Prototypes

littleknife said:
Maybe we can call it the "Lefthandblack Chitlangi Bowie" (LCB) or the "Lefthandblack Himalayan Camp Knife" (LHCK) or the "Lefthandblack Chitlangi Hybrid" (LCH)?
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Ha! That would be cool. Heck, I just like "Chitlangi Bowie", keeps it simple.
 
A knife like that needs a sheath with something...


hmmm....

errrr....


Ahhh yesss!!!


SHARKSKIN INLAY!!!!!!!!!!!

it could also use some more cowbell!
 
Leatherface said:
A knife like that needs a sheath with something...


hmmm....

errrr....


Ahhh yesss!!!


SHARKSKIN INLAY!!!!!!!!!!!

it could also use some more cowbell!
Click to expand...


I agree, it could definitely use more Cowbell!:D
 
lefthandblack said:
Man, it really looks like Yvsa on the wood handled one in the first picture when I blow it up in photoshop. Maybe part of the word is cut off though.
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It was probably meant for me but I'm glad someone took it, after all these are *prototypes*. If I were to get one I would want it just exactly like the one lefthandblack designed and with the guard like on the horn handled model.
It appears that both of these have the rat tailed tang except that the horn handled one is pinned as well.
Nice knives but just don't have the Oomphf of the original design IMO.:(

I also really like the fair price on these as well. If one like the original model ever comes through I might have to try and snag it.;)
 
Yvsa said:
It was probably meant for me but I'm glad someone took it, after all these are *prototypes*. If I were to get one I would want it just exactly like the one lefthandblack designed and with the guard like on the horn handled model.
It appears that both of these have the rat tailed tang except that the horn handled one is pinned as well.
Nice knives but just don't have the Oomphf of the original design IMO.:(

I also really like the fair price on these as well. If one like the original model ever comes through I might have to try and snag it.;)
Click to expand...

I was wondering about the horn handled one, whether or not it was a chiruwa handle. It is hard to tell in the pics, but I have never seen a double pinned handle that was'nt chiruwa, but then again, I have'nt been around that long either. I guess we will see when it comes in the mail!:)
 
Thought I would make a post with the two differently designed knives in it together and to bring all the knives over to what's Page 2 for me.;) :D

The bottom single knife that lefthandblack designed has an almost serpentine blade with a noticably dropped point on it and compared with the straight blades with the points on the top like most Western Knives are made the one lefthandblack designed sings to me while the others, although very nice, just don't have anything to say to me let alone sing! :(

The almost serpentine blade with the noticeable dropped point sings to me of just right conditions for romance with the most beautiful girl in the world that belongs to you and you alone and you to her and her alone.
Beautiful full moonlight with a whisper of a breeze with a gentle smell of luxurious and exotic flowers that are very, very, seducing and the beautiful night is just cool enough that bare bodies will be comfortable on the silk cloths and there are no worries and no time constraints for either of you. You know that your life together is always going to be perfect because that's what the song is singing to you.

Yea, I'd come up with the money for it someway. Might have to sell a couple, three Marble's to get it but for something that would sing to me like that, well.... Y'all know, everybody has felt those emotions at least once in their lives no matter how fleeting.:thumbup: :D :cool: ;) :o

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chit_companion1.jpg
 
Yvsa's name appeared in return to a apparently forewarded message by Yangdu regarding his suggestions on the sheath.

I think it is wonderful the way Yangdu listens to us and results appear quickly.



munk
 
I love the blade and the guard on these protypes...but would prefer the handles be flatter (not so rounded), more evenly tapered (guard to butt) and thicker overall...so that they would fill the hand better. My thinking is that a bowie or fighter style knife will be used less for chopping than a khukri. (I believe that one reason a khukri's handle is bigger at the butt than near the blade is so it won't fly out of a slippery hand while chopping.) In my opinion, flat slab type grips give you a better "feel" for where the edge is. I'd avoid adding finger notches (like on the "Bura fighter" that was recently shown) because these notches are unlikely to comfortably fit everyone's fingers. (Each person holds a knife the way that feels comfortable to them...with fingers either more or less spread at different locations on the grip and of course everyone has different size hands.)

Regards,
Bill
 
AOE4 said:
I love the blade and the guard on these protypes...but would prefer the handles be flatter (not so rounded)...
In my opinion, flat slab type grips give you a better "feel" for where the edge is. I'd avoid adding finger notches (like on the "Bura fighter" that was recently shown) because these notches are unlikely to comfortably fit everyone's fingers.
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Bill, at 15" this knife is potentially as much a fighter as a great outdoor/camp knife. Most people will use it as a camp knife and I doubt it it will be much used in real knife fights.

I agree that a more oval crossection of the handle would be beneficial. However a small ring in the position where it is right now would be an added bonus: for chopping and for a distinct Nepali/Himalayan feature.

I found that even a tall, protruding ring can be comfortable on a khukuri handle, if
A) the edge of the ring is rounded (not sharp);
B) the position of the ring is closer to the buttcap, allowing for a generous front portion of the handle;
C) there is still enough length left for the butt flare (i.e. the whole handle is longer than on the traditional Nepali khukuries); and
D) the crosection of the handle is oval (flatter) rather than round, both in the front (pre-ring) and in the rear (flare) sections.

What I like about the HI khukuri handles is, that one frequently can find longer handles with these design features, which make these handles usable in several, slightly different grip positions and one can adjust the perfect grip according to the size of his/her hand and the task intended (light vs. heavy chopping vs. whittling type cuts).
From the around 20 khuks I purchased from HI, some had less comfortable handles, and all of those had round and/or short front pre-ring handle sections and sometimes sharp ring edges.
The sharp edges can be particularly annoying on the harder horn handles.
I have an otherwise spectacular horn Bura BAS (from my very first purchase), where the round front section and the initially sharp ring edge made it very uncomfortable to grip. I rounded down the edges, but the round front section still makes it less comfortable to hold than my other khuks with oval handles (many of them made by Bura).

I remember Yvsa repeatedly pleading for oval crossections in the khuk handles, and I completely agree with him and AOE4 on this issue. I think a proper handle crossection is as important for a user knife as the proper heat treatment of the blade. The Nepali kami tradition got it right: the oval crossection of the older khuks is superior to the round, or flat, or fingergrooved handle designs seen on so many modern large western knives, the latter created with the main purpose to sell them to armchair warriors and mall ninjas, or to collectors who never use them. Flat, round or fingergrooved handles can be very useful on small, specialized knives, but are rarely good for large user knives.

As for ommitting the ring and making a completely smooth handle, what is the point to make just another typical American Bowie? There are several Bowie designs in production already in the HI line.
On the other hand, if there is a high demand for this, why not?

I however think this knife design should retain both the chitlangi handles and the fantastic double fullers, as Lefthandblack designed it.:thumbup:
This makes it a uniquely Himalayan Import knife with the exciting and exotic combination of both the best of Nepali bladesmithing and the American Bowie traditions, combining them into a new harmony.

I think the Chitlangi handle features, if properly executed, make this design very useful for both a heavy duty camp knife and a unique collector/display item. In both cases the Nepali handle design is superior IMHO to a plain, smooth handle.

Both Lefthandblack's design and Kumar's execution are pure knife-poetry.
:thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:
 
Thanks for the compliments on the design littleknife, it is appreciated.

You hit the nail on the head with your above post. While it is true that the handle could be changed to a more traditional bowie style as AOE4 recommends, the original design was meant to be a matching companion blade to a larger Chitlangi, therefore utilizing the design features of its larger brother. I wanted this design to have a consistant feel with all of HI's other products as well by maintaining a traditional Khukuri handle. Anyone can make a bowie knife, but not anyone can make a Chitlangi Bowie like the master Kumar has done here.
 
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