1 X Haidragon Coconut Knife

This is a great little tool. Well-built; works well. Arrived in a timely fashion, although the seller didn't think so. They sent me a peronsalized e-mail advising me of a delay due to increased holiday business. That's great customer service.My first experience of drinking coconut water on a regular basis (I think many call it "milk" here in the U.S.) was when I lived in Puerto Rico. Vendors in areas where coconut palms grew would harvest them and keep them in salvaged-from-the-junkyard, 30-year old electric soda pop coolers on the roadside in front of their humble house, to sell to thirsty travelers.Some locals would mix it with Scotch whiskey, or rum. Pretty tasty, but it definitely cancels out some of the health benefits of the unadulterated coconut water.With about four skillfully-placed strokes, (coconut in one hand, the other wielding the machete, (scary until you got used to seeing it), the vendor would chop out an opening in the end of the coconut to open it up, stick a straw in it, and hand it to the customer. Delicious, cool, mineral-packed, sweet but not too sweet refreshment!Later, when I lived in Brazil, many of the food stands on the beaches in Rio de Janeiro and elsewhere offfered this natural liquid delight. They would normally use a tool similar to the one here, but wider in diameter.Then I started to see franchised kiosks in shopping centers, where the sale of fresh coconut water was semi-automated, the nut being perforated by a manually operated punch, and the water emptied out and stored for ready delivery to the customer in containers ranging from a six-ounce plastic cup to a liter container.Nowadays, we see coconut water in stores here in the U.S., packaged in liter boxes, and probably filtered, pasteurized, and who knows what else, in order to be able to ship it 5000 miles and meet sanitary requirements for imported foods. You don't need a tool to get into those packages, but the taste of the water does not compare the real thing.Long story short, (or already too long, perhaps), if you or a friend are lucky enough to have coconut palms in your yard, as I am, or you love coconut water and have the $$$ to buy coconuts in the grocery store, you need a tool like this one! I was throwing out coconuts because it was too difficult to get at their liquid treasure. No longer. This coconut knife makes it safer, faster, easier to get at the water, even if you are dealing with the husked nut from the grocery store.The only thing I would suggest is that this tool should have a bigger diameter, about twice its current size. As it is, I have to make three holes in order to be able to pour the water of several coconuts into a container for a couple of day's supply. It's fine for sipping one coconut's water with a straw, but not for pouring.It's also a minor challenge to get the piece of coconut husk, shell and meat out of the knife after each use. A larger tool would make that easier.

Works very well. It does require strength though. I Think the average girl might have a hard time penetrating through young coconuts, but if you slowly work at it and are patient it should be no problem. Also, I'm pretty sure the only way you will be able to penetrate a mature coconut is to pierce through the large eye (mature ones have 3 eyes and the largest eye is usually the soft one and is very easy to penetrate compared to digging into a young coconut). I doubt you will be able to penetrate any other part of a mature coconut. I'm pretty strong and I don't even bother; it's not the right tool... So ya, it works on both Mature and young coconuts.**Update 12/8/2015 -- originally rated this as far stars down to one star. It broke. good thing I didn't slice myself... I will try to get a refund and if I do I will return back to give this a higher rating.

Firstly, I do not recommend this tool for full-husk green coconuts, hard brown coconuts, or even the very soft Thai coconuts. I feel there are better and safer tools (or methods) for these type of coconuts.For young Thai coconuts, a sturdy kitchen knife (punch & pry method) will make short work of these, easily removing the entire top at it's point. For the young white coconuts (a bit more mature than Thai coconuts, and all husk is removed), I use this tool to punch through the 'mouth spot' (the two 'eye spots' will have brow-like ridges), relieving them of their refreshing water. Is this tool necessary? No, because the mouth spot is generally very soft. Many tools will do the job, but this tool keeps the job clean, and sanitary.If I were to suggest an improvement, I think the manufacturer could make the tool with a slightly larger size diameter. Though it will punch through cleanly, the hole is a bit too small for the water to flow-out freely. Frequently, you will find yourself having to shake, shake, and shake that coconut, and I believe a larger diameter could alleviate this. Furthermore, I see where some have reported the shaft shearing, and a heavier shaft would reduce the risk of snapping or injury.Also, this tool is listed as a 'coconut knife', but I feel 'coconut punch' is more descriptive..... since this tool does not actually aid in getting to the coconut meat. For this (and again, the young white coconuts), a few good whacks around it's equator (with the back of a heavy cleaver), will easily crack it round into two halves. To access the water of full-husk, fresh green coconuts, I recommend the 'Brazilian' coconut opener (Mfg: INOX, P/N: PI-9704151-3, looks like a sharp-pointed knife blade, with a T-handle), as it will cleanly and easily penetrate, and remove the core from these coconuts..... through husk, and all.Since opening coconuts is not without risk of injury, I recommend a review of the many YouTube videos on the topic. This is helpful for ideas on both methods, and tools.In closing, I should note that I have not used this tool for the much older, and much harder brown coconuts (commonly found in local grocery stores), as I prefer the fresher quality (both water & meat) of the younger coconuts. For younger coconuts, I generally find these available at my local Hispanic or oriental markets. To your health, and good shopping!Over all, the build quality of this tool is good, and for what it is, yes, I would probably buy it again. :)

Tool works great just didn't last long and the small tongs at the end broke off. Last thing I want is a piece of metal getting stuck in my child throat.

I bought this for my husband for Christmas. He liked the idea of it and found it easy enough to use. It does take a little muscle to get it through the harder shell part of a young coconut ( I can do it too, so not too hard). It makes a perfect straw-sized opening. The kids got a real kick out of drinking right from the coconut! My husband did try to make two holes in one coconut so he could empty the water. It will work, but you have to really hold onto that coconut to prevent spilling. Overall, a cool gadget to own!