Just received my mini!

[soc_monki]

9 inch, Indian rosewood, steel hardware. This knife is awesome! First khukuri and wanted it to be authentic, but wasn't sure I wanted a large one. This seemed to fit the bill and was worth the wait! Nothing fancy, satin finish, performance grind, it feels great. Can't wait to try it out on some of my neighbors bamboo, or trimming some of the trees out back. Already thinking of what else I can order from Kailash!

 

[Caldey Cat]

Nice looking little kukri that. The size of this mini with the 9in blade has me intrigued. I think it looks great in the rosewood with steel fittings. A classic look. Such a small blade will handle and perform very differently from it's bigger brothers. It's a "horses for courses" scenario. Is this your fist Kuk ever? Or just your first from Kailash pal?

 

[soc_monki]

Nice looking little kukri that. The size of this mini with the 9in blade has me intrigued. I think it looks great in the rosewood with steel fittings. A classic look. Such a small blade will handle and perform very differently from it's bigger brothers. It's a "horses for courses" scenario. Is this your fist Kuk ever? Or just your first from Kailash pal?

I love rosewood, and I enjoy simple, classic looks, so yes, these options fit! Plus, being steel hardware, may be more durable?

I agree it will be different from a full sized khukuri, but it is more khukuri than Becker! Definitely weighted towards the tip rather than towards the handle, and will be better for light chopping than any fixed blade I own currently. I've used my bk-7 and bk-2 to do some limb chopping for fun in the back yard...i have a feeling this mini will out do them both easily.

This is my first, period! I didn't want to go crazy and wanted to see how I'd like the design. Now all I can think about is clearing out a lot of my collection and adding more Kailash pieces, like a full sized khukuri, a 6 inch bhura, a sirupate or chitlange...

This mini is a handy size though, and very well made! Can't recommend it enough!

 

[Caldey Cat]

I love rosewood, and I enjoy simple, classic looks, so yes, these options fit! Plus, being steel hardware, may be more durable?

I agree it will be different from a full sized khukuri, but it is more khukuri than Becker! Definitely weighted towards the tip rather than towards the handle, and will be better for light chopping than any fixed blade I own currently. I've used my bk-7 and bk-2 to do some limb chopping for fun in the back yard...i have a feeling this mini will out do them both easily.

This is my first, period! I didn't want to go crazy and wanted to see how I'd like the design. Now all I can think about is clearing out a lot of my collection and adding more Kailash pieces, like a full sized khukuri, a 6 inch bhura, a sirupate or chitlange...

This mini is a handy size though, and very well made! Can't recommend it enough!

Nice. You have done very well with choosing a Kailash for your first Kukri. Many fall foul by getting a cheap, kukri house type. And then get a bit jaded by low quality steel, super thick blades and poor handling characteristics. I live in the UK where thanks to our special military relationship with Nepal and its Gurkhas it's not too hard to find and collect originals. (They are getting rarer mind..and expensive) I also have what I consider some outstanding reproductions from Tora and HK. Im still waiting on my first Kailash.
As a bit of an enthusiast of the kukri I really appreciate what Kailash are doing. Getting high quality, functional pieces in the hands of customers.
Seems to me you have been bitten by the Kukri bug pal. Your starting an exciting new hobby. And looking at the pieces that interest you, Sirupate/Chitlange etc, I'd say you have an eye for the traditional blades and options.
Tremendous stuff mate. I wish you all the best

 

[soc_monki]

Nice. You have done very well with choosing a Kailash for your first Kukri. Many fall foul by getting a cheap, kukri house type. And then get a bit jaded by low quality steel, super thick blades and poor handling characteristics. I live in the UK where thanks to our special military relationship with Nepal and its Gurkhas it's not too hard to find and collect originals. (They are getting rarer mind..and expensive) I also have what I consider some outstanding reproductions from Tora and HK. Im still waiting on my first Kailash.
As a bit of an enthusiast of the kukri I really appreciate what Kailash are doing. Getting high quality, functional pieces in the hands of customers.
Seems to me you have been bitten by the Kukri bug pal. Your starting an exciting new hobby. And looking at the pieces that interest you, Sirupate/Chitlange etc, I'd say you have an eye for the traditional blades and options.
Tremendous stuff mate. I wish you all the best

I've been around the knife world for a while now, so I did some due diligence to make sure I got something well made, reasonably priced, and with some experiences behind it. Kailash seemed like the best choice of quality and authenticity, plus they had so many choices and options, along with how they run the business and treat the employees. Good steel, good heat treating, actually putting thought into designs, giving updates, wins all around.

Yep, I've been bit big time. Will definitely being adding more to my collection. I can see it being very addictive!

 

[Caldey Cat]

I've been around the knife world for a while now, so I did some due diligence to make sure I got something well made, reasonably priced, and with some experiences behind it. Kailash seemed like the best choice of quality and authenticity, plus they had so many choices and options, along with how they run the business and treat the employees. Good steel, good heat treating, actually putting thought into designs, giving updates, wins all around.

Yep, I've been bit big time. Will definitely being adding more to my collection. I can see it being very addictive!

Yup addictive, consuming and rewarding. I have always been fascinated by blades(since my dad got me a victorinox when I was 6.) I too have weilded my BK 2 through many a bushwhacking adventure. And I'm never without a SAK. And i like to keep a mora within arms reach. But Kukri are very special. And they have a habit of taking you down a different path. One of history and research rather than just pure functionality. Great example is the Mutany style blade Kailash offer. Excellent little bit of info on the description of this model on their website. And with a little reading/investigation of the era and circumstances, where this style of blade (and more importantly, the Nepali men that used it) has played such a big place in history. Elevating and cementing that Anglo/Nepali relationship. The mysticism, beauty, history and function of the kukri makes it stand out from all other blades. IMHO, Kives are the king of tools and the Kukri is the king of Knives. And...they are such fun to use.

AYO GURKHALI!
JAI KUKRI!

 

[Kailash Blades]

Glad to hear you're happy with the mini! Cool photos with the blue edge highlight too.
The full sized khukuris are definitely in a different realm of chopping power and do handle differently in hand also. At the same time though over the years I've come to really appreciate the role that these minis serve. In acting as a gateway to the world of khukuris. Keep in mind that to many knife enthusiasts a kabar is considered a large blade at 7" so the notion of jumping in feet first to a pretty chunky purchase of blade that's twice that length is a big jump. With that said they are also awesome tools in their own right. The "hits like an axe, clears like a machete, plus you can use it as a knife" of a more standard khukuri shifts to "this is a big, tough, strong knife that does a pretty great job of knife tasks and chops better than just about any other knife" for a mini. That fits a lot of people's needs better than a full sized khukuri and allows for more transferable skills from using regular knives.

 

[soc_monki]

Yup addictive, consuming and rewarding. I have always been fascinated by blades(since my dad got me a victorinox when I was 6.) I too have weilded my BK 2 through many a bushwhacking adventure. And I'm never without a SAK. And i like to keep a mora within arms reach. But Kukri are very special. And they have a habit of taking you down a different path. One of history and research rather than just pure functionality. Great example is the Mutany style blade Kailash offer. Excellent little bit of info on the description of this model on their website. And with a little reading/investigation of the era and circumstances, where this style of blade (and more importantly, the Nepali men that used it) has played such a big place in history. Elevating and cementing that Anglo/Nepali relationship. The mysticism, beauty, history and function of the kukri makes it stand out from all other blades. IMHO, Kives are the king of tools and the Kukri is the king of Knives. And...they are such fun to use.

AYO GURKHALI!
JAI KUKRI!

So true! I didn't really get into knives, or bladed tools in general, until about 10 years ago, give or take. My dad had a sak, one of the big ones with all the tools. I remember badly cutting my thumb with it when I was a child. Fast forward and I needed knives for my job. I had an old buck 112 from the 80s a friend gave me and it was DULL. Then my brother in law got me a Milwaukee knife and I tried to learn how to sharpen. Now I have a large collection of folding knives I'm trying to whittle down, a good number of varied fixed blades, some swords, and now I'm getting into kukhuri. Also would like to find a nice seax...

Something about blades used for millenia, that just work. Nothing fancy, just a good tool. I love diving into the history and seeing why different cultures ended up using what they did, be it materials, influences, needs or wants. Been reading a bit on the khukuri and it's evolution and why it's been around so long. Still so much to learn!

 

[soc_monki]

Glad to hear you're happy with the mini! Cool photos with the blue edge highlight too.
The full sized khukuris are definitely in a different realm of chopping power and do handle differently in hand also. At the same time though over the years I've come to really appreciate the role that these minis serve. In acting as a gateway to the world of khukuris. Keep in mind that to many knife enthusiasts a kabar is considered a large blade at 7" so the notion of jumping in feet first to a pretty chunky purchase of blade that's twice that length is a big jump. With that said they are also awesome tools in their own right. The "hits like an axe, clears like a machete, plus you can use it as a knife" of a more standard khukuri shifts to "this is a big, tough, strong knife that does a pretty great job of knife tasks and chops better than just about any other knife" for a mini. That fits a lot of people's needs better than a full sized khukuri and allows for more transferable skills from using regular knives.

It's exactly why I choose a mini! It's different enough from any blade I own currently, yet small and light enough to allow me to get used to something different. It's very sharp and has a decent profile so I can use it as a knife, yet the balance is such that it will chop much better than any knife I own. Probably better than the cheap hatchet I have too! It really needs to be thinned out at the edge, it's just too thick, but I have abused it chopping roots and such so...its done it's job. But I'd rather use my khukuri now, but I won't be using it in rocky dirt. I'll keep the hatchet for that... Lol

It's a great introduction imo. Also have experimented with sharpening to try and figure out the techniques, nothing big just using spyderco sharpmaker stones and a homemade strop. Not nearly as difficult as I thought it would be (I only own one pocket knife with a recurve so this is new territory!) Also own a baryonyx American scythe stone I think will work amazingly with khukuris so I may be all set!

All in all, I am looking forward to ordering another, but what it will be and when is up in the air. Lots of amazing choices, it's almost overwhelming!

 

[Kailash Blades]

The amount of choices can certainly be a lot!
I think being super into benchstones can make it hard ot transfer skills over to khukuris but aces, scythes and kitchen steels etc all provide a good foundation for khukuri sharpening

 

[soc_monki]

The amount of choices can certainly be a lot!
I think being super into benchstones can make it hard ot transfer skills over to khukuris but aces, scythes and kitchen steels etc all provide a good foundation for khukuri sharpening

I'm figuring it out for sure! Definitely requires a different technique but watching a few videos and some experimentation should get me there!

 

[Caldey Cat]

I'm figuring it out for sure! Definitely requires a different technique but watching a few videos and some experimentation should get me there!

Your doing the right thing when it comes to sharpening pal. Checking out info and then finding out what works for you is the way to go.
here is what i have found work for me. Decent, wet n dry sand paper can help with the recurve..wraped round a pringles can/cardboard tube or such like. A good ceramic rod is handy too. I like to use a Work Sharp Kife and tool sharpener to restore a well used edge ( or in some cases get a new edge to my preferred sharpness)..small, good quality pocket stones like the Fallkniven DC3 and CC4 are great for touching up an edge...i find there small size helps with control when followingthe belly into the recurve. And strops are always good for a final polish if you like one. My advice is to try different methods and find what works best for you. And share what works as well pal. We can all learn from each other..

 

[soc_monki]

Your doing the right thing when it comes to sharpening pal. Checking out info and then finding out what works for you is the way to go.
here is what i have found work for me. Decent, wet n dry sand paper can help with the recurve..wraped round a pringles can/cardboard tube or such like. A good ceramic rod is handy too. I like to use a Work Sharp Kife and tool sharpener to restore a well used edge ( or in some cases get a new edge to my preferred sharpness)..small, good quality pocket stones like the Fallkniven DC3 and CC4 are great for touching up an edge...i find there small size helps with control when followingthe belly into the recurve. And strops are always good for a final polish if you like one. My advice is to try different methods and find what works best for you. And share what works as well pal. We can all learn from each other..

So far I've been using my spyderco sharpmaker stones as files, which seems to work well! Not that the knife needed any sharpening, but I want to be prepared. Have a homemade strop with some diamond paste to try and keep the convex edge. We'll see how it works out. I have all the sharpmaker stones from diamond to ultra fine, so I should be set from fully dull to just a touch up. Never thought about using a pringles can, always heard about using a wooden dowel or a mouse pad or phone book with sandpaper.

 

[Caldey Cat]

So far I've been using my spyderco sharpmaker stones as files, which seems to work well! Not that the knife needed any sharpening, but I want to be prepared. Have a homemade strop with some diamond paste to try and keep the convex edge. We'll see how it works out. I have all the sharpmaker stones from diamond to ultra fine, so I should be set from fully dull to just a touch up. Never thought about using a pringles can, always heard about using a wooden dowel or a mouse pad or phone book with sandpaper.

Mate! Sounds like you got it covered. Sharpening is a strange art and seems to be an almost individual thing. As in different people get different results with different methods. Out of all the stuff I have ever tried..for many different blade types..the only bit of kit id recommend with total confidence is the small Fallkniven DC3 and CC4 stones. Probably the best value for money I have ever encountered at £15 a piece (about 20 bucks in US )They work, with a little skill/ technique, on all my blades..from kitchen knives to outdoors stuff. I find them awesome for Kukri blades..I use them like a traditional "chakmak" running them down the edge. Brilliant little bit of kit when out and about for any knife. Nice one mate.
Im still waiting on my first Kailash. A Pensioner i orderd a few weeks back..just got pics of it being beaten into life....(next will probably be a Mutany). Be interested to know what your next will be. All the best matey.