The Cherokee Rose in steel and this one is no joke. Pix.

Originally posted by Bill Martino
I'm almost certain that the changes Bura has made is because he's thinking about a production run. After all, he's the foreman. He could make that knife 99.5 percent true to the model but it's going to take him 3 or 4 times longer because he'll do it all by hand. If he can use the "modern" equipment he can cut costs and make a much more affordable knife and that's what he is wanting to know. Would we rather pay 5 or 6 hundred dollars for a 100% handmade copy or $200 for a "modern method" copy?
Click to expand...

What is the "modern method"?
 
"Modern" is a relative term. There will always be a great deal of handwork at Birgorka.
 
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Just got off the phone with Yvsa, bro, and he's going to take a few days off of the forum. Didn't mention this to him.

When it shows up, he can make up his own mind. I'll bet it's close enough to be acceptable if you can get the weight down a bit.

So we'll just wait and see.
 
When you get down and helpless you generally are not in the best of moods. Good idea for Yvsa to take it easy for awhile.

Modern methods are using a grinder rather than stone and file, using a hand drill rather than two men using a bow and string, using an electric fan rather than leather bellows, etc.

The modern methods have allowed us to lower prices and increase quality. They're here to stay.

But as Finn indicated, we are far from a CNN equipped shop.
 
Iunt un!!!! Gibme, Gibme, Gibme!!!
(but I know that it can get better...so)
Give me one now...another one later, and then in a bit a 3rd...:D
Wait....oh yeah...college.:( Food:( gas for transportation:(

I can only do what I can.
 
Don't take me wrong fellas- it's a beautiful blade.

What I meant is the blade of the model has no noticeable secondary bevel as is visible in the picture of the prototype- the proto Rose seems to have more of a saber grind.

- The Sabre Grind

The sabre grind is a strong edge format. The bevel starts around the
middle of the blade, and proceeds flatly towards the edge. This
leaves a strong edge for chopping and other hard use. But it also
means the edge will be fairly thick, so this design will not
necessarily slice all that well.

The sabre grind is found on many military classic designs such as the
Randall #1 and the kabar.

- The Convex Grind

Also called the Moran grind, after Bill Moran. This grind is as you
would expect, the grind arcs down in a convex curve down to the edge.
This means the point can be very sharp, because there's no secondary
bevels to create the edge itself, just two intersecting arcs. There
is also a fair amount of steel behind the edge, because the convex
arcs cause the edge to widen non-linearly. This is a strong-edge
format, which won't penetrate like a flat grind but will be stronger.
Knifemakers form this grind on a flat-belt grinder. A disadvantage of
this grind is if you don't have a flat-belt grinder yourself, it is
difficult to touch up the edge.

from The Blade Geometry FAQ by Joe Talmadge

I may be confused; its been known to happen.
:confused: :)

Patrick Mc
 
BirGorkha doesn't have a belt grinder and I'm not sure but I think if they did they would have to find a way to manufacture their own sanding belts because I don't think they are available in Nepal. This means the work the belt grinder does in minutes has to be done by hand and it's time consuming.
 
The "Moran Grind" was done on stone (wheels when available) millenia before Mr. Moran made his appearance.
 
Bura is thinking about production, I'm certain. He doesn't want to drill a curved hole in the handle so he straightened it out and he wants to get as much of the blade work done with machines as he can. He's thinking cost and that's not bad. He's coming as close as he can while still keeping the cost down. We would rather sell this knife for $200 than $500 and Bura is trying to do just this. Everything is a trade off but we'll maintain the quality no matter what the final design looks like.

But I'm revising my original model vs steel to 85 or 90 percent. I'll keep my quality estimate at 98%.
 
Great looking first effort!.....Scabbard is really nice---I love the heart shaped chape!....I can't wait for the finished product!...I was going to get a dui chirra chitlangi---I might just hafta order both at once! Debt is still good right?
 
Looks pretty darn good to me! You guys are getting too technacal. The knife is going to cut well if it is flat ground, convex, concaved, hollow, sabre or what ever! Being handmade and different kamis making it the knife is always going to come out different just like the 10 different Ang Khola's I have. I even have an AK that turned out with a hollowed out blade like a GS!!:eek:

This knife is a fine one and I'd be proud to have it in my collection! Good job Yvsa and Bura!!:)
 
newbie observations after a think on this:

How many wooden models did Yvsa make before the final version? And how long did it take him? I seem to recall him saying he worked on it for a year and produced several versions...Surely duplicating such an effort in the real medium could be expected to require considerable effort as well. Adding in the real-world considerations such as cost of production is yet another factor. I suspect that trying to produce the first prototype AND at the same time, attempt to do so under the constraints of final production cost is pair of challenges that few modern US companies would undertake at the same time. I am most impressed with the this effort.
 
I'll let Bro answer that when he gets up and about again but I know he spend considerable time and effort on that model. The handle on the model was beautiful and BirGorkha will never be able to match it -- just too damned perfect.
 
It is Yvsa's project and he is the one that need to be happy with the end result. I think it looks great and if my model came out that good with all things considered I'd be a happy camper! You are right Uncle Bill, Yvsa made a perfect model but I think BirGorkha will be able to pull it off! Those guys are very skilled craftsmen!
 
Now if the USPS will get around to delivering the darn thing to Yvsa...
 
Slept 4 hours this afternoon ( fighting an ear and throat infection that returned to haunt me ). Woke up and saw your post, immediately ran to the post office. They'd put it in a locker and left the locker's key in my mailbox.

Knowing you and Pala I pretty well knew what it was before I got to the post office. Like you said, that elk horn that I sent, Pala cut up to everyone's displeasure because of the stink, that gave Pala and me lung problems, has now come full circle. My thanks to you all.

It is special. It's just a little bit homely. It speaks of honest strength. And given everything, it is beautiful.
 
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