- Joined
- May 9, 2002
- Messages
- 12,692
Ok guys, I said i would take out my new YCS and give it a pretty major workout to see if Sher and Kumar had hardened the edge correctly on this run. I wanted to take pics of the whole ordeal. I bought a cheapie one time use cam at Wally World, but after i took my first pic the thing decided not wind to the next shot. Dud camera
Pictures are worth a 1000 words, so i'll try to keep this brief. Hopefully, i'll take my wife-to-be's new dig cam out the next time and get some good pics. We'll just have to see. Anyway...
The test was a pretty straight forward one. I wasn't going to be testing lat strength or tip strength. Nothing that could damage the knife beyond -my- very limited repair skills. Basically, i was going to chop with the sucker...all day to see if the edge held, if it was prone to chipping, make sure the inlays didn't fall out, check out the chiruwa for shock transfer and hotspots.
The task i put before my khuks yesterday was a daunting one. My mother's property was hit really hard by a strong storm July 5th. After a few months of work, the trees were cleared from the yard and were now dry enough to cut and burn. Most of the heavy work was done months ago with a chain saw. All that was left to do was delimb some branches and chop them into bite sized chunks for firewood. The wood ranged from 3/4" to 8-9" in diameter. The only knives i brought with me were my 22" 3lb GRS and the YCS and its tools. Both the GRS and the YCS were just under shaving sharp. Both have a thin "felling edge" to them. Ok, time for the important part.
The first tree i started on was a downed roughly 20' long 8-9" sweet gum branch. I took my first downward swing at a 1" diameter limb with the YCS. I thought i missed the dang thing. I look down to see the neatly severed limb at my feet and the YCS stuck an inch and 1/2" into the trunk. Whoa. Ok, so i know the YCS can handle dinky stuff. A kobra could do that. i moved on to a thicker 2 1/2"-3" thick branch. I reared back, gave it a good swing and the sunk 3/4 of the way through the wood at a 45 degree angle. Another good whack and i was completely through. I continued you along happily chopping away at different branches. One chop to get through this one. 4 or 5 chops to get through another tougher branch. Before i knew it, i had completely chopped the big limb bald of its smaller branches. I was left with an 8 inch thick 20' brute to quarter so that it would fit on the burnpile.
I hauled the heavy sucker up on another log so that i could get a better swing at it. The YCS simply sang as it chopped into soft wood. I purposely chopped and torqued the blade a bit to see if the edge was going to hold up or chip out. The edge didn't warp, bend, or snap. it didn't even really dull that much after using it all day. I don't know what they did differently to the handle, but this one did not transfer shock to my arm nearly as bad as any other chiruwa that i have owned. as a matter of fact, it never even entered my mind for the 1st 45 mins using the blade that it was a chirwa. When i first hefted the knife the day i got it, i had reservations about the handle beefiness. I don't have very big hands and the inlays kinda made it feel slippery when i chopped the air. However, the handle felt rock solid in the hand as it was cutting wood. Even while cutting hard to reach branches it did not feel like it was going to slip from my grip. Furthermore, the inlays did not budge at all. After all that shock they stayed put. they discolored a little bit from my sweaty palms, but are no worse for the wear.
The work went by so easily chopping the first section of the big log with the YCS, that i decided to use the the GRS on the next section. The wood was the same uniform thickness and density from what I could tell. The monster GRS is one of my fav khuks. Big and beefy and powerful. My tree chopping khuk. Afrer using the YCS for so long without fatigue the 3lb uberchopper almost felt clumbsy. Sure it went through the log at a quicker pace than the YCS, but it tuckered me out quickly. The chore that had been a pleasure was now begining to make my forearms sore. I would say the GRS was twice as fast as the YCS, but half as much fun...if that makes any sense.
As far as the tool kit of the YCS goes, they are excellent. I really love how perfectly executed the kardas were. My favorite of the two is the larger one. it kind of reminds me a Becker with just enough angle and heft to chop with the grain on a piece of wood. It would be a great knife to baton through a log or take a critter apart with. I'm growing to like the awl alot. I used a file and stone to put a thick sharp point on it. It works well for digging into places that a knife won't fit or threading leather laces through small holes.
In conclusion, I have to say this, the YCS is a drug, fellas. If you get one, don't use it. Just shine it up and hang it on your wall. Because if you use it just one time, then you're going to love it. it'll never be a wall hanger again. It does too many things too well to sit pretty in your den. Yvsa, you are a master of design. Agree or disagree all you like, but i know what a functional piece of art is. This is the YCS in a nutshell. A pound and a half and can hang with a 3lb khuk all day. I want to take the time to thank again everyone that made this run of the YCS possible. Yvsa, thank you for the wonderful design. I shall greedily covet this knife for all my days to come. Dan, thanks for getting the ball rolling on this one. I know it was a pain, but the fruit of your labors was well worth it. Uncle Bill and Yangdu, thanks for putting up with our whining and numerous e-mails. You have to have big hearts to put up with us sometimes
And a very special shout out to Kumar, proving once again that he is my main man when it comes to khuks.
Thanks for taking the time to read this amature review.
Jake
Pictures are worth a 1000 words, so i'll try to keep this brief. Hopefully, i'll take my wife-to-be's new dig cam out the next time and get some good pics. We'll just have to see. Anyway...The test was a pretty straight forward one. I wasn't going to be testing lat strength or tip strength. Nothing that could damage the knife beyond -my- very limited repair skills. Basically, i was going to chop with the sucker...all day to see if the edge held, if it was prone to chipping, make sure the inlays didn't fall out, check out the chiruwa for shock transfer and hotspots.
The task i put before my khuks yesterday was a daunting one. My mother's property was hit really hard by a strong storm July 5th. After a few months of work, the trees were cleared from the yard and were now dry enough to cut and burn. Most of the heavy work was done months ago with a chain saw. All that was left to do was delimb some branches and chop them into bite sized chunks for firewood. The wood ranged from 3/4" to 8-9" in diameter. The only knives i brought with me were my 22" 3lb GRS and the YCS and its tools. Both the GRS and the YCS were just under shaving sharp. Both have a thin "felling edge" to them. Ok, time for the important part.
The first tree i started on was a downed roughly 20' long 8-9" sweet gum branch. I took my first downward swing at a 1" diameter limb with the YCS. I thought i missed the dang thing. I look down to see the neatly severed limb at my feet and the YCS stuck an inch and 1/2" into the trunk. Whoa. Ok, so i know the YCS can handle dinky stuff. A kobra could do that. i moved on to a thicker 2 1/2"-3" thick branch. I reared back, gave it a good swing and the sunk 3/4 of the way through the wood at a 45 degree angle. Another good whack and i was completely through. I continued you along happily chopping away at different branches. One chop to get through this one. 4 or 5 chops to get through another tougher branch. Before i knew it, i had completely chopped the big limb bald of its smaller branches. I was left with an 8 inch thick 20' brute to quarter so that it would fit on the burnpile.
I hauled the heavy sucker up on another log so that i could get a better swing at it. The YCS simply sang as it chopped into soft wood. I purposely chopped and torqued the blade a bit to see if the edge was going to hold up or chip out. The edge didn't warp, bend, or snap. it didn't even really dull that much after using it all day. I don't know what they did differently to the handle, but this one did not transfer shock to my arm nearly as bad as any other chiruwa that i have owned. as a matter of fact, it never even entered my mind for the 1st 45 mins using the blade that it was a chirwa. When i first hefted the knife the day i got it, i had reservations about the handle beefiness. I don't have very big hands and the inlays kinda made it feel slippery when i chopped the air. However, the handle felt rock solid in the hand as it was cutting wood. Even while cutting hard to reach branches it did not feel like it was going to slip from my grip. Furthermore, the inlays did not budge at all. After all that shock they stayed put. they discolored a little bit from my sweaty palms, but are no worse for the wear.
The work went by so easily chopping the first section of the big log with the YCS, that i decided to use the the GRS on the next section. The wood was the same uniform thickness and density from what I could tell. The monster GRS is one of my fav khuks. Big and beefy and powerful. My tree chopping khuk. Afrer using the YCS for so long without fatigue the 3lb uberchopper almost felt clumbsy. Sure it went through the log at a quicker pace than the YCS, but it tuckered me out quickly. The chore that had been a pleasure was now begining to make my forearms sore. I would say the GRS was twice as fast as the YCS, but half as much fun...if that makes any sense.
As far as the tool kit of the YCS goes, they are excellent. I really love how perfectly executed the kardas were. My favorite of the two is the larger one. it kind of reminds me a Becker with just enough angle and heft to chop with the grain on a piece of wood. It would be a great knife to baton through a log or take a critter apart with. I'm growing to like the awl alot. I used a file and stone to put a thick sharp point on it. It works well for digging into places that a knife won't fit or threading leather laces through small holes.
In conclusion, I have to say this, the YCS is a drug, fellas. If you get one, don't use it. Just shine it up and hang it on your wall. Because if you use it just one time, then you're going to love it. it'll never be a wall hanger again. It does too many things too well to sit pretty in your den. Yvsa, you are a master of design. Agree or disagree all you like, but i know what a functional piece of art is. This is the YCS in a nutshell. A pound and a half and can hang with a 3lb khuk all day. I want to take the time to thank again everyone that made this run of the YCS possible. Yvsa, thank you for the wonderful design. I shall greedily covet this knife for all my days to come. Dan, thanks for getting the ball rolling on this one. I know it was a pain, but the fruit of your labors was well worth it. Uncle Bill and Yangdu, thanks for putting up with our whining and numerous e-mails. You have to have big hearts to put up with us sometimes
And a very special shout out to Kumar, proving once again that he is my main man when it comes to khuks.Thanks for taking the time to read this amature review.
Jake
