HI vs. the other guys

S

seth2915

Joined
Feb 13, 2007
Messages
97
OK, folks, this is going to sound like a really, seriously stupid question, but I think it bears asking (though I'm sure others have asked before).

How do the HI khukuris compare to the production models from other companies? I understand the convex edge, differential tempering, thicker spines, better balance and such make for a much better knife, as does the hand-forged blade vs the production line blade.

But I would like to know some specifics; not because I have any doubts, but just because I want to hear from the horse's mouth how the HI models outperform the other guys.

Again, I know it sounds like a dumb question, but I work mostly with bowies; this will be my first serious khukuri. Thanks for the info.
 
I have not been swinging khuks nearly as long or as often as some of the guys here. Nor have I had as many pass through my hands. But I've been using a Kumar made 18.5"/ 28oz WWII for close to seven years. It was a Yahoo search of khukuris that brought me here. I asked about the strength of hidden tangs. I wondered how a knife could chop like a hatchet.

I ordered a blem WWII.

Two or three days later I received a big, heavy triangular box. Wow, that was fast. Open box. Holy sh!t, this thing is friggin huge. I didn't want to mar the pretty finish. Uncle Bill said they were made to be used. The kamis would laugh or shake their heads if they knew we were afraid to actually use them. So I found an old fence post that needed to go. Whack! This thing isn't a knife. I don't know what the hell to call it but "knife" really doesn't come close. That was seven years ago.

I have never had a production blade in the same class. I've never had a big Bowie beyond an old Case that was my Grandpa's. I've never had a machete that packed such a punch. All my production blades are smaller. My Camillus MkII looks like a toy compared to the big WWII. Part of what makes them special to me is the perfect evolution of form. The khuk was perfected over hundreds of years. Made by men who know blades the way no CNC programer ever will.

Don't fret too much over which one to get. Uncle Bill said the khuk finds the person, not the other way around. Get the one that calls to you. Aunt Yangdu will send you the right one.

Oh, and welcome.

Frank
 
Welcome from one HI newbie to another. I only discovered the Wonderful World of Khukuris late last year. But I already own 6 of these awesome knives. I can't compare mine to any other brand because I never even bothered. I was so happy with the products and the company behind them I just figured nothing else would compare.

For me (and many others here I'm sure) the HI khuks seem to have a bit of a soul to them. Whenever I use one or even just hold one, I think of the kami who hammered it out in Nepal and the centuries old history of these great knives. I think of Ghorkas and Nepali farmers chasing away Yetis and bears with their khuks. I think of Aunty as a little girl riding the bus with her little khuk tucked away to repel any unwanted advances (oh yes, the stories from Aunt Yangdu growing up in Nepal are priceless!). When I use one in the kitchen I think of Nepali villagers who probably use theirs for the same things, albeit with much more skill. I don't get the same feelings from my Spydercos or Kershaws and I'm sure I would not get them from Khukuri House or Cold Steel or KaBar or whomever. I hope that makes sense, but if not, snag one for a song off the DOTD and see for yourself.:thumbup:
 
HI products are hand made by bladesmiths/kamis who are a generational caste. They pass down their skills from father to son and so on. They are not made in a big factory by unskilled workers. Each one is crafted with the influence of many masters over many generations.
 
hey Silver Fox, reading your story i got a little chill run down the back of my spine...
 
I started out with a Windlass "kukri" back in 1987. I still have it. I does the job but it's a soul-less clumsy chunker compared to an H.I. real khukuri.

Years later I got another one and soon thereafter shattered the handle on it. I got to thinking there must be a source for better ones out there and I discovered H.I. on the internet, only days after Uncle Bill had passed from this world.

So I bought the biggest baddest power chopper listed on their main website: a 20" Ang Khola by Kami Kumar.

It's still my main "work" Khukuri. Last year after the windstorms, I was de-limbing downed trees with it faster than my father could... and he was using a chainsaw!

Next I bought a 25" Sirupati by Kami Vim. Nice long reach on that one; good for reaching tall places.


But then, right before my birthday in 2007, Ms Yangdu posted THIS on a DoTD:

HPIM0531.jpg


A magnificent 21.5" horn-handled Chitlangi by Kami Sher... and it was love at first sight.

It is my most prized possession, period. I love it. I almost consider it a pet. 20 years later, I had found perfection. Or it had found me. I feel we found each other as my impression is we had known each other long ago and had been reunited. Maybe I lived in the Chitlang region in a past life. I don't know. I do know this was the first of several H.I. Chitlangis I have acquired in the last two years.

Nothing I have ever owned in my life had immediate sentimental value like that Chitlangi.

My most recent was yet another 21.5" Chitlangi by Kami Sher, this one with a saatisal wood handle, and once again, love at first sight.

HPIM1047.jpg


I have a weird psychic impression it won't be my last.
 
Here is what I posted a while back about my experiences with Khukuri House on the reviews and testing forum:

I saw this thread in the HI forum on my iPhone then went to my computer to post a reply... and it was gone! Luckily I found it again and can post my own experiences.

I ordered two khukuris from Khukuri House before I found Himilayan Imports. I even thought they were the same company at one time. Needless to say the quality doesn't even come close to HI. I ordered the KH knives 1 week before I ordered my HI, but got them almost 2 weeks AFTER I got the HI. Also, the shipping cost me $38 which is very steep (though I understand it is expensive to ship from Nepal).

The quality was awful on my Modern Craft and Raw Panawal, or maybe I was spoiled by HI, and they immediately went up for sale on ebay at a loss by me. I didn't even want to gift them to someone and tarnish their idea of what a khukuri is. HI are all hand-made and you can almost feel the love that went into each blade. Khukuri House blades feel cheap and are probably mass-produced and the quality and craftsmanship are just not there.

If you want a quality product, go with HI. If you want one of those knockoff blades like you find at a fair or carnival so you won't care about beating up, get a Khukuri House. Personally, I would rather snag a cheap one of the deal of the day over at HI than pay even more for lower quality at KH.

Sorry for the long post, but I was really, really unhappy with my Khukuri House blades and would like to keep anyone else from making the same costly mistake I made.
Click to expand...

As you can see, I wasn't very happy with them at all after being spoiled by HI. I recently shipped them out at a pretty big loss but I have a better peace of mind now.
 
All I can say is that after finding HI, I have not purchased ANY fixed blade knives from anyone else. The service is incomparable, and the knives and swords are works of art. As was said earlier in this thread, HI blades truly have a soul. My favorite is my Tarwar sword. If you do buy from HI you will not be disappointed. If you are, I will by your Khukri or sword for what you paid. Welcome to the best knfe dealer in the world!
 
Well, HI are the best of the best in the kukri world.

I remember a time when I thought kukris sucked. I didn't get the whole mystique at all. Of course at that time, the only exposure to them that I had was the bent machete variety and the cheap made in India crapola you see at flea markets.

But people kept raving about HI products. I couldn't see how a big bent knife could outchop my beloved S&N hatchet. So, I read the forums, and looked at the HI site for about two years before ordering one. I ordered my now infamous 20" CAK. I picked that size after wargaming which would be best for me for what I wanted it to do, which is chop with, or better than my 18" S&N hatchet. I didn't care if it could slice potatos or tomatos, or whittle fuzz sticks or make trap parts (after all, that's why you carry a knife, too, right? If not, the damn thing COMES with a little knife.).

Well, the rest is history. I read the stickies on how to swing the kukri and the safety thread. When it finally got here, I took it out and went at a 4" sapling that was growing too close to the foundation for my liking. I hauled off and gave it everything I had. There was a <thump......shwing!!> as the kuk bit and then sailed right through the sapling. Glad I read the safety thread, or I would have buried it in my shin on the follow-through. Here's the part I don't think I ever admitted to: after the follow-through I was off balance stumbling around and so I chucked the kukri away from me as I fell down. I swear, to this day, that the sonofabitch laughed at me! Or maybe it was the little part of Bura's soul that got locked inside.

Which comes to the last part. Uncle Bill was right, that you don't choose a kukri, a kukri chooses you. That one chose me. I've bought a lot of other HI knives, swords and kukris. Some I thought would take over the role as my favorite, based on pictures off the net and people's reviews. But none has. No other blade has "it" like that one CAK does.

So, with allt he talk of the world ending. No matter what else I may carry, as I walk off to my last meal at the restaurant at the end of the universe, that kukri will be at my side.
 
Long ago I had aquired a BAS kukri from a man who was in the gurkha regiments. It was my first kukri.

A good number of years after that I read a magazine article which introduced H.I. and Uncle Bill.

Then life fell apart. In a very short period of years I lost my parents, marriageand then everything I owned was stolen in a storage shed burglary. With no tools to earn a living and not even ID documents etc I wound up homeless.

I got the great idea one day of using the library computer to find out if I could find a kukri and stumbled on H.I.'s site. I read through Mr. Kosters comparison info and decided on my now well known M-43. I sent a letter to Yangdu checking availability of an M-43 with horn handle and explaining my situation. She replied with one of the nicest letters I've ever recieved and I wound up with a Bura made M-43 with horn handle for a really fair price.

That kukri saved my ass in more thn one way and still serves me today. It allowaed me to thrive and survive in very tough circumstances.

It isn't just the blades that makes H.I. special but the people behind the blades as well.
 
I just recently found HI while looking around for a new blade to replace my crappy machete in Belize. Shortly after coming to this site I picked up a 20" Bolo because it was a big heavy chopper, just what I needed. A few days later it was at my door. Just as everyone else has mentioned, when you hold that knife you feel its soul. The knife almost talks to you when you use it and really feels more than a knife.

Needless to say, shortly after I purchased a massive 20" CAK and, my new favorite, 18" villager WWII. That WWII has to be one of the single most impressive man made objects I have ever held. They are all coming with me to Belize Sunday, keep an eye out for some pictures when I get a chance to post them!
 
Echoing other posts, I'll state the same - an HI khuk will find you. I only have one - a beautiful 17" Chiruwa Ang Khola by Sher. When it arrived, my wife thought I lost my mind. It's beefy, a half inch thick at the spine and commands attention because of the hand-forged quality and weight. I strongly believe these khuks impart the soul of the kami who made them. When I picked it up I immediately knew I was holding something special. The fit, feel and shape of the handle are made for me. You can't relate until you actually own one and play with it for a while. And you just can't get that in a production knife.

I plan on giving this one to my son when he's old enough.

Looking back to my college years, I had a cheap imitation Indian-made junker (the karda looked like it was shaped with a band-saw) that was stolen out of my flat. I was very angry at losing that piece. It cost me about $35 out of a mail-order catalog. I had a long fascination with khuks even then and now realize what I had been missing - I only wish I had known about HI years ago and had a chance to do repeat business with Uncle Bill. Aunt Yangdu offers a SUPERIOR product and her service is unmatched. You won't be dissapointed.
 
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