The BAS got here the same day.I have never been sorry that I got either one of them. I have heavier knives but most of the time I don't need all that much weight or length. That is why I do a lot of my work with the 18 and 20" Sirupati's. They are not heavy to carry around but they are strong knives that will do a lot of work. With oil or wax on the blades they don't have much of a problem rusting. But , just the fact of the wood inside the scabbard will not prevent rust. After some oil has soaked into the wood it might help slow rusting down just a bit.
If you are young and strong go for the bigger AK's they are the king choppers.

Again Welcome to the Cantina. There are some good folks here and you just might enjoy the HI forum. :) :D
 
If the 16.5" size appeals to you, consider the WWII as well. It's a great design. My 18 incher cuts every bit as well as an AK.

Oops, I just complicated the process a bit, didn't I? :rolleyes: :D
 
Welcome to the Cantina Sundsvall. Since you're talking camp knife, I got to side with Pappy. If you get a 15" AK you will not be dissapointed. Even if you move up to one of the bigger choppers later on you'll continue to get good service out of that 15" AK in the role of camp knife. At the risk of being ridiculed by the Duck (i.e. "12 inches ain't no K"), the 12" AK and 12" Pen Knife are not to be overlooked by campers/hikers. Yeah, they're small as khukuris go, and you ain't gonna chop much wood with them (I don't anyway, I prefer low impact camping and trying to leave the woods like I found them), but compared to most "conventional" belt knives they're a big step up.
Whatever khuk you decide to get will be one of the best knives you'll ever own, so there's no losers in this game. Good luck and enjoy.

Sarge
 
Don't worry, you'll learn patience and moderation ( actually you'll just get sneakier ) after the first 15 or 20 khuks you buy.

Hint - don't let your wife see them all together. Spread then around and bring them in at different times.
 
If I remember correctly, Yvsa (nice man, don't ask him about ducks) firmly believes that the rat-tail tang absorbs a lot more of the shock of impact than the full tang Chiruwa does.

And, to answer your yet un-asked follow-up, the other tangs are JUST as solid and firmly mounted.

AND spend some time at the comparative khukuri chart done by Pendentive (Dan, nice man, don't ask him about ducks.)

have fun.
 
Pappy,

I agree that I would not want a handle that was 2" thick. I just don't want my hand to be on the bolster, as that might be too close to the edge.

Raghorn,

I looked at the WWII as well. I decided that I wanted a khukuri that is more ax-like than knife-like. I have knives to cut stuff. I just don't have any good chopping /splitting tools.

Sylvrfalcn,

I've got 7.5" knives that run about 13" OAL and are pretty light, so they fill that role pretty well. I may get a smaller Khukuri later, but my focus for the first one is for chopping. I go camping in the Adirondacks. It usually entails kaykaking or canoeing out a few miles to rather remote islands. The nice thing is that the park rangers cut down all the dead trees and leave them close to the concrete firepits. The problem is that the chunks of wood that are left are pretty big and needs to be chopped/sawed and split.

Rusty,

First 20? I don't think I have that much room. First 10 - sounds about right.

Kismet,
I would expect the regular handles to absorb more shock. The full tang is for strength - I guess.

I looked at the chart by Pendentive. I didn't really get much out of it. I think it would serve better once you have a few Khuks that you have used and can relate performance characteristics to the data.

So whats the concensus on the rust issue? Does the stock sheath save the blade from rust?
 
TO the HI cantina.

"shock of impact" I think that either tang has the ability to transfer shock to the hand about the same. The 'shock' of an impact should be almost nil when hitting with the center of percussion (CoP).
Any tang or handle combo on khuk will transfer shock when the strike hits anywhere in the blade that is not the CoP. So, if you're too close or far from the target, or hitting with the tip of the khuk or too far down toward the handle, you could feel some shock (the shock is the impact pressure flexing the blade back in response to the hit. This is always lessened by striking with the CoP.

Keith
 
Originally posted by Sundsvall
Pappy,

I agree that I would not want a handle that was 2" thick. I just don't want my hand to be on the bolster, as that might be too close to the edge.

So whats the concensus on the rust issue? Does the stock sheath save the blade from rust?
Click to expand...

The BAS tends to have a short handle, but I had no problems choking up on the bolster. The edge doesn't really start until you get past the cho (half-moon shaped cutout).

Regarding rust, carbon steel rusts. Keep it oiled or waxed. I use car wax, and it does a pretty good job. If you're worried, you can cold-blue the blade. Or just let it rust, then dry and polish when you get home. If you're going to be canoeing, you might want to look into a synthetic sheath - the standard leather is good, but it does take a while to dry.
 
Okay, maybe I didn't word my query correctly. I will try again.

All carbon steel rusts. It is the general concensus that carbon steelknives should not be stored for weeks and months in the leather sheath.

Can the HI Khukuris be stored for weeks and months in the stock sheath without fear of promoting rust?
 
Mine have been in the sheaths for months at a time and no rust. They also all have a coat of wax.
 
Betcha they don't spend weeks and months in the sheath:D , but even if they should, keep in mind these are finely crafted Mercedes Benz truck springs.

Wax (I use car wax), oil (Rusty uses karma sutra oil--but DOESN'T oil his body at last report), Flitz? (used by bunches of knowledgeable folks), carnauba (sp?) wax (again, I've seen a lot of references)--basically, with simple care...not extensive work, they won't rust up on you.

By the way, I love my 15 AK for exactly what you describe. With the use of a baton (or stick) hitting the top of the blade while holding the handle is amazingly efficient for splitting--better than a hatchet. I'm waiting on a 12 in AK for less extensive chopping (and frankly, because it will be less conspicuous in Wisconsin,) but truly and without exaggeration, you will be so delighted by whatever it is you get, it will be hard to express it.

Have fun.
 
Sheath rusting is less of a problem, because the wooden inserts don't let the blade touch the leather. Also, I *think* the leather is vegetable-tanned, so no rust-promoting chromic acid.
 
Originally posted by Rusty
Hint - don't let your wife see them all together. Spread them around and bring them in at different times.
Click to expand...
Rusty speaks true words of wisdom here (sounds like "experience talking" to me...:D ).

I made this very mistake a few weeks back. Got 'em all out and laid them on the floor in a nice pattern - thinking surely my spouse (who is also an architect) would appreciate the beauty...

Nope...!

Somehow each of those khuks had magically formed themselves into the shape of an oversized dollar sign...:eek:

"I just don't understand why you need more than one!"

(I had given up on trying to answer that one a looooonnnng time ago...)
 
Originally posted by Sundsvall
Okay, maybe I didn't word my query correctly. I will try again.

All carbon steel rusts. It is the general concensus that carbon steelknives should not be stored for weeks and months in the leather sheath.

Can the HI Khukuris be stored for weeks and months in the stock sheath without fear of promoting rust?
Click to expand...

First of all welcome to the Cantina or Physco Ward whichever you prefer.
Doesn't matter whether you're sane or not at the present the HIKV Will drive you insane, most of us here are on meds.;)

To answer your question it's recommended that you store the khuks in their scabbards to prevent rust. This doesn't mean you put them in wet, but nicely oiled, waxed, greased, or whatever your choice.
I have really good luck with Ballistol-Lube found at http://www.ballistol.com

Some of the guys like Keith don't seem to think the chiruwa handles deliver anymore shock, but I do and have converted a few from that idea in favor of the standard stick or rat tail tang.
The standard tang is just as strong as the chiruwa and is as thick as the blade almost all the way to the end. And it doesn't have the transition from blade thickness to tang thickness which adds another possible failure point.
The chiruwa handles also up the chances of rust under the slabs as there's no way to completely waterproof them whereas the standard tang is covered pretty much completely by the laha or modern epoxie which is sometimes used.
Do a search on tangs and use my name, I believe you will find plenty of info on the past discussions we've had about this.
 
Sun,
WECOME!! NEWBE!!HEE,HEE! From your post I can see you are going to make a fine RESEARCHER!:D
jim(Saint) :cool:
 
Originally posted by Kukri4302
Sun,
WECOME!! NEWBE!!HEE,HEE! From your post I can see you are going to make a fine RESEARCHER!:D
jim(Saint) :cool:
Click to expand...

Hey Jim,

I just like to read a bit before asking questions. That way you guys don't start chastising me for not reading.

Sun:D
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top