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I have just recently started choking up on the handles.
The last YCS and the BGRS have handles that aren't as long as some of the other khukuris and I for one prefer the shorter handles.
These 2 make it more comfortable to hold the handle with the center ridge between my ring and pinky fingers instead of between my middle and ring fingers.
I haven't had a chance to try this with my other khuk's yet so don't know how that will affect them and I may learn something I never thought of before because of the longer handles.
The only handles that have been absolutely way Too Big for me are the ones on the bigger khuk's like the Super Salyan and the standard GRS. I have cut both of them down to fit my hand but I have kept the original design.
Rusty has mentioned that the handle size of his Super Salyan is that of a large Mag-Lite and that's way too large for me to use comfortably while swinging a blade of that
size.
One thing that I almost always do with the handles that have a flat butt cap is too use a small sharp file too cut an angled groove into the junction of the butt cap and the wood or horn.
This effectivey removes the sharp burr that's often there caused by the little bit of natural shrinkage
in the wood or horn.
And by removeing the burr it makes the handle more comfortable when your hand does slip backwards.
That burr can and will cut you, I Know!!!!
One thing I have noticed lately about the handles is that they're more round than they used to be.
Even Terry Sisco has mentioned this too me.
It used to be that the handles were more oval or egged shaped, with the smaller part of the egg at the bottom, making them easier to hang on too even if they were larger.
And believe me Terry has some Large Hands!!! Hell, Terry is Large all Over!!!
But the kamis know we usually have much larger hands than they do and so make them larger to fit us.
I have no problem modifying a khukuri handle if it's too big or even rounding the sharper points off the pommel, but I do it _minimumlly_ so to not mess up the reason for it being the way it is in the first place. And in the modifying I make the handle more egg shaped since it does fit the hand better AFAIAC.
I bought a top of the line production knife that the handle was way too thick and square for me.
I remodeled it bit at a time and may still need to do more.
The thickness of the handle is okay, but the squareness of it had to go, so I rounded the corners off.
Then the handle was too thick up and down so I took some of the belly off as well as some off the back.
And I may need to do some more to have it exactly like I want it but I am taking it slow and easy since I want it just right and not too small.
I don't know if I have voided the warranty and don't really care since the knife was no good for me the way it was.
And this way it is personalized just for me.
The bottom line is that no manufacturer is going to be able to make a one size fits all handle.
I am of the thought that it's easier to make a handle larger by wrapping it with some of the really great products out there now than it is too make one smaller.
However I do agree with Finn that the handle design is the way it is because of a long time evolution and figureing out what was best for the khukuri.
And the handle shape goes a long ways in defineing what a khukuri should look like for me.
So my suggestion is that if you have to modify a handle keep the design as close as possible to the original and then if it still doesn't perform like you want alter it until it does.
Just remember that if you get it too small or out of shape you might be calling on Terry to make you a new one.
My .02 cents on modifying handles and I sure hope the reply to posts doesn't start screwing up the forum.
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"VEGETARIAN".............
Indin word for lousy hunter.
