Valiant Armoury Signature Crusader
Apr 11, 2010 0:23:06 GMT
Post by kidcasanova on Apr 11, 2010 0:23:06 GMT
Valiant Armoury Signature Crusader Review
Reviewed by Aaron Henley
Introduction
Finally, I get to start my first review. Bear with me.
Sonny's been teasing the hell out of all us European sword fans for a good long while now, and none of his swords tickled me quite the way the Signature Crusader did. I've been bugging him about updates for months, and a couple of weeks ago he posted pics of a custom model he did for a gentleman in Europe (Sword Fan on the CSS forum). He mentioned he had a couple in stock and I decided to order one.
Historical overview
The Crusader is an Oakeshott type XII, putting it in the same category as a vast majority of arming swords. It closely resembles XII.5 on myArmoury. The type was used extensively for the better part of three centuries, and continued to be in use long after it's heyday. Hilt is made up of a type J pommel and an octagonal type 2 guard.
Initial Impressions
It took awhile to get my sword, because I had it shipped to my father's house and wasn't able to pick it up due to work. Luckily my brother brought it to me on his way back from school, and stuck around as I opened her up.
Packaging was standard VA fare. That is to say, quite good. A foam-padded white box encasing a smaller, also foam-padded box which contained Valiant Armoury's cautionary warning and the sword. Absolutely no damage to either box or the sword/scabbard, so well done Sonny and UPS.
First thing I did was dry handle the sword. And after owning several arming swords from type X to type XII, and from Windlass to Albion, I was still very impressed with this sword. Very impressed. Dry handling was an absolute joy, it moves from cut to guard effortlessly.
Statistics
Overall Length: 37.5"
Blade Length: 30.75"
Hilt Length: 6.75"
Grip Length: 4.5"
Guard Length: 7.5"
COP: 21" from the crossguard
POB: 4" exactly from the crossguard
Weight: N/A. I do not have a scale but I would compare it favorably to the Albion Knight.
Scabbard Length: 33"
Blade Width:
1.75" at the base of the blade, tapering to 1.5" at the COP, then to 1.25 at the fuller termination and finally 0.875" an inch before the tip.
The Blade
The blade is a 30.75" type XII. It's a bit short for its type but not unheard of. It's finished to a smooth satin finish and flexes quite well (I was unable to get a picture of this). The fuller terminates 2/3 down the blade, and transitions quite smoothly.
There is a slight secondary bevel, which is so small that I did not notice it until several hours after I got it. There were also spots on the blade, most were blemishes from polishing (you could see where the sandpaper went perpendicular to the finish), though there were two spots that should not have been on the sword.
First up was some sort of unidentified mark. It wasn't a scratch, it's not "gunky" nor is it, as far as I can tell, rust. It's just there:
The second, and the one that bothers me the most, is at the very tip of the blade. The metal has changed color from applied heat during (perhaps) sharpening. Luckily it is small and I don't think it will pose a structural problem, but nonetheless it is something that QC should have nabbed.
The Hilt
The grip is wood-core, wrapped in cord, then leather and dyed an antiqued brown. Note that this is not the stock color scheme, I asked Sonny for a dark tan scabbard and very dark brown for the belt and grip. I also had him antique the fittings.
The grip wrap is done very well, which is no surprise seeing as VA is doing arguably the best work in our pricepoint. The seam is unobtrusive and not overly visible. I prefer this look over stitched wraps like many/most Windlass swords.
The pommel is a type J that is inset with a crusader cross. I had Sonny antique it and I thought it turned out wonderfully. I'm not the religious type but I really think the cross sets the whole sword off, Christian was spot-on when he designed it. The profile of the pommel is quite attractive as well.
The crossguard is a style 2, and is also quite well-done. There are a couple small voids from the casting, but as I went for the antiqued look, I think it fits quite well. The only problem I can see with the guard is that, when looking at it from the side, you can clearly see how uneven the octagon is.
I will say, however, that the fit of the guard to the blade is excellent.
The sword is not peened, it is assembled with a hex nut for ease of maintenance and customization. I personally have no problem with this method, but I know others do for aesthetic reasons.
The Scabbard
One of the biggest ways VA has churned up the European sword market has been that they offer the full package, sword and scabbard/suspension. Let alone that they offer it with fantastic quality and for a great price.
I ordered the scabbard a dark tan, but the entire package ended up being antiqued brown. Which, honestly, I'm okay with. I wasn't entirely sure how I was going to like the contrast but I love how the all-brown looks on it.
The throat of the scabbard is quite attractive with the triangular rain flaps and the suspension is fit very well.
The chape fits nicely but you can see obvious grind marks on it. I'm fine with this, but it could have been finished a bit better.
The suspension is very comfortable to wear (I wore it for well over 8 hours yesterday and was quite at ease during my everyday actions) and attractive, to boot. My only complaint here is that the holes in the belt end way past my waist size (I wear a size 30, for reference). The average (and even above average) guy shouldn't have trouble at all, but with my slim frame I found this a bit frustrating. Nothing that can't be fixed, however. The belt I chose was the same one Sword Fan had done, and is slightly different than the stock belt.
Handling Characteristics
As I said earlier, the sword handles wonderfully, moving from guard to cut to guard with little effort. The close POB and light weight makes it very fast and maneuverable, but also gives plenty of blade presence (compare to 3.5" POB on the Albion Knight, which makes it feel a bit too neutral in the hand) for the cut. Tip control was also very good. Not comparable to later designs which were optimized for the thrust, but I would feel very confident thrusting with this sword. I was able to handle the sword extensively over the course of several hours and felt little to no physical exertion afterward. I'm a tall guy at 6'4" but I'm also rather thin, so to handle the sword that much and not get at all tired is saying something.
Test Cutting
Unfortunately I was not able to get any test cutting done, as I live in an apartment and I would rather not have the neighbors slashing my tires out of fear or misunderstanding. If I am able to get any cutting done with it, I will post video here with an update.
I will extend my thoughts on how well I think the sword would cut, however. I'm not sure if it will be the heavy cutter that the Albion Knight is, with it's far wider blade, but the speed and blade presence make me feel that this sword would be an excellent tatami/bottle killer. Given that it's based on the 1315 from Angus Trim, I would expect similar performance.
Conclusions
In the end, this is one of the best arming swords I've had the pleasure of owning. VA offered the best arming sword in our price point when they released the Practical 303, and they have certainly made a winner out of this one. It's a stunning package that performs as well as it looks. And the price they're doing it at is unbelievable.
Pros
- Excellent package, a great sword and scabbard combo, which until now was unheard of in anything close to our price range.
- A great price
- Customization options. If there's something you don't like or would like to have changed, Sonny will get it done.
Cons
I'm going to stretch a bit here as there is nothing "wrong" with the package, only small nitpicks I had.
- Blemishes on the blade and discolored metal from applying heat after the tempering.
- Scabbard is not tan like I ordered, but rather brown.
- Crossguard is very obviously not a symmetrical octagon. I'm not begging for exact angles, but it would have been more attractive if it looked a bit more even.
The Bottom Line
I feel this sword suits me better than my Albion Knight because I enjoy the total package (and not spending hundreds more on a scabbard for the Knight), and because this example of XII is and always has been more attractive to me than the example the Knight was based on. I would not hesitate to recommend this sword to any arming sword fan, either newcomer or experienced.