- Joined
- May 9, 2002
- Messages
- 12,684
OK, fellow Sharks, I've got some first impressions of a new knife
!
First a few things: This may look a lot like another brand of knife, but I can tell you that when you hold it in your hand, that is as far as the comparisons can go. It may look like a CS Bushman, but it's not...It's the Himalayan Survival Knife
Also, this is a prototype that Yangdu was nice enough to let me handle. It's got a few issues that we are still trying to hammer out, but overall I'm going to say that the Kamis nailed this one 85%:thumbup:
The idea that you guys were asking for were a knife that could be used as a camp knife, a bushcraft knife, and a survival spear. I've done a few tests on all of these things, and I have to say, the HSK is a winner:thumbup:
The specs:
Weight: Under a pound. Maybe 3/4. It has a heft to it, but it's VERY neutral in the hand.
Blade Length: 7"
Over all Length: 13"
Belly height: 2.5"
now the crazy measurement:
The spine is 1/8" thick!! I mean, it excels at this thickness, but have you ever seen a full sized knife come out of HI that was that thin?
Now for some very blurry cell phone pictures.
This is a full length shot of the knife. Once again, keep in mind this was taken with my cell phone on the floor of my warehouse. I'm hoping to get some better ones out in the field.
A couple of things to point out, this knife has been left "scale on", so it should REALLY be at home doing hard work. They did polish the edge very well. It was a breeze to sharpen. The wrapping on the handle? Well I guess that was my fault See, I sent my old knife as an inspiration, and I had wrapped the bare steel in waxed nylon leather stitching thread. I'm assuming the kamis thought that it was an integral part
Look how thin! The knife gives a really good flex because of this, but there were a couple of issues. More on that in a bit.
The socket is not 100% round, but if you were out in the field and needed spear, would any of the suitable shafts you came across be a perfect fit anyway? Near as I can measure it, the hole is 2.5"x1.25"
Performance:
The knife came with a suitably sharp edge that could have used a bit of touching up. However, I wanted to use it stock first.
My first test was the old spine/flat/edge whack test to see if it would fail before I started using it for specific tasks. Results? no problem. The kamis left this soft so that it would be easy to sharpen. No chipping, no rolling of the edge. The blade did not bend or break.
Next, I tried some batonning. I didn't have any natural logs, but i did have some pressure treated 4x4 posts. The HSK sunk nicely into the wood with a bit a of a snap cut, then I proceeded to baton the wood into about 12 different pieces. Besides a little wearing on the scale, nothing of any damage was done. After this test I sharpened the HSK with an Arkansas stone and a loaded strop. it took and edge that would pop the hair off my arms. If I were to guess, I would say the hardness is around 54 or so. Plenty soft to sharpen in the field.
My next test was making and fitting a quick and dirty spear. I found an old tool handle that was fairly close in diameter and used the HSK to whittle it to fit the socket. I did a few cuts on the 4x4 and a few jabs. No damage was done, but I also did not press the spear. To me, this is a tertiary function at best. Should I need to use my knife as a spear, it's going to be a last ditch weapon for defense/food procurement after I have run out of ammo or my traps have failed.
Finally, I used the HSK to prep dinner the other night. I used it for chopping some carrots, deboning some chicken, and I even used the flat of the blade to crush some garlic.
Now, the one issue that I have let Yangdu know about:
The knife did not TOTALLY pass a flex test. I placed the blade between the slats of a shipping pallet and tried flexing it at different areas. At the blade/handle junction it barely moved and returned true. Halfway up the blade flexed about 10 degrees and took the slightest of blends. At the very thinnest part of the tip it flexed easily and took about a 7 degree bend.
All of these were easily returned true to the steel memory. I would never ever suggest doing this with ANY knife, but I wanted to try and replicate a glancing spear blow or an awkward thrust that might result in a bent blade.
If the kamis can work this out cheaply, they are going to have a REAL winner of a knife on their hands.
The only thing that I would have liked to have seen added would be some lugs. Whether is was like what we see on the Trisul or something more along the lines of a boar spear, it might be nice as a hand guard and for a hunting spear.
So what y'all think?
!First a few things: This may look a lot like another brand of knife, but I can tell you that when you hold it in your hand, that is as far as the comparisons can go. It may look like a CS Bushman, but it's not...It's the Himalayan Survival Knife
Also, this is a prototype that Yangdu was nice enough to let me handle. It's got a few issues that we are still trying to hammer out, but overall I'm going to say that the Kamis nailed this one 85%:thumbup:
The idea that you guys were asking for were a knife that could be used as a camp knife, a bushcraft knife, and a survival spear. I've done a few tests on all of these things, and I have to say, the HSK is a winner:thumbup:
The specs:
Weight: Under a pound. Maybe 3/4. It has a heft to it, but it's VERY neutral in the hand.
Blade Length: 7"
Over all Length: 13"
Belly height: 2.5"
now the crazy measurement:
The spine is 1/8" thick!! I mean, it excels at this thickness, but have you ever seen a full sized knife come out of HI that was that thin?
Now for some very blurry cell phone pictures.
This is a full length shot of the knife. Once again, keep in mind this was taken with my cell phone on the floor of my warehouse. I'm hoping to get some better ones out in the field.
A couple of things to point out, this knife has been left "scale on", so it should REALLY be at home doing hard work. They did polish the edge very well. It was a breeze to sharpen. The wrapping on the handle? Well I guess that was my fault
See, I sent my old knife as an inspiration, and I had wrapped the bare steel in waxed nylon leather stitching thread. I'm assuming the kamis thought that it was an integral part
Look how thin! The knife gives a really good flex because of this, but there were a couple of issues. More on that in a bit.
The socket is not 100% round, but if you were out in the field and needed spear, would any of the suitable shafts you came across be a perfect fit anyway
? Near as I can measure it, the hole is 2.5"x1.25"Performance:
The knife came with a suitably sharp edge that could have used a bit of touching up. However, I wanted to use it stock first.
My first test was the old spine/flat/edge whack test to see if it would fail before I started using it for specific tasks. Results? no problem. The kamis left this soft so that it would be easy to sharpen. No chipping, no rolling of the edge. The blade did not bend or break.
Next, I tried some batonning. I didn't have any natural logs, but i did have some pressure treated 4x4 posts. The HSK sunk nicely into the wood with a bit a of a snap cut, then I proceeded to baton the wood into about 12 different pieces. Besides a little wearing on the scale, nothing of any damage was done. After this test I sharpened the HSK with an Arkansas stone and a loaded strop. it took and edge that would pop the hair off my arms. If I were to guess, I would say the hardness is around 54 or so. Plenty soft to sharpen in the field.
My next test was making and fitting a quick and dirty spear. I found an old tool handle that was fairly close in diameter and used the HSK to whittle it to fit the socket. I did a few cuts on the 4x4 and a few jabs. No damage was done, but I also did not press the spear. To me, this is a tertiary function at best. Should I need to use my knife as a spear, it's going to be a last ditch weapon for defense/food procurement after I have run out of ammo or my traps have failed.
Finally, I used the HSK to prep dinner the other night. I used it for chopping some carrots, deboning some chicken, and I even used the flat of the blade to crush some garlic.
Now, the one issue that I have let Yangdu know about:
The knife did not TOTALLY pass a flex test. I placed the blade between the slats of a shipping pallet and tried flexing it at different areas. At the blade/handle junction it barely moved and returned true. Halfway up the blade flexed about 10 degrees and took the slightest of blends. At the very thinnest part of the tip it flexed easily and took about a 7 degree bend.
All of these were easily returned true to the steel memory. I would never ever suggest doing this with ANY knife, but I wanted to try and replicate a glancing spear blow or an awkward thrust that might result in a bent blade.
If the kamis can work this out cheaply, they are going to have a REAL winner of a knife on their hands.
The only thing that I would have liked to have seen added would be some lugs. Whether is was like what we see on the Trisul or something more along the lines of a boar spear, it might be nice as a hand guard and for a hunting spear.
So what y'all think?
