Horn or Wood?

[Keith Montgomery]

Horn, because to me it just feels better in the hand. Warmer and more comfortable.

 

[Pappy]

I like both because of the wood grain. but the horn my favorite. I figure that it took so long for the handle to evolve to what it is today, and the Gorkha get along pretty well it seems. Then, It is good enough for me. The two wood handles that I have are on 20" knives and are pretty heavy duty stuff. One the Sirupati by Bura and the Kobra by Kesar. The only small handle that I really have is the 15" Siru. My 15" Bura AK has a pretty heavy duty handle on it too. They seem to stick to my skin so I haven't felt that they will fly out of my hand. For a while I wore a military type flight glove on my right hand but I think I did more damage to the glove than I do to the horn with bare hands.

If you gents have wives or girlfriends that are in to the cosmetology and your can't find lanolin. Have them get you some cuticle oil. It seems to work pretty well on the horn handles.

 

[munk]

Ya, Pappy, I use hoof flex, it's the lanolin I'm sure that is effective. But does anyone know how often you are supposed to feed one of these handles?

I haven't noticed either wood or horn slipping from hand more than the other. I got a kick out of the posts which said wood was warmer, and then a horn lover posted that was warmer. That's funny. I guess warmer must mean whatever feels like it belongs in the hand.

munk

 

[raghorn]

Originally posted by munk
Ya, Pappy, I use hoof flex, it's the lanolin I'm sure that is effective. But does anyone know how often you are supposed to feed one of these handles?

I feed mine at least once a month, but that's only because I like to.

 

[Rusty]

Originally posted by pendentive


Horn

My only complaint = only comes in one color.

For practical purposes, right. That's all you can get from Birghorka except for an occasional back/while streaked or grey handle.

But if you put it away and pull it out weeks/months later to find a humongous crack splitting it wide open, and needing to be replaced?

Check the knife supply stores. They carry black, honey colored ( may have some black or dark areas ) and honey colored dyed to be red.

Of course if you go to the trouble of replacing the handle, there's also stag, ivory, oosik, fancy and exotic exhibition grade woods... the list is almost endless.

 

[Federico]

Still think the best way to care for horn is to use handle it often. Horn evolved as a handle material because of its affinity to usage. The warmth and oils of your hands, all make it happy happy happy Though I do think that alot of the handle slippiness comes from the hilts being un-matched to the owner. A good matched handle to me is more important to grippiness than material. Though its a crap shoot without having the maker see you and build it custom for you.

 

[munk]

How much does ivory cost?

Uh huh. Much more than the khuk, probably.

munk

 

[hoghead]

Originally posted by Rusty


But if you put it away and pull it out weeks/months later to find a humongous crack splitting it wide open, and needing to be replaced?

Hope I don't have to experience this but I'm sure someday it will. Murphys Law I guess. I do use Hoofleet hoof lubricant and it has seemed to work ok. Have the seasonal changes here with dry times (we do need rain) and hot humid times.
I do have more horn handles than wood but like the feel of wood better.

 

[Berkley]

Aluminum or brass for users; ivory for wallhangers.
If there's only 2 choices, then horn as received, wood as given the Walosi treatment

 

[Sylvrfalcn]

Make mine horn! I'm too new to khukris to make an informed observation, but I trust what I was told by a buddy of mine from the Phillipines. He says the locally made Bolo knives there are used well, used hard, and used often. The hands down handle of choice is buffalo horn.
A sad side note from his latest trip home this spring. As more and more farmers switch to modern, i.e. mechanized, farming methods, water buffs are starting to become scarce in the P. I.. Not to mention deforestation of alot of the old growth forests for their hardwoods.
If you've got any of the really old furniture or decorative carvings from the Phillipines hang on to it, it will soon become irreplaceable.

 

[Rusty]

( Here's a gratuitous plug on Uncle Bill's behalf. )

And buy HI khuks, you newbies.

Us oldtimers seem to stay broke lately for some reason. We do have lots of nice khuks to fondle, though.

 

[Daniel Koster]

I'm pleasantly surprised to see the number of other folks that like horn handles. I thought maybe it was a dying breed. Uncle had said somewhere that it's 80% wood handle orders now.

Does that mean that the horn handle lovers are just too stingy nowadays?!?