In the "Cheap but Good" Category: Local Knives

Defend · 06-20-2009, 00:30

Here's a knife I picked up locally and just spent a few days testing in a field environment. I looked around for a related thread and didn't find one - if I missed it please boot me back in line.

I'm a little vague on the technical specs - it has a 10 inch blade, no markings of any kind anywhere on it. The balance is ideal for chopping (useful around here), and is very heavy. The handle is a hard plastic, so I added grooves to improve grip when wet/sweaty (which is about 20 hours out of the day right now). Not hollow, the end has a hex shaped flat butt.

Used it on bamboo and teak, plus random 550 cord applications when my folder wasn't as handy. My only complaint was the rust - being covered in sweat and water the entire time, it quickly picked up a light layer of rust. A piece of fine steel wool quickly remedied that problem though. I need to get some lubricant for it, but not sure where to find it around here.

It quickly met with approval from the experienced jungle "dwellers" I was with, and they borrowed it more often than using their own blades. The sheath seen in the pic came with it, and is basically POS leather with a whetstone pocket on the outside. I was carrying it blade-up on the side of my ruck, and used a piece of 550 cord in a quick release knot to hold it in rather than relying on the sheath buckle. The buckle has the only mark... it's a single 5-point star inside a circle, with 5 small stars on the perimeter of the circle, aligned with the 5 points of the central star.

The locals call it a " Khe:' ". Props to anybody who ID's their ethnicity.

Glad to be out of the desert and into the jungle! University in the states is going to be so boring this fall...

Anybody seen any of these before? Know anything about them? I'd love to see pics of similar blades you've run across from various regions. I saw one in an '05 thread, similar category, but the more the merrier.

Side note, I couldn't resist including the kofeeah in the picture. The one I used while I was out of civilization here was actually green and black instead of red and white, but it is currently in the wash. Better suited for the environment... made a great loungie, headwrap, blanket, and sling at different times. The Arabs got one thing right when they invented the kofeeah ;-).

- out

**Bill Harsey** · 06-21-2009, 09:50

Defend,
Many years ago I was a guest of Bob Loveless's at his shop in Riverside, CA.
Bob told me something that has stuck with me and it is this: "The biggest difference in knives is between any knife and no knife at all."

That stated, use the knife hard and find out what it will and will not do for you then report back.

I already know by the way the master bevel is ground that there are some things it is not going to do well.

Defend · 06-21-2009, 10:47

Mr. Harsey,

I appreciate the advice. It will be getting plenty of hard use in the near future, I'll let you know when I figure out what it isn't good at.

Not being a blade master, I'm honestly quite helpless in evaluating the actual quality of a blade. I am limited to looking at the weight, balance, and practical durability. I recall a disclaimer on an old thread that warned yourself and the other knife professionals on here that you may need a bucket handy as you view the pictures. I probably should have included the same notice- and applying the title "good" was probably inappropriate given the quality of knives we see on this forum.

I can't wait for the day I see a Harsey blade in person so I can say I've seen a real knife!

- out