Kindred spirits

[MacHete]

I am so very happy to have found this site! My very first fixed blade was a khukri and it, more than any other knife I have owned or known, sparked my consumming passion for cutlery. I received it as a birthday gift when I was a young teenager and used it on a few camping trips and for many backyard chores. I finally killed it doing trail maintenance on my high school's cross-country course. I have been tragically khukri-less since. Not for lack of looking, mind you, but all that I have seen since have been either touristy crap or someone's "interpretation" of the design which did not appeal to me.

I am willing, yea, eager to believe that Gurkha House can fill that empty place in my life, but I have concerns. I've been hurt before.*sniff*

First, the deficiencies of my late lamented khukri. It was not new when I received it. It had been purchased by an older cousin some ten years before it came to my possession. That would put its manufacture at at least 30 or more years ago. It had a horn handle and a steeper angle to the back of the blade than the models I see on this site. It was just under 15" long, had shallow fullering along the spine and had some pitting from sheath moisture and a dusting of surface rust. Originally, because of the location of the rust damage, I thought the blade had been plated. After cleaning and sharpening this didn't appear to be the case. The edge was a very round "axe" grind on both the concave and convex surfaces and it took and held a hone well. The accessory knives were somewhat cheesy. They had horn handles as well but were plated and most of the plating had flaked off. The sheath was sturdy leather with a brass shoe that matched the fittings on the handle. The butt-cap was cast brass with what looked like a lion's head on the end with the tang showing through the mouth.This was the location of the knife's fatal flaw. After a few years of my moderate but infrequent use, the butt-cap popped off of the tang. I could see no trace of a capnut or even threading for one. Apparently the tang had simply been peened over in the lion's mouth to secure the handle. In retrospect, I'm amazed that such assembly lasted as long as it did, but I was heartbroken at the time for the loss.

Given this description, can anyone tell me what I had and, more importantly, assure me that GH's designs and construction will be free of these problems? BTW the only markings on the blade were stippled characters which were certainly not english, so I am fairly confident that it was not a "wall hanger".

I thank you in advance for your expertise.

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Be Worthy

 

[sing]

MaChete,

You can get a Panawal, or 15 AK, from Craig for under $100. It'll last. If not you have Craig's guarantee. You just need to take the jump and find out for yourself.

sing

AKTI #A000356

 

[Blackdog]

MacHete,

First of all, Welcome to the GH forum. We hope you'll be a regular visitor to our humble abode.

As to the origin of your previous Khukuri, I'll leave that to the forumites with the deeper knowledge of Khukuri history who stop by here. If anyone can help you they can.

For what it's worth, I would venture to say that your Khuk was not a "wall hanger" but a presentation piece of some sort. The plating you describe on the accessory blades and the lion's head butt cap would seem to point in that direction as opposed to a "working" or "issue" type piece. In some cases durability is a trade off for aesthetic value (as may have been the case with the lion's head butt cap).

I believe the Khukuris closest to what you describe would be the Ang Kola or the Panawal models. These are tough, beautiful, brutal blades that are made to take abuse and keep coming back for more.

There have been a few instances of buttcaps loosening somewhat after heavy use, but I don't know of any that have come off. The fix is simple if it should loosen. A few drops of epoxy tightens them up forever, or you can call Craig at Gurkha House and he'll make it right for you.

As for the handle itself, you should speak to Maddog 2020 (aka Ray). He has replaced several handles with custom designs of his own. Trying to get one of these handles off is not for the weak of heart. They're held on with a Nepalese glue concoction that defies description or duplication. The only known way to soften it up is to boil the handle in water for a decent length of time. This is not an advised practise as you'll destroy the pot you used and your kitchen will smell like the south end of a north-bound hyena for weeks thereafter. So, unless you plan on using your Khuk for extended periods in boiling water, you can expect your great-grandchildren to still be chopping with it.

The GH Khukuris are guaranteed for life, period. No games or bullcrap. If it fails you can either get another one or get your money back. No questions. Only one BIG problem. They are addicting. Be warned. You'll never be satisfied with just one.



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Blackdog

 

[Berkley]

MacHete,
From your description I can say without a doubt that your late khukuri was made in India, where thousands of such "Ghurka knives" of dubious quality are pounded out in sweatshops, _not_ in Nepal, where the khukuri is a source of national pride. You will be able to discern the difference in quality when you lay your hands on a genuine Nepalese khukuri, such as the ones from GH. (Note, there are tourist wallhangers made in Nepal, but GH doesn't sell them).
Berk

 

[Dan K]

Mac,
The knife you discribed was made in India, and there were a jillion of those things, in various sizes, imported into the US in the mid 60's to early 70's. The blades weren't zone hardened generally. The blades were usually hardened "sort of" evenly. Those hardness were all over the map. I bought a couple 'cuz they were all I could find in the way of Khukuries at the time. Don't feel too bad if you got any real service out of the one you had, because most people didn't get that much use out of theirs.

In fact this is where the idea was born that Khukuries were nothing but junk. This prejudice is what Bill Marino at Himalayan Imports and Craig here at Gurkha House have been fighting inorder to sell their High Quality products, whose only resemblance to that other stuff is shape and some materials.
Dan

 

[Craig Gottlieb]

Welcome to Bladeforums! What you did have (to echo others) is an Indian "variant" (I say variant, because as a wise man said above, the only similarity bewteen the one you had and the ones Bill and I sell is the shape!). The lion's head gave it away for me. Also, you may be interested to know that the "peening over of the tang onto the buttcap" is still a technique used today in Nepal, but they also use a glue substance called "laha" to secure the tang in place.

Again, welcome to Bladeforums. You'll soon catch a number of khukuri related viruses that circulate the forum!

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Craig Gottlieb
Gurkha House
Blade Forums Sponsor

 

[MacHete]

Thank you all for your responses. I have spent the last several days skimming the threads in this forum and am delighted with the prevailing savvy sanity of the participants. You have won me over. I am ready to take the plunge. I expect to order my first GH khukuri by month's end. I just need to decide on a model. Any of those WWIII's left?

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Be Worthy

 

[Craig Gottlieb]

Mac: Don't I wish. I'm holding on to mine with white knuckles (even though I'm not actually holding it yet!). I'm sure that plenty of the forumites will give you plenty of good ideas about an ideal khukuri for you. I'll go ahead and ask it: what do you want to use it for? That will help people help you deal with your new case of Khukuri-itis.

My vote for a "best-all-around" khukuri is the WWII. You need never buy another khukuri with that model in your foot locker.

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Craig Gottlieb
Gurkha House
Blade Forums Sponsor

 

[MacHete]

Craig, it appears that my luck with khukuris parallels my luck with women. The ones I like are already spoken for.

The qualities I seek in a khukuri (not in a woman- I suppose there are other forums for that)would be the durability to withstand fairly heavy chopping whithout undue weight. I would like it to serve as a camp knife for fairly arduous backpacking trips, where it might be called upon to chop kindling and fuel; Fell, trim and notch trees for primitive construction; Lop off a fish head; Clear brush; Level a campsite; Fend off any creature bigger than me that objects to my presence.

In other words, basic khukuri stuff. I am a very sturdy 5'6" with normal-sized hands, maybe a little bigger, but I don't need to cut a three-foot swath with every swing. I also spend a lot of time on or around water. I gather that there are no stainless models available, so proven care and feeding lore would be appreciated.

Thanks again, everyone. I can feel the fever coming on.

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Be Worthy

 

[Dan K]

Gads Mac,
You don't want much out of one knife do you?
For most of your needs a WW2 would be a good choice. Hoever, if you have this overpowering need to denude the forest floor, without too much extra weight then the 18" Panawal might better suit your needs.
Dan

 

[OMRie]

I agree with Dan. I have both 15 and 18 inch panawals. I don't know how big your hands are but the 15 inch pan has a thinner handle which made my fingers cramp after extended use. I'm 5'11". The 18 inch pan has a thicker handle that feels better to me. The extra weight isn't excessive and allows the blade to dig into a log without much effort. Gravity does most of the work. The fifteen incher needs a little more "oomph!" but still does the job. I had a 20 inch ang khola which was way too much for me and I couldn't use without slipping a disc.

Whichever you decide on won't be your last!

 

[MacHete]

Dan- perhaps I should clarify what I meant by "leveling a campsite". I went back and read my previous post and I can understand images of bulldozing a quarter-acre AO. I DO practice minimum impact outdoorsmanship. When I said "level", I was referring to kidney-seeking tree roots and other terrain features which appear under your bedroll suddenly at night.

Seriously, though, I do expect a lot from a knife. It may never be called upon to perform all the tasks I listed, but I want a knife that can if need be.

Based on the kind responses from you and others on this thread, as well as what I have gleaned from other threads, I have settled upon a WWII (to start). I just placed the order. I will certainly share my reaction upon its arrival with anyone interested.

Thank you all very much for the guidance and encouragement. Please forgive Craig for his blasphemy when he said I only needed one khukuri, though; I'm sure he didn't mean it.

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Be Worthy

 

[MacHete]

...Must...chop..must..CHOP..MUST-CHOP-SOMETHINGNOW! I wonder if my landlord would notice if the patio balcony was gone?

Received today in good order and timely fashion one genuine Nepalese WWII khukuri w/sheath from GH. Thank you, Craig. The above was the greater part of my initial reaction.

At first, although I thought I had prepared myself for the comparatively rough finish that I had been told to expect, I was a little disappointed. I'm used to checking glue and solder joints w/ a loupe on handmade customs. Then I began to think about how this was made; Really handmade, w/out access to even a lot of the special handtools we have to work with here. It appears to be solid-state, despite minor cosmetics. There are a few rough spots and small gaps here and there, but no pinch-points, no blister makers, no real chinks in the armor for moisture to hide and do it's evil work. And I thought, "By golly, this knife's got character." I bought it to be a using piece anyway. So, I am satisfied. And I eagerly await an opportunity to do some field testing. With that in mind, I think I would like a kydex for it. I went to the edgeworks site and poked around briefly but didn't notice anything indicative of special sheath work. I suppose I need to dash off an e-mail.

Thanks, everyone, for helpin' out the new guy. You have a much friendlier and less contentious forum here than others I've been visiting. I will be back.

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Be Worthy

 

[Craig Gottlieb]

MacHete: First, thanks for starting what for me is a very rewarding thread. You've given us a window into the heart and soul of a Nepali khukuri convert! Just beautiful.

As for your kydex sheath, the only chance for you to get an Edgeworks one in any short time is to have one made through us. They are so swamped with work that they have a huge wait for one-time projects. However, they haven't set a limit on how many sheaths I can have - which means that if you send them your knife with a note to add it to the WWIII pile (send it to Scott Evans), then he'll do the sheath and then send the entire rig back to me. I think the cost is $42.00, which you can send to me.

Glad you like your new aquisition! If I'd "realized" it was you, I would have gone down to the store room and picked out the best in the pile (not that yours was faulty, but like every hand-made thing, it has nuances that you may or may not like). If the handle seems too small or the blade not long enough (or too long), you can always exchange it. Also remember that you may want to ask Cliff Stamp (or another khukuri expert here) for advice on the best edge to apply to the blade for heavy use. They come to you with rather razor-edges - not well suited for heavy digging and wood-chopping.

So, guys, what's the best edge for MacHete (sorry, I may be insulting you, MacHete, as you may have a thing or two to teach us!).

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Craig Gottlieb
Gurkha House
Blade Forums Sponsor