Tora vs H.I.

[sweetcostarica]

Hello Everyone,

I just posted a comparison/review on YouTube called: Tora Blades vs Himalayan Imports.
Cut and paste the link below or type in the above tittle.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jT0wIA

This is a short basic review. This Spring/Summer (2012) I will field test the knives with wood, meat, etc. for the finial comparison.

 

[Karda]

Nicely Done!
As this is a comparison thread, i must move it from the showroom floor into the Cantina.

 

[JayGoliath]

SweetCostaRica,

I thoroughly enjoyed your video. Very well made intro and you made it very entertaining.

 

[sweetcostarica]

Thank you Karda. After I posted I thought I missed up :foot: but now I know to post my reviews here in the Cantina. Also, a thanks to JayGoliath for his kind words.

 

[AgileBrute]

That was a very well done and informative video. Thanks for sharing.

 

[jdk1]

Great job SweetCR! I also like that you mentioned Cold Steel. CS catches a lot of flak, but the CS Gurkha is a great khuk style blade and folks dote on their kukri machetes all over BF. IMHO, much of the popularity of khukuri in the US is due to CS's effective, and at times over the top, marketing. Lynn Thompson brought the blade style to the masses in the 80s and 90s, and still really does fill a lot of sheaths with the exotic blade. HI,Tora, and all the khukuri houses combined probably could never crank out as many curved blades as CS sales. Many of us cut our teeth on the likes of the LTC way back when and have only recently discovered true khukuri. I would say that CS KLOs are THE "gateway drug" into the world of handmade, Nepali khukuri. The curved, leaf-shaped blade is a pleasure to behold and once it's spell is cast, there is no going back. Thanks for helping to spread our disease, er hobby

 

[sweetcostarica]

I think you have a good point on how Lynn Thompson's curved blades have influenced the American market let alone the worlds. Other major companies like Ontario's Kukri, Kabar's Kukri, and Blackjack's Reinhardt Comabt Kukri (I just learned of this Kukri) just didn't excite like Cold Steel's products. But a key point is the CS Gurkha Kukri works very well, just like a genuine Khukuri.

Reinhardt Comabt Kukri is below second from the left

Note: Doesn't the Reinhardt look like a Cold Steel Gurkha Kukri .

 

[shortwinger]

Both the CS and the Blackjack are very impressive blades and almost perfect in balance, weight and feel.



The Blackjack is an absolute dream in hand but, because there are not many around, sadly I do not have the heart to chop with it. The CS I have used a lot for about two years and I have no complaints at all. It is a very well designed kukri and the fact that it has the absolute best sheath on the market it makes carrying it around and actually using it more likely.

But for a non-traditional kukri both of them hit it out of the park. Most of the others are really not kukri at all but rather machetes that have borrowed the kukri shape. At best you have something like the Ka-Bar Kukri that is a true hybrid and not a bad blade to include in your collection.

All of this having nothing to do with Tora or HI but you can't pass up an opportunity to break out the Blackjack! :eagerness:

 

[sweetcostarica]

Thanks for the side by side comparison. The cold steel has more of a curve to it. The trouble I have is I don't know the steel of Blackjack's Reinhardt Combat Kukri. The Reinhardt Combat Kukri looks good though.
Concerning the Blackjack Kukri II some people say: "Blackjack Kukri Models - AVOID". This is because of it's AUS-8 steel.
Below picture is the Kukri II

 

[Yangdu]

Great Video, thank you for sharing