October 09 Blue Press Section 1 8/14/09 7:31 AM Page 20

20 Ahern Under the Gun: A Kukri and Kydex and Earl, Oh My! By Jerry Ahern, Photos by Sharon Ahern The handle is designed for three positions. One Certain are associated with unique eth- can choke up on it for delicate work, hold it at the nicities or cultures. One such is that of the center for standard cutting chores or hold it well of , a mainstay of the British Empire back for maximum leverage when chopping, etc. and of modern . The Royal Rifles are Using a kukri requires some practice because of the an elite unit of the . Eligible for the Vic- curve of the . The design is such that there is toria Cross only since 1911, plenty of reinforcement for the some 13 British officers and an The Rajah II’s massive tip when thrusting and more blade is effective for work equal number of Nepalese actual edge to the knife in rela- or defense. Inset: The Rajah II have earned this distinction. shown closed. tion to overall blade length than There are numerous units with- one normally finds in other in the Gurkha Brigade, Gurkha blade styles. A special locking service to the Crown originat- system is built into the knife ing in 1815-16. The Gurkhas that transfers shock throughout remained loyal to the British the handle area, thus taking the Empire during the Sepoy Rebel- strain off the “interlocking sur- lion of 1857, enduring massive faces of a rocker lock” as Cold casualties, and are among the Steel describes it. There’s a most respected military units in rather large “thumb plate” the world today. Gurkhas take which serves as a thumb stud. their name from the Nepalese This allows the knife to open village that emerged as the seat quite easily when required. of Gurkha power and culture. Closing is as with a standard Their peculiarly shaped knife is lock blade folder. their hallmark, rooted in their The Rajah II is an extremely origin as a People. The Indian impressive looking knife and Army maintains its own built for hard work. If one had to Gurkha regiments, the regi- use it for defense, it would cer- ments split after Indian inde- tainly get and hold an attacker’s pendence, Gurkha units today attention. As with any product in higher numbers by far in the than in from Cold Steel, it’s very well made and thoroughly the British Army Gurkha Brigade. tested under rigorous conditions, the like of which no The Gurkha knife, in various classic sizes, is called normal use could conceivably match. Try the Rajah II. the “kukri.” For generation upon generation, the kukri If you like a big folder, this is hard to beat. was a fixed-blade knife, never made as a folder – until Something else that’s hard to beat is a holster Lynn Thompson of Cold Steel (coldsteel.com) got from Galco (usgalco.com). I’ve been examining an together with designer Andrew Demko, and the Rajah example of Galco’s first venture into Kydex. It’s sen- I and Rajah II were introduced. I’ve sational. Sharon and I first spotted recently been examining a sample it in the Galco International dis- of the Rajah II. It is a unique folding play at the 2009 SHOT Show in knife in a variety of ways. The dis- Orlando. Not long afterward, tinction between the Rajah I and Galco sent me a sample to fit my Rajah II is in appearance only, the Glock 22. There were no fit prob- Rajah I featuring a CNC machined lems at all because of the Crimson frame and integral bolsters made Trace LaserGrips unit mounted on from a billet of 7075 aluminum. G- my Glock, which can be a prob- 10 handle scales are the final lem with some holsters. Fit is, in touch. For one-third the suggested fact, almost unbelievably perfect, retail, you can purchase the same as if, somehow, the holster were knife with “Grivory” injection formed not on a typical Glock 22, molded handles over a steel liner. but my Glock 22. Both the Rajah I and the Rajah II Called the “Triton,” Galco’s first are 14 inches long when open, fea- (and, as this is written, only) Kydex ture a six-inch blade and a closed holster has all the features one length of eight inches. Blade thick- The Galco Triton shown with Ahern’s could wish for in an inside waist- ness is about 3/16 of an inch. The Crimson Trace LaserGripped Glock band holster. It is made for a wide Rajah II, at bang on 13 ounces, 22 – the fit was perfect. range of Glock pistols – and, sadly, weighs four tenths of an ounce less than the Rajah I. nothing else at the moment. If you own a Glock, The blade material for both knives is identical: AUS however, you’re in luck! Here’s what’s so special 8A stainless, made in Japan. about the Triton. It’s made from some of the best The knives feature a handy pocket clip that can be quality genuine Kydex Sharon and I have seen – and mounted for right- or left-side carry, mine coming with we both like Kydex holsters for certain applications. two of these clips, one installed, the other not. I’m not Although I’m not usually a great fan of tension certain if this is usual. The alternative to pocket carry is screws, this holster features two of them, along the to wear the folding kukri inside the waistband. rear edge of the holster body, rubber or rubber-like