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C

Cliff Stamp

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Oct 5, 1998
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This is an email I sent to Bill which he suggested might be of interest here so:

<blockquote>
My brother was using the 15" Ang Khola while he was doing some climbing and
he did not have it strapped on that securely and he managed to knock it
loose and it tumbled down the side of the rock face. Surprisingly it did not
come out of the sheath nor did the sheath get damaged (except for a few
scrapes). Anyway the total sum of the damage was that the buttcap loosened
up a bit do that it could be jiggled.

He returns it to me so I could have a look at it. I took it out and did some
work to see if the handle had any security problems. After about 15 mins I
was convinced that it didn't but I didn't like the jiggling so I decided to
fix it. I went and got a decent epoxy and basically smeared it around the
buttcap going up over the brass. ( This had the nice side effect of actually
making it more comfortable to carry as it was not as pointed. )

After it dried I wanted to test it out before I gave it back to him so I
went for a walk. I soon found what I was looking for and that was a tree
about 4" in radius that had cracked off (windblown). For the first test I
finished cutting it down. Slight workout but the handle held fine. Now for
some serious testing I set the blade into the exposed stump and pulled
sideways. Since this was fresh wood it would not split but the khukuri would
just eventually force the wood a bit apart and then pop free. I started out
light just setting it deep enough that I could pop it free with one arm,
then two, then finally I was leaning on it. At this stage the khukuri is
being set pretty deep into the wood and I am leaning pretty hard on it.

At this time I have probably been this sort of prying for about 5 mins and I
am not really looking that closely at what I am doing. Its just like chop,
push, out pops the khukuri and repeat. I give it another smack and lean to
the side when all of a sudden I hear a loud *CRACK*. I glance down and I
have split a fairly large piece of the log off.

Now I know I should know better by now but just for a split second Bill I
was sure I had mangled the handle
smile.gif

</blockquote>

-Cliff
 
Man, Cliff -- that was a great story!

I need to "up the ante" for my AK a bit and really see what it can ultimatley do...

Best,

Brian.

------------------
Suburbia: Where they tear out the trees, then name streets after them.

 
I though my knife was abused when a "corrodinationaly challenged" indivual dropped my knife tip first onto a concrete floor.

Cliff, is it safe to climb with a khukuri? On the other hand the fall would probably be worst.

Will
 
Anyone going to Arizona? We can send Cliff's crooked pal to see how it handles a fall from the whatchamacallit rim of THE canyon. Just a thought, Cliff.

------------------
Russ S
 
Rusty, in all seriousness I think the knife would survive.

Is anybody old enough to remember the old Zippo lighter ads? They were also guaranteed for life and Zippo used to run stories of lighters that had been run over by tanks, through fires, flood, etc. -- and, bless them, Zippo made good on the guarantee and became a legend because of this.

I don't know if we will ever become a legend but I think Zippo set a fine example and we will try to do the same.

Bill
 
Will the 15" Ang Khola fits very tightly to the sheath. I can shake it and not have it fall out. This of course is why it didn't come out as it rolled along. If you were going to do any serious climbing you should probably hold it in place with another double loop of leather secured with a snap or a tie-on of some sort.

The scabbard of course got pretty scratched up but after I reoiled it, it doesn't look that bad but you would know it has been around. Anyway as time passes the wear will just more uniform. The khukuri is none the worse for the experience.

-Cliff
 
Ouch!! Even if it survives it hurts to see it fall. If you drop it into the Grand Canyon, you will need a day on mule back to get to the bottom and revocer it. So, you khukuri will be scratched and nicked and your butt will be sore.
 
I will have to admit we do not recommend throwing khukuris into the Grand Canyon as part of normal testing -- even for Cliff!

Bill
 
As a general rule I only expect a knife to be durable enough to handle any strain I can put on it. All I ask is that I should give out before the knife. So to be fair if you wanted to examine how a khukuri handled the fall you should jump in and tumble down after it. I would be willing to bet a substantial amount of money that the Ang Khola would come out much the less worse for wear
smile.gif


-Cliff
 
Cliff, lets look at dynamics here for a moment. 3,000 ft. fall. You know that if a person fell along with the khukuri, I think it would be close as to which would penetrate the earth deeper. Depending on the angle of approach and how soft the dirt is. Make sure you take your Wiley Coyote Umbrella with you though.
 
Yes, Bill, but are you willing to change the name of Himalayan Imports to "the ACME company", because that's were Wiley Coyote got all his stuff. Of course most of that stuff got him too.
 
If HI won't change it's name, then how about a khukuri for a so far untapped majority of the potential knife buying market - the Lorena Bobbitt signature model khukuri? (I must not have gotten enough sleep last night.)

------------------
Russ S
 
Yes, but can the Bobbit cigar cutter handle a Lewinski Cigar?
 
Post this thread to the Spyderco forum and tell Sal we've got a new limited edition design for him... the Himalayan Imports "Presidential" model.

I didn't say that - I think? Bill, will you visit me at the Galetti Way stress reduction clinic?

------------------
Russ S
 
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