How Do I Sharpen Kukri?

[The Cumbrian]

I've acquired what appears to be a WWII issue Kukri. The sheath is pretty knackered, but the handle and blade are reasonable condition, considering that it appears to have been kept in a damp shed for the last 70 years.

The blade has been chrome plated (not uncommon according to the internet) and badly sharpened in the past, and I'd like to restore it to be a good working tool like they are supposed to be.

As there is quite a bit of the chrome plating missing, I might want to remove this, but that isn't a priority. I would like to get it very sharp though. While I'm pretty good at getting my scandi ground knives sharp, I'm not very good with other grinds, and I have no experience of sharpening concave edges.

Any advice will be much appreciated.

Cheers, Michael.

 

[mickeyluv]

The best way ive seen involved a telephone directory and a sheet of wet & dry but cannot remember where i saw it (probably youtube)

 

[The Cumbrian]

Thanks for the reply.

I've seen that too, but that appeared to be on a Kukri with a blade that was pretty sharp already. The belly of the blade on mine is in quite good condition, but the convex part of the blade has been badly sharpened in the past, and I'd like to get it back to somewhere near the original grind.

Cheers, Michael.

 

[OldJimbo]

The problem with these blades is that they are zone hardened. So the bulk of the steel is left totally soft and only the edge area is hard. If it's been sharpened on a bench grinder then bets are off. If it's been badly sharpened by hand then there should be lots of hard metal left to work with.
Basically you remove any chrome etc, to 1/2" behind the edge and polish this. You are not reprofiling at this point, simply cleaning the metal. Then you rub that area with strong vinegar. You will see a line develop which marks the spot where hardened metal meets soft. This is called the hamon line, and will show how much hardened steel is left at the edge.
Tell us what you see and lots of advice should be available from there.

 

[The Cumbrian]

Fortunately, it looks as though the blade has been butchered with a stone or a file rather than a grinder.

 

[OldJimbo]

It's still worth checking out the blade before starting work. It would also be advisable to check exactly what you've got by describing the marks and stamps over at the Himalayan Imports forum over at Bladeforums.
The next step is to either get it ground to proper convex on a belt grinder or be prepared for lots of hand work. If someone has put a V grind onto the edge, that makes the tool even more likely to deflect than a regular khukri which in itself is prone to that by its design - it's an expert's tool. So as you start using a Kuk, to clear arm thick saplings, your first chops will go part way into the sapling just like a straight edged machete. Eventually though, things will come together and the kuk will sail through the sapling because the incredible cutting myths are actually true. But in passing through the wood, the kuk will defect to a different path which might aim it at a body part.

 

[The Cumbrian]

Here are some pics:

 

[Sparky415]

Good looking Kuk

That doesn’t look too bad from here
I would clamp it to a workmate and sharpen with some wet an dry, wrap the wet an dry around a bit of broom handle to get in to the curve

 

[OldJimbo]

That looks like a great specimen - or will with a bit of clean up! The sheath will be wood covered with thin goatskin, so it's worth checking over the wood to see what shape it's in. As always, though, it's best to see what you've got before proceeding as it might be a rare model.

 

[airborne09]

Hi Michael ,
I know its rather late replying to your thread but ive just seen it .
Easiest way to sharpen your kukri is once you have sorted any damage out to the edge of the blade , just lay a thick telephone directory on a flat surface and on top of that lay a sheet of wet and dry sand paper down and gently using the contours and shape of the kukri blade , tilt the blade at an angle appropriate to the bevel and continue to move the blade along the wet and dry half a dozen times each side alternatively . Do this several times and it really does put a nice sharp edge to any knife .
M

 

[SCOMAN]

I'm being a bit bone do you have a video or a pic?

 

[Ogri the trog]

Hi Michael ,
I know its rather late replying to your thread but ive just seen it .
Easiest way to sharpen your kukri is once you have sorted any damage out to the edge of the blade , just lay a thick telephone directory on a flat surface and on top of that lay a sheet of wet and dry sand paper down and gently using the contours and shape of the kukri blade , tilt the blade at an angle appropriate to the bevel and continue to move the blade along the wet and dry half a dozen times each side alternatively . Do this several times and it really does put a nice sharp edge to any knife .
M

Same here, just seen it - and I agree to the method of sharpening - and will add that to get a good polish on the blade, replace the wet 'n' dry with the side cut out of a cereal box with some metal polish rubbed over it.

The handle is the same shape as mine - probably the best Kukri handle ever - you can get a good grip for chopping as well as being able to move the handle forward for heavy work - all without it poking into your wrist!

If you have sorted it out, any chance of posting a few more photos!

ATB

Ogri the trog

 

[airborne09]

Hello Scoman ,
sorry I don't , but if you google it I know its on there somewhere . Actually I think Tora blades site shows you how to !
M

 

[Janne]

As the edge is like a scythe, then the same sharpening technique should work?



Btw, what do you guys use a kukri for?

 

[Tommyd345]

For mine, I put them point down into a block of wood and then run the diafold down it, and after a light strop