I got a knock on the door one morning. One of my new nieghbors was a retired Ghurka visiting his nephew. They noticed the Tibetan prayer flags on my patio, gamelon CD playing in competition with my Deadhead nieghbor and decided to find out who( or what <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />) was inside. I was honoured with a basic lesson in Bantu fighting and a HI blade. Kukhris evolved into many shapes; some pure fighting, work tools or combinations. Are they effective? Well, fuel use pressures have nearly stripped Nepal of vital woodlands in recent decades and I'd rather face the local wannabee 300 lb Hell's Angel than any 5' tall Kukhri armed Ghurka ! It's an interesting ethnic tool,reflecting an ancient design used since the greeks at Troy. Knife,chopper,sword in one. Just be carefull. This tool is very unforgiving to the careless.