- Joined
- Feb 26, 2002
- Messages
- 618
Would you believe my previous purchase was a BAS and it took seven weeks to arrive. The M43 took less than one week to arrive. One has to wonder about postal services sometimes. I bet it drives Uncle Bill crazy. I shouldn't complain too loudly though because one of my favourite khukuries is a Chiruwa AK that Uncle Bill sent me when my original order had not turned up after six weeks. I wouldn't have got that AK if the postal services had been more efficient. The original order did eventually arrive, but my daughter grabbed that particular AK for herself.
Anyhow, when I pulled the M43 out of its cardboard box, my mind went straight to comparisons with other khukuries I have bought. The first thing that struck me about the M43 was the grip. No other khukuri I have bought (I think it is eleven to date) comes close to the comfort of the M43 handle. The amazing thing is that there is only 4 inches of perfectly smooth wood, and your hand just fits the wood, there is no room left over, but it fits like a pistol grip. I initially thought that with the smoothness of the wood that it would have been prone to slipping - but it doesn't. I haven't yet been able to weigh the khukuri but it is probably somewhere between 25 and 27 ounces (I don't own a set of kitchen scales and always have to borrow them from a friend). Because of the ergonomics of the grip, it can be swung backward and forward better, easier, and more comfortably than any other khukuri I have bought. It can be swung more comfortably than my 19 inch 21 ounce Chitlangi - not quite as fast but certainly more comfortably and balanced - I suppose that is where its weapon potential in war came from. I can't say enough about the handle on the M43 and if you haven't had the opportunity to do so, try and get hold of one. None of my other khukuries comes close.
As for looks, all HI khukuries look good to me, although I do particularly like the khukuries with curves. Strangely though, I am probably one of the few people who prefer the curves on my BGRS to that of the M43. For some reason, the curves and shape of the BGRS blade fit the picture in my mind of what a gurkha khukuri looks like. I would probably also say the M43 is not quite as pretty as the Chitlangi or my 16.5 inch Chiruwa AK. The Chitlangi is pretty because Chitlangis are! My Chiruwa AK is beautiful because it has an extremely bold, thick, unique grain in its wood handle that gives the whole khukuri a rugged look and I simply like the looks of the AK design (as an aside, I did some swapping of the two smaller knives with other khukuries I have bought and found two smaller knives that had the same bold wood grain, but they came with other khukuries). The grain in the wood handle of the M43 is also quite pronounced compared to all my other khukuries but not to the same extent as the AK. The grain of the M43 handle is simpler and more uniform in appearance and complements the flowing simplicity of its design. The all steel design and the flowing lines of the M43 are in my mind akin to what I always think of as the Japanese love of simplicity in design - albeit this time it is a Nepalese design. One different point that stood out about the scabbard of the M43 is that the leather is blacker and shinier than my other 10 khukuries. Is a new leather being used? I was also struck initially by the niceness of the all steel fittings. But after a while I realised that the brass fittings are just as nice, it's just that they are more common (the other 10 khukuries I have bought have brass fittings).
As to cutting power, I haven't yet given the M43 a full workout but I did take it out to cut 4 inch branches on a cadagi tree for about 30 minutes. I am lucky in having a couple of trees in my backyard that I use for testing purposes. The M 43 is probably my second best performer in chopping power after my 28.4 ounce Chiruwa AK - but it is also my second heaviest khukuri and I would expect it to cut well. As sent, the blade is not as razor sharp as the blade on the Chiruwa AK or some of my other khukuries. It does chop better than my 23 ounce 17 inch BGRS, my 21 ounce 19 inch Chitlangi, and my 21.5 ounce 15 inch BAS etc.- but only slightly better - and I will need to do a bit more cutting comparison before I am dead sure of that.
I have to also admit that I always thought the M43 had a sharp point on the blade for stabbing but mine doesn't. My BAS, Chiruwa AK, and of course my Chitlangi seem more suited for straight stabbing. But then again, the smooth handle of the M43 probably indicates that stabbing was not something an M43 was designed to do - and quite frankly, who cares.
What is my overall opinion of the M43? Well, it certainly is up there amongst the group of my three or four favourites. Which one is my favourite depends on the month, day, hour, minute that you ask me and what I am doing at that moment. Perhaps I'm fickle but I'm sure it has something to do with the HIKV virus. It sure is a beautiful khukuri, but all HI khukuries are.
Anyhow, when I pulled the M43 out of its cardboard box, my mind went straight to comparisons with other khukuries I have bought. The first thing that struck me about the M43 was the grip. No other khukuri I have bought (I think it is eleven to date) comes close to the comfort of the M43 handle. The amazing thing is that there is only 4 inches of perfectly smooth wood, and your hand just fits the wood, there is no room left over, but it fits like a pistol grip. I initially thought that with the smoothness of the wood that it would have been prone to slipping - but it doesn't. I haven't yet been able to weigh the khukuri but it is probably somewhere between 25 and 27 ounces (I don't own a set of kitchen scales and always have to borrow them from a friend). Because of the ergonomics of the grip, it can be swung backward and forward better, easier, and more comfortably than any other khukuri I have bought. It can be swung more comfortably than my 19 inch 21 ounce Chitlangi - not quite as fast but certainly more comfortably and balanced - I suppose that is where its weapon potential in war came from. I can't say enough about the handle on the M43 and if you haven't had the opportunity to do so, try and get hold of one. None of my other khukuries comes close.
As for looks, all HI khukuries look good to me, although I do particularly like the khukuries with curves. Strangely though, I am probably one of the few people who prefer the curves on my BGRS to that of the M43. For some reason, the curves and shape of the BGRS blade fit the picture in my mind of what a gurkha khukuri looks like. I would probably also say the M43 is not quite as pretty as the Chitlangi or my 16.5 inch Chiruwa AK. The Chitlangi is pretty because Chitlangis are! My Chiruwa AK is beautiful because it has an extremely bold, thick, unique grain in its wood handle that gives the whole khukuri a rugged look and I simply like the looks of the AK design (as an aside, I did some swapping of the two smaller knives with other khukuries I have bought and found two smaller knives that had the same bold wood grain, but they came with other khukuries). The grain in the wood handle of the M43 is also quite pronounced compared to all my other khukuries but not to the same extent as the AK. The grain of the M43 handle is simpler and more uniform in appearance and complements the flowing simplicity of its design. The all steel design and the flowing lines of the M43 are in my mind akin to what I always think of as the Japanese love of simplicity in design - albeit this time it is a Nepalese design. One different point that stood out about the scabbard of the M43 is that the leather is blacker and shinier than my other 10 khukuries. Is a new leather being used? I was also struck initially by the niceness of the all steel fittings. But after a while I realised that the brass fittings are just as nice, it's just that they are more common (the other 10 khukuries I have bought have brass fittings).
As to cutting power, I haven't yet given the M43 a full workout but I did take it out to cut 4 inch branches on a cadagi tree for about 30 minutes. I am lucky in having a couple of trees in my backyard that I use for testing purposes. The M 43 is probably my second best performer in chopping power after my 28.4 ounce Chiruwa AK - but it is also my second heaviest khukuri and I would expect it to cut well. As sent, the blade is not as razor sharp as the blade on the Chiruwa AK or some of my other khukuries. It does chop better than my 23 ounce 17 inch BGRS, my 21 ounce 19 inch Chitlangi, and my 21.5 ounce 15 inch BAS etc.- but only slightly better - and I will need to do a bit more cutting comparison before I am dead sure of that.
I have to also admit that I always thought the M43 had a sharp point on the blade for stabbing but mine doesn't. My BAS, Chiruwa AK, and of course my Chitlangi seem more suited for straight stabbing. But then again, the smooth handle of the M43 probably indicates that stabbing was not something an M43 was designed to do - and quite frankly, who cares.
What is my overall opinion of the M43? Well, it certainly is up there amongst the group of my three or four favourites. Which one is my favourite depends on the month, day, hour, minute that you ask me and what I am doing at that moment. Perhaps I'm fickle but I'm sure it has something to do with the HIKV virus. It sure is a beautiful khukuri, but all HI khukuries are.
