HI traditional pattern Kukri designs?

B

bullfrog99

Joined
Sep 4, 2002
Messages
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I'm looking for something traditional for my first HI kukri. Which, out of the HI lineup are the most traditional patterns?

kuraa pokha, manmaa naraakha
Jeremiah
 
define 'traditional'. Khuks come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. If you just mean historical, then the BAS or WWII would be a good bet. :)
 
The Dui Chirra and the Jange come to mind for historical/traditional. All the mini tools that come with the DC can be a hassle to deal with and the scabbard doesn't have a frog on it like the other models.

Bob
 
The HI website says that the Malla is explicitly a replica of an old khuk. Arguably, Sirupatis Chitlangis and Chainpuris are all representative of the parts of Nepal where they developed.
 
Jeremiah it would be easier to list the non-traditional khukuris from HI than the traditional.
You can almost bet your hiney that there is nothing new under the sun when it comes to khukuris, probably even the wildest design has been produced sometime in the past.;)
What was it that Hugh said the other day? The absence of evidence doesn't mean the evidence of absence.

The AK, Sirupati, Chitlangi, M-43, WW II, Dui Chiarra, Tin Chiarra, Jange, Salyan, and others I can't recall are all traditional khukuris.:thumbup: :cool: :D
 
That answers my question and then some. I think i'll get an M-43 or Dui Chiarra, but thanks for the warning about the latter Big Bob

kuraa pokha, manmaa naraakha
Jeremiah
 
bullfrog99 said:
That answers my question and then some. I think i'll get an M-43 or Dui Chiarra, but thanks for the warning about the latter Big Bob

kuraa pokha, manmaa naraakha
Jeremiah
Click to expand...

Jeremiah personally I like the Dui Chiarra better than the M-43 because it has the rat/kangaroo tail tang instead of the riveted Chiruwa tang.
I'm especially liking the new BDCs in the 18" size. They are awesome knives in many ways and I may have to have one to go with my Foxy Follys I have.:thumbup: :D :cool: ;)
 
The dui chirra, the jange, new foxy folly, and ganga ram look the most like the older traditional kukri designs. The HI chainpuri blade looks more like traditional sirupati blades than the current HI sirupati does. I don't think that I have seen an Ang Khola that is more than about 40 years old. My own working favorite is the WWII, but it doesn't look like any traditional kukri that I am aware of, regardless of its name. Of course I don't claim to be an expert and this is based only on my own studies. Your mileage may vary, as they say:D
 
Yvsa said:
Jeremiah personally I like the Dui Chiarra better than the M-43 because it has the rat/kangaroo tail tang instead of the riveted Chiruwa tang.
I'm especially liking the new BDCs in the 18" size. They are awesome knives in many ways and I may have to have one to go with my Foxy Follys I have.:thumbup: :D :cool: ;)
Click to expand...

i was completely lusting for a foxy, and still wouldn't mind handling/using one, but i think the BDC is DAMNNNNNN fine. oh my YES. dui chiarra - sweet, but the churuwa/full tang - i'm there. rat tail isn't bad, but full tang just gets my attention - they're MUCH easier to rehandle later too. at some point, i want to see if i can get some of those swiss-type becker knife and tool handles as extras. sweet. (yeah yeah synthetics have no soul yeah yeah ;)

bladite
 
Thanks for the info everyone - The foxy folly looks good too... I have some thinking to do on this. I don't have a big budget (Grad student) so, for a while, I can only get one.

There is nothing wrong with synthetics Bladite. They may not be as pretty, but for workhorses, they get the job done.

kuraa pokha, manmaa naraakha
Jeremiah
 
Bladite said:
i was completely lusting for a foxy, and still wouldn't mind handling/using one, but i think the BDC is DAMNNNNNN fine. oh my YES. dui chiarra - sweet, but the churuwa/full tang - i'm there. rat tail isn't bad, but full tang just gets my attention - they're MUCH easier to rehandle later too.

bladite
Click to expand...

I'm pretty sure I mis-spoke after looking at the 1-31 YBB's again as the 18" BDC is a Chiruwa tanged knife.:( :rolleyes: Then I got to thinking about it and my 14" BDC is also Chiruwa tanged.:o
I'm gonna have to quit posting if I don't remember well enough just what is what.:grumpy: :o They look okay on the M-43 and the BDCs but I still prefer the heavy invisible tanged knives although I do concede that the Chiruwas are easier to repair if a handle should break.
It's hard enough to drill a hole through a tang with a hand drill but I can't even begin to imagine the logistics trying to do so in the field.
You'd have to do the down and dirty burn the tang though and then wrap a plastic bag around the tang and seat it home for an adhesive.
I'm thinking the plastic bag trick may be better than the laha in the long run but I doubt if anyone knows for sure. It's just that plastic is nigh indestructible while the laha being a natural product mostly is more than likely biodegradable.
 
"You'd have to do the down and dirty burn the tang though and then wrap a plastic bag around the tang and seat it home for an adhesive."

That would probably work, assuming you didn't turn the plastic to ash before the tang cooled enough - might be trial and error. Also, if your stuck in the out of doors, you could probably get away with good old fashion hot pine pitch mixed with wood ash. Hide glue might work if the pine sap isn't running -assuming you have the equipment to make it I.E. a hide - or unflavored Jello, but that might not be 100% waterproof...

Yvsa: Is it the appearance of the rat-tail knives that you prefer, or is it something in the performance?

kuraa pokha, manmaa naraakha
Jeremiah
 
bullfrog99 said:
That would probably work, assuming you didn't turn the plastic to ash before the tang cooled enough - might be trial and error.

Yvsa: Is it the appearance of the rat-tail knives that you prefer, or is it something in the performance?

kuraa pokha, manmaa naraakha
Jeremiah
Click to expand...

Jeremiah there was an article in Blade Magazine quite a while back about a fellow who was in Nepal and had a khukuri made by a local kami. He used the plastic bag trick to glue the handle to the blade and I just thought that was pretty dayumed inventive of the kami.
The tang doesn't have to be all that hot to melt the plastic bag and won't turn to ash before it's cooled.
Should make a stronger than average bond methinks.:thumbup: :D :cool: ;)

To answer your question it is both, I prefer the appearance of the heavy stick tang handles better.
The other reason is that they don't vibrate or send as much shock to your hand and wrist as the Chiruwa handles so are much better especially if you have tendencies towards carpal tunnel syndrome as I do.
There have probably been more stick tang blades made over the centuries than the ones most folks call a full tang.
Actually both are or can be full tangs as such because the go all the way through the handles and the stick tangs usually peened over to help secure the handle onto the blade.

The partial tanged handles such as those on the HI Hanuman for instance have stood up well over years of use but are more likely to last forever if they are pinned.
A single 1/8" diameter + hole drilled through the handle and tang at its widest part and then an 1/8" pin inserted with epoxy and then peened on each side will guarantee that the handle will last as long as any other style handle.
I pinned one partial tang villager that I gave away for a man that has to make a sacrifice in the old ways in the future.
I figured what better knife for such a sacrifice as they have been used thusly for hundreds of years.
I hope to be there participating when the time comes.
 
Yvsa said:
The other reason is that they don't vibrate or send as much shock to your hand and wrist as the Chiruwa handles so are much better especially if you have tendencies towards carpal tunnel syndrome as I do.
There have probably been more stick tang blades made over the centuries than the ones most folks call a full tang.
Actually both are or can be full tangs as such because the go all the way through the handles and the stick tangs usually peened over to help secure the handle onto the blade.
Click to expand...

one particularly keen reason for a rat-tail and related tang is that it saves a lot of metal, which is very very spendy back in the day. don't know of the vibration vs not... i have full tang knives and such that don't vibrate, and some implements that don't have tang at all (baseball bats, sledge hammers, tennis raquets), and vibration comes and goes. weird.

bladite
 
Well, I think I understand what you mean now Yvsa. For some reason, I was thinking about having the tang be red hot so it can burn its way into the wood, and then I thought, well that would probably be so hot it would burn the plastic, but they are too unrelated steps. Had a brain fart I guess...

I dismissed the rat tails as weak at first glace, after all the Chirwa Ang Kola is the one called the unbreakable knife, but now that I've read a bit on in, rat tails seem to hold up well. Yet more to think on...

kuraa pokha, manmaa naraakha
Jeremiah
 
I had the same misconception you had bullfrog99 when I started buying khuks. Now that I've handled both kind I like the rat tailed tang knives the best. YMMV. My favorite is my FF.
 
As long as the rat tail is tapered properly from the main body of the knife, it doesn't join the knife body and make a sharp (right) angle, there shouldn't be a problem. The picture on this page shows what I mean. A properly constructed tang, even if it's somewhat thin, should have the part where it joins the main body of the blade taper at a less sharp angle or join in a slightly rounded fashion. This significantly reduces the stress on the tang. As the webpage says, this is what makes cheap wallhanger swords wallhangers; swinging them, or hitting anything with them, can be very dangerous.
 
The"authentic" antique khukris that Atlanta Cutlery is selling all have short rat-tail tangs - at least all that I've seen. They also seem to be leaf shaped and curved on top, without the sudden bend that many new ones seem to have. The BGRS seems closer to them than most other HI blades, I think.
 
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