Thread: Kukri or Khukuri

A few of you have made comments recently in regards to the kukri as a bush knife, and since I had one, I thought I would share my thoughts on them, toss in a few stories I have heard and mention where to get them and where not to as well.

Mine came from Himilayan Imports (google it and you will find them) - I do not work for them or get paid by them - and I believe with all honesty that they are the best people to get one from aside from going to Nepal, and then you may still end up buying one off them as well! I will say do not buy them from nepalese house, I have seen their work and I do not believe they produce traditional high quality tools, but cheap knock offs intended to make money, my honest opinion.
The ones made by Gerber and Cold Steel and Ka-bar, the list goes on, are modern take on them but have not improved on the design at all, in fact if anything they are poor cheap knock offs that do not perform or behave like a proper khukri should, now if you have them, or sell them, then fine, Im not trying to knock you or start a war, I just believe that a Nepalese Khukri is a very different tool than the modern stuff, nuff said.
As for the cheap touristy things that come out of China and Bali, well throw them away if you have one, I have seen a blade detach from the handle and bury itself in a wall from one just being played with.

History and origins - this is ricky, curved knives have been used for hundreds and hundreds of years, the Greeks had the kopis, the Indians had falchions, the Japanese the tanto - well you get the idea, as well as the machete that has been used though out asia, what we do know is that the nepalese have had kukris once at least the 15th century and probably earlier.

The Nepalese knife is a utility knife and it comes in many sizes, but the shape is basically similar, a large curved blade, primarily designed for chopping but also very adept at cutting and carving once you have gotten used to its size and shape, and heres the thing, the Nepalese people are adept at using them because its their tool of choice whether is a short 8 inch one being used by a kid, or the two foot long blades being used to sacrifice a goat, everyone has them, they are used in the kitchen, to gather word, working in the fields, or for protection when travelling, skinning and butchering game, digging, opening cans and letters, they are the do everything tool for the nepalese people, much like a pocket knife was for our grandfathers or the bowie was for the early american settlers of the wild west.

And yes the Gurkas use them too - the Gurkhas are Nepalese and they probably take their issue ones, send them home and replace them with the ones they have always used. The gurkhas are interesting chaps, formidable warriors, only 1 in a 1000 who try out make it through, the British army have a regiment, they serve in the Nepalese army, and have distinguished them selves in many wars.
A story I had from an old sniper buddy, who got it from a SAS guy who had trained with them went like this:
The SAS guy had just got his sandy beret and was sent off to do some training in some nameless jungle, they were doing exercises with some Gurkhas, the exercise was this, the SAS would guard a hut they had built, which held a two way radio and some gear, and the Gurkhas would try and attack it, then at 10 the next morning they would reconvene and see how it went. The SAS got ready, set up some (safe) booby trap and waited for the attack, this particular guy decided to hide up a tree where he figured he would have a good view, well they spent a pretty wet night waiting for the attack and then at 10;01 the next day the smiling Gurkhas walked into camp.
Well the SAS were a bit put out and said where was the attack etc etc, the Gurkhas said they did and it went very well, confused the SAS wanted to know what they were going on about and so the Gurkhas told them to check their radio in the hut - it had been turned to a different frequency, then the Gurkhas told the SAS guys to look at their boots, each one, including they guy who was up the tree had a slice down the sole of their boots - the Gurkhas had come in undecided, got into the hut, got close enough to each and every SAS guy to actually cut their shoes then snuck out again undetected.
Well after this this SAS guy made good friends with one of the Ghurkas and managed to get him to send him a khukri from his village and that became his knife, and was used throughout his service.

So the Gurkhas can use them, the Nepalese use them what about us?

Well heres mine:



This particular model is made from an old Mercedes Benz leaf spring that has been heated, chopped, bent, ground then polished and finished by hand from old Nepalese gentleman who made kukris for the royal family, and many common people as well.

Its a rat tail version, with a wood and bone/horn handle, the big blade alone weighs 793 grams, when you add the two full rand knives and the little awl and leather and wood sheath you get a total weight of 1393 grams. I will ignore the utility blades and just deal with the big boy.
Total length: 44.5 cm
Blade Length: 29 cm
Cutting Length: 26 cm
Blade thickness : 12 mm at the thickest point

Mines a little bit flash as it has some copper inlay and engraving in the blade, a villagers version would not have that, its also, as I mentioned a rat tail, most are but if I was buying it again I would buy a version called an m43 which is a full tang version of the ww2 Gurkha knife, as I believe its probably stronger, although its bit longer and heavier as well.

Whats in like in the bush you say? Well its heavy for one thing, you need a big belt, or a better yet a baldric to hold the damn thing up, its liable to yank you pants off, the sheath is wood and thin leather and with the other blades in there its bait of a handful and the small ones can bounce out when you are in thick stuff or running.

Chopping - well it chops like a demon, but its so thick that you sometimes get stuck, it can lack penetration, or if his just right, the weight and curve will blast through anything - although it does sometimes transfer some shock through the handle, and the handle is a tad ornamental and can create hot spots after prolonged use, it will chop through trees and vines, the blade is strong, high carbon and I once hit a hidden chunk of concrete which left a mark in the blade that I had to sharpen out (the concrete shattered).
It is the unique geometry of the khukuri that makes it so formidable when it comes to chopping, the curve, much like a recurve gives the blade more length than a straight edge would, and having a large amount of both blade width and weight forward means that when a certain point has been reached the blade can essentially torque forward and chop anything in its way, rather needing to cleave your way through an obstacle and simple flick will produce devastating results, which is why one does need to be careful when using the kukri.
I have heard of someone finding themselves locked in an apartment on fire, not being able to get out of their door due to the fire in the hall, and so using a Himlayan Imports ww2 kukri to chop through the wall into the adjacent apartment and escape out their door...
I also know of an American chap who decided to go off the grid for a couple of years, and took a m43 kukri which he built a log cabin with and used for all his food and other tasks as well.

There are several versions of kukri you can get: the Ang Khola is designed primarily for chopping with the weight far forward on the blade, they are big and heavy (generally);
The Sirupati is a thinner, longer lighter style of kukri, its quick in the hand but still a very strong knife, favoured by Eastern Nepalese people.

The other versions fall between these two, there are more modern styles that have been invented to try and accommodate modern tastes, some look very nice, others seem a little awkward, there are also some copies of famous blades too, replicas of kukris stood in museums and the such.

The makers are called Kami, it is both a caste and a inherited job, taught from father to son, at age 5 he learns to operate bellows, at 12 he starts to use tha hammers and might make simple tools, by 20 he starts making OK blades, at 30 he gets called an intermediate and by 40 he, if he is good enough, might obtain master status, and makes damn fine blades about 99% of the time.
The blades are forged from car leaf springs, and fire and hammers for the most part, but this in no way makes them inferior blades, the tempering, quenching and hardening process that goes into making them is an art more than a science to these men, they know what looks like and what feels like and they make blades that are to be used, not looked at

My khukri, a Yvsa Cherokee Special, with silver adornments also slices veges and meat and will help you build a shelter or do odd jobs around camp, but, and its a careful but, its just damn big and heavy and the sheath, with all the extras, is not well suited to NZ conditions, if you got a leatherworker to make you a decent sheath and left the other bits at home it could do a great job, as it is though, I would go for a Golok, the Golok is tough, and a lot thinner, so for fine detail work it will do better, for chopping though, well it will not out chop an Ang Khola, but where the Ang Khola will stop because of the thickness of the blade the Golok might slice on through.

Ultimately what you choose is up to you, and a proper khukuri is a thing of beauty and wonder and a true work horse, but may not be super practicable unless you are prepared to put some time and effort and learn how to use it properly, because its a big heavy tool to carry - oh, and I would get a new sheath for it too!

Shelley

I have a Gurkha issue one somewhere.
Got to much other shit to carry other than a weighty knife.

Don't have the same extremely high opinion of the modern Gurkha soldier as some.

Pretty sure D coy 2nd/1st battalion still holds the smith's trophy that is competed for in a skill at arms comp against 6 Gurkha rifles.
I like their food, just not how they prepare it.

Awesome Shelly - spectacular! hmm may have to start saving the coins just to have one - rather than its practical value so will in all probability end up buying two a Kukhri and Golock one for show and one for go!

and R93 after being attached to 2/1 in the early 90's - reminiscing!!! Thanks Guys I feel transported... and yes they're partial to our bird life too as previously mentioned...

We would have crossed paths then CD. I left the Battalion in 2001

"Shelley" - Mint write up fulla


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I dare say - R93 - i have to smile everytime I still hear Aussie crawl and " the boys Light up" and you guys singin at the top of you voices at the Rolly in '92. I could kinda be detached doing only a year in Burnham attached to the support Platoon as the Demolitions and Pyrotechnics Spec. But still loved my time there before going north again.

Wasn't me. Never liked the song.
Don't remember anyone of your expertise being attached to the unit back then.
Must have been in Asslt pioneer platoon?