My Young Sher Kobra: My First HI Khukuri

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jayinhk

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Picked up my Kobra at the post office today and fought the urge to open the box up on my way home. I ripped the box and newspaper up as soon as I walked in the door and...awe at the sheer size of a 20" khukuri (biggest I've handled myself) and slight dismay at the fit and finish. :( The bolster/handle junction is a little sloppy compared to my KHHI khukuris, as is the finish on the blade, and the cap had prints all over it. I polished the brass up and got most of the prints off. The karda doesn't fit in the sheath as well as it does on my KHHI khuks, although it is definitely better than the standard KHHI karda. It wobbles to and fro in the slot on the sheath, but it stays in there, even if it moves around like crazy.

Now for what I do like--the handle is nice and large and fits my hands much better than the standard Nepali sized ones. I think the KHHI handles are better finished than the one on my Kobra, however. Additionally, the khukuri fits in the sheath nice and tight--my KHHI Sirupate rattles around a little, but I think the KHHI sheath looks much better.

This is one large, mean khuk, but it is way too heavy for my fighting system. I think I'm going to have to pass it on to someone else and get myself a custom KHHI or two. I appreciate that Yangdu sent it out immediately and that it was in stock (I waited over a month for my last KHHI order), but for the money I paid, I could have had three KHHI khukuris made to my specs...and that's including shipping.

Sorry guys. I know you love your HI khukuris, but that's just my 2 cents. I'll post pics up when I get a chance.
 
Well, I guess you gotta get what you like. Don't be sorry.

I would probably try more than one before giving up but...

Myself, I have broken more than one KH khuk chopping things and they certainly do not stand behind their goods. So, I suppose in the end that is why they are less expensive. They have to be so you can buy several so you can finish making the kindling. ;)
 
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Looks like you got the one from the 5/4 specials. I think you got a great price. Sometimes the fit/finish isn't perfect. If there's a little gap, fill it with some superglue or epoxy. Prints on the cap? That sounds like nitpicking to me.
 
The DOTD's many times are blemished items. That's why they're linked under "blems" from the HI shop website. But hey, to each his own. As they say, honesty is the best policy~! My first khuk was from KH... I won't EVEN go into that horror story again.
 
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How heavy is that Kobra? I have a 20" Sirupati made by Bura which is only 24 oz; placing it right at the edge of being in the Kobra's weight class. As such it is very quick & nimble. From what I've assessed on this forum (because I don't own a Kobra myself), a 20" Kobra should weigh about 18 - 23 oz.
 
Jay,
For the $85 you spent on that 20" kobra, you would only get an 18" khukuri from KHHI. Not three custom khukuri. Unless you are using your previous buyer discount. Not including shipping. They have no 20" anything listed, and no warranty. Their 35" Buff Head retails for $199. So i think, in all fairness, that the prices charged here at H.I. are quite reasonable. Had you wanted or expected a perfect specimen, you should've gone HERE and paid the full retail price.
 
20 inch 23 ounce Kobra by young Sher Kami. 10/10 rig. Small grain mark in horn handle. Great investment at $85 YBB. *SOLD*
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I will give you what you have in it and your shipping.
 
Karda said:
So i think, in all fairness, that the prices charged here at H.I. are quite reasonable.
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$85 for a hand-forged, differentially hardened 20" blade? Nowhere else but HI. Unbeatable deal... unless, of course, some kami left a fingerprint on it...
 
There's no way I would have polished out that kami fingerprint. That's not a blemish, that's irrefutable proof of which kami made it. $85.00 for a DOTD and you're unhappy?
I paid that much for my DOTD kerambit. The stitching for the belt loop on the sheath came loose after the first time I carried/used it, and I'm NOT complaining. I can restitch it, AND glue it with contact cement for cheaper than I can ship it back for replacement. I don't have a problem with that. With what I saved over retail, I can even install copper rivets at the corners of the belt loop.
My Tamang was $115.00 on a DOTD. There is a small gap between the wooden scabbard halves on the edged side of the scabbard. I will fix it myself, just as soon as I decide whether I want to use epoxy, polyester resin, or wood glue.

I notified Auntie of both of these issues and informed her that I am in no way dissatisfied with my purchases from HI. After all, I bought these from the DOTD, knowing full well that they could be blems. The knives are absolutely fantastic, so I don't mind a little scabbard repair/improvement on my part.
Had I paid full price, like I did for my custom order Bonecutter, I would expect perfection, but I fully understand that a blem is a blem.
 
20 inch 23 ounce Kobra by young Sher Kami. 10/10 rig. Small grain mark in horn handle. Great investment at $85 YBB. *SOLD*

I will give you what you have in it and your shipping.
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I have a solution to all your problems.:thumbup:
 
Jay, my first impressions were similar to yours, in that I had bought a DOTD blemished khuk and felt that it was aesthetically not as well finished as I expected. But really, you do get what you pay for; I know I did. I've since learned to live with these marks, and have even made some of my own by using it. Then again, mine was an Ang Khola; perhaps it's more suited to general use than the Kobra, which I understand is a fairly lightweight khuk (comparatively speaking). But still, don't discount HI too quickly. I'm sure the HI denizens do appreciate the time you took in writing the review.
 
KRBurke said:
The DOTD's many times are blemished items. That's why they're linked under "blems" from the HI shop website. But hey, to each his own. As they say, honesty is the best policy~! My first khuk was from KH... I won't EVEN go into that horror story again.
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When did you buy it? My first khuk was a KH Jungle Panawal and it's been fine. I've carried it when hiking and used it to split coconuts. My only gripe with it is that the sheath is loose.

Warty: That's a good point about the warranty. KH refunded my entire order last time round because I wanted a horn handle on my Sirupate and a natural, unworked handle on my Biltong Special (stag handled), which I thought was pretty cool, but if I broke my jungle while using it, I know I'd be on my own. I'm not planning on chopping anyone up with the Kobra anytime soon though. lol. I'd go for one of my Indonesian goloks first, actually, since they're lighter and faster. The KHHI khuks seem pretty solid, though, so I'm surprised you broke one. They are real khukuris from around Nepal and they supply Gurkhas around the world: a good Nepali friend of mine out here gets all of his through them. I should show him the Kobra--I bet he'd get a kick out of it.

Jaymo: The prints could have come from the guys who made the sheath or packaged the khukuris in Nepal. If they were kami prints that would be understandably cool though.

Wolf: Not sure of the weight, but it's too heavy for a fighting piece in my book. Sure, I could use it, but the pieces I would reach for first weigh much less and that allows for faster movement and strikes (if you needed more than one).

Karda: They have a 15" Sirupate. With a 5" or 6" handle, that brings it up to 20-21". I just picked three khuks (the 15" Sirupate, the Mini Jungle and the Chainpure Special. With $42.5 shipping, that comes out to $145, so yeah, that's $25 more than I paid for the Kobra with international shipping. Three was a little bit of an exaggeration (unless I bought two mini khukuris to go with the 15" Sirupate). I'm not counting my buyer discount.

Gun Snob: I'm outside the US, so it cost me $120 shipped and it would cost me another $30-40 to ship it to you, so I'd still be out $30-40 + Paypal fees. I might try and sell it locally to save on the shipping. Thanks though. I'll hold onto it for a few weeks to see if it grows on me.

One interesting thing about the khuk is there is an engraved dhol (drum) on the blade. Wasn't expecting that. Is that common on HI khuks?
 
The Madal Drum that is engraved on it is the mark of the Kami. Each of the Kamis at HI has their own unique mark. Perhaps you could take a quick look in the Stickie and see all the different ones there are, it is in one of the links, plus I made a PDF of all of them as well, all of the ones I knew of at the time at least.

I realized you were not in the USA by your name, I am guessing you are in Hong Kong, right? I wasn't suggesting you would be chopping people up with your Kobra, in fact the Kobra is not a warranted model @ HI either IIRC, I meant more than you would get a lot farther with Yangdu should you be dissatisfied or should your Khuk fail than you are likely to get with KH. They really are not known for their sterling customer service.

In the end, it is as I said the first time, it is you who is spending the money so it is you who is making the choices. Giving up after a single try though I think is a bit unfair. Personally, I would have gotten a couple of them when I got the first one, and had them shipped together to save a bit on the shipping, then made a choice. I am guessing you bought more than one from KH on your first order, am I right?
 
warty said:
The Madal Drum that is engraved on it is the mark of the Kami. Each of the Kamis at HI has their own unique mark. Perhaps you could take a quick look in the Stickie and see all the different ones there are, it is in one of the links, plus I made a PDF of all of them as well, all of the ones I knew of at the time at least.

I realized you were not in the USA by your name, I am guessing you are in Hong Kong, right? I wasn't suggesting you would be chopping people up with your Kobra, in fact the Kobra is not a warranted model @ HI either IIRC, I meant more than you would get a lot farther with Yangdu should you be dissatisfied or should your Khuk fail than you are likely to get with KH. They really are not known for their sterling customer service.

In the end, it is as I said the first time, it is you who is spending the money so it is you who is making the choices. Giving up after a single try though I think is a bit unfair. Personally, I would have gotten a couple of them when I got the first one, and had them shipped together to save a bit on the shipping, then made a choice. I am guessing you bought more than one from KH on your first order, am I right?
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Interesting about the madal drum. It looks a lot like the North Indian dhol. I'm North Indian and Nepali, but know a lot more about Indian culture than Nepali culture.

I am in Hong Kong. There are lots of ex-Gurkhas and their children here (and therefore quite a few khukuris). Lots of Nepalis in Hong Kong were born here during British rule, but most moved back to Nepal shortly after they were born and then moved back here to find work in their 20s.

I've actually had no issues with KH customer service, but my issues have been aesthetic. I felt the point on my first KH khuk wasn't properly finished, and they offered to send me a replacement on my next order. I thought that was fair, but I didn't take them up on their offer and told them to take care of their kamis instead of making me a replacement. I only ordered one khuk on my first KH order. The Kobra was the khuk I was most interested in since the other HI blades look extremely heavy, and I'm most interested in knives for martial application. The handle is blemished of course and I'm not complaining about that, but I expected the sheath to be better. The blade itself is great, however, although a little heavier than I expected, but it is one mean blade. :D
 
I've looked at that Sirupate (Famous), Jay.
Nowhere does it say that it comes with a 5"-6" handle. If you use the " search by size" feature it turns up nothing for sale in the 20"-21" size. I would be most interested to see if you get what you think you are getting.
 
Hi Karda,

It comes with a standard 4" handle, but you can have the handle upsized for no extra charge. KH lists khukuris by blade size, not overall size a la Himalayan Imports, so that's why there's that difference. Tack on 4" for overall length. You can always have the handles made in the length of your choice, and if it's not to your specs, you can keep the khukuri for free. I'm going to order one in a couple of weeks--I've spent a lot of money recently, so I can't justify a new khuk right now. :) Going to have to sell some less loved pieces.
 
I've pondered this a bit and it seems that this thread Is/has become not so much a review of an H.I. product, but an advertisement for Khukuri House. In that light i am moving it to the Cantina.
 
Karda said:
I've pondered this a bit and it seems that this thread Is/has become not so much a review of an H.I. product, but an advertisement for Khukuri House. In that light i am moving it to the Cantina.
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would have to agree, and a shameless one at that... no matter what you say to the guy, he is right there with the answer. Sounds more like he was trying to be the dissatisfied customer from the start than anything else to me. Not too sure how honest any of this has been at all. :jerkit:
 
I figured I'd get that response. I bought a right-handed khuk to see what all the fuss was about and I'm disappointed with what I got. If I felt the HI was worth the extra money, I would be buying non-blems, but I feel I get better khuks for less from KH. HI khuks are delivered fast and fit the hand well, but IMO the KHs are worth the wait. Ultimately each person has to decide for themselves how they want to spend their money. I know how I'll be spending mine, at least as far as the blades some of my ancestors carried are concerned. God bless you all, guys, I think you're all cool people, but I guess I'm immune to the HIKV. :)
 
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