300 "deluxe" king leonidas sword

Mythos, it originally appeared as an example of how even a very simple sword design (like this "ninja" blade) would have to be more expensive than most crappy wallhangers if it were to be made as a quality, functional sword manufactured in the states. It was demonstrating the "you get what you pay for" philosophy, with regards to the OP's complaints about his $30 "Leonidas" sword and his somewhat tasteless comments about the Scorpion version.

I have no clue what the Owl's post means.

Uuuum thanks...I guess!Yeah Mythos, man don't go ballistic over it!Just find your happy place...or your power animal...or your power animal in your happy place!

Wow what fun,had no comments but just could not stop reading! WELCOME to the forum Yannis

Yes seriously,this was great fun and rather amusing, I laughed my ass off,I commend you sir on your good nature and sympathise with you about the crappy sword.Regardless of price if something is listed a particular way (battle ready) then that is what it should be.But then we live in a far from perfect world.

No, party's over now it's just attention whoring.

OK rerailing the thread for only a little if possible.Just got the response from kultofAthena and it says:

Thank you for your concern. I will try to address this as best as I can.

First off we are listing this item as forged based on the distributor's description. If we can discern that this is not the case that portion will be removed. The blade may be cast, however I can not seen any "circles" you mention as evidence of this. Are you in possession of this product, or are you making this assumption only from internet pictures?

Next, why are you under the incorrect assumption that a sword being cast is no longer functional? This is simply not the case. Copper and bronze swords were cast. The only reason this process was not continued with iron, was because they did not poses the ability to liquefy iron, as they could with bronze. The best they could do was soften it. This is how hammer forging came to be. It was the only option at the time to work iron. The forging process helped to force out impurities in the steel. Modern steel does not have these impurities. With the ability to cast steel without impurities, the potential to cast fully functional sword blades now exists. If the resulting blade is properly tempered it can be as functional as anything. There are plenty of manufacturers who grind their blades out of steel blanks, rather than hand forge them. The sheet steel they start out as is essentially cast, though in this case, liquefied and rolled into sheets.

This sword meets the minimum requirements to be considered battle ready. For us to ignore this, would do our customers a disservice. Some customers would like to know when they have the option to purchase a low cost functional piece. The assumption that the term battle ready negates the potential for the blade to ever be damaged is incorrect. Obviously, a $30 functional sword is not the same as a $250 one, but we never say that anything "battle ready" is automatically equal. There is a quality scale here like anything else, from very low end entry level to very high end. Anyone who assumes that all things are equal when an item is "battle ready" and price means nothing is dead wrong.

The problem here is that too many people refuse to educate themselves on this topic enough before engaging in the dangerous hobby of backyard cutting. Somehow, despite all of our advice and comment to the contrary, people seem to think that "battle ready" means magic and indestructible, so anything short is not "battle ready". This is again incorrect. By this logic, most historic swords would not be considered battle ready.

Put simply, "battle ready" means the sword is carbon steel, tempered and has a solid tang. I concede that others are using this term incorrectly, but to expect us to change the meaning of a term we have been using for over a decade in this context, to fit with a new and incorrect popular misunderstanding of the terminology is just silly.

It is my personal belief that this sword is functional and fully capable of use for which it was designed. It provides a decent chopping style blade and can be used to some effect. If I did not believe this it would not be listed as such. It is no more or no less than we say it is, a cheap, low end functional sword. Does this mean I would recommend it for cutting? No, the style is nearly useless for standard types of cutting. But for someone who wants a cheap sword that will not fall apart like a stainless steel one would, this is a nice option.

Thanks
Ryan Whittlinger
www.KultOfAthena.com

What do you think?How much of this should I consider credible?I mean, I already formed a certain opinion I'd like to hear others too though.

Wll Owl, some times I get grief over being to vague in my replys, so no problem....SanMarc.

And yani, KOA just covered their butt with the Email, so thats that.... ")

Well, I dont know how much i'd trust it if it WAS cast. Im pretty sure my Hanwei Hero's axe is cast, and it seems very hard and durable but then its much thicker and shorter blades.

I dont know if there are any ways to improve a casting process to make it more reliable or if any methods are implemented. Take concrete for instance, you pour it in the form and let it harden, but its filled with air pockets that can weaken it. Any projects I did for city, government or military always had an inspector on site to make sure we used a vibrator to settle and help strengthen the concrete, as e result you can see air bubbles working their way out. I dont know much about the casting process of steel, i wonder if there are any methods like this that will strengthen something like a blade.

Personally, I think I'd use it in a wide open area for cutting to try it out, but I dont think Id trust it enough be using it at a backyard cutting party. But like you said, you like to see how much abuse it will take to break it. So here's a chance to document it. Find out and let us know....how much abuse can a cast blade take before it breaks. Hell, if you put up some really entertaining videos of incredible abuse and it breaks, ill send you $30 USD.

Yeah i was thinking that spine would detract from cutting.

My windlass 300 sword is an awesome chopper, the best i have next to my big Danish Axe from A&A, even though the blade is quite thin it hasn't warped on me yet even though i repeatedly buried it 4 inches into a Fir stump. The first time was an accident....went right through a target and into the stump so i HAD to try it out a few more times. cant imagine what a 2 handed version would do. The spine on yours looks better than the fuller on mine but hey if it works...