khukri twins - no more

Bladite

Bladite

ǝɹnsıǝן ɟo uɐɯǝןʇuǝb
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Feb 28, 2003
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back over here, i spoke of the twins separated at birth:
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=430051

in particular, today, we mourn the pen:
17.0 inch 24 ounce villager Pen Knife by Bura. Sisau hard wood handle.

today was the twins field trip, and out we went to find some nice stuff to chop and compare, side by side with... i warmed axeshully with some wood chopping with one of the axes i like so much. a little limbering so to speak. then got into it with the BGRS that is my one true buddy and goto blade. i'd just sharpened it to be fair in the field trip, and it did good things. i was especially careful to test the range of the sweet spot, as that was what i intended to do with the pen as well.

thus... slapped the sides a few time, the spine, batoned a couple small sticks to get a feel for things. all good. did a chop into a log and wiggled it. nice pry bar, no slop, nothing. exactly as you'd expect - which is to say, a full power swing into a tree, and i bet i could stand on the thing, and it wouldn't flex. kinda stupid dangerous to do, but it could. just saying. we're talking 1/4 to 3/8 thick give or take.

got me some 1/2 to 3/4 sticks mostly green, and pretty much not a lot of difference on a light to medium chop. the edge profile on this pen is very thin, esp compared to the BGRS (which i WAS thinking of thinning out slowly over time, and erase any scratches and chips).

then the real fun, chopping up some thicker 1-2 and some 3 inch branches. the BGRS has already eaten these up today, and before with no issues. at first, okay, but then 3-4ish good blows in a row and something felt REALLY squidgey. stopping, i could not QUITE believe what i saw. i almost cried.



yikes. that there is some folding. now i cry more. *cry*

just to say, i've already written yangdu, and i'm sure it'll work out fine as usual. best customer service ever, as we know.

however, just in case any of you with the tools (ie: grinder) wants to have a good time, well, here's your chance. drop her a line. mmm, maybe she'll have me ship direct to the lucky guy. it's a thought.

for the "this is abuse guy"; really, i hadn't even gotten warmed up. i'm thinking the edge on this was so thin (very foxy folly like), and just not heat treated proper... there weren't any funny waves or false hamons. so, weird. i don't get it.

in revenge, the BGRS had it's way with the offending branch, to no effect on the knife, and then the axe ate some too, for the fallen comrade.

bladite
 
Is it just my perception? Or do there seem to be a bit more QC issues popping up lately? Just offhand I remember the blade breaking off and cutting the hand, another handle cracking off, this improperly tempered one.

One thing you say that's important:

"Test the range of the sweet spot"

Seems like some khuks (like my FF) are hardened all the way to the tip. Some others seem to have a really small area which doesn't work that well when you chop big stuff.

If that blade just sets in a collection nobody ever knows when it might meet it's match, but if you take them out and give them a workout then you know for sure (most of the time).
 
Z_V, HI products are indeed top notch. The thing is, HI khukuries are put routinely to such heavy (i.e. normally axe demanding) tasks, which are rarely attempted with other makes. Most of the time, the HI khuk are performing those tasks without any problem. Sometimes, especially around Dasain, there are some khuks which are slipping through the QC.

You hear about these problems, because the Cantinistas are honestly reporting them. The minimal amount of problems or failure reported, compared to the large number of positive testimony + the large No. of HI knives selled are the real testimony to the high quality of HI products.
What you can additionally learn here is, that HI always takes care of its customers like few (if at all) other companies.

If the HI khuks weren't top notch, it would have been difficult to explain why were they so desirable. If the cheaper makes of other companies are as good or better, HI would go quickly bancrupt.
 
littleknife said:
Z_V, HI products are indeed top notch. The thing is, HI khukuries are put routinely to such heavy (i.e. normally axe demanding) tasks, which are rarely attempted with other makes. Most of the time, the HI khuk are performing those tasks without any problem. Sometimes, especially around Dasain, there are some khuks which are slipping through the QC.

You hear about these problems, because the Cantinistas are honestly reporting them. The minimal amount of problems or failure reported, compared to the large number of positive testimony + the large No. of HI knives selled are the real testimony to the high quality of HI products.
What you can additionally learn here is, that HI always takes care of its customers like few (if at all) other companies.

If the HI khuks weren't top notch, it would have been difficult to explain why were they so desirable. If the cheaper makes of other companies are as good or better, HI would go quickly bancrupt.
Click to expand...

indeed, if there were better knives for less, you'd know about it. a lot of people buy stuff, and never use it, or even test it. it goes into a drawer/safe and sits there, and then sometime later, gets sold/traded. untested, warranty gone probably, and completely the risk of the next person; depending on the knife, will never see use. under those conditions, why even make quality?

with HI, you sell it, you lose your warranty too (that's fair); keep it or gift it, and you're good for life. that said, these ARE users. i would and HAVE happily buy a used HI, because chances are super high that it's a good'un.

hollow: you said, i said "Test the range of the sweet spot", you bet your goat nibbled bum... this summer, at one time or another, i tested ever single one of my khukris, including a few guest/visitors, and used ones i've purchased. they passed of course, got cleaned up, touched up, oiled, and hoard back into their little alcove :> there are a couple that may never go into the woods again, but i *KNOW* they can, and that makes them worth gold. some of them absolutely will see the woods. some probably will make fine stowaways in my car (if i dare), or camping when i need a spare or two (for helpers, trail clearing, etc)

i'm totally pleased by my HI product, and yangdu's excellent care of us. this is NOT a "HI product failed post", this is a "QA feedback and reinforcement that we're taken care of post". i know people in other forums break their blades. i don't necessarily see positive feedback in those cases, but a lot of *@(#$* 0(@(@() !$$&$&$ stupid knife posts. too bad for them i guess.

my only regret is i don't have more woods, time, and the ability to halt rust and slow time...

bladite
 
What littleknife said. I beat my Museum model blade for 40 minutes till hell wouldn't have it, and the blade looks virtually untouched after being shined up a bit. (Of course the handle went! but that's a whole other issue based on the design of a metal handled knife.)

This was just a very poor heat treat, and a QC check would have caught it. I'm afraid some of the kamis may be rushing things and hoping some of these remain as collectibles only.

What I don't get, of all things, is why the heat treat would be so bad on some knives. After all, the blade is already hot, the teakettle is in hand, so why scrimp on the water?

I am going to do my best to snag an 18" Pen, it is tops on my list, and I fully expect it to be as strong as all of my other HI knives. I'm not going to go after cinder block and tank armor like Dave does, but anything wooden is going to get a tryout, and I'm sure it will hold up.

Norm
 
I've used khuks from 3 difft sources and have had edges roll on all 3. Khukuris are a hand made product from a third world country and you gotta expect that some are just not going to make the cut.

The good thing about HI (if you live in the US) is if you have one that is sub par, and you will if you get enough of them, that you can get a replacement.
 
Svashtar said:
...

1) This was just a very poor heat treat, and a QC check would have caught it. I'm afraid some of the kamis may be rushing things and hoping some of these remain as collectibles only.

2) What I don't get, of all things, is why the heat treat would be so bad on some knives. After all, the blade is already hot, the teakettle is in hand, so why scrimp on the water?

3) I am going to do my best to snag an 18" Pen, it is tops on my list, and I fully expect it to be as strong as all of my other HI knives. I'm not going to go after cinder block and tank armor like Dave does, but anything wooden is going to get a tryout, and I'm sure it will hold up.

Norm
Click to expand...

1) they should chop a 2x4 in half, and test every inch of the edge... touch it up, polish, whatever after that... 5 minutes with a 2x4 would've caught this.

2) maybe they used the wrong water? :)

3) the pen seem to be an excellent blade. i've already worked out a replacement with her, turns out she had something that's even more suited for me... (surprise!)... i'll score a pen later when they come up in a DOTD in the normal way :) so you can fight me for it. heh.

bladite
 
Alright, so if I have any problems with my knives, they'll be fixed/replaced/refunded? I'm liking this company more and more, and I haven't yet received my knives!
 
Zevon_Valley said:
Alright, so if I have any problems with my knives, they'll be fixed/replaced/refunded? I'm liking this company more and more, and I haven't yet received my knives!
Click to expand...

there is the standard HI guarantee; i summarzie, but don't speak for HI...

o if your perfect knife breaks, it gets replaced exactly, credit, other knife...
when i say perfect, i mean first rate items, many of which are on DOTD

o if your marked-blem breaks, handles/etc, you fix. if the blade on a blem *breaks*, i think it'll be covered. if you just don't like it, i think that's another issue. blems are also sold on DOTD and marked as such.

o if there's a problem of other kinds, you talk to yangdu. don't just cry, talk.

o if there's other other problems, you talk to us :> we're good at stuff.

buy them, love them, use them. it's rare they get used up once they pass the tests.

bladite
 
It's happened before, I had a YCS that looked almost exactly the same after a few hacks at a downed tree. Unfortunately one will slip by once in a while. Fortunately, the warranty is there to cover us and trust me, it will be covered. I recieved a replacement for my defective blade before I'd had a chance to send the thing back!
 
Roadrunner said:
It's happened before, I had a YCS that looked almost exactly the same after a few hacks at a downed tree. Unfortunately one will slip by once in a while. Fortunately, the warranty is there to cover us and trust me, it will be covered. I recieved a replacement for my defective blade before I'd had a chance to send the thing back!
Click to expand...

yah, i had a foxy do the same thing, except that one had a visible mini hamon of the bad metal. directly on the sweet spot - i figure the water just skipped that spot. no worries. yangdu made it totally right.

she's also made this one REALLY totally right. i will withhold comment for now, but i think y'all will go "DAMNNNNNNNN" when you see. all praise yangdu.

ALSO, she had something in stock, came in tonite... and i inquired as such things go, and ... it's mine for a reasonable sum :) which helps her on postage as well.

all in all, educational, and good.

bladite
 
ferguson said:
Yangdu's service is superb.
Steve
Click to expand...

hey, what a great way to launch my reply!

here's what i said in today's dotd...

in fact, my triangular box showed up today. yar. the false edge on these kerambits is sharp. i didn't know that. whoa. mine has a more leaf shape than stabby shape (right down to a SLIGHTLY rounded point from the false edge). interesting. VERY stout. nice sheath too. adding: the leaf shape VERY much compliments the foxy folly shape a lot - it's like the perfect companion knife...

the other item, my pen replacement, it's not a pen. but a foxy folly - yay - this one has a long handle. interesting. going out now to find a soft tree to test on. i'm back! i went out and found some nice autumn olive and birch (soft) sapling to try out on. chops well. feels like about 30 ounces (that does it, i need a scale :>), chandan handle, a tad longer than the monkey pod wood handle on my other foxy folly; both are nearly the same OAL and weight too, different makers. chops well. definitely a keeper :)

thank you to yangdu!

bladite
 
I rolled the edge on my 15" Pen last spring on a camping trip. I just worked it with the chakma for a while and then draw-filed it the rest of the way...no big deal!
 
HI khuks are used brutally.
I hope/think they are being tested, but believe culls will still make it through.

I've another well known brand here I tested once. It held. It is thinner, and conceivably, would not last as long as a heavier khuk if it were subjected to daily lumberwork. I don't use the martial arts khuks HI makes for heavy lifting either.

I think we have seen a recent rash of failures. And we are honest about them. I recall years going by without these reports. That's the way the stats fall.

Yangdu has our backs covered.


munk
 
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