Shop 1 Gelbu Special?

Svashtar

Svashtar

Joined
Dec 28, 2003
Messages
4,793
Wanted to share one of my few lucky finds: I was fortunate enough (in my opinion of course!) to get this khuk that I bought from a nice guy I corresponded with from Knifeforums. The pics he showed me prior to purchase reminded me of an 18" GS in general, with the exception of the handle being a beautifully carved rosewood. Also, the middle fuller is deeper than anything I have seen before, and the back of the blade is a huge .630" (5/8"+) across. OAL is 19" and weight is 33 oz.

The scabbard is covered with the shiny thin leather stuff and the frog is not that sturdy, but the scabbard is fit perfectly with not a mm of play. The karda is a full 7 1/2" long and very sharp and the chakma is only slightly shorter. They are also done in Rosewood and are larger than any karda or chakma I have seen on the HI blades I have bought to date.

I'm pretty sure this was a Shop 1 effort from some time past, and I wouldn't be surprised if Uncle Bill has seen it or something similar before, from what the seller told me.

I wish I could show you the pics the fellow sent me of the handle, but I don't have them here so my so-so pics will have to suffice. (I hope to get better quality as I learn. The one of the spine is disappointing. Perhaps a light box like Pen has will do the trick...?)

Anyway, it's one of those blades that just fills your hand perfectly and is a balancing dream. The carving is so well done evenly across the handle that it almost still feels smooth in your bare hand even though it is very deep. I still have several HI blades that I like more, but this one is definitely one of my new favorites. Unique anyway!

Regards,

Norm
 
like it a lot. I saw one of those ultra-thick spine GS a month back, looked like shop 1. Also note that the later GSs only had a single line for the SoS.

Fancy, nice snag!

Keith
 
DannyinJapan said:
that is awesome.
really really nice.
wanna trade ?
30" HI Gelbu.....
Click to expand...

Danny, with all of the cool stuff you have shown us I am honored that you would even ask! :) After I saw your 30" GS a few weeks ago I added it to my wish list, and hope to somehow get one some day from UB. (That and a 30" Chitlangi if anyone every makes one!) But...! This thing is so unique I don't think I'll part with it.

BTW, I noticed a nit which I'm sure is just a difference between kami's: this 19" GS and the 21" GS I have, as well as the one pictured on the HI site have a 20 degree break on the blade (as measured with my handy General protractor). The 18" pictured on the site has a 25 degree bend. Enough that it is apparent to the eye and gives a different look and I'm sure feel to the blade.

My Bura 21" GS is very nice, but I was very slightly disappointed that it does not have the blade width of the beautiful 21" pictured on the HI site. For some reason that blade really appeals to me. My 21" is a bit thinner in width and a bit longer I think. More of a siru look to it but very nice and balanced.

Thanks again for the kind words.

Regards,

Norm
 
Some khuks have "the look" I like.
Its like a fin above the water, they all kinda look alike, but once you see a great white fin, youll never again confuse it with a dolphin.
 
Ferrous Wheel said:
like it a lot. I saw one of those ultra-thick spine GS a month back, looked like shop 1. Also note that the later GSs only had a single line for the SoS.

Fancy, nice snag!

Keith
Click to expand...

Keith, that (the double line SoS) was the first thing I noticed as well. I had to refresh my memory by looking at the 18" GS on the HI site to confirm that it was a GS, or at least was closer to a GS than anything else I could find.

You know, in looking at this thing tonight I was telling myself that I would be a perfectly contented man if I had the skill to make a blade like this and carve a handle to rival this. To consider that people in that part of the world consider the artist who created this a "lower caste" person! Unbelievable. I hope wherever he is now that he is honored and appreciated and is still turning out this quality of work.

Regards,

Norm
 
I know how you feel. I have a few old shop 1 pieces that I cannot live without! All obtained in trade or secondary purchase.

Keith
 
DannyinJapan said:
Some khuks have "the look" I like.
Its like a fin above the water, they all kinda look alike, but once you see a great white fin, youll never again confuse it with a dolphin.
Click to expand...

Very well said!! I've been trying to put the same feeling into words with no luck. The UBS is like that to me, as is the YCS (sigh!), and of course The Chitlangi.

-N.
 
Well, not really unbelievable. Look at the sad state of arts and such in this country. Art classes get yanked form curriculums all the time when funding is tight.

Gotta find the niche mkts to make a living as an artist.

Back in the day, Geoffrey Chaucer (Canterbury Tales) had a day job writing accounting/inventories for the crown. Lewis Carroll (Thru the Looking Glass, Alice in Wonderland) was a math teacher by day.
 
I love the carved handle. nice grab indeed.
 
That model never really appealed to me till I got to handle Roadrunners at Khonvention. I didn't realize how stout (thick) the blade is on those. Really awesome.
 
i think im just going to have to forge my own 1" thick khuk to get it...

that things is goergious... do you know how thick it is at the deppest part of the fuller to fuller?
 
and it was far and away the sturdiest built GS I've seen. It had a 1/2+ spine, deeep fullers, which combined to make one sweet choppper slicer.

Keith
 
SethMurdoc said:
i think im just going to have to forge my own 1" thick khuk to get it...

that things is goergious... do you know how thick it is at the deepest part of the fuller to fuller?
Click to expand...

I can use a thickness gauge and find out this evening. Not really sure. You mean how thick the blade is at the thinnest point of the fuller, correct?

I _can_ tell you that with the 5/8" thick spine and the deep fuller the flow is really extreme looking. Come to think of it, I'm at my other system so let me see if I can find the original pics sent with it.

Here they are attached. Better than mine for sure. (For some reason this one pic shows what looks like rust at the tip, but it must have been a reflection in the steel because it was rust free when I got it.)

Thanks,

Norm
 
Svashtar said:
I can use a thickness gauge and find out this evening. Not really sure. You mean how thick the blade is at the thinnest point of the fuller, correct?
Click to expand...
yep :)

Svashtar said:
(For some reason this one pic shows what looks like rust at the tip, but it must have been a reflection in the steel because it was rust free when I got it.)
Norm
Click to expand...

looks like a reflection of trees...
 
I'm pretty sure it's not a Shop 1 though. If memory serves correctly, HI did not manufacture Gelbu Specials until they got Shop 2 up and running. Second, the frog on that scabbard is a dead giveaway. Shop 1 knives had a different type of frog. The frog on that scabbard is a transition between the old Shop 1 frogs and now ubiquitous HI superfrog. Third, I can't tell from the pics, but I don't think your khukuri has a scrolled buttcaps, standard issue with Shop 1 blades. Finally, and most importantly, check the initials on your GS. If it looks engraved, it comes from BirGorkha or Shop 2. But if the initials look stamped, it's a Shop 1 knife.
 
Norm,
how much did this gem cost? How are shop one and earlier HI prices holding per original cost, and how do they compare to new prices today?



munk
 
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