View Full Version : Pukko passaround & destruction testing?
ZDP-189
17-10-03, 07:05 AM
I've just taken delivery of my AK1 Pukko from Kellam Knives at GPP41.5 including postage. (Very quick turnaround, BTW.)
I was looking for a working/ woodcraft knife that I wouldn't mind abusing. Kellam clearly warned me that this is not a pretty knife but it had the best blade short of their progression tempered Wolverine and that it was much better than the Pukko that blew away Ray Mears' knife in the Bushcraft UK review.
I can vouch for the first half of their description, but my mind's not made up on the second. It's hand forged. The Blade's mounted in the unfinished handle skewed at a slight angle. The pommel's got jagged bits from when the rat's tail tang was hammered off that keeps snagging my palm. The grind's off-centre and doesn't come to the same point at the ricasso. The factory-ground edge's none too sharp either. That said, with a little hand finishing, it could be something. But like I said to a previous girlfriend, being this butt-ugly, it had better perform.
Well, if you ever wanted a passaround that you wouldn't feel ashamed about giving some serious stick, this has got to be it. You can file it, grind, it, hack down ebonywood trees with it, hammer it through a phone book and chew on the handle. All I ask is, if the blade hasn't been bent 90 degrees and will still fit in a post box, the last guy posts it back to me in HK.
Any volunteers?
..... It's hand forged. The Blade's mounted in the unfinished handle skewed at a slight angle. The pommel's got jagged bits from when the rat's tail tang was hammered off that keeps snagging my palm. The grind's off-centre and doesn't come to the same point at the ricasso. The factory-ground edge's none too sharp either. That said, with a little hand finishing, it could be something. .....?
Sounds like one of my knives :D
Thats interesting ZDP.
I was looking at their US site and thinking of getting one. Given your comments I probably will now. Was it the US site you ordered from? I seem to recall a reference to a UK set up in a post a while back. Anyone got a link? I did a search but only got the US end.
If not is there anyone who can suggest an alternative to minimise Customs holocaust? Joe (ODS)? I haven't seen any on your site. Can you get them?
Danzo
www.Kellamknives.co.uk the guys name it Stuart Goring (i think) and he has set up Kellam UK. He knows me so feel free to mention my name :D He's a good bloke.
:thanks: Tone
:approve:
Danzo
PS_Bond
18-10-03, 11:11 AM
I think that is the same blade they had with them at the Wilderness Gathering - nice piece of steel, but I understand your comments on it :)
However, it would - as they said at the time - make a great re-handling project, as that tang is not peened over all that much...
Can't remember why I resisted in the end - I think they'd done such a good deal on selling me on the Wolverine.
Danzo I have emailed them to see if I can. Their US site seems to be down at the moment.
www.kellamknives.com I was able to do enough digging to find the alternate site and email them with the question of distribution rights.
Now comes the waiting game.
Cheers,
ODS
ZDP-189
18-10-03, 05:31 PM
I think that is the same blade they had with them at the Wilderness Gathering - nice piece of steel, but I understand your comments on it :)
However, it would - as they said at the time - make a great re-handling project, as that tang is not peened over all that much...
Can't remember why I resisted in the end - I think they'd done such a good deal on selling me on the Wolverine.
I'd have gone for the Wolverine too, in retrospect. This is the kind of knife that suits e-commerce.
I'm not sure the AK1 would make such a good rehandling project. The blade's finish is about par with the rest of the knife. Yes, the blade has a certain rustic charm, but I'd have to regrind it. My point was, it was sold to me as an indestructible woodcraft knife that would hold its edge like nobody's business. Living deep in the city, there's not many things I could legally test it on, so I'm hoping somebody could put it through its paces and then some.
Still no volunteers?
EDIT: As Stuart says below, the blade is available without the handle. Ideally it'd come unground too.
hi ZDP-189
how are you finding your AK1?
doesnt sound like your very impressed with it
if you havent used it (i know this is unlikley) feel free to send it back to me and i'll sort you out with somthing else
the AK1 is 'very' ugly without a doubt, most people buy them to finnish themselves, the blade is of high quality though (even though the spine is so roughly finnished that you can feel the hammer marks from the forge)
they are sold in finnland as simple utility knife (in finland even simple utility knives are hand forged and flat ground by hand, their a little fanatical like that!!)
Stuart
Welcome Stuart - now go away before I am tempted to buy a Wolverine :D
Those FinnFolders look nice ;) (http://www.kellamknives.com/catalog/folders/finn2.jpg)
Those FinnFolders look nice ;) (http://www.kellamknives.com/catalog/folders/finn2.jpg)
they will be up on our website soon
(you can order them now though)
before people start buying AK1-AK2's to pull the handes off them and make there own, we do sell the hand forged blades of most our knives on there own
just ask!
Stuart
Welcome Stuart - now go away before I am tempted to buy a Wolverine :D
The temptation was too much for me - I put a cheque in the post for a Wolverine this morning...
I let you know what I think when it gets here ;)
ZDP-189
21-10-03, 07:48 PM
hi ZDP-189
how are you finding your AK1?
doesnt sound like your very impressed with it
if you havent used it (i know this is unlikley) feel free to send it back to me and i'll sort you out with somthing else
Stuart
Thanks, that's a generous offer, but as I stated in the first post, your description matched the knife perfectly and I got what I paid for. It's a roughly Finnished (pun intended) knife.
I won't be returning it because the knife is slowly growing on me. It's still a bit squiff and the jagged bits were a bit more rough than expected, but it's otherwise acceptable. I've filed back the pommel and tang so it no longer catches on my palm and after literally a couple of strokes over a diamond hone it went from a sub-factory edge to impressively sharp. IMO, the hand-forged finish is the knife's greatest selling point. If I had the skill and equipment to rehandle and regrind it, I'm sure it would make an excellent utility blade.
And as you know, I bought this as a utility knife. Most of the knives I've bought are too valuable or finely worked to abuse and this definately isn't and that alone would probably mean the knife sees more actual cutting use than my William Henry or Chris Reeve Mnandi.
Now that I have put an edge on it that cuts, I'm using it more. Nevertheless, I'm unlikely to find the time for a woodland trip in the near future and I want to be sure of the knife's capabilities before then - I don't like field sharpening or chipped/ rolled/ blunt edges but given the overall state of the workmanship as it arrived and the supreme ease with which it took an edge, I'm keen to see it put through some rigorous testing.
I'm new to Pukkos and don't quite know what to expect. I do know that the work knives I buy in the US and Asia from makers like Shelley and JA Henkels have a plain but quality finish right out of the factory. If it comes back in one piece, from the pass around, fine. If not, but it tests well, then heck - I may even buy a Wolverine!
My offer of a destruction testing passaround still stands to any member who cares to cop a feel.
PS, I hope you agree that my original assessment of the knife is a fair and balanced one, Stuart, although I never mentioned the sheath which is of a very good quality for a work knife and manages to hold the knife securely.
The temptation was too much for me - I put a cheque in the post for a Wolverine this morning...
I let you know what I think when it gets here ;)
well done boaty - someone with even less will power than me :D
"PS, I hope you agree that my original assessment of the knife is a fair and balanced one, Stuart, although I never mentioned the sheath which is of a very good quality for a work knife and manages to hold the knife securely."
I compleatly agree with your assessment, i'm just always worried that people will be disapointed when they first see the AK's its difficult to see past their rough finnish :)
Hi Stuart
Welcome and many thanks for your input. It is always impressive when someone is willing to engage with potential customers about their products. It was ZDP's comments about the possibility of working with the knife to achieve ones own ideal that engaged me. We would all love to be 'makers' but you gotta start somewhere!
:biggthump
Danzo
Thanks danzomekahiro
its nice to be able to find out what customers really think.
we will soon be providing the blades for some of our knives on there own for people who want to achieve their own ideal without the hassle of pulling the handles off other knives!!!
unless of course you like the challenge :D
ZDP-189
07-11-03, 07:25 AM
Hi all,
I have to pull the passaround offer.
The pukko's moved to a new (hopefully more appreciative) home.
Ophidian
07-11-03, 05:38 PM
I've ordered a Wolverine so will let you know what I think when it arrives... They do look good from the pictures that I have seen.
Paul
ggfh666
17-11-03, 02:45 PM
Just had a look on the site... I fell in love with the T265 Teho Major Tommi. Maybe I should get an extra job....
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