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My personal parang collection #6 – Kota Belud Parang

08/10/2013 admin Leave a comment

Kota Belud Parang

Here are two parangs that I bough from Kota Belud, Sabah. Kota Belud is a township very famous for it’s Tamu or weekend market. Kota Belud also is well known for their Bajau or sea Gypsies. Traditionally they are very skillful parang and knife makers, and the kota belud parangs are well known throughout Malaysia as being great parangs .

As you can see form the above photo, the parang they make have a very distinct shape, with a sheep’s foot tip. They make various sizes and weights, from those suitable for general work around the house to more dedicated choppers ( for trees and bones ) . Material used is the good ol recycled leaf spring or also known as 5160 steel . Another signature mark is their carves sheaths, just like above . Some are simple , like the close up below, but some kota belud parangs have very intricate sheath carvings. There is also an annual Kota Belud parang competition, where you can see dazzling displays of very very well made kota belud parangs. Most of the parangs use exotic wood like Serian, Kemuning Hitam, Kayu Malam and others. The carvings on the sheath and finishing are top notch.

The Below pictures shows the kota belud parangs without their sheath, as you can cee the one on the right has much more weight to it and is suitable for chopping bones and trees. The one on the right is a much slimmer version with less weight and is suitable for clearing small shrubs. I have used both, but I prefer the smaller kota belud parang on my outdoor trips. It packs down much smaller and is lighter to carry around. Besides the Chandong parang shape as the ones in this post, the other typical blade shapes in Kota Belud is the Barong . Unfortunately, I do not have any with me at the moment, and will look at getting some in the future.

All Articles, Types of parangs

My personal parang collection # 5 – the Parang Panjai

30/09/2013 admin 2 Comments

The Parang Panjai or to some the parang Panjang.

This parang panjai was another sample given by my supplier, and before i ordered more, I tested this one out pretty extensively. Parang panjang basically means long parang, and this one is made of recycled leaf srpings. I would have to say that it excels as a general all round tool, although it is on the long side. I used it on quite a variety of trees, from bamboo, to grass to limbing branches and chopping small trees ,and it did all pretty well. Although the parang panjai is pretty long, it is not that heavy as the spine is pretty thin and the blade itself is narrow. But while it lacks in weight, it actually a very good chopper as it gets it’s power from the length. Just how like a beliung works, where the long handle makes up for the small and light axe head .

Here from the photo above you can see the handle of the parang panjai . When I first saw the bolster, I cringed and informed my supplier, please do not send me any with a rubber hose bolster! Usually the bolster is made of rattan , copper or steel , but this maker decided to use rubber hose. His explanation was that the rubber hose expands and contracts at the same rate as the wooden handle.

You can also see from the picture of the parang panjai above that I pinned the tang in using two brass pins. Pinning the tang is usually not needed, as the handle and tang is very much secure. Some of my customers insist on having the handle pinned, as they are worried that the parang blade might come out during use. If you use your parang regularly, you will notice when it starts to loosen, and you can remedy it before it becomes worse. In this instance, I pinned the tang just for the fun of it.

The picture above is of the Parang Panjai’s sheath. I like the simple dark colored rattan weave. It makes the sheath look elegant. The weaving also serves a purpose which is to keep the two piece sheath together. The sheath itself is made of a very lightweight piece of wood, I think perhaps from the Meranti tree.

Who can resist chopping a log when it’s right in front of you!

All Articles, Parang Use

How to carry a long parang

15/09/2013 admin Leave a comment

If any of you have noticed, some of the East Malaysian or Borneo parangs ( Sabah and Sarawak ) can be quite long. I am sure some of you may be wondering how on earth do the locals carry a long parang or duku . If you hang it down vertically or hook it to your belt, like a conventional parang , you will be very uncomfortable as for two reasons, one would be because the parang is so long, it will swing all over the place , and second, if you were to squat or sit, the parang will rip your belt off when the edge of the sheath hits the ground.

If you look at the picture above, you will notice that these three long parangs all have a different way of attaching it to your waist. They do not have a belt loop, but have some cord or rattan weaving which is attached to the the sheath lengthwise. The cord is actually a length of cord with a loop, and part of this loop is tied on to the sheath. It’s pretty difficult to describe by words, but if you look at the following pictures, it should be pretty understandable.

This is how the prang looks when it is worn. Notice how the parang/ duku is horizontal compared to vertical? It looks almost like how a katana is worn too. By having the parang horizontal like this, it enables you to draw the parang easily, while it does not hinder your movement. I’ve carried these types of parang before and believe me , it is very comfortable and does not get into the way at all. I did push the parang all the way to the back once as the handle kept getting in the way while walking, but once that is done, no more problems. And when you need the parang again, just pull it back to the most comfortable position. This way of wearing the long parang is the traditional way, ie it was not invented by me, so I’m pretty sure it has evolved and stood the test of time to be the most suitable way of carrying the long parang.

Here is how you draw the parang . You notice that the handle and blade is forward, so you don’t have to change hands or grips when you draw and use the parang. So there you have it, that’s how to carry a long parang .

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Parang wooden sheaths – Dug out sheath

08/09/2013 admin Leave a comment

The Dug out sheath

Some of us may not even know that there are basically two types of wooden parang sheaths – the one piece sheath and the two piece sheaths. What this means is just how the sheath is made , for one piece sheaths , the slot for the parang is dug out from a block of wood, using special tools. As for the two piece sheaths, the slot for the parang is dug out on two halves and later glued or tied together.

Obviously, the dug out sheath is more complicated , difficult and time consuming to make , compared to the two piece sheath. The top two pictures shows two parang sheaths that use the one piece sheath, while the lower picture shows the joints or the two halves of a 2-piece sheath.

The two one piece sheaths above are made in Kelantan, and I am not sure if it is only available in that state. I have yet to find a one piece sheath made in other states in Malaysia.

Another tell tale sign that a sheath is one piece , is the extra wedge of wood at the end of the sheath . You can see this from the picture above. Note how the two sheaths on the left have a small wedge of wood at the bottom of the sheath ( one piece ) . The two sheaths on the right are 2-piece sheaths. some two piece sheaths can be opened and cleaned.

Here in the picture above you can see some of the tools used to make the one piece sheath. First a hole needs to be drilled through the sheath, then a special saw like to ones above are inserted and used to saw out the slot for the parang. These special saws are not available for purchase, but are usually hand made by the parang craftsmen themselves.

All Articles, Types of parangs

My Personal Parang Collection # 3 – Kelantan Parang

31/08/2013 admin 7 Comments

Kelantan is another state in Peninsular Malaysia which has some really talented parang, golok and keris makers. Below are some typical Kelantan Parang which can be found in the local shops and markets.

This parang above is my personal and favorite parang. I have been using it for at least 18 years , and it has and still served me well. I purchased it in a local market in Kelantan and I paid a reasonable price for it back then. I am usually very picky when it comes to buying something I want, and I remember spending quite a few hours looking at the various kelantan parangs available. They all differ, some are longer, some are shorter, some are heavier meant for chopping and some are lighter – meant for slaughtering or cleaning game. Somehow I liked ( and still do ) the shape , especially how the handle and the blade itself sort of “flows ” together. The steel is made of 5160 or recycled leaf springs , and it has been very very well heat treated. In all the years I have been using it, I have never ever had a rolled or a chipped edge on this particular Kelantan parang.

One of the first things I did after I purchased the Kelantan Parang was to roughen the handle. It was an easy job with a rough wood file and it was probably the single most valuable modification I made to the parang. The original handle had a smooth and shiny surface, and once your hands sweat, your parang will not be secure anymore in your hand. After so many years, the handle has smoothened out abit, but there is still enough grip to be safe . You will also notice that there is no pin in the handle, and despite it’s hard use for 18 years, the parang blade has yet to loosen.

As you can see, I use this parang quite alot, and it has “evolved” to something of a mini survival kit. As you can see from the picture above, my kelantan parang has some additions, one of them is a small 3.5 inch stainless steel mora knife . I find this knife very useful for cutting food, like fish, fruits and vegetables. Having it in stainless also means that I do not have to keep polishing the edge to prevent rust. You will also see some cut up tyre tubes which I use as rubber bands to keep my lighter and mora knife in place. I also have some small bits of stainless steel wire I used to cook sausages over the fire slipped on the sheath, and a carbide sharpener. The carbide sharpener works well for a quick sharpening job in the field . At home I use an array of sharpening stones to keep my parangs sharp.

Here you can see the beautiful patina on the surface of my kelantan parang blade. Initially I used to keep the edge nice and shiny, but after a few trips, I decided to leave all the tree sap and gum on it, and after so many years of doing so, it hardly rusts now. I have not oiled the parang for a very very long time and sometimes I can see only small specks of rust that will disappear with the next use. From the picture above, you can also see the rubber bands I cut from used bicycle inner tubes. The cut up inner bicycle tubes can be used as an emergency fire starter, and if you look closely at the tubes, you can see the bulge which is actually a lighter ( piezo ) .

The above parang is a more recent one I pruchased. I know I already have too many, but most of them are bought to be used, so I bought this one more for me to collect. This particular piece , I bought from a famous blacksmith called Pok Loh in Kelantan. He is recognized by Perbadanan Kraftangan ( Local Craft Development Corporation ) as a “Pandai Besi” or blacksmith . His works are pretty impressive.

What I really like about this parang is of course the shape of the blade. But not only that, but I really like the sheath as well. As you can see from above, it is also made of Serian wood, and you can see the 3-D stripes in the picture above. This sheath is also a one piece sheath , which is much much harder to make. I’ll explain and compare sheaths in another post.

From the picture above, you can see the spine of the parang, which is pretty thin. Overall, the weight of this parang is suitable for light work only, and not that suitable for chopping wood. Will I ever use this parang? Probably , but for the time being, it’ll be a cupboard queen .

Here is both of them next to each other. They are almost the same length but with very different in weight.It is quite obvious as well, which one is being used more often.

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