The Kunai

[sonofholhorse]

I have a friend who is very paramount on trying to get a functional, fully-sharpened and heat-treated kunai

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kunai

made for a collection of his, but as I've been searching no (reputable) major manufacturer seems to make one, so I told him to try a custom maker. Does anyone know of someone who either a) has tried making one before, or b) has a thing for unconventional designs and might be willing to take a stab at it?

Any help would be highly appreciated.

 

[DannyinJapan]

I hate to sound like a know it all, but in point of fact, I wrote a large % of the kunai article on wikipedia. ( and rewrote it as little cartoon-crackers kept changing things )
A kunai (which, in Japanese means " a "useless, nothing" (basically) is not heat treated nor is it fully sharpened. That would make it less than useless as they are often gripped by the blade and would remove your fingers if they were sharpened full-length.
Imagine a garden trowel mixed with a smatchet and a tire iron. Cheap, hand-forged IRON (not steel) roughly knife- shaped CLUB with a rough edge and a pointy end. Do you know what a climbing piton is? That is another good western tool that approximates a kunai.
They were used to smash mortar and wooden sashes on castle windows as well as for fighting. Despite TV and cartoon ideas, they were not double-edged daggers and are not" knives" at all. Being knives would make them useless. They are like hammers that can be used to fight "like" a knife. The point should be just sharp enough to poke out an eye or rip open the throat, but the edges need to be round enough for a safe grip for you.
If you send me your email, I'll send you pics and sizes.