Windlass "Blacksword" -- Mormegil?

Several noted differences, but the similarities are striking. Good call (and an awesome print).

And as far as my searching goes, everything points to Orcs also calling Turin/Gurthang by the name Mormegil.

If it were me....I'd wait until it gets discontinued and pick it up on clearance.

Ah to each his own, however i may just wait till the price drops a bit. ;D

In my opinion, its about on par with the Historical Excalibur. Sooner or later, it will drop in price and everyone will see what I am talking about. At the annual clearance sale, I can promise you they will have 20 of these priced at $50 next year - just like they had about 100 of the Beowulf sword priced this year.

The Blacker Than Black Sword of Dark Elven Orc Power is the same deal. It's a gimmick to get your money on a name/association, not based on a functional sword from antiquity or refined performance design. Lookit, if you try to get the Beowulf sword online - someone will charge you $350 for it (including MRL). Like I said, I could have had a dozen of them a few weeks ago for $50 a pop. Go figure.

I held this thing. I am telling everyone in my opinion that it is not really that good of a sword. A good costume piece or could be honed into backyard bottle-cutter perhaps - but definately less sword that $225 buys you these days (like the ATrim / Tinker Practicals). ;D

Not weird at all. I have numerous POS swords that I just cannot part with for sentimental reasons. For example, I have a UC Narsil I bought just before the LoTR movies came out in 2001 hanging on my bedroom wall that will never do anything more than hang there. ;D

Meh, of course their is always another Del tin(could be time to add nore to my Viking Kit) ;D

Actually this blade of this sword is dipped in a hot tank of gun blue; the finish is a bit like an old police revolver. We use a hot process instead of a cold one so the finish goes deeper into the metal. The handle and guard have a baked, not sprayed, black finish. All in all it is a well balanced sword that retails for under $250.

Ally Barnes
Museum Replicas

It is indeed heat blued using the same process once used by gun manufacturers. We have stuck to the traditional methods of bluing although the process is no longer common in the US.

Ally Barnes
Museum Replicas

Ally,

I apperciate your coming forth to talk about this sword.

First off, there is a distinct difference in the bluing process. A hot or cold chemical blue is a totally different process from heat bluing. The sword in question is hot blued, but not heat blued, according to your description. Also, many firearms are still blued this way, but other finishes such as parkerization have become more preferred due to their durability.

Next, I understand you standing behind your products and I respect that fact. However, since you are new to the sword community, you would need to qualify yourself before we could actually trust your opinion on how much a value a sword is. Things like: How many years have you designed/smithed swords? Are you a sword collector? Do you have WMA experience? How many swords do you have in your personal collection? What types of blades do you prefer? If a sword manufacturer such as Tinker, Angus Trim, or Chris from A&A comes in here and gives an opinion on a product, it typically sticks because they have a great deal of experience with edged weapons. We trust them, but we don't really know you yet - other than that you work for MRL.

Now, on another note: I have owned literally dozens of Museum Replicas blades and I was a vendor of your products for sometime. Of all of the MRL blades I have owned/held/sold, I do not see this particular sword as a value at its price. I have seen this sword in person, held it, and wielded it. It is not the best product your company has made. I state this based on my own experience and knowledge of swords. This, of course, is an opinion - but many of the more experienced collectors in the forums would probably agree; simply because we know the difference between quality and lack thereof.

If you wish to argue the point that this swod is of genuine quality, put forth the argument and enlighten us! Tell is why we should buy it! Let us know the detailed specifics on its performance, PoB, CoP, weight, RC hardness, etc - just like Tink or ATrim would when they put forth a new product. This is pretty much standard form for manufacturers in regards to their products.

In short, please don't take this the wrong way, I just think that there needs to be a little more depth than trying to use the forum for marketing tool because we expect a little more from our preferred vendors. It's up to you to educate us on why we should by your product instead of someone elses.