r/Kukri

This is a Pensioner by Kailash Blades from June 2018. I bought it for my dad's birthday. As you can probably tell, it hasn't seen much field use as he mostly only uses it to cut cakes. It has a Buffalo horn handle and Brass hardware.

In terms of feel and balance, it sits right in between my Angkhola and Battalion issue by Tora. Angkhola is slightly lighter, but feels more forward heavy. Although I prefer rosewood over buffalo horn handles, I thought it would pair nicely with the brass hardware. This is the only one that has not cracked even with minimal care. I do wish the handle slightly flared out i.e. slightly thicker as it goes from the lower half to the bolster. It is quite flat (see Pic 8). While it is okay, there's nothing wrong with it, it isn't as nice as my other khukuris. My dad was happy with it, so I did not reach out to Kailash. It might also just be how the horn grew.

Overall, I think this is a fantastic blade. It's almost like a compact, more powerful mutiny. It would be an excellent tool to take into the woods. It has some heft to it, but it's not as forward heavy, and I think it can be used for smaller tasks. Also, this is an 8 year old blade, so the newer ones should feel even more refined.

Specs are:

• Blade length - 13"
• Blade weight - 623 grams
• Handle material - Buffalo Horn
• Blade finish - Polished
• Hardware - Brass
• Sheath - Regular Dap
• Spine thickness at Bolster - 7mm
• Spine thickness at Mid - 6mm
• Spine thickness at Tip - 3mm

This is the 15.5" Mutiny I recently bought from Kailash. I've posed it next to my older 14" Mutiny for comparison.

 

Specifications are:

 

·        Blade length - 15.5"

·        Blade finish - Acid wash

·        Steel - 80CrV2

·        Grind - Standard

·        Weight with sheath - 831 grams

·        Weight of knife - 637 grams

·        Hardware - Brass

·        Handle material - Micarta 

·        Sheath - Salyani Daap

 

Other custom changes:

·        Chitlange Handle carvings 

·        Chitlange style buttcap

·        Decorated kothi 

·        Additional cut resistant Daap in Ganjawal/Salyani style leather

 

Spine thickness:

·        Bolster - 8mm

·        Mid - 5mm

·        Tip - 3mm

 

This is easily the most decorated khukuri I own, and although I am quite happy with it, there's just one thing that I wish that was done better. 

To start off with the positives, the blade feels very nice. It does not feel heavy, but has some pull to it when swung. It's sharp, very nicely balanced, the handle carvings, decorated kothi, Salyani sheath, all elevate it's beauty. The brass hardware came in satin finish, so I polished it up with some Peek metal polish paste to match the polish on its kothi. I am also very happy with the customer service from Andrew and thankful for his patience with my almost weekly emails. 

When I had placed my order, Kailash was still in the middle of their 60 days of updates, and as such, the decorated chape wasn't available. Pic -14 shows the design I had initially proposed to be carved for my order. However, when I received the email update, I was happy with the design they came up with. 

The only thing I am not happy with is the additional Daap. This additional Daap is the new cut resistant Daap but wrapped in Salyani style leather. It is ever so slightly thicker that it would be hard to tell the difference without doing a side-by-side comparison. 

The problem with mine is the Khukuri it belongs to, just does not fit. When I first unboxed it, I tried to sheath it in the spare Daap, but the knife would go about halfway then get stuck. 

I had to use a considerable amount of force, repeatedly strike the spine and edge of the Daap with my palm, and wrap my fingers around the Daap (unsafe method) to get it free. 

 

When I finally pulled it out, it had wiped out some of the acid etching (see pic 12 & 13). The blade came oiled but had picked up some dust, which I had wiped and then added some more mineral oil before trying to sheathe it. 

I then poured some more mineral oil directly inside the sheath, oiled my old mutiny and tried to sheathe it. It went in but still required some force. After a whole day of leaving the old khukuri to try and stretch it, I tried to sheathe the new one again after heavily oiling the blade. It still got stuck and when I finally freed it, it removed some more acid coating. I have since given up trying to sheathe the new knife in it, and just use it for the old one instead. 

As you can see on Pic - 8, the side of the blade is in full contact with the Daap compared to Pic - 9. Although Kailash did mention the newer cut resistant Daap will have an off-centre edge to the knife, I did not think it would cause this kind of issue. Acid wash finish gives the blade a dry/grippy profile, this is probably what caused my knife to get stuck. Although still tight, my old Mutiny fits the sheath with a little bit of resistance. 

Apart from this spare Daap, I am happy with this khukuri and already have a few more blades from their modern section that I've started saving up for. For anyone looking to add an acid wash finish, I suggest getting a regular Salyani Daap instead of the regular one.