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This is a long writing, but it does offer many facts that may appeal to those interested in knowing more about this knife. Please enjoy.
A “Visual Review” and some facts concerning the Windlass Steelcrafts Standard Regimental Khukuri:
Just as stated in my other “visual reviews”, I am no knife expert and my interest in knives is to simply collect as a hobby.
My “visual review” is just that, a sharing of my visual impressions of this newly purchased knife. Though I do not include performance testing, others on the Internet have performed such tests on Windlass Steelcrafts khukuris. These "performance" reviews have varied anywhere from folks being very happy with their product, to others not being so happy. I’ll let the readers here research that on their own and let them make their own conclusions.
With that out of the way, we can move on to discussing India’s Gurkha Regiments and their khukuri knife.
Those that have followed the Gurkha story know that to this day the British military offers voluntary enlistment for Nepalese citizens to join their Gurkha Regiments. The British carefully handpick these enlisted soldiers, which today involve many less numbers than in the past.
That does not necessarily end it for the majority of the candidates that are not chosen. Folks following the Gurkha saga know that after WWII, India's military inherited control of a number of these Gurkha Regiments. Britain, Nepal, and India, simply made a pact where they agreed to divide the Gurkha forces. Some of the Gurkha forces became part of the British military, while the others became part of the new Indian Army (new in the sense that it would now be totally under India's Government rule).
To this day, just like the British, India continues this tradition of enlisting Nepalese citizens to comprise the bulk of their Gurkha forces.
Since Britain offers better pay and prestige, the majority of the Nepalese candidates seek to enlist with the British. Once the British select their small numbers each year, the remaining candidates can simply choose to apply for the next best thing. This oftentimes means applying to enlist in India’s Gurkha program. For those accepted, it allows them the chance to be a part of this world famous “Gurkha” tradition. Besides, the Indian Military does enlist many more Nepalese citizens than the British do, therefore offering a much better chance for candidates to be chosen. Though the pay is considerably less than what the British Gurkhas receive, it’s still better than what most folks get paid back at home in Nepal.
One thing that all Gurkha Soldiers are known for is their carry of that odd shaped knife, the “Khukuri”.
It seems that today’s modern day British Gurkha Soldiers have been equipped with khukuris that have been manufactured in both Nepal and Britain.
The Gurkha Soldiers serving under India's military are also equipped with a khukuri knife, but their knife is not made in Nepal or Britain, but rather in India.
Now we’ll take a closer look at this Indian khukuri. It measures about 17 inches overall and has a hand forged blade measuring about 12 inches long. Weight is listed at 1 lb. 6oz. The knife’s full tang is the same shape as it’s wood handle. In other words, the tang is sandwiched by two pieces of wood that are of the same size and shape as the tang itself, allowing the sides of the tang to be seen around the sides. Two rivets going through the wood and tang secure the handle in place, a steel pommel completing the package. The scabbard is the typical black finished leather over wood, with the commonly used brass tip. This particular khukuri model made by Windlass Steelcrafts, model MKIII, dates back to the WWII years. Actually, Windlass Steelcrafts has been making this particular khukuri design under Government contract since 1943. Somewhere along the way the specifications were slightly modified to add some girth and weight to the blade, going from about 1/8” to ¼” thickness, but the knife’s specifications otherwise remain pretty much the same as it did during the WWII days.
It seems that many companies in India copy this knife, but only Windlass Steelcrafts is the Indian Government contractor for them. The best way to make sure that what you are getting is a Windlass Steelcrafts Khukuri, is to get it directly from the source. The direct source in this case would be the Atlanta Cutlery firm in Georgia.
How did Atlanta Cutlery become the U.S. branch for Windlass Steelcrafts? I will explain. Windlass Steelcrafts had been supplying Atlanta Cutlery and it's Museum Replicas division for quite some time. When Atlanta Cutlery decided to sell their business, Windlass purchased them. So yes, Atlanta Cutlery and Museum Replicas are both owned by Windlass Steelcrafts of India.
Windlass is not only a Government contractor for India, but has also been a material supplier to other Governments around the world. Most notably, Windlass Steelcrafts has been approved by our own Government to manufacture and supply the U.S. Marine Corps NCO Dress Saber.
I have read comments that these knives are sent out to customers with an unsharpened edge. I wondered why this was so? I was also curious to know whether or not Windlass Steelcrafts was still currently supplying India's Gurkha Regiments with khukuri knives under government contract?
Well, instead of me guessing and forever wondering, I decided to contact Atlanta Cutlery and ask them directly.
***Mr. Pradeep Windlass was kind enough to send me the following response:
Dear Sir,
The regimental khukri that is offered by Atlanta Cutlery is exactly the same as is supplied to the Indian Defense Forces. These khukris are not very sharp due to the prevailing export laws of India, which prohibit the shipment of sharp edged weapons. The steel used on these blades is 1075 with a Rockwell hardness around the edge of 50 to 52. The woodwork and the leatherwork are very consistent and it is indeed a value for the money. I am sure you will be pleased with the workmanship.
Perhaps you may have encountered some cheap imitations that are available from India. Windlass Steelcrafts has been the only official Government contractor for the khukris since 1943.
Best regards,
Pradeep Windlass
So it seems that if one is simply planning to collect this knife, then leaving it as received is just fine. On the other hand, if one has intentions of using it as a tool, then a good final sharpening will be required. No need for me to guess, I now have the definitive answer as to why the Indians ship these knives out without a complete sharpening.
I had a few more questions that I felt needed answering before I wrote up my visual knife review, so I again contacted Mr. Pradeep Windlass for his help. The most important of my questions was why the current offering has a blade thickness of about ¼” instead of the 1/8” thickness found on the WWII versions?
***The following response from Mr. Pradeep Windlass answered my question:
Dear Mr. Jimenez,
The current Regimental Khukri is still called the MK III, and if I am not mistaken, the thickness of the blade was increased in the late 60's and the drawings have remained the same.
Regards,
Pradeep Windlass
His response not only covers that the extra blade thickness was a specification change during the 60’s, but also that the model designation remained and still remains the same (model MK III).
I ordered this knife out of the Atlanta Cutlery catalog (cat. item #400484). The catalog shows and offers other Windlass khukuri models, but I decided to only go with their standard Indian Regimental version.
The price for this knife was $29.95 plus the $7.95 for S&H (for a total cost of $37.90).
Now with the history primer and other details out of the way, here is “MY” visual review of the Windlass Khukuri knife that I received:
*Blade:
The blade was definitely as Mr. Windlass said it would be, and that is to say dull. I’m not talking a little bit dull, but dull like found on a reenacting type medieval sword (actually having a flat edge). This unsharpened condition was explained beforehand, and was therefore expected. What I did not expect was it to actually be "SO" flatly edged. Without exaggeration, a butter knife has a finer edge than this knife! I only mention this to verify that the dullness situation is indeed more than absolutely true. The blade’s grinds are decently done. It does not have the high polish found on many modern Nepalese Khukuris, but instead has a fine brushed finish. In other words, it is polished, but not to the almost mirror finish found on many of the other modern made khukuris. This brushed finish is not done all the way to the hilt, but rather done to about 2 or so inches from the handle. This remaining portion of the blade is left with a bit more of a matte finish (my understanding is that this is the norm for this knife).
There was no rust or fractures of any kind on the blade (including the cho/kaudi area).
The cho/kaudi is shaped in the typical Indian tourist style, and that is to say “butt ugly” This is how most of these particular Indian made khukuri cho/kaudi areas are done, so it too was expected.
The knife has the typical raised spine ( ^ ).
My final impression of the blade is that it has an acceptable appearance, not beautiful, but fair. It was as I expected it to be. I would give it a grade of “C+”.
*Handle:
The handle’s two rivets were nicely installed and brushed satin finished. They were completely flush with the wood. The wood itself was god awful ugly. The main reason I say this is because of the 7 or 8 wood putty fill repairs that it had all over it. These truly stuck out like sore thumbs. Some of this same putty was used around the center ring area of the wood handle. In this area it definitely looks as if the putty was placed there by hand and then not sanded out, with some of it being placed and left on the exposed metal of the tang. To top it off, whatever finish they used on the wood was also applied over these poorly done putty fills. One gouge in the wood was left unrepaired altogether.
My final impression of the handle was that it’s a mess. Imo, the handle totally negated the acceptable looking blade. I would give it a grade of “D” (the decently installed rivets are what prevented it from getting a grade “F”
.
*The two accessory knives:
Both were done in the same wood as the main khukuri knife (looks like a walnut). Neither had handle repairs and the blades had no rust or fractures. Both had small steel bolsters, but one was installed leaving a gap between the wood and bolster. Both of these blades are “extremely thin”. When I say thin, I mean any thinner and they may be considered aluminum foil! Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating a bit, but they truly are very thin (tinny).
Both of these knives were just that, knives (two kardas). No dull knife in this set (no chakma). I later found out from Mr. Windlass that this is the way it is supposed to be with this model.
My final impressions of these two accessory blades are that they are the most Mickey Mouse accessory knives that I have ever seen. What do I mean by that? That they truly are cheap in every sense of the word. The word “junk” comes to mind.
I’d give these accessory knives a grade of “F” (I’d go lower, but that is as low as the grade system goes).
*Scabbard:
The scabbard is nicely made and is the typical leather over wood. The leather seems pretty robust (thick). It’s leather belt loop riveting looks sturdy enough (4 rivets total).
The brass tip was very nicely made and polished. This brass tip is very smartly shaped in a style that won’t dig into things (like your leg). The black finish on the leather is very nicely done. The leather is very closely bonded to the wood. I believe the bonding process of this leather to the wood scabbard must in some way make the leather very stiff. This caused a problem with the insertion (or lack of insertion) of one of the accessory knives into it’s pocket. The pockets were so stiff, that I could not insert one of the knives into it. I did not strongly force the little knives in, since doing so could have bent or broken them (yes, the accessory blades are truly that thin).
My impression of the scabbard is that, other than the problem with the one accessory pocket, it is nicely made. I’d give it a grade of “A-“
*Overall Final Impressions:
The main blade looked acceptable, though it was no beauty. I understand them not sharpening these knives, but damn, they truly go out of their way to practically make them into hammers!
The two small accessory knives were truly a joke.
The scabbard was nice.
The handle, Imo, was ridiculously hideous. It was so shoddy looking with all of its putty repairs, that it alone was reason enough for me not to keep the knife.
Indeed, I sent the knife back via US Priority mail and requested a refund.
Call me picky, or call me a person that simply knows what he wants.
I sent the item back the same day that I received it, so I did not have the time to photograph it. I hope my careful description helps you visualize what I had received.
A very special thanks goes out to Mr. Pradeep Windlass for taking the time to answer my questions.
As with my previous “visual reviews”, this review only reflects my personal opinions and observations. My intention is to be as honest and fair as humanly possible.
As before, I understand that opinions will certainly vary.
I will continue to share my visual impressions of any future khukuri knives that I order and receive.
A “Visual Review” and some facts concerning the Windlass Steelcrafts Standard Regimental Khukuri:
Just as stated in my other “visual reviews”, I am no knife expert and my interest in knives is to simply collect as a hobby.
My “visual review” is just that, a sharing of my visual impressions of this newly purchased knife. Though I do not include performance testing, others on the Internet have performed such tests on Windlass Steelcrafts khukuris. These "performance" reviews have varied anywhere from folks being very happy with their product, to others not being so happy. I’ll let the readers here research that on their own and let them make their own conclusions.
With that out of the way, we can move on to discussing India’s Gurkha Regiments and their khukuri knife.
Those that have followed the Gurkha story know that to this day the British military offers voluntary enlistment for Nepalese citizens to join their Gurkha Regiments. The British carefully handpick these enlisted soldiers, which today involve many less numbers than in the past.
That does not necessarily end it for the majority of the candidates that are not chosen. Folks following the Gurkha saga know that after WWII, India's military inherited control of a number of these Gurkha Regiments. Britain, Nepal, and India, simply made a pact where they agreed to divide the Gurkha forces. Some of the Gurkha forces became part of the British military, while the others became part of the new Indian Army (new in the sense that it would now be totally under India's Government rule).
To this day, just like the British, India continues this tradition of enlisting Nepalese citizens to comprise the bulk of their Gurkha forces.
Since Britain offers better pay and prestige, the majority of the Nepalese candidates seek to enlist with the British. Once the British select their small numbers each year, the remaining candidates can simply choose to apply for the next best thing. This oftentimes means applying to enlist in India’s Gurkha program. For those accepted, it allows them the chance to be a part of this world famous “Gurkha” tradition. Besides, the Indian Military does enlist many more Nepalese citizens than the British do, therefore offering a much better chance for candidates to be chosen. Though the pay is considerably less than what the British Gurkhas receive, it’s still better than what most folks get paid back at home in Nepal.
One thing that all Gurkha Soldiers are known for is their carry of that odd shaped knife, the “Khukuri”.
It seems that today’s modern day British Gurkha Soldiers have been equipped with khukuris that have been manufactured in both Nepal and Britain.
The Gurkha Soldiers serving under India's military are also equipped with a khukuri knife, but their knife is not made in Nepal or Britain, but rather in India.
Now we’ll take a closer look at this Indian khukuri. It measures about 17 inches overall and has a hand forged blade measuring about 12 inches long. Weight is listed at 1 lb. 6oz. The knife’s full tang is the same shape as it’s wood handle. In other words, the tang is sandwiched by two pieces of wood that are of the same size and shape as the tang itself, allowing the sides of the tang to be seen around the sides. Two rivets going through the wood and tang secure the handle in place, a steel pommel completing the package. The scabbard is the typical black finished leather over wood, with the commonly used brass tip. This particular khukuri model made by Windlass Steelcrafts, model MKIII, dates back to the WWII years. Actually, Windlass Steelcrafts has been making this particular khukuri design under Government contract since 1943. Somewhere along the way the specifications were slightly modified to add some girth and weight to the blade, going from about 1/8” to ¼” thickness, but the knife’s specifications otherwise remain pretty much the same as it did during the WWII days.
It seems that many companies in India copy this knife, but only Windlass Steelcrafts is the Indian Government contractor for them. The best way to make sure that what you are getting is a Windlass Steelcrafts Khukuri, is to get it directly from the source. The direct source in this case would be the Atlanta Cutlery firm in Georgia.
How did Atlanta Cutlery become the U.S. branch for Windlass Steelcrafts? I will explain. Windlass Steelcrafts had been supplying Atlanta Cutlery and it's Museum Replicas division for quite some time. When Atlanta Cutlery decided to sell their business, Windlass purchased them. So yes, Atlanta Cutlery and Museum Replicas are both owned by Windlass Steelcrafts of India.
Windlass is not only a Government contractor for India, but has also been a material supplier to other Governments around the world. Most notably, Windlass Steelcrafts has been approved by our own Government to manufacture and supply the U.S. Marine Corps NCO Dress Saber.
I have read comments that these knives are sent out to customers with an unsharpened edge. I wondered why this was so? I was also curious to know whether or not Windlass Steelcrafts was still currently supplying India's Gurkha Regiments with khukuri knives under government contract?
Well, instead of me guessing and forever wondering, I decided to contact Atlanta Cutlery and ask them directly.
***Mr. Pradeep Windlass was kind enough to send me the following response:
Dear Sir,
The regimental khukri that is offered by Atlanta Cutlery is exactly the same as is supplied to the Indian Defense Forces. These khukris are not very sharp due to the prevailing export laws of India, which prohibit the shipment of sharp edged weapons. The steel used on these blades is 1075 with a Rockwell hardness around the edge of 50 to 52. The woodwork and the leatherwork are very consistent and it is indeed a value for the money. I am sure you will be pleased with the workmanship.
Perhaps you may have encountered some cheap imitations that are available from India. Windlass Steelcrafts has been the only official Government contractor for the khukris since 1943.
Best regards,
Pradeep Windlass
So it seems that if one is simply planning to collect this knife, then leaving it as received is just fine. On the other hand, if one has intentions of using it as a tool, then a good final sharpening will be required. No need for me to guess, I now have the definitive answer as to why the Indians ship these knives out without a complete sharpening.
I had a few more questions that I felt needed answering before I wrote up my visual knife review, so I again contacted Mr. Pradeep Windlass for his help. The most important of my questions was why the current offering has a blade thickness of about ¼” instead of the 1/8” thickness found on the WWII versions?
***The following response from Mr. Pradeep Windlass answered my question:
Dear Mr. Jimenez,
The current Regimental Khukri is still called the MK III, and if I am not mistaken, the thickness of the blade was increased in the late 60's and the drawings have remained the same.
Regards,
Pradeep Windlass
His response not only covers that the extra blade thickness was a specification change during the 60’s, but also that the model designation remained and still remains the same (model MK III).
I ordered this knife out of the Atlanta Cutlery catalog (cat. item #400484). The catalog shows and offers other Windlass khukuri models, but I decided to only go with their standard Indian Regimental version.
The price for this knife was $29.95 plus the $7.95 for S&H (for a total cost of $37.90).
Now with the history primer and other details out of the way, here is “MY” visual review of the Windlass Khukuri knife that I received:
*Blade:
The blade was definitely as Mr. Windlass said it would be, and that is to say dull. I’m not talking a little bit dull, but dull like found on a reenacting type medieval sword (actually having a flat edge). This unsharpened condition was explained beforehand, and was therefore expected. What I did not expect was it to actually be "SO" flatly edged. Without exaggeration, a butter knife has a finer edge than this knife! I only mention this to verify that the dullness situation is indeed more than absolutely true. The blade’s grinds are decently done. It does not have the high polish found on many modern Nepalese Khukuris, but instead has a fine brushed finish. In other words, it is polished, but not to the almost mirror finish found on many of the other modern made khukuris. This brushed finish is not done all the way to the hilt, but rather done to about 2 or so inches from the handle. This remaining portion of the blade is left with a bit more of a matte finish (my understanding is that this is the norm for this knife).
There was no rust or fractures of any kind on the blade (including the cho/kaudi area).
The cho/kaudi is shaped in the typical Indian tourist style, and that is to say “butt ugly” This is how most of these particular Indian made khukuri cho/kaudi areas are done, so it too was expected.
The knife has the typical raised spine ( ^ ).
My final impression of the blade is that it has an acceptable appearance, not beautiful, but fair. It was as I expected it to be. I would give it a grade of “C+”.
*Handle:
The handle’s two rivets were nicely installed and brushed satin finished. They were completely flush with the wood. The wood itself was god awful ugly. The main reason I say this is because of the 7 or 8 wood putty fill repairs that it had all over it. These truly stuck out like sore thumbs. Some of this same putty was used around the center ring area of the wood handle. In this area it definitely looks as if the putty was placed there by hand and then not sanded out, with some of it being placed and left on the exposed metal of the tang. To top it off, whatever finish they used on the wood was also applied over these poorly done putty fills. One gouge in the wood was left unrepaired altogether.
My final impression of the handle was that it’s a mess. Imo, the handle totally negated the acceptable looking blade. I would give it a grade of “D” (the decently installed rivets are what prevented it from getting a grade “F”
.*The two accessory knives:
Both were done in the same wood as the main khukuri knife (looks like a walnut). Neither had handle repairs and the blades had no rust or fractures. Both had small steel bolsters, but one was installed leaving a gap between the wood and bolster. Both of these blades are “extremely thin”. When I say thin, I mean any thinner and they may be considered aluminum foil! Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating a bit, but they truly are very thin (tinny).
Both of these knives were just that, knives (two kardas). No dull knife in this set (no chakma). I later found out from Mr. Windlass that this is the way it is supposed to be with this model.
My final impressions of these two accessory blades are that they are the most Mickey Mouse accessory knives that I have ever seen. What do I mean by that? That they truly are cheap in every sense of the word. The word “junk” comes to mind.
I’d give these accessory knives a grade of “F” (I’d go lower, but that is as low as the grade system goes).
*Scabbard:
The scabbard is nicely made and is the typical leather over wood. The leather seems pretty robust (thick). It’s leather belt loop riveting looks sturdy enough (4 rivets total).
The brass tip was very nicely made and polished. This brass tip is very smartly shaped in a style that won’t dig into things (like your leg). The black finish on the leather is very nicely done. The leather is very closely bonded to the wood. I believe the bonding process of this leather to the wood scabbard must in some way make the leather very stiff. This caused a problem with the insertion (or lack of insertion) of one of the accessory knives into it’s pocket. The pockets were so stiff, that I could not insert one of the knives into it. I did not strongly force the little knives in, since doing so could have bent or broken them (yes, the accessory blades are truly that thin).
My impression of the scabbard is that, other than the problem with the one accessory pocket, it is nicely made. I’d give it a grade of “A-“
*Overall Final Impressions:
The main blade looked acceptable, though it was no beauty. I understand them not sharpening these knives, but damn, they truly go out of their way to practically make them into hammers!
The two small accessory knives were truly a joke.
The scabbard was nice.
The handle, Imo, was ridiculously hideous. It was so shoddy looking with all of its putty repairs, that it alone was reason enough for me not to keep the knife.
Indeed, I sent the knife back via US Priority mail and requested a refund.
Call me picky, or call me a person that simply knows what he wants.
I sent the item back the same day that I received it, so I did not have the time to photograph it. I hope my careful description helps you visualize what I had received.
A very special thanks goes out to Mr. Pradeep Windlass for taking the time to answer my questions.
As with my previous “visual reviews”, this review only reflects my personal opinions and observations. My intention is to be as honest and fair as humanly possible.
As before, I understand that opinions will certainly vary.
I will continue to share my visual impressions of any future khukuri knives that I order and receive.
and yes those little knives are absolute junk 
however I must point out that mine came with a CARDBOARD covered scabbard.