Khukuri knife for thinning hafts

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It's been a while --I've been hibernating. I've seen & heard some talk about using a khukuri knife to thin hafts. Doesn't seem like a terrible idea. I used an 8" butcher's knife to thin a few. While it was a bit awkward, it worked well so I'd imagine a khukuri knife would be much easier... Should I be looking at a different tool to thin hafts? If not, where can I buy a good khukuri knife? A lot of the stuff out there looks like garbage and I feel like I'm going to be put on a watch list when I go to some of the sites for reviews on them. I guess to be more specific, I'd either want to buy an authentic, vintage, very good quality, non-collector's knife, or if it is current/modern, I want a good name brand with quality steel. Thanks!
 
You might have already seen this thread about thinning handles, in which Peter Vido uses a khukuri (or kukri), but several other options are mentioned (including saw&chisel, or hatchet).

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/827527-Thinning-Handles-(by-Peter-Vido)

If you want to get a khukuri, I would recommend Himalayan Imports. The company has high standards for quality, and is essentially the "fair trade" option. They treat their workers right. Their knives are shipped from their stock in the USA to the customer, and they have a strong warranty. A Sherpa woman from Nepal runs the company in the USA, and she is known for her great customer service. Her father (a retired Gorkha soldier) runs their production shop in Nepal. Their best deals can be found on occasional threads started by "Yangdu" at their forum here:

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/forumdisplay.php/739-Himalayan-Imports
 
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Cold Steel Gurkha Kukri (not the machete version) in O1 is what I'd recommend. Thinner and better quality than the authentic ones, that vary in quality (read: "heat treat") and usually have only some parte of the edge hardened (mostly the so-called "sweet spot". A close second woud be Kabar's BK 21.

With any of the "traditional makers", besides the heat treat, you may get a warped blade. If this happens with a Tora, they will tell you it's normal. Tora would be the last place I'd look to get one, pretty as they may be.

With the Cold Steel one, you risk getting a sheath that will dull your knife like crazy. It's incredible how this is an issue years after it's been first mentioned. The O1 seems to be more prone to rusting, too.

Now if I had the guarantee that the one I'd pick up would be a good example, I'd buy a dozen. I very much prefer the original handles, than the modern interpretations.

I am pretty sure back in the days they all put out a much better product. I mean the traditonla makers mentioned here.

Wth HI you will get stellar customer support.
 
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As for a different tool...well yes - draw knife, which is what you'd also be able to use your kukri as (or "kukri like object", for the pedantic ones), besides chopping when you want to roughly remove more material. Really, you'd be hardly pressed to find a better "do it all" tool than a kukri.
 
I've carved a handle with nothing but my KLVUK from HI before, so it's possible! It functions sort of like a draw knife and a hatchet in one.
 
I've used a Becker BK-4 for shaping handles and such and for me it works better than my kukri. It's much lighter and the thin blade shaves wood like it was made for the job.
 
Someone should invent a tool called a spoke shave.



Then tell OP about it.

Don't invent the Stanley sure form at the same time. OPs head might explode.
 
Whiskey_Jim said:
Someone should invent a tool called a spoke shave.



Then tell OP about it.

Don't invent the Stanley sure form at the same time. OPs head might explode.
Click to expand...

We all know you are better than that. I would surely like to be around another civil, contributing member of the forum.
 
Even better than the Stanley Surform tools are Microplane rasps. They even make some replacement blades to fit the most common Surforms. I have the round rasp and both sizes of replaceable blade rasps. The thing I like with those is that you can pop the blade out and reverse it in the holder to change your direction of cut. They even make a drum-shaped one you use in a drill which is great for roughing. Makes small chips instead of dust, so it's a lot easier on the lungs. The Microplanes are so aggressive that I actually use regular rasps when I need to remove material at a slower and more controllable rate. A farrier's rasp removes wood the fastest and a good sharp one makes long, curly fibers of shavings but also leave a much rougher finish.
 
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Yeah rasp (or similar) all the way. I don't find bladed tools useful at all to be honest. A rasp is very aggressive, a half round version will get into all the curvy places, you have lots of control, they are cheap and the direction of the grain hardly matters (though it does some). If you were making a handle from scratch, it might be a different story, but for just thinning, rasp would be my only choice (for a hand tool). And regardless of what bladed tool you get, you're going to end up using a file of some kind and whatever else - sand paper, broken glass, scraper, something - to finish the job anyway.

However, Kukris are awesome so if this is the excuse you are looking for to get one, then they are the perfect tool for the job.
 
cityofthesouth said:
I don't find bladed tools useful at all to be honest.
Click to expand...

Nothing leaves a crisper octagon than the spoke shave. I may start with a rasp or power tool then finish with the spoke shave. For rough shaping a stave there's nothing faster than a lancelot carving tool on an angle grinder.
 
Whiskey_Jim said:
Someone should invent a tool called a spoke shave.



Then tell OP about it.

Don't invent the Stanley sure form at the same time. OPs head might explode.
Click to expand...

Far too late. He was already told about "Draw knife, Farrier's Rasp, Short Draw Knife, Spoke Shave, Cabinet Scrapers?

But this thread is also about using what might be available so your head doesn't explode from frustration in the absence of all the "right tools for the job."

Not that your head seems prone to exploding. Maybe an eyelash? :p
 
If you want a real khukri then you need a Himalayan Imports...
iv purchased 3 in total, 1 for a gift and 2 for myself.

They are all awesome. I was using the one I gifted away to cleave through goat bones in Fiji this past Christmas.
it takes a good knife to cleave fresh bones (excluding chicken) without taking damage.. the HI kukri handled it like a champ.

keep an eye our for the deals threads in the himalayan imports section :)
 
As a great fan of HI, owning many of its products, I have to say that others have made "real" khukuris - even unreal khukuris.
 
What I meant is that a real Khukri has soul.
I agree many others make and have made "real" khukris..but the likes of cold steel and other mass produced khuk's, IMO, are not "real" khurkis, as they the lack soul that is forged into them by the sweat and blood of their maker
 
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