What do the locals really carry

J

jamaljahda

Joined
Mar 4, 2009
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I know that we all have our favorite choppers, slashers, and wall hangers. Some of us have khukuris with lengths of 15-18 20 inches. What I want to know is what size khukuri does the average Nepali use in day to day activities. I mean I see picks with them just tucked in a sash around their waist my 18 chitlange is too heavy for that especiay on a all day basis. I could no imagine walking around doing maintenance work with that tucked in my belt. So not in our novelty or camping/hiking adventures I want to know what size khukuri are used daily. Correct me if I'm wrong I'm thinking something like a biltong or something with like a 8-10 inch blade. If the Nepali men carry full size 15-20 inch khukuris all day in that heat then I guess I will have to man up
 
Man UP! :D

I dunno what they carry but I am certain it isn't anything that you could say "as a rule they carry these" any more than you could about what sort of pocket knives or what not most folks in the various US States might carry. My guess is they carry what they have and they have what they like best for the work they do... yeah, I know, no help. ;)

Maybe Howard can shed some light since he has been there a time or two? :o
 
I would carry mine around all over my city, if I legally could. A 15 incher ain't that bad if you got a good rig for it.

People here carry far bigger and heavier things on their bodies day in and day out. Especially women.
 
Yeh I guess your right my wife's purse would break my shoulder. A weapon in itself.itis not legal for me to carry except when camping, fishing hiking or hunting either maybe that is why I find a big one cumbersome I have so many other big items too. Backpack rifle backup pistol. So for my purposes only I would be better suited for a smaller khukri say one with a 8-10 inch blade. I think a nice light sirupate would be perfect. Oh wow just talked myself into a reason for another khukri.
 
Here is an old village kukri that came from a regular person in Nepal. I am told that it was used as the model for a current production kukri. It is called a Sherpa Sara.
DSC02614.JPG

Also, this kukri is probably a good deal larger than the average villager would carry and probably reflects a certain task this person used the kukri for. It came with a large, well used karda and a working chakmak.

The best answer to your question is probably that each person goes to his local kami (blacksmith) and tells them what job they are doing. The thinner longer blades are probably used more for cutting things like hay, straw and smaller vegetation while the bigger thicker ones are used more for chopping wood and heavier tasks. Then to complicate things, the size of the person would need to be taken into account, especially since it will be made from scratch anyway. Also, people have their personal preferences concerning the style of blade they like. I'm sure some people just love the Sirupate and use it for everything, even heavy wood cutting.

Bill
Virginia
 
From pictures I've seen, 15-18" OAL seems to be the usual range with 15-16.5" being more common. I would assume that it also depends on the vegetation in your surroundings - the same applied to bolos in the Philippines.

You also have to remember that 1/2" thick kukris (which seem to be getting more widespread in the HI lineup) are fairly uncommon over there... generally, you wouldn't find kukris much thicker than 3/8", so weight would be a lot less of an issue.
 
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