Derespina Keris, Kriss etc.

Wandering around the internet one day I came across a very neat little Kriss (keris) by Richard Derespina. Unfortunately it was already sold and no more were available.

Having bought karambits from Richard I emailed him and asked about the production status of this design. He was so busy with custom karambit orders it looked like I had a long wait ahead of me.
Lo and behold a few days ago I got an email from Rich and one of the items for sale was a Kriss with a kydex sheath just like I wanted. It took me all of five minutes to email back and ask him if it was still available. He replied that it was and the deal was sealed. Since it was the July Fourth Weekend he couldn’t get it mailed out that day but within 5 days I had the knife in my sweaty little hand.
Ground out of ¼ inch thick steel it is a wicked blade. The grind lines on this 5 inch blade are absolutely perfect from side to side, no easy task on a Kriss. Considering the steep bevels required by this double grind, the blade is quite sharp. Certainly a Kriss is intended more for thrusting, than cutting, but a sharp edge is always nice to have. It feels almost weightless. Maybe because the full thickness of the steel under the handle slabs balances the knife far back in the hand. G-10 handles are nicely grooved and held in place with two countersunk fasteners. Now I am thinking how neat would it be to have a similar knife but with an eight inch blade. Rich is ready to make it. All I have to do is give him the word and a small pile of money. (Rich's prices are very reasonable for the quality of his work)

To own a truly tactical, functional Keris has always been a passion of mine. As most of you know traditional Keris, like the one in the photo, are seldom sharp, usually have rounded tips, and the handles just push onto a very tiny rat-tail tang. Not exactly what one would consider the best traits for a fighting knife.

Rich always makes really neat stuff and this Kriss is just one more example of his exceptional knife making skills. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go look for that pile of money for a bigger kriss.

The Great Lie

We are fighting to "Make the world safe for Democracy." These words meant very little to me in 11th grade back in 1964 when my father was preparing to go to Vietnam. I still remember how we watched TV and laughed at odd sounding names no one had heard before, villages and hamlets in far off places. Letters from Vietnam trickled in with messages like "today we had 12 KIA." As she read the letter out loud my Dad’s mother laughed at the word kia until I explained to her it meant Killed In Action. A few years later I was writing my own letters from DaNang: describing the landscape, the war and the people. They were a beautiful people that we were killing to "Make THE world safe for Democracy." Killing and dying, some 35,000 of us and hundreds of thousands of them. Was it really to set them free, make them safe?

It is nearly July Fourth 2009, our Independence Day, and we are pulling our troops out of one war and sending them off to another. Isn’t democracy safe yet? How much blood must flow to stem the tide of what: communism, socialism, terrorism? In the process of "winning" these wars against "isms" we have destroyed most of our democracy here at home. I am a patriot, but once again by God I do not, cannot believe we are fighting a righteous war. Carry in your heart this holiday, and the days to come, the torch of Freedom and the spirit of Independence.

God bless our troops, and guide our nation, as we stumble drunkenly down a dark and bloody road to a destiny as yet unrevealed, but subliminally dreaded. Beware, another great lie is in the making and history being repeated.
Written by David Decker, Instructor, White Shadow Dojo.

A Classic Fighting Knife

A Classic Fighting Knife:

Undoubtedly Bo Randall was one of the most formative knifemakers of the past 60 years. Bo's Model One was the iconic fighting kife of the 1940-60s. This knife, which bears an uncanny resemblance to a Mod. 1, was made by Kurt Zahm of Indiatlantic, Fla. The resemblance to Bo Randall’s best known creation is unmistakable. A lot of knifemakers today get apoplectic if anyone even makes something vaguely resembling one of their knives. Having designed a few knives I sympayhize with them. But, you should understand that knives are, for the most part, unprotected by copyright laws. I rather think Bo would be flattered by this high quality rendition. Shown with the Zahm is my Kimber Sainless II.
Here is the description as given by the seller. "The 440C stainless steel blade length is 8" and the overall knife length is 13". The blade thickness on this knife is just shy of 1/4" and the blade width is 1-1/4". This is a large knife. The blade is marked ZAHM on the left side, just in front of the double brass guard. The handle is nicely sculpted from a piece of dark maroon Westinghouse Micarta which is set off with some black, white and brick colored spacers where the handle joins the guard. There is a brass tube thong hole in the butt section. A natural colored leather sheath with a pocket for a sharpening stone is included and this pocket contains the original unused sharpening stone."
Typical of most 440C blades it is sharp but not scary sharp. While the knife is solidly built and suitable for serious combat duty it appears to have remained unused. Story has it that it came from a Priest’s collection. The exquisitely shaped handle is reminiscent of Bo’s Border Patrol grip and comfortably fits my hand. I am glad to have this knife in my collection and to share it here with you. I offer my compliments to Mr. Zahm for his design choice and the very high quality of his work.