- Joined
- Sep 7, 2004
- Messages
- 64
The idea to this project did not come from me, I was inspired by a website I found a few months ago. Link here: http://www.m4040.com/Survival/Ghurka/Khukri Modification.htm . I was intrigued by the khukri modification on that particular site, and started reading up on this blade style. This happened at the same time when I started getting into bigger knives for added chopping power – a quest initiated by the purchase of my beloved Busse NO-E. I came to the conclusion that I need a khukri! I admire and collect all sorts of antique edged weapons and tools, but when it comes to user knives I dislike traditional looks and prefer the appearance and “benefits” of modern materials. So I decided to make a khukri modification similar to the one on M4040-s homepage. The Sarco khukri propagated by the website was so expensive to import that the whole idea of using a cheap khuk was moot. So, after reading Cliff Stamp’s HI khukri reviews, and lurking in the HI forums for a while, I decided that HI was the way to go – they’re reputed to make some of the best khukris out there. So I got my 16,5” WWII from a fellow forumite in the Exchange forums (A special thanks to you, RAT-30, for having the trust to send this khukri halfway around the world!).
I decided to document my work with the WWII – I did not use a lot of tools, just what most of us have at home (the most hi-tech items were sandpaper, a Swisstool and the Dremel). Modifying this knife was great fun, so I hope you enjoy this small “tutorial”!
The original khuk as photographed by RAT-30:
The fist thing was to sand off the handle rings. They felt very uncomfortable in my hands. I also changed the shape of the upper part of the butt; it feels less restrictive in chopping now. The polished handle feels great, but is a bit too slippery (more on this later):
Next, I removed some small scratches and kinks in the blade and straightened and deepened the blade grooves using a Dremel and some needle files (they’re still not perfectly straight). This took quite some elbow grease… I etched the blade using vinegar in a plastic bottle (heated by warm water in the kitchen sink). I also removed the cho – this was a tough decision, but I prefer the functionality of a choil (I also removed a potential stress riser (?)).
The result:
Removing the leather from the wooden scabbard slabs was easy, I just pulled out the nails and removed the thread that held the stitching in the back.
The sheath slabs were sanded and impregnated with varnish. To hold them together and to increase the water resistance they were covered with electrician’s tape. A strip of the original leather was left to protect the edges:
A small piece of wood was applied to the front of the sheath to provide extra grip purchase for the belt frog.
A piece of green canvas was folded over and fitted to the scabbard. The edges were marked and then sewn on a sewing machine. The sock-like covering was turned inside out (to hide the stitching) and pulled over the sheath:
(Continued in the next post)
I decided to document my work with the WWII – I did not use a lot of tools, just what most of us have at home (the most hi-tech items were sandpaper, a Swisstool and the Dremel). Modifying this knife was great fun, so I hope you enjoy this small “tutorial”!
The original khuk as photographed by RAT-30:
The fist thing was to sand off the handle rings. They felt very uncomfortable in my hands. I also changed the shape of the upper part of the butt; it feels less restrictive in chopping now. The polished handle feels great, but is a bit too slippery (more on this later):
Next, I removed some small scratches and kinks in the blade and straightened and deepened the blade grooves using a Dremel and some needle files (they’re still not perfectly straight). This took quite some elbow grease… I etched the blade using vinegar in a plastic bottle (heated by warm water in the kitchen sink). I also removed the cho – this was a tough decision, but I prefer the functionality of a choil (I also removed a potential stress riser (?)).
The result:
Removing the leather from the wooden scabbard slabs was easy, I just pulled out the nails and removed the thread that held the stitching in the back.
The sheath slabs were sanded and impregnated with varnish. To hold them together and to increase the water resistance they were covered with electrician’s tape. A strip of the original leather was left to protect the edges:
A small piece of wood was applied to the front of the sheath to provide extra grip purchase for the belt frog.
A piece of green canvas was folded over and fitted to the scabbard. The edges were marked and then sewn on a sewing machine. The sock-like covering was turned inside out (to hide the stitching) and pulled over the sheath:
(Continued in the next post)
