Review: 'Espada Y Daga' by Kris Cutlery
Sept 12, 2009 8:28:56 GMT
Post by Deleted on Sept 12, 2009 8:28:56 GMT
Introduction
Hello Everyone! This is my first review and I felt as if I needed a presence on these boards to represent the much-under represented filipino blade enthusiast! I am a practitioner of several styles of filipino martial arts, primarily that of Lameco (Lah-Meh-Koh) Eskrima. I also have some knowledge of Mande Muda style Silat. With this knowledge I hope to enlighten you through this review, how we use our blades, and to praise the people at Kris Cutlery who have made this Espada Y Daga set!
This sword and knife set is labeled, quite literally, as "Espada Y Daga", which is more a fighting style than a particular sword shape. If you wanted to classify this blade set according to the blade shape, I would call it a "Pinuti Y Daga" set instead.
Kris Cutlery has a reputation for making Japanese style blades with beautiful but simple hamon lines from their differential Tempering, but with less than accurate blade geometry. I find that where this company truly shines is in their filipino swords, however, and their 'Espada Y Daga' exemplifies this. Cecil Quirino, Kris Cutlery's owner, is a filipino blade enthusiast, FIlipino antique sword collector, and a filipino martial artist himself, so he understands what the average and not so average Eskrimador is looking for in a blade. trust me, it shows!
His attention to detail does not go unnoticed and I will attempt to describe what he does historically accurate and what he does that isn't as historically accurate in this particular offering.
Historical overview
This pinuti and daga set, to me, looks like it was based off of an amalgamation of several swords rather than just one. These design are primarily from the Katipunan era, when the phillippines was revolting in order to gain its independence from Spain.
The blade is a classic pinuti shape. Double-beveled, which is rare among visayan blades (the central region of the phillippines) but common among Luzon blades (the Northern Region of the Phillippines, where kris Cutlery happens to make these.)
The handle is similar to ones I have seen on various Luzon bolos. The only difference being that most were made of Carabao (Water buffalo) horn. There are some rarer antiques made in this style out of kamagong Wood, which is what this kris Cutlery set's handles are made of. Historically these blades are only epoxied to the tang. The brass pining of the hang to the handle is a modern addition, and an addition that I personally welcome.
the balance is spot-on. exactly in the range of balance an Eskrimador would expect from a pinuti. it handles like many antiques I have held.
Initial Impressions
I ordered this set from Kult of Athena. I live in Canada, so i was expecting to see this in two or three weeks as a result. To my surprise it came in just a week! unfortunately there was a customs charge, but that has nothing to do with KoA. Canadian Customs likes to charge for every damn thing that comes in from outside of Canada!
Upon opening the package, which was filled with thick packing paper, then wrapped in bubble wrap, then sealed in a box, I unsheathed both blades and they came in a very thick costing of oil that needed hot water, soap, elbow grease, and some WD-40 to remove it. No rust at all which is great, and I expect no less from KoA and from Kris Cutlery.
After cleaning the gunk off, I coated both blades with some oil and got to dry handling them. This blade is balanced exactly how I expect it to be and there were no surprises. The blades both have a nice satin finish to them (I hate mirror polishes. they look gaudy) and the brass guards and pins are buffed to a shine.
The pinuti, or the sword, is a wonder! it is begging to chop something, yet at the same time it is very fast in-hand. Not light by any means, but not too heavy to use. it's sturdy, and it's weight-forward distribution lends itself nicely to the basic eskrima stikes I have been taught, as well as the blocks, parries, and what have you. This was made with an eskrimador in mind.
The Daga, or the knife, is very light and maneuverable. Stylistically, this knife is placed in the "Checking hand", or the hand used to redirect sword strikes or hit the wrist, fingers, or meat of the hand to inflict masty close range cuts should an opponent come too close for comfort.
Statistics
I have separated this into mesurements etc for both the sword and the knife separately:
Blade Length:
Pinuti (the sword): 20.8 in (a few mm short of its advertised 21 inches, but that was expected)
Daga (The knife): 7.8 in (again, few mm short of its 8 inch advertised length. This again is just a nitpick)
Handle Length:
Pinuti (the sword): 6.2 in
Daga (The knife): 5.6 in
Overall Length:
Pinuti (the sword): 27 inches
Daga (The knife): 13.5 inches
Guard Width:
Pinuti (the sword): 2.1 in. The guard is there essentially to stop the fingers from slipping onto the blade during a thrust. It is not there to protect the fingers from catching an opponent's blade
Daga (The knife): 2 in. Its function is the same as the pinuti's guard
POB (Point of Balance):
Pinuti (the sword): 5.5 inches from guard. This is historically accurate. many Bolos, particularly pinuti, of this style from the Katipunan Era have had POB's that range anywhere from 4 inches to 6 inches from the guard.
Daga (The knife): Right after the blade touches the guard.
COP (Center of Percussion):
Pinuti (the sword): 2/3rds down the blade near the tip.Actually it's exctly where the falde edge starts on the other side of the blde, which is a great point of reference visually!
Daga (The knife): Same as the Pinuti.
Weight:
Pinuti (the sword): TBA. It feels very live and active in hand.
Daga (The knife): TBA
Components
For this portion of the review, I will use KOA's stock photo pics until I upload my own, then I will replace the stock pics with my own pictures.
The Blade
The blades on these come as a matching set, akin to a japanese Daisho set, as they're meant to be used together. These types of blades, individually, are historically accurate. However, it is rare that they were carried as a set. The shape of the blade is that of a Pinuti. A long, relatively thin blade that fattens up so to speak, into a slight belly at the centre of percussion, although not as intensely as most other bolos.
Kris Cutlery's rendition of this is not only historically accurate, but just plain perfect, and that doesn't surprise me. The Pinuti was and still is a style that is associated with Luzon, where these particular blades were made back in the heyday of the Katipunan revolutionaries and during luzon and visayan troops during WWII.
The Handle
The handle, accoprding to the website, is inspired after a Visayan region Bolo. I have seen more Bolos native to Luzon with this shape. Again, I attribute the era to that of the Katipunan revolutionaries.
The handle is made of Kamagong, a local ironwood used a lot by Filipino Martial Artists as heavy sticks for solo training. It's reported that kamagong is one of the few woods that sinks in water. The weight of this wood acts as a good counterbalance to the blade, which are usually made to be tip-heavy.
This handle is made to have an hexagonal cross-section which is very attractive, simple, AND functional. The finger joints that wrap around the front corner of this handle ensures that when it is gripped, it is always lined up perfectly with the cutting edge.
I should mention that i did buy this from the Scratch and Dent section of Kult of Athena's website. It came advertized with an inch-long crack down the handle. Knowing this, I bought it anyways. Cracks in hamagong handles as well as carabao horn handles are not unheard of, and are usually of shallow, cosmetic cracks that do not affect its function. These blades are historically epoxied to their tangs anyways, but in addition to this, KC has had the blade pinned to the tang as well. To prevent the surface crack from being a serious problem I will need to generiously oil the wood handle and epoxy the cosmetic crack afterwards, squeezing together the sides with a clamp. This has been done to many luzon-style sword handles with no problems afterwards, although even these instances are rare especially in kamagong. Mostly this happens in Carabao horn handles.
Nonetheless it came as a cosmetic crack and does not affect the safety of this item. The crack is not deep or in need of replacing like a cracked tsuka on a japanese sword usually needs.
The Guard
The guard, as stated before, is very small, but is perfect in size for its intended function. it is intended to stop the fingers from sliding onto the blade when stabbing. On this particular style, it is not there to catch or stop an opponent's blade.
The Pommel
The pommel on this blade is an extention of the handle, if that makes any sense. It is stylized, I believe, to be either a blossoming flower OR a simplified representation of the Banokawa, a legendary dragon whose head is commonly seen on many antique filipino blades from varuious regions of the phillippines.
Filipino martial arts employ a lot of pommel strikes and in this respect, the pommel is very ingeniously designed to have a tip to it to inflict blunt damage. It is also hooked on the edge side conveniently so that the blade does not swing out of your grip when used.
It still helps to have a good grip on this sword when swinging. Your grip should never be loose when handling a bolo. There's an old Escrima saying that goes "Whevener a good eskrimador's hand is severed in battle, that hand should still be holding its weapon."
The Scabbard
The scabbard is historically inaccurate for the era of blade this sword and dagger set is intended to replicate. Antiques similar to this pinuti and daga have been collected with corresponding sheathes that were made of leather.
This being said, I LOVE that Cecil decided to have wooden sheaths made instead. I have a short gag reflex and leather sheetss make me want to hurl! These wooden sheaths are great. The knife sheath is attached to the sword sheath via glue and they both fit very snugly. To top it off, it is finished off with very attractive cotton cord wrap.
Handling Characteristics
These blades feel quick in hand. While performing Sayaw (basically solo weapons drills), They felt very natural to me and it just felt 'right'. The Sword is more foreward-heavy than the knife, which is more just for a checking hand and less for deep cuts.
Test Cutting
The blade on the pinuti is lightsaber-sharp! it practically slices through paper like it was butter, but the edge on the Daga is a bit rougher, and tears at the paper instead of cuts it. nothing a little stropping and fine sand paper won't fix!
This duo did a number on various milk jugs, 2L pop bottles, and tatami mats that were begging to be destroyed. The Pinuti did most of the cutting, while I thrusted a lot with the Daga.
Conclusions
No surprise really here. This isn't my first filipino blade purchase from kris Cutlery so I got what I expected. There were a few surprises, though.
The first was the hexaconal shape of the handle, which lent itself very well to the handling of the blade and alignment with cutting.
the second was the scabbard, which i thought i would dislike because of its historical innacuracy. I ended up LOVING it, and it hugs the blades to tightly that i couldn't help but love it. it's simple and beautiful, even if it isn't historically accurate
Pros
- Beautiful, even satin finish
- blade geometry was incredible. not entirely historically accurate but accurate enough, it deviated in order to function better, it cut way better than most traditional pinuti.
- blade shape was, aside from geometry, very accurate.
- handle is comfortable and historically accurate
- balance was both historically accurate and a beauty to handle
Cons
- Historically innacurate sheath. (although i personally love it, someone who is looking for a historically accurate package as a whole may be dissappointed
- false edges not sharpened
- Knife edge not as sharp as sword's edge (again, only on mine. It would be different on someone else's
The Bottom Line
I don't think I need to say anything else. Kris Cutlery's Espada Y Daga gets a thumb's up from me! If i had the chance to purchase this again, I would in a heartbeat. Keep up the great work, Cecil. Your attention to detail does not go unnoticed!
Hello Everyone! This is my first review and I felt as if I needed a presence on these boards to represent the much-under represented filipino blade enthusiast! I am a practitioner of several styles of filipino martial arts, primarily that of Lameco (Lah-Meh-Koh) Eskrima. I also have some knowledge of Mande Muda style Silat. With this knowledge I hope to enlighten you through this review, how we use our blades, and to praise the people at Kris Cutlery who have made this Espada Y Daga set!
This sword and knife set is labeled, quite literally, as "Espada Y Daga", which is more a fighting style than a particular sword shape. If you wanted to classify this blade set according to the blade shape, I would call it a "Pinuti Y Daga" set instead.
Kris Cutlery has a reputation for making Japanese style blades with beautiful but simple hamon lines from their differential Tempering, but with less than accurate blade geometry. I find that where this company truly shines is in their filipino swords, however, and their 'Espada Y Daga' exemplifies this. Cecil Quirino, Kris Cutlery's owner, is a filipino blade enthusiast, FIlipino antique sword collector, and a filipino martial artist himself, so he understands what the average and not so average Eskrimador is looking for in a blade. trust me, it shows!
His attention to detail does not go unnoticed and I will attempt to describe what he does historically accurate and what he does that isn't as historically accurate in this particular offering.
Historical overview
This pinuti and daga set, to me, looks like it was based off of an amalgamation of several swords rather than just one. These design are primarily from the Katipunan era, when the phillippines was revolting in order to gain its independence from Spain.
The blade is a classic pinuti shape. Double-beveled, which is rare among visayan blades (the central region of the phillippines) but common among Luzon blades (the Northern Region of the Phillippines, where kris Cutlery happens to make these.)
The handle is similar to ones I have seen on various Luzon bolos. The only difference being that most were made of Carabao (Water buffalo) horn. There are some rarer antiques made in this style out of kamagong Wood, which is what this kris Cutlery set's handles are made of. Historically these blades are only epoxied to the tang. The brass pining of the hang to the handle is a modern addition, and an addition that I personally welcome.
the balance is spot-on. exactly in the range of balance an Eskrimador would expect from a pinuti. it handles like many antiques I have held.
Initial Impressions
I ordered this set from Kult of Athena. I live in Canada, so i was expecting to see this in two or three weeks as a result. To my surprise it came in just a week! unfortunately there was a customs charge, but that has nothing to do with KoA. Canadian Customs likes to charge for every damn thing that comes in from outside of Canada!
Upon opening the package, which was filled with thick packing paper, then wrapped in bubble wrap, then sealed in a box, I unsheathed both blades and they came in a very thick costing of oil that needed hot water, soap, elbow grease, and some WD-40 to remove it. No rust at all which is great, and I expect no less from KoA and from Kris Cutlery.
After cleaning the gunk off, I coated both blades with some oil and got to dry handling them. This blade is balanced exactly how I expect it to be and there were no surprises. The blades both have a nice satin finish to them (I hate mirror polishes. they look gaudy) and the brass guards and pins are buffed to a shine.
The pinuti, or the sword, is a wonder! it is begging to chop something, yet at the same time it is very fast in-hand. Not light by any means, but not too heavy to use. it's sturdy, and it's weight-forward distribution lends itself nicely to the basic eskrima stikes I have been taught, as well as the blocks, parries, and what have you. This was made with an eskrimador in mind.
The Daga, or the knife, is very light and maneuverable. Stylistically, this knife is placed in the "Checking hand", or the hand used to redirect sword strikes or hit the wrist, fingers, or meat of the hand to inflict masty close range cuts should an opponent come too close for comfort.
Statistics
I have separated this into mesurements etc for both the sword and the knife separately:
Blade Length:
Pinuti (the sword): 20.8 in (a few mm short of its advertised 21 inches, but that was expected)
Daga (The knife): 7.8 in (again, few mm short of its 8 inch advertised length. This again is just a nitpick)
Handle Length:
Pinuti (the sword): 6.2 in
Daga (The knife): 5.6 in
Overall Length:
Pinuti (the sword): 27 inches
Daga (The knife): 13.5 inches
Guard Width:
Pinuti (the sword): 2.1 in. The guard is there essentially to stop the fingers from slipping onto the blade during a thrust. It is not there to protect the fingers from catching an opponent's blade
Daga (The knife): 2 in. Its function is the same as the pinuti's guard
POB (Point of Balance):
Pinuti (the sword): 5.5 inches from guard. This is historically accurate. many Bolos, particularly pinuti, of this style from the Katipunan Era have had POB's that range anywhere from 4 inches to 6 inches from the guard.
Daga (The knife): Right after the blade touches the guard.
COP (Center of Percussion):
Pinuti (the sword): 2/3rds down the blade near the tip.Actually it's exctly where the falde edge starts on the other side of the blde, which is a great point of reference visually!
Daga (The knife): Same as the Pinuti.
Weight:
Pinuti (the sword): TBA. It feels very live and active in hand.
Daga (The knife): TBA
Components
For this portion of the review, I will use KOA's stock photo pics until I upload my own, then I will replace the stock pics with my own pictures.
The Blade
The blades on these come as a matching set, akin to a japanese Daisho set, as they're meant to be used together. These types of blades, individually, are historically accurate. However, it is rare that they were carried as a set. The shape of the blade is that of a Pinuti. A long, relatively thin blade that fattens up so to speak, into a slight belly at the centre of percussion, although not as intensely as most other bolos.
Kris Cutlery's rendition of this is not only historically accurate, but just plain perfect, and that doesn't surprise me. The Pinuti was and still is a style that is associated with Luzon, where these particular blades were made back in the heyday of the Katipunan revolutionaries and during luzon and visayan troops during WWII.
The Handle
The handle, accoprding to the website, is inspired after a Visayan region Bolo. I have seen more Bolos native to Luzon with this shape. Again, I attribute the era to that of the Katipunan revolutionaries.
The handle is made of Kamagong, a local ironwood used a lot by Filipino Martial Artists as heavy sticks for solo training. It's reported that kamagong is one of the few woods that sinks in water. The weight of this wood acts as a good counterbalance to the blade, which are usually made to be tip-heavy.
This handle is made to have an hexagonal cross-section which is very attractive, simple, AND functional. The finger joints that wrap around the front corner of this handle ensures that when it is gripped, it is always lined up perfectly with the cutting edge.
I should mention that i did buy this from the Scratch and Dent section of Kult of Athena's website. It came advertized with an inch-long crack down the handle. Knowing this, I bought it anyways. Cracks in hamagong handles as well as carabao horn handles are not unheard of, and are usually of shallow, cosmetic cracks that do not affect its function. These blades are historically epoxied to their tangs anyways, but in addition to this, KC has had the blade pinned to the tang as well. To prevent the surface crack from being a serious problem I will need to generiously oil the wood handle and epoxy the cosmetic crack afterwards, squeezing together the sides with a clamp. This has been done to many luzon-style sword handles with no problems afterwards, although even these instances are rare especially in kamagong. Mostly this happens in Carabao horn handles.
Nonetheless it came as a cosmetic crack and does not affect the safety of this item. The crack is not deep or in need of replacing like a cracked tsuka on a japanese sword usually needs.
The Guard
The guard, as stated before, is very small, but is perfect in size for its intended function. it is intended to stop the fingers from sliding onto the blade when stabbing. On this particular style, it is not there to catch or stop an opponent's blade.
The Pommel
The pommel on this blade is an extention of the handle, if that makes any sense. It is stylized, I believe, to be either a blossoming flower OR a simplified representation of the Banokawa, a legendary dragon whose head is commonly seen on many antique filipino blades from varuious regions of the phillippines.
Filipino martial arts employ a lot of pommel strikes and in this respect, the pommel is very ingeniously designed to have a tip to it to inflict blunt damage. It is also hooked on the edge side conveniently so that the blade does not swing out of your grip when used.
It still helps to have a good grip on this sword when swinging. Your grip should never be loose when handling a bolo. There's an old Escrima saying that goes "Whevener a good eskrimador's hand is severed in battle, that hand should still be holding its weapon."
The Scabbard
The scabbard is historically inaccurate for the era of blade this sword and dagger set is intended to replicate. Antiques similar to this pinuti and daga have been collected with corresponding sheathes that were made of leather.
This being said, I LOVE that Cecil decided to have wooden sheaths made instead. I have a short gag reflex and leather sheetss make me want to hurl! These wooden sheaths are great. The knife sheath is attached to the sword sheath via glue and they both fit very snugly. To top it off, it is finished off with very attractive cotton cord wrap.
Handling Characteristics
These blades feel quick in hand. While performing Sayaw (basically solo weapons drills), They felt very natural to me and it just felt 'right'. The Sword is more foreward-heavy than the knife, which is more just for a checking hand and less for deep cuts.
Test Cutting
The blade on the pinuti is lightsaber-sharp! it practically slices through paper like it was butter, but the edge on the Daga is a bit rougher, and tears at the paper instead of cuts it. nothing a little stropping and fine sand paper won't fix!
This duo did a number on various milk jugs, 2L pop bottles, and tatami mats that were begging to be destroyed. The Pinuti did most of the cutting, while I thrusted a lot with the Daga.
Conclusions
No surprise really here. This isn't my first filipino blade purchase from kris Cutlery so I got what I expected. There were a few surprises, though.
The first was the hexaconal shape of the handle, which lent itself very well to the handling of the blade and alignment with cutting.
the second was the scabbard, which i thought i would dislike because of its historical innacuracy. I ended up LOVING it, and it hugs the blades to tightly that i couldn't help but love it. it's simple and beautiful, even if it isn't historically accurate
Pros
- Beautiful, even satin finish
- blade geometry was incredible. not entirely historically accurate but accurate enough, it deviated in order to function better, it cut way better than most traditional pinuti.
- blade shape was, aside from geometry, very accurate.
- handle is comfortable and historically accurate
- balance was both historically accurate and a beauty to handle
Cons
- Historically innacurate sheath. (although i personally love it, someone who is looking for a historically accurate package as a whole may be dissappointed
- false edges not sharpened
- Knife edge not as sharp as sword's edge (again, only on mine. It would be different on someone else's
The Bottom Line
I don't think I need to say anything else. Kris Cutlery's Espada Y Daga gets a thumb's up from me! If i had the chance to purchase this again, I would in a heartbeat. Keep up the great work, Cecil. Your attention to detail does not go unnoticed!