received my first -- a 15" "Amtrak" Sirupati

C

cognitivefun

Joined
Oct 24, 2004
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I am in awe.

I will gather my thoughts and write some more (sorry but you won't get off this easy :) )

Question: what are the little knives for? And isn't there a sharpening steel somewhere here?
 
Ah, the little knives.

The really dull one is called a chakma or chakmah, and it's used as a blade burnisher, kinda like you'd use a kitchen steel. Back in the good ol' days, it was also used to strike flint to make fire.

The other, not-so-dull knife is called the karda. It's basically a utility knife for small tasks for which the khukuri is not particularly well suited.

The khukuri, karda, and chakmah make for a very convenient package.
 
Thank you...

A few more questions...the balance and the way the handle and the blade all flow together is really fantastic. Is this a full tang knife? How would I tell if it is or isn't?

Also, how would I use the chakma?
 
Someone mentioned that you can use an ohm-meter to check if there is continuity between the blade and the little steel piece on the buttcap. I figure you can wire up a battery and a small flashlight bulb to test this as well.

Having access to an x-ray machine may also be helpful.

Chakma use is hard to explain. It's used to realign any little rolls and oopsies in the edge you get when you cut stuff. Similar to a butcher's steel. I use the edge (others use the flat) and wipe away from the edge. Sort of like smoothing out the cutting edge with the piece of steel.

:confused:

Don't forget to "goop" the horn handles every now and then to keep em' from cracking.
 
Well, it depends on what you mean by full tang. The chiruwa models have a full tang with handle slabs pinned on both sides. You can tell if you have this style because you'll be able to see the metal of the tang between the two slabs. The other style of tang is the enclosed tang. This tang is completely enclosed by the handle material. The tang does taper down through the length of the handle, but it's still very substantial. The chances of breaking either type of tang are pretty slim. The end of the enclosed tang generally extends past the brass buttplate on the end of the handle and is peened over a diamond-shaped brass keeper. You should be able to see the silver of the steel in the center of the brass buttplate and keeper.

The chakmah is used by CAREFULLY running it down the edge of the khukuri to align it, much like a butcher's steel. I'll let somebody else cover particular techniques.
 
Thanks for the responses. Now I'm thinking should I get the 25inch Sirupati :confused: :) :D

Uh oh, the virus is setting in...
 
You should get a choppy knife now that you have a pokey knife.

Just my opinion though. :)
 
Cog, if you have a butcher's steel or even a knife with a hardened spine you'd be better off using that for burnishing over the chakma. Many of the chakmas aren't as hardened as they should be, which reduces their effectiveness in steeling the khuk's edge.

Bob
 
Big Bob said:
Cog, if you have a butcher's steel or even a knife with a hardened spine you'd be better off using that for burnishing over the chakma. Many of the chakmas aren't as hardened as they should be, which reduces their effectiveness in steeling the khuk's edge.

Bob
Click to expand...

Good point. You can always try the chakmah and see if it scratches. If he surface gets all scratched up, it's probably not as hard as the khukuri and won't do you much good.
 
Interesting, I never knew that. mine is getting scratched up everywhere. i thought it was supposed to be that way. interesting stuff
 
Why aren't the chakmas properly hardened? I mean, it shouldn't be that difficult or even time consuming to uniformly harden a chunk of steel.
 
I just got back inside after chopping up a big fallen branch with a very hard knotty center. Wow! Chopping was fun.

The khukri really dug in. To some extent I realize that I could improve my technique but it is a pleasure to have such a solid solid tool that is also beautiful.

I will want to sharpen it now...it did not dull but I can see some spots that could at least be steeled. I did try the chakma but since I don't yet know what I'm doing I'm not sure I'm doing any good.

I have a Global diamond steel and I might just try to steel the blade a bit with that as it both straightens and removes the smallest bit of metal...
 
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