A kukri is the forward curved Nepalese chopper, heavy at the belly and thin at the ricasso, so the mass sits where the cut lands. It splits kindling, clears brush, breaks down game and still slices, which is a rare combination in one blade. Buyers here fall into two camps: people who want a camp chopper that will outlast a hatchet, and collectors who want the shape with Norse etching on it.
What is in the rack
Overall lengths cluster at 16 inches, with a few at 15 and 17 inches and blades around 10 to 11 inches. Every one is full tang. Blades are either plain 1095 high carbon at 54 to 58 HRC or forge welded 1095 and 15N20 Damascus at 58 to 60 HRC, several with a deep belly and a knotwork engraved spine. Handle material is the widest part of the range: rosewood, olive wood, walnut, black micarta, buffalo horn, black horn, bone, stag antler and stacked leather, held with brass pins and finished with brass or polished steel bolsters, ringed butt caps and flared brass pommels. Etch work covers a vegvisir, a valknut, a Mjolnir, a wolf head, a raven, a helm of awe and a full Elder Futhark band. Most ship in a leather belt sheath, and a good number carry the traditional pair of companion blades in the sheath pocket, the small karda and the chakmak. Prices run from 179 dollars to 299 dollars.
Choosing and keeping one
Weight and handle are what matter. A horn or micarta grip shrugs off damp better than wood; stacked leather is warmer in the hand in cold weather; stag looks best and is the least uniform. If the shape is new to you, our background on the kukri explains where the bend came from and what the notch near the handle is actually for. The tang matters more on a chopper than on anything else you own, and the difference between a full tang and a partial one is worth knowing before you buy any big blade. Sharpening a curved belly on a flat stone takes a light touch, covered in our whetstone guide. The full rack is in kukri knives.
Ransack Viking is a US company based in Chicago, Illinois. These pieces are handmade in the Czech Republic, then imported, inspected and shipped from Chicago. Engraving is done in the US after arrival: text 19 dollars, symbol 39 dollars, family crest 49 dollars.
Free US shipping
On most pieces. Heavier and oversized ones carry a flat charge.
Hand Forged
Heated, hammered and ground by hand.
Engraving available
Names, dates or Norse runes on most pieces.
