Boker Plus Makri Fixed Blade

Excellent, ideal small fixed blade knife

Purchased as a companion to a Condor, K-tact Kukhri which I already own. The K-tact has proven to be an excellent choice as a camp knife/machete for medium sized tasks such as shelter pole and firewood prep. For smaller/lighter tasks something else was needed. ‘Enter the Makri’’ A few measurements and it looked like it sized up nicely next to the k-tact and might also fit with the history of the original Kukhri and it’s (2) companion blades. Purchase made. The Makri turned up exactly 24 hrs later, the usual excellent Heinnie service. It was nicely boxed and came with a kydex sheath and a belt clip. First impression was that it came up smaller than I had perceived it on the Heinnie on-site images but that was a plus seeing as I wanted to match it with the k-tact. Visually the Makri is an attractive knife, dark colours with fine, red scale liners. The tapered handle and the ‘kukhri cant’ adding interest to the form. I’m not too sure about the large hole at the end of the handle for anything practical, reminds me of an earlobe adornment! Maybe it’s a weight thing or just designer? I’m not a great fan of Kydex sheaths which I find tend to be overly wide due to hollow rivets but on the Makri I can live with it and it does compliment the sheath of the K-tact. An early safety point here - my knife locks extremely well into the sheath, so much so that unsheathing it takes quite a degree of extraction effort. I would advise only unsheathing it with one hand when it is attached to a belt thus keeping your other hand well out of the way! It’s full tang and the G10 scales and liners are secured by way of two Allen head screws. There is an almost natural choil where the blade cants at the end of the handle and just beyond that a single jimp in the blade, I assume for if you want really close control to a work piece. I have size 10 hands and with my index hand finger in the choil the end of the handle sits comfortably just under my little finger. The weight of the Makri is enough to know it’s in your hand but not excessive. The balance point is approximately at the foremost groove in the scales so with your finger in the choil the weight is biased towards the rear and into your palm ?? In use: Out of the box the edge was reasonably sharp though not razor, yet was easily able to shave hairs off the back of my hand and slice through para cord without excessive pressure. The kukhri style ‘belly’ of the blade means that the curved part of the cutting edge is slightly longer than if it were a straight blade. I found this useful when removing material during whittling tasks. It’s possible that the shape of the blade could lend itself well to skinning, which effectively fulfills one of those aforementioned traditional kukhri ‘set’ tasks! The spine of the blade is square section along its entire length but with ever so slightly rounded edges, not sharp, though it will still throw a spark from a flint steel. Edge retention and the blackened blade finishing durability will only be realised through repeated use. (It won’t be sitting in its box!). The only negative comment that I have is that the belt clip fixings were a pita to get into position (size 10 mitts remember!), the spacers seem redundant and the tiny cross heads felt like they were only just short of pulling through the rivets! The Makri in its own right is a lovely tool. It is well made, it sits nicely in the hand and is capable of various light tasks. It is compact and can sit unobtrusively on a belt or as in my case on the sheath of its now big brother - the k-tact. I think that the Makri/K-tact combination is a great, modern materials and workmanship take on the traditional Kukhri idea. Price-wise I would suggest that 50 quid would be a fairer price. Otherwise I’m satisfied.