Extreme Plamenko?

[Helleri]

Is the edge grind on only one side?

[RobT]

Ian,
I hadn’t thought about a possible agricultural use but yes, I can see that as a distinct possibility. The only problem that I have with the tool scenarios (either kitchen or agricultural) is that the hilt and ferrule treatment on my piece is more fancy than one would expect for a relatively small tool knife. I think a plain wood hilt (without faceting) and a ferrule would be more typical. On the other hand, the width of the blade and bulky nature of the hilt (1-1/8, 2.85cm thick) would make concealed weapon carry problematic. Furthermore, the blade on my knife seems too thin to be sturdy enough for weapon or camping use. I also wonder how well the extreme point would hold up either as a weapon or as a tool. I really like this knife but it just doesn’t seem to fit in anywhere. I did an online search of banana knives and, save for a guy holding a straight bladed knife that looked a bit like a puukko and another guy holding a Philippine bolo, all the knives I saw were hawksbills or sort of sickle shaped.

Helleri,
The blade is symmetrically ground.

Sincerely,
RobT

[Ian]

Rob, a horn hilt and an iron ferrule are common on Filipino agricultural tools. Both are inexpensive materials in the Philippines. Horn is only a little fancier than wood, but it is more durable than wood in the tropical heat and wet. The biggest threat to horn are insects, which have been chewing away at the hilt you show. Faceting of the hilt is also common on agricultural knives and bolos. It is a simple construct made with a draw knife and enhances the grip relative to a circular cross-section. It is actually easier to make a faceted hilt than a circular smooth one using traditional tools.

[Bob A]

Is there any indication that the hilt might have been shortened, due to having been damaged? It seems rather awkward/unbalanced in that dimension.

I could see it as a kitchen implement, myself.

[Ian]

Bob, given that the blade is 9 in. long, it appears that the hilt is about 4.0 to 4.5 in. in length. That's plenty long enough for most Filipino hands. There is also an option to move the hand forward and place the thumb and forefinger on the blade for more precise work. There is actually a small curved area where the end of the blade meets the ferrule where a finger could rest comfortably when using a pincer grip.

[naturalist]

In Java, there are variations on the shape of knife that is intended to slice tobacco. I do have several at home, one of it has the awkward handle shape just like this knife (family heirloom, it was belong to my late grandpa). But one of it treated as kind of "pusaka", it had warang in the past, and has handle just like a golok handle.