pre-WWI khukuri (late 19th c.?) [pics]

Originally posted by John Powell
Ben, there was no such thing as British India after 1947. The were Gurkha regiments that stayed under the auspices of the new Indian Government, but this knife does not fit under that category. If anything this might have been from the Nepalese Army, but I doubt it.
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John, by 'British/India' I meant could it be from a British OR an Indian Gurkha regiment...but that doesn't seem to be the case. Oh well, win some, lose some. cheers, B.
 
Ben, the sharpened chakmak is not all that uncommon. I have a '50's vintage sirupati that has two, obviously original, kardas, and Yvsa designed the HI YCS with the same feature. There are threads discussing this somewhere (I am too lazy to look today), but the basic idea is this: It's easy to lose one of the by-knives, and if you lose the karda you are handicapped for delicate cutting tasks. It's no problem to steel the blade with the back side of the karda, but it's mighty hard to cut anything with the front edge of the chakmak :rolleyes:
Berk
 
Thanks Berk. That makes sense about the chakma/kardas.

Any final 'valuations' on this '19th c.'[sic] 1960s khukuri?

Any more suggestions for determining wood v. horn handle?

cheers all, Ben.
 
Any more suggestions for determining wood v. horn handle?
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Heat the tip of a sewing needle to red hot, and stick it into the handle in an inconspicuous location. If it smells like burning hair, it's horn.
 
I'm betting on it being horn.

Beo, I still think you have a good using khuk there. Go out and chop something!


--Mike L.
 
Originally posted by Mike L.
I'm betting on it being horn.

Beo, I still think you have a good using khuk there. Go out and chop something!


--Mike L.
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I'm going to do the hot-needle test in a bit and we'll know--it seems so much like wood to me, but I'm beginning to think you might be right about it being horn.

Yes, I think it is a good using khuk--it's well made, but I was also partially buying it for its supposed history...so I might think about selling it (as I've sort of fallen into starting to collect I need sort through what I want to keep & what I don't).

cheers, B.
 
Good info and thanks all. I'm not sure which spelling is correct, chakma or chakmak, but either seems to identify the tool which is the main duty. Years ago when I asked some kami what he called the tool what I heard sounded like chakma and that's the spelling I've used ever since.
 
Originally posted by beoram


I'm going to do the hot-needle test in a bit and we'll know--it seems so much like wood to me, but I'm beginning to think you might be right about it being horn.

Yes, I think it is a good using khuk--it's well made, but I was also partially buying it for its supposed history...so I might think about selling it (as I've sort of fallen into starting to collect I need sort through what I want to keep & what I don't).

cheers, B.
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Well Mike (& others) - you're right, it's horn-smells like burnt hair. Shows what I know ;) :o ;) .

cheers again, B.
 
Originally posted by Berkley
Ben, the sharpened chakmak is not all that uncommon. I have a '50's vintage sirupati that has two, obviously original, kardas, and Yvsa designed the HI YCS with the same feature. There are threads discussing this somewhere (I am too lazy to look today), but the basic idea is this: It's easy to lose one of the by-knives, and if you lose the karda you are handicapped for delicate cutting tasks. It's no problem to steel the blade with the back side of the karda, but it's mighty hard to cut anything with the front edge of the chakmak :rolleyes:
Berk
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Berk's exactly right as usual. It has been quite a while back Berk.;)

Ben I once asked Uncle Bill another one of my incessant questions when I 1st came aboard about the ideal khukuri to take into the bush if the foretold fecal matter hit the oscillating device I think it was, if not something similar.
Uncle Bill replied he would sharpen the chakma giving himself another knife.
And of course I asked him why and he replied something like, "In case you lose the karda you still have a small knife. And one cannot cut with the chakma.":rolleyes:
That made perfect sense to me and was the biggest reason the YCS has 2 karda's. The 3 cornered awl is so that one can poke a hole in the newer greater materials as well as some of the old canvases and not create a tear.
IIRC Uncle Bill also said something real close to what Berk said, "Ben, the sharpened chakmak is not all that uncommon."
And so it must be, coming from two men who do know their khukuri's.:)

I also made replacement kardas for my 18" AK and added one of the smaller 1st Kumar Kardas to my GRS rig along with the chakma and standard karda.

One thing that really becomes interesting as one uses and uses a khukuri more and more is the familiarity one develops with the khuk and the little tools.
The small kardas are actually a whole lot more effective than when 1st seen or 1st thought.
We've become way to accustomed to the sharpened prybar as a knife over the years.
I can recall when the little cheap thin bladed Imperial hunting knives were the standard for skinning out most deer and elk in Orofino Idaho in the early '50's!!!!!:eek:
 
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