I've been holding out on you guys...

[TheQuest]

...but I'll remedy that soon. Just haven't gotten around to digging out the charger for my camera batt.

Got a quick question for you though. What do you call the apprentices to the kamis? S-something....sarkis?

Any route, I know the apprentices put the final polish on the blades with power tools, after the kamis have formed them. So I know that in some cases, you can receive a "butterknife" kuk, because the edge has been rolled out/detempered/softened by polishing. Also (for those who haven't tried it) the charda will tend to give you an initial popping edge with a couple strokes. I also know the tip of Kuks aren't hardened as much as the sweet spot.

Y'see, I broke in my M43 (see above "holding out," I gave in to you guys on the 3 Decades thread and ordered one) by hacking out some Yaupon Holly bushes. And yeah, i was a little sloppy, and my tip went where it shouldn't (the dirt). End result was a tiny couple of chips flaking out of the edge of the tip.

Honestly, this was my first time putting the charda to work, and it was like a magic trick. Metal from the minor divots popped back into place! (as intended) Presto, change-o, fix-o! Awesome experience.

But yeah. Already pretty much got the chip evened out. I'm just seeing the "soft metal" at work, right? I'm sure I've read on here before that once you do an "initial sharpen" and wear off that stock edge, you're pretty much set.

And Auntie, when you read this, totally my fault. Not the blade, not the heat treat, just my sloppy aim.

 

[Scara]

Sarki is the term for the sheath makers.

 

[TheQuest]

Thanks Scara, I knew I'd read it before. Brain's frazzled by the end of the day, s'all.

 

[davidf99]

I've seen the apprentices called "helpers" but that can cover a wide range of people from a ten year old boy who works the bellows for the fire to a fifteen year old who is already making knives under the watchful eye of a master.

I suspect that the reason we don't see a Nepalese word for "helper" is that the term covers such a wide range of skill levels that no single word would do it justice.

However, if anybody has a different or more specific answer to the question, I'm ready to stand corrected.

 

[kronckew]

kami/sarki are caste names, sadly they are part of the larger 'untouchables' grouping (now euphimisticly called the 'service' caste) that lies under the more upper class castes (who think they are contaminated if they touch one,and leave all the dirty tasks requiring physical labour to them). the caste system still goes on in spite of laws against it.

 

[snowwolf]

You probably already know that but the tip is the softer part of the blade and it's done like this for these kinds of accidents. It prevents from snapping/chipping the tip.
The chakmak does miracles to roll back the soft metal in place.

Honestly, this was my first time putting the charda to work, and it was like a magic trick. Metal from the minor divots popped back into place! (as intended) Presto, change-o, fix-o! Awesome experience.

 

[Varrus]

Wow, I had nearly the same experience with my own M43! However I have no idea what bent the edge on mine, I was cutting into an old stump, maybe there was some fence wire buried in it or a nail, the dings certainly resembled it. I ended up using a file and carefully reprofiled the edge about 3 inches. The end result was a fairly defined convex edge for that softer section. I probably removed any softer metal there and haven't had any trouble since! I use that knife pretty heavily too, chopping up downed branches and smaller trees. I feel the tip is more reinforced than before (it was pretty dang sharp almost a flat grind before at the tip), what initially made me question the heat treatment now has me happier than the day I got it! I probably could have straightened out the edge, but the dings were fairly deep and I worried about repeating the issue down the road, possibly when I didn't have access to tools to repair. The main cutting section barely shows any signs of wear, usually just requiring a little touch up here and there. Love that knife!

 

[davidf99]

Varrus:

The tip is probably soft steel all the way to the spine, not just at the edge. However, by removing edge material you ended up with a thicker edge near the tip, which makes it more robust, or reinforced as you say. As a rule one should avoid cutting or stabbing wood with the tip, though it's not always possible, and accidents happen.

The old stump might have had wire or a nail, but another possibility are small pebbles that become embedded in the trunk when the tree is younger and can end up hidden inside as the tree grows. If you're curious, you could go back to that stump and examine it with a magnifying glass around the cut marks. If you're very curious you could carve out a section of the stump and examine it more closely back home. Think of it as a contribution to science, or at least a contribution to the curiosity of the rest of us.