Editing Kukri (section)

== Manufacture ==

The Biswakarma [[Kami (caste)|Kami caste]] has inherited the traditional art of kukri-making.<ref name="kami">{{Cite web|url=https://himalayan-imports.com/kami.html|title=Kamis, Khukuri makers of Nepal|website=himalayan-imports.com|access-date=10 December 2019}}</ref> Modern kukri blades are often forged from [[spring steel]], sometimes collected from recycled [[Suspension (vehicle)|truck suspension units]].<ref name="kami"/> The [[tang (tools)|tang]] of the blade usually extends all the way through to the end of the handle;{{citation needed|date=August 2016}} the small portion of the tang that projects through the end of the handle are hammered flat to secure the blade. Kukri blades have a hard, tempered edge and a softer spine. This enables them to maintain a sharp edge, yet tolerate impacts.

Kukri handles, usually made from hardwood or buffalo horn, are often fastened with a kind of tree sap called ''laha'' (also known as "Himalayan epoxy"). With a wood or horn handle, the tang may be heated and burned into the handle to ensure a tight fit, since only the section of handle which touches the blade is burned away. In more modern kukri, handles of cast [[aluminium]] or [[brass]] are press-fitted to the tang; as the hot metal cools it shrinks, locking onto the blade. Some kukri (such as the ones made by contractors for the modern Indian Army), have a very wide tang with handle slabs fastened on by two or more rivets, commonly called a [[full tang]] (''panawal'') configuration.

Traditional profiling of the blade edge is performed by a two-man team; one spins a grinding wheel forwards and backwards by means of a rope wound several times around an axle while the sharpener applies the blade. The wheel is made by hand from fine river sand bound by ''laha'', the same adhesive used to affix the handle to the blade. Routine sharpening is traditionally accomplished by passing a ''chakmak'' over the edge in a manner similar to that used by chefs to [[sharpening steel|steel]] their knives.

Kukri scabbards are usually made of wood or metal with an animal skin or metal or wood covering. The leather work is often done by a ''[[Sirki|Sarki]]''.