Valiant Armoury Crecy Short Sword Review
Aug 15, 2008 18:30:30 GMT
Post by code on Aug 15, 2008 18:30:30 GMT
Valiant Armoury Crecy Short Sword review by L. Tjessem, Norway
I've been in the market for a short sword for a while now. Some of you might remember my review of the Duke of Exeter and my disappointment with the sheer weight of it. After speaking to Ryan at KoA (what a great guy) we came to an agreement that we would exchange it for the Crecy short sword. Heres what I think of it:
The Crecy Short Sword
Specs:
Overall Length: 29.25"
Blade Length: 22"
Handle Length: 7"
Cross Guard: 7"
POB: 3" from guard
Handle Material: Macassar Ebony
Weight: 2 lbs. 12oz.
QuADSHaP rating: 2.9 (Hope I calculated this properly)
Price: $142.50 USD + shipping at KoA
I chose this sword because I wanted to give the VA standard line another chance, and it was similarly priced to the Exeter. Honestly I wasn't expecting much at this price...
It came packaged like everything else from KoA, packed in lots and lots of brown paper in a solid box. I was actually amazed at the amount of paper they managed to get into this box
The first thing I noticed was the handle. On VA's pictures of this sword the handle has a distinct wooden look to it that I honestly didn't care much for. It was unique though and I was looking forward to seeing it in person. But wait... Mine doesn't look like that! After pulling the brown paper away my heart sank as I saw the exact same kind of handle that the Exeter had, black/very very dark brown. Crap, did they send me another Exeter?
Why doesn't my grip look like the one in the promo picture?!
No, this was indeed the Crecy, but with a different grip. Personally, I prefer the darker grip but it got me thinking. Some people may prefer the wooden look and order this sword in part because of the way the handle looks, and that would be unfortunate. If VA makes this kind of change to one of their swords it should be shown on the website, not doing so is dishonest in my humble opinion.
The handle looks a little lighter in daylight but still, nothing like the picture.
Fit and finish
Now, I was really amazed when I got a look at the fittings on this one. The pommel is a hexagon and the guard is upturned with sharp, crisp lines and the ends are rounded off. The polish on these are beautiful. Not a perfect mirror finish, but kind of rough looking with nice straight lines that really look good on this sword. This is the nicest finish I have seen on a sword in this price range, the pommel is practically flawless, and the guard is very nice as well. There are some scratches on the guard right next to the handle, but there not really noticeable unless you're doing what I'm doing now; looking for flaws. I noticed that the finish on the top edge of the guard is a little coarse after playing around with the lighting, but its not really noticeable normally. The fit between the guard and blade is not perfect, but still very well done, I've seen much worse on more expensive swords...
...........
Plain yet beautiful pommel - The guard looks very rough in certain light conditions
The blade has the same finish as the Exeter, shiny but not mirror, just how I like it. There were some small rust spots where the plastic had come loose which was quickly removed with some metal polish.
The blade
As usual with the VA standard line, theres not much to say about the scabbard. Its made of thick leather, and is a light brown color instead of the black scabbards I've seen on other swords. I find it pretty ugly to be honest, the black version looks much nicer. Still, it holds the sword tight. Much too tight in fact, its very difficult to get the sword in and out of it. I know that they do loosen up a bit over time though.
Handling and cutting
This sword handles like I had hoped. It's fairly quick and light enough to not tire me out too quickly. The blade is sharpened with a secondary bevel and is sharp, but not paper-cutting sharp. Cardboard, plastic bottles and beer cans were no problem to cut though.
It's very well balanced, and I can "spin" it from hand to hand with ease. Once I get my video camera back from repair I'll have to post a video demonstrating this.
Thrusting is fairly easy, the blade is very stiff and the tip does a pretty good job penetrating most targets. I am able to flex the blade some, but it takes a lot of effort.
The handle is long enough to allow for "hand-and-a-half" use
Looking at the pictures on VA's website I was afraid that the grip would be round, thankfully its not and flattens out a bit on each side. The pommel does a good job staying out of the way, and the edges are slightly rounded off so they are not sharp or uncomfortable, but still retain the crisp and sharp look. The same goes for the guard.
Fit and Finish: 4.5/5 - The finish is the best I've seen on a sword in this price range. Not perfect, but still very very nice.
Handling: 4/5 - Quick and fairly light, exactly how I feel this type of sword should be. The balance is great.
Structural Integrity: 4/5 - It feels solid and well put together, and there are no signs of looseness. It's all epoxied together so I can't check the tang though.
Value for Money: 5/5 - Definitely worth KoA's price of $142.50
OVERALL: 4/5 - This sword really surprised me. I was almost looking forward to writing a review tearing this thing to pieces and it ended up becoming my favorite sub $200 sword.
It also looks nice enough to hang on the wall when its not in use.
I've been in the market for a short sword for a while now. Some of you might remember my review of the Duke of Exeter and my disappointment with the sheer weight of it. After speaking to Ryan at KoA (what a great guy) we came to an agreement that we would exchange it for the Crecy short sword. Heres what I think of it:
The Crecy Short Sword
Specs:
Overall Length: 29.25"
Blade Length: 22"
Handle Length: 7"
Cross Guard: 7"
POB: 3" from guard
Handle Material: Macassar Ebony
Weight: 2 lbs. 12oz.
QuADSHaP rating: 2.9 (Hope I calculated this properly)
Price: $142.50 USD + shipping at KoA
I chose this sword because I wanted to give the VA standard line another chance, and it was similarly priced to the Exeter. Honestly I wasn't expecting much at this price...
It came packaged like everything else from KoA, packed in lots and lots of brown paper in a solid box. I was actually amazed at the amount of paper they managed to get into this box
The first thing I noticed was the handle. On VA's pictures of this sword the handle has a distinct wooden look to it that I honestly didn't care much for. It was unique though and I was looking forward to seeing it in person. But wait... Mine doesn't look like that! After pulling the brown paper away my heart sank as I saw the exact same kind of handle that the Exeter had, black/very very dark brown. Crap, did they send me another Exeter?
Why doesn't my grip look like the one in the promo picture?!
No, this was indeed the Crecy, but with a different grip. Personally, I prefer the darker grip but it got me thinking. Some people may prefer the wooden look and order this sword in part because of the way the handle looks, and that would be unfortunate. If VA makes this kind of change to one of their swords it should be shown on the website, not doing so is dishonest in my humble opinion.
The handle looks a little lighter in daylight but still, nothing like the picture.
Fit and finish
Now, I was really amazed when I got a look at the fittings on this one. The pommel is a hexagon and the guard is upturned with sharp, crisp lines and the ends are rounded off. The polish on these are beautiful. Not a perfect mirror finish, but kind of rough looking with nice straight lines that really look good on this sword. This is the nicest finish I have seen on a sword in this price range, the pommel is practically flawless, and the guard is very nice as well. There are some scratches on the guard right next to the handle, but there not really noticeable unless you're doing what I'm doing now; looking for flaws. I noticed that the finish on the top edge of the guard is a little coarse after playing around with the lighting, but its not really noticeable normally. The fit between the guard and blade is not perfect, but still very well done, I've seen much worse on more expensive swords...
...........
Plain yet beautiful pommel - The guard looks very rough in certain light conditions
The blade has the same finish as the Exeter, shiny but not mirror, just how I like it. There were some small rust spots where the plastic had come loose which was quickly removed with some metal polish.
The blade
As usual with the VA standard line, theres not much to say about the scabbard. Its made of thick leather, and is a light brown color instead of the black scabbards I've seen on other swords. I find it pretty ugly to be honest, the black version looks much nicer. Still, it holds the sword tight. Much too tight in fact, its very difficult to get the sword in and out of it. I know that they do loosen up a bit over time though.
Handling and cutting
This sword handles like I had hoped. It's fairly quick and light enough to not tire me out too quickly. The blade is sharpened with a secondary bevel and is sharp, but not paper-cutting sharp. Cardboard, plastic bottles and beer cans were no problem to cut though.
It's very well balanced, and I can "spin" it from hand to hand with ease. Once I get my video camera back from repair I'll have to post a video demonstrating this.
Thrusting is fairly easy, the blade is very stiff and the tip does a pretty good job penetrating most targets. I am able to flex the blade some, but it takes a lot of effort.
The handle is long enough to allow for "hand-and-a-half" use
Looking at the pictures on VA's website I was afraid that the grip would be round, thankfully its not and flattens out a bit on each side. The pommel does a good job staying out of the way, and the edges are slightly rounded off so they are not sharp or uncomfortable, but still retain the crisp and sharp look. The same goes for the guard.
Fit and Finish: 4.5/5 - The finish is the best I've seen on a sword in this price range. Not perfect, but still very very nice.
Handling: 4/5 - Quick and fairly light, exactly how I feel this type of sword should be. The balance is great.
Structural Integrity: 4/5 - It feels solid and well put together, and there are no signs of looseness. It's all epoxied together so I can't check the tang though.
Value for Money: 5/5 - Definitely worth KoA's price of $142.50
OVERALL: 4/5 - This sword really surprised me. I was almost looking forward to writing a review tearing this thing to pieces and it ended up becoming my favorite sub $200 sword.
It also looks nice enough to hang on the wall when its not in use.