Karda regrind

[Daniel Koster]

Ok...got a few Karda-sized Himalayan Imports knives in the mail to play around with and got some results to display.

I'll send these back to their original owners who (hopefully) will post here with their honest feedback and testing. :thumbup:


Before pics:


JKM and Kumar Karda:

Both have short bevels and thick spines with a small amount of distal taper toward the tip.


YCS Kardas

Hard to see the bevels in the above pic...so I took a couple more:

You can clearly see the same thing...short bevel, thick spine.

 

[Daniel Koster]

results:

Kumar Karda:

JKM:

YCS Kardas:

 

[Daniel Koster]

The purpose for the regrind is simple - take a stout knife that is sometimes overlooked in the kukri set and make it serviceable and sharp!


For these I wanted to do a full flat grind. The recurve of the YCS kardas was a bit of a learning experience...but I knew that already. The Kumar Karda and JKM were pretty straight forward. The JKM is almost thick enough and short enough (spine to edge) to do a hollow grind on a 14" wheel. (I'll tackle that one later)


Also, I wanted to add a small choil where the edge begins to aid in sharpening.

The final finish is 400 grit with a scotchbrite pad and although more likely to rust (vs polished)....much easier to maintain and restore - just rub it down with a scotchbrite pad.

 

[Daniel Koster]

Now we'll just wait and see what the testers think.


:thumbup:

 

[STR]

Well I think its awesome in its new incarnation personally!

Great job Dan!

STR

 

[tsf]

They look great and I will be much more usable. Great idea. Is this a service you are going to add or just practice for something you have in mind for the future? I love the Koster Karda I got awhile back. In fact I'm carrying it as I write this on a Mercharness.
Terry

 

[Daniel Koster]

Yes...I want to see what the general reaction to this is...and see how the testing goes first. And we'll take it from there.


Thanks!

Dan

 

[tsf]

I've got a JKM that could use some Kosterizin'.
Terry

 

[nagod]

would love a regrind on my kumar karda..hope this is available soon..will check for updates..great job..

 

[Daniel Koster]

Hopefully we'll see some testing soon and then this will be available as a regular service! :thumbup:

 

[Andrew Colglazier]

I have some kumars and a ycs that all could use this treatment. Great idea, Dan!

Andy

 

[Daniel Koster]

Thanks, Andy!

p.s. been trying to reach you via email, Andy...can you email/PM me?

 

[ferguson]

Those look great Dan! :thumbup: I wish I could flat grind like you. I know, practice makes perfect. I've done a few like this but do a full convex from the spine. Your flat grinds really make them pop. Outstanding work sir.

Steve

 

[shappa]

Who are the testers?

Lets see some reviews guys!

 

[gyr]

Just yesterday I received the two YCS kardas pictured above.
Thanks, Dan, for the fast turn around and the AWESOME work. While the above pictures are excellent they really do not do justice to the quality of Dan's workmanship. The flat grind has an beautifully uniform distal taper from the new mini-choil to the tip. I'm still trying to figure out how that was done. Particularly on the larger karda with its recurved blade. All traces of the original bevel are gone. The flat grind begins at the thinned-down back of the blade and tapers uniformly to the "scary-sharp" micro-convex edge.
Since these knives had never been used before (they were too pretty to use) I don't really have any way of comparing the sharpness. Suffice to say that both knives sliced newsprint and shaved wrist hair when they first arrived from HI. They still do... but seemingly with less effort than before. I hope to get time to do more complete testing in the next couple of weeks. Now that the magic stone finish is gone, I expect I'll be less reluctant to actually use them. I'll post further results as they become available.

Kudos to Dan Koster for a well thought out, superbly executed modification.
In my not-so-humble opinion he has achieved his stated objective. What more can an artisan accomplish?
[/SIZE]

 

[Daniel Koster]

Thanks for the review, gyr! :thumbup:

As you do more testing, please feel free to add to this thread...for better or worse.



The other set did not "hit the mail" till I got back...hopefully the owner will have them soon and get a chance to try them out.

Can't wait to see the results.

Thanks for being willing to donate your knives to the cause, gentlemen! :thumbup:

 

[kamagong]

I am the other beneficiary of Dan's generosity. These two knives were waiting for me when I came home today, so these thoughts are just my first impressions.

A well ground blade is a thing of beauty, and these two knives are very beautiful. The grinds are symmetrical and wonderfully executed, I wish I knew how Dan did it. I was very excited to participate in Dan's little experiment because while these blades were well made, I could never get them to cut the way I wanted. I got the Kumar Karda reasonably sharp, but its saber grind limited its cutting efficiency. The JKM was even worse. Although shorter than the karda it was thicker than its big brother, and didn't come with an edge. I tried to sharpen it myself, but finally gave up as it was a task beyond my capabilities.

Both blades are now very sharp. In addition, the two blades feel much more lively due to the full flat grind. I can't wait to try them out this weekend.

 

[Daniel Koster]

Excellent news! Can't wait to see your review. :thumbup: