The Toughest Knife

Mine's a LOT bigger than yours!

AKBOWIE 16" oal, 2 1/2" wide blade
SUPERSAL 20" oal, 2 15/16" wide blade

AKBOWIE 7/16" spine, 2.25 lbs. wgt.
SUPERSAL 10/16" spine, 3.50 lbs. wgt.

http://www.bladeforums.com/ubb/Forum26/HTML/000331.html


Take a look and see for yourself.



[This message has been edited by Rusty (edited 11 December 1999).]
 
Rusty is right. Tie your shoelaces extra tight before you click on that link or it'll knock your socks off!

-Cougar Allen :{)
 
Cougar,

Rusty's knife doesn't scare me half as much as whomever big enough to wield it. The guy must be at least eight feet tall and 400 lbs - now thats scary
smile.gif
.
 
I remember that, the Frankenstein khukuri. Put your coffee down, or you might spray it all over the monitor through your nose.

Anyone remember the 700 inch thick khukuri project?
smile.gif
 
Speaking of 8 foot tall, 400 pound hairy monsters with big feet, does Cliff Stamp have a Super Salyan? I don't know ... I know he has an Ang Khola Bowie on order, though.

If you read the whole thread Rusty posted the link to, it seems that first Super Salyan was made by mistake, basically, and HI made several more but they aren't making them any more because Bill Martino thought it looked "stubby." So the Ang Khola Bowie still could be The Toughest Knife that's currently available ... all the returns aren't in yet, though; I posted a link in the Shop Talk forum and a new entry in the contest could appear at any moment ... boy, this is exciting ... like election night, only without knowing in advance an official party politician is going to be declared the winner....

I think Tall Winged Goat is referring to the 800 Pound Salyan that the kamis almost made because they couldn't read Bill's handwriting (or something like that; I don't remember the exact details, but it was a miscommunication) -- fortunately they thought there might be some mistake and checked to make sure before they went ahead and forged it....
smile.gif


-Cougar Allen :{)
 
TallWingedGoat: the 800 pound salyan came when Bill sent some specs to Nepal. One was for a spine thickness of 7/16". As I recall, the 16th's accidentally got dropped leaving a spine thickness of 7 inches. Fortunately Gelbu contacted Bill and suggested a 7" thick blade would be awfully heavy.

Not2sharp: who said anything about weilding the thing? With a 5/8th inch spine, all it takes is dropping in on your toe.

Cougar: Cliff does have a Salyan. The edge was a bit soft, so it was sent back to Nepal for re-heat treating. I'm not sure if or when it got back. If I recall correctly, he found it to chop better than his 22" AK, at least in some respects.

The AKB is definitely the most awesome straight blade HI has in their regular line, though it should really be paired with matching 10" OAL karda and chakma. The Ganga Ram special and the 22" AK are still larger but they aren't bowies.

Apparently khukuries are hardened but not separately tempered due to an innate tempering process from the very thick unquenched spine reheating and drawing the edge hardness. With the Salyan 5/8ths spine being thicker than usual, there is little wonder some adjustments had to be made in the hardening process.

Cougar is absolutely correct in that the Super Salyan wasn't what they tried to order. Therefore, no more will be made ( unless they get 5 or 6 crazies to order another run done ).

I actually liked the looks of the first run AKBowies better though they weren't to specs.

Thanks for the topic Cougar. This is fun. Hey, if they have monster truck pulls, why can't we have monster chopping knives?

------------------
Somewhere, a village is being deprived of an idiot.


 
Good idea, but ... those monster trucks are expensive ... I'm afraid the owners would object to us testing our knives on them ... sure would be fun, though....
smile.gif


-Cougar Allen :{)
-----------------------------------------
------------------------------------------
This post is not merely the author's opinions; it is the truuuuuuuuth. This post is intended to cause dissension and unrest and upset people, and ultimately drive them mad. Please do not misinterpret my intentions in posting this.
 
Well, I have to aim for the opposite "bigger-ain't-necessarily-better POV. My vote is for either of these two of Sean Perkins knives from my collection:

<center>
2perkins.jpg
</center>

<center>
2perkins2.jpg
</center>

<center>
chineseperkins.jpg
</center>

The smaller Perkins knife is the Seraph (4" oal) while the larger is the Stygia (2" blade w/ 3" handle). The other knife pictured is also very tough...my custom-made Madpoet Chinese Utility Fixed blade kit knife. The Perkins knives are differentially hardened 1/4" A-2 tool steel. TOUGH mothers!
wink.gif


------------------
My Custom Kydex Sheath page:
http://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/Lab/1298/frames.html
Palmer College of Chiropractic
On Two Wheels
agocs_s@dd.palmer.edu
Madpoet (Mel Sorg, Jr.) Tribute page:
http://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/Lab/1298/madpoet/main.html



[This message has been edited by Chiro75 (edited 12 December 1999).]
 
Chiro: Not bad - 16 to 1 blade length to thickness on the little 4" oal. Scale that up to 16 inches long and you'd have a 1 inch spine. At 20" oal it'd be 5/4ths" thick.

Hey Cougar: check your email.

Got another great topic in mind but I don't have a scanner and I really need to put a picture of this knife up. We'll make Vampire Gerbil and his micra quake with fear at this upcoming thread.
 
I had a large Salyan, since it had a wider blade than the AK it outcut it across the board. I figured that it might be weaker because of the width (leaving the edge too thin) so I slammed it into a tree and did a few pullups with only the edge supporting my weight and later repeated this with a deadlift movement on a felled tree. The blade held up fine. Best handle to blade ratio I have ever seen on a khukuri.

-Cliff
 
David,

That bad boy looks pretty sweet, can't wait until Allen finishes mine.

------------------
The vague and tenuous hope that GOD is too kind to punish the ungodly has become a deadly opiate for the conscience of millions.

*A. W. Tozer

2 Cor 5:10

 
This Steve Brooks knife is pretty dog gone tuff, 3/16" at the spine and distal taper both directions, very sharp and handy size!

Specs:
The knife is very nice, with a Damascus blade that is made of L6 and 5160, the bolster is also made of 5160.
Blade length is 3 1/8"
Overall length is 7"
Blade thickness is 3/16" with tapered tang
Handle is Ziricote (sp) wood.


brooks1.jpg


G2
OOPS, I knew it was 3/ somethin'....good idea about asking for specs, then you can get the apples into the apple basket and not mix them with the oranges!

------------------
If you can't be kind,
at least have the decency to be vague. Stephen Wright

www.geocities.com/Yosemite/Cabin/7306/blades.html

Gillett PA



[This message has been edited by Gary W. Graley (edited 13 December 1999).]
 
I agree short thick knives deserve to be considered. Sean Perkins' knives are monsters too. With one of those and a stick to hammer it with ... it would take you longer to destroy a monster truck but you could certainly do it. Specs, everybody, please! What's the length of that knife, Gary? What are the specs on that Allen Blades bowie?

Pictures are great, but if Gary hadn't said his entry is 3/8" thick we wouldn't know from the picture ... the picture of that Allen Blades bowie doesn't show whether it's a tough knife either.

-Cougar Allen :{)
 
Hello,

The Specs on the picture David posted are as follows:

Blade: Zone hardened and triple tempered
5160 Carbon steel 1/4 inch Stock,
7 inch long blade. Fully Flat ground.

Fittings : Brass cross guard, 6061 aircraft grade Butt cap, Black canvas micarta handle

Sheath ; Black .093 Consealex with Attached fixed belt loop.

that is the 7 inch version ,,although i do make it in a 6 inch and all the way up to a 12 inch Blade(my favorite is the 10")

Toughest is a Relative term,,,,,but i can tell you , that I havent been able to hurt them out in the field. maybe a little scuffed up from using them ,,but thats why i offer a Free Refinish on them .

Thanks,

Allen Blade

 
Allen Blade,

Wow that is a very attractive knife. Is that a coated blade or bead blasted? What did you use as spacers? And do you have a website?

A question about micarta, I've heard of paper micarta, canvas micarta, linen micarta. But why no kevlar micarta?



[This message has been edited by tallwingedgoat (edited 14 December 1999).]
 
I've never heard of kevlar micarta, either, but there is such a thing as kevlar-filled epoxy. I posted something about tests I did on a brand of kevlar-filled epoxy putty called Miracle Weld in the Shop Talk forum, a while back. It's very tough stuff; it would make a good knife handle.

-Cougar Allen :{)
 
The very first post at the start of this thread has the final AKBowie made to the design specs. Below are links to two other versions.

Non-spec AKBowie prototypes pics at:

http://www.bladeforums.com/ubb/Forum26/HTML/000711.html

William A. (Bill) Siegle AKBowie derivative at:

http://www.bladeforums.com/ubb/Forum26/HTML/000947.html

So there you have it: clip, straight, and spearpoint 15" AKBowie versions.

They make the khukuris even BIGGER!!!




------------------
Somewhere, a village is being deprived of an idiot.


 
I guess kevlar micarta would be pretty hard for the handle maker to cut. Still it would be hell tough, theoritically.
 
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