Blade regrinding service?
Oct 26, 2009 4:05:55 GMT
Post by Kilted Cossack on Oct 26, 2009 4:05:55 GMT
Blade regrinding?
You can file this under, perhaps, the category of 'bread upon the waters.' I have an idea. Maybe it's silly, maybe it would never be feasible, maybe it would work, except for the economics. Is there room out there for a Western/Euro blade sharpening service? When i say 'sharpening' I really mean regrinding, I suppose. Not just putting a good edge onto Western blades, but even reshaping the profile.
Before hotspur left, I read, to my profit, a lot of his posts regarding post-Renaissance blades. He spoke, at length, about the more complex distal taper that many of the 18th and 19th century European military blades exhibited. I own (and like) my Windlass iteration of an American Revolutionary War saber. It is mostly in the style of 'Soviet realist' art, blocky and strong, yet relieved by the carved wooden grip. The blade is apparently of standard 3/16" Windlass stock, with slight distal taper towards the point. Hotspur (and others at the higher-$ oriented enthusiast sites) have frequently referred to Windlass as good workbench material.
I believe that Gus Trim reground some of the first generation Valiant Armoury collaborations, which implies that regrinding is possible. My thought was that there are a variety of Western style blades out there from our target manufacturers which could benefit from regrinding and sharpening. Del Tin, Windlass, DSA, by some lights Hanwei . . . these are some of the names that come to mind. I was wondering if it would be worthwhile for someone to offer a 'fixing up' service. It could be either a vendor or an individual here.
I have ideas. Sometimes they're just stupid, sometimes they're wonderful, but just don't work, for some reason, and sometimes they're halfway decent. I don't have the talent to provide this kind of service. But it seems to me that in today's economy, there might well be a niche market for a specialized service like regrinding blades. With the internet's ability to target marketing efforts, now is the best time ever for niche services. Advertise here, and at the other enthusiast forums----everything aimed at the perfect market.
I think the 20th century was the age of Mass Man, and I think that paradigm is about to shatter. I think the old worship of the big is about to go the way of all flesh. I could be talking out of my butt!
I imagine my Windlass saber done up with a good complex distal profile, and wonder what it would be like. Lighter, smoother, 'dancier.' A truer approximation of an original cavalry saber. What would that be worth? Would it be a workable model? I've already got the saber, and I like it. I'd probably risk a reasonable sum to have it reground to be more authentic, more lively.
The Euro sword market is in it's golden days. The old days, when stainless steel rat tangs were the standard, they're gone baby gone. Valiant Armoury and Hanwei are making things better at a lower price point with Trim, Fletcher, Lundemo and Tinker . . . but there are still plenty of well tempered blades out there that are PS2 and X-box, not PS3 and X360.
I cast this idea upon the waters. Maybe it would work, maybe it wouldn't . . . but wouldn't it be cool if someone could build something out of fixing swords?
--
"A man must sometimes laugh at himself or go mad," said he. "Few realize it. That is why there are so many madmen in the world." Rafael Sabatini
You can file this under, perhaps, the category of 'bread upon the waters.' I have an idea. Maybe it's silly, maybe it would never be feasible, maybe it would work, except for the economics. Is there room out there for a Western/Euro blade sharpening service? When i say 'sharpening' I really mean regrinding, I suppose. Not just putting a good edge onto Western blades, but even reshaping the profile.
Before hotspur left, I read, to my profit, a lot of his posts regarding post-Renaissance blades. He spoke, at length, about the more complex distal taper that many of the 18th and 19th century European military blades exhibited. I own (and like) my Windlass iteration of an American Revolutionary War saber. It is mostly in the style of 'Soviet realist' art, blocky and strong, yet relieved by the carved wooden grip. The blade is apparently of standard 3/16" Windlass stock, with slight distal taper towards the point. Hotspur (and others at the higher-$ oriented enthusiast sites) have frequently referred to Windlass as good workbench material.
I believe that Gus Trim reground some of the first generation Valiant Armoury collaborations, which implies that regrinding is possible. My thought was that there are a variety of Western style blades out there from our target manufacturers which could benefit from regrinding and sharpening. Del Tin, Windlass, DSA, by some lights Hanwei . . . these are some of the names that come to mind. I was wondering if it would be worthwhile for someone to offer a 'fixing up' service. It could be either a vendor or an individual here.
I have ideas. Sometimes they're just stupid, sometimes they're wonderful, but just don't work, for some reason, and sometimes they're halfway decent. I don't have the talent to provide this kind of service. But it seems to me that in today's economy, there might well be a niche market for a specialized service like regrinding blades. With the internet's ability to target marketing efforts, now is the best time ever for niche services. Advertise here, and at the other enthusiast forums----everything aimed at the perfect market.
I think the 20th century was the age of Mass Man, and I think that paradigm is about to shatter. I think the old worship of the big is about to go the way of all flesh. I could be talking out of my butt!
I imagine my Windlass saber done up with a good complex distal profile, and wonder what it would be like. Lighter, smoother, 'dancier.' A truer approximation of an original cavalry saber. What would that be worth? Would it be a workable model? I've already got the saber, and I like it. I'd probably risk a reasonable sum to have it reground to be more authentic, more lively.
The Euro sword market is in it's golden days. The old days, when stainless steel rat tangs were the standard, they're gone baby gone. Valiant Armoury and Hanwei are making things better at a lower price point with Trim, Fletcher, Lundemo and Tinker . . . but there are still plenty of well tempered blades out there that are PS2 and X-box, not PS3 and X360.
I cast this idea upon the waters. Maybe it would work, maybe it wouldn't . . . but wouldn't it be cool if someone could build something out of fixing swords?
--
"A man must sometimes laugh at himself or go mad," said he. "Few realize it. That is why there are so many madmen in the world." Rafael Sabatini