Hanwei River Witham sword
May 11, 2010 19:57:50 GMT
Post by Deleted on May 11, 2010 19:57:50 GMT
Hanwei CAS Iberia River Witham sword
Intro
I bought this sword partially because of the price, and I also like the apperance of the original sword it's based on. I was also wanting a durable sword, which this seemed to be. I got it for $109 at Kult of Athena.
Historical background
This sword is based on a sword found in the River Witham in England. The origional was an unusual double fullered Oakeshott type X. Although it has most of same basic design features of the origional, it is diffirent in a number of ways. I will describe these as I discuss the diffirent parts of the sword, though I think it is certianly close enough for a low priced "beat-whack" sword.
Below is a picture of the origional sword in the British museum, for comparasion:
Initial Impressions
Inside the box I found a blue pen from Kult of Athena labeled: "Kult of Athena The Medieval Super store", and free stuff if alaways fun. The inner "Hanwei box" housing the sword had been opened and re-taped, I like to think this is from KOA inspecting the sword before shipping it. At first I was a bit happy to find the scabbard was not the ugly one pictured on KOA's site, though a better looking one similar to the HT line scabbards. Next was the swords weight, I was expecting it to be very heavy, though when I unsheathed it it felt reasonable to me.
Statistics
I'm to lazy to measure the sword.
Though KOA says it weighs 3 pounds 7 ounces, and balances about 7 inches down it's 31 inch blade.
Blade
I think the blade on this sword is well done for the price. It has a fairly dull finish, which I like, and I think it looks more authentic. It came "sharp", with a large, blunt secondary bevel. The blade has little profile taper, and I think it has some distal taper, though not much. The double fullers on the blade are nicely done, and the runic etching in the blade looks better than I expected. The blade also has an unsharpened riassco, it kind of throws the look off, though for the price I find it more than accetpable. This sword was also never marketed as an exact historical reproduction. The blade is also quite heavy and thick, almost certianly thicker than the original sword. Overall, I like the blade on this sword, it looks better in person than it does in photographs. (especially mine.)
Handle
I find the handle on this sword to be well sized and comfortable. It is leather wraped over something, and it seems to give a fairly good grip. After my much posted about Windlass Effigy sword, I was happy to find the handle on this sword seems tight and solid.
Guard
The guard on this sword is close in apperance to the original, though it looks a bit shorter. It is bassicaly a steel cyliner that flares near the ends. It seems solid.
Pommel
The pommel on this sword is fairly simple in design, though I like it. It is a thick steel disc. It is peened on the back, and there are some ding marks where it was peened, though this doesn't bother me, as long as it stays tight. As far as resembling the original sword, the pommel is the single closest part.
Scabbard
As I said before, I'm happy that the scabbard with this sword is much better than i was expecting. It is wood, leather wraped with a steel throat and chape. It also has 2 steel hanging rings. Overall it resembles the scabbards with the Hanwei/Tinker line. It can retain the sword upside down, though the blade is easy to sheathe or remove. Easialy the best scabbard I own.
Here's a low quality photograph:
Handling
As I said earlier, this sword handles better than I thought it would. It is somewhat blade-heavy, though not eneough to be unwieldy. This is my heaviest sword, though it is not overly heavy. I'm certian the original sword was lighter and more balanced. Though I actually like the way this sword handles and feels, it seems like a powerful cutting sword, would be good at thrusting, too.
Test cutting
Although this sword is a heavy cutter, it is not ideal for bottle cutting, due to the thick blade and chisel-like edge.
It's a good thusting sword, though:
Okay, predictably, I can't embed the video. Here's a link:
Conclusions
Overall, I like this sword, and I think it's a superb sword for the price. I origionally got it as a cheap sword to play with, though it also looks better on a wall than I would have thought. So far it seems durable, to. You should get The Hanwei River Witham if you want a good quality, low priced beat-whack sword. Just be prepared to do aditional sharpening if you want if for bottle cutting.
Pros
-I like it's apperance.
-Low price at Kult of Athena.
-Seems durable and solid.
-Inspired by a historical piece.
Cons
-The beveled edge is quite steep.
Bottom line
Yes, I would certianly recomend this sword to anyone not obsessed with total historical accuracy. I might get another CAS Iberia sword if this one holds up, since they seem like an ideal budget sword.
Intro
I bought this sword partially because of the price, and I also like the apperance of the original sword it's based on. I was also wanting a durable sword, which this seemed to be. I got it for $109 at Kult of Athena.
Historical background
This sword is based on a sword found in the River Witham in England. The origional was an unusual double fullered Oakeshott type X. Although it has most of same basic design features of the origional, it is diffirent in a number of ways. I will describe these as I discuss the diffirent parts of the sword, though I think it is certianly close enough for a low priced "beat-whack" sword.
Below is a picture of the origional sword in the British museum, for comparasion:
Initial Impressions
Inside the box I found a blue pen from Kult of Athena labeled: "Kult of Athena The Medieval Super store", and free stuff if alaways fun. The inner "Hanwei box" housing the sword had been opened and re-taped, I like to think this is from KOA inspecting the sword before shipping it. At first I was a bit happy to find the scabbard was not the ugly one pictured on KOA's site, though a better looking one similar to the HT line scabbards. Next was the swords weight, I was expecting it to be very heavy, though when I unsheathed it it felt reasonable to me.
Statistics
I'm to lazy to measure the sword.
Though KOA says it weighs 3 pounds 7 ounces, and balances about 7 inches down it's 31 inch blade.
Blade
I think the blade on this sword is well done for the price. It has a fairly dull finish, which I like, and I think it looks more authentic. It came "sharp", with a large, blunt secondary bevel. The blade has little profile taper, and I think it has some distal taper, though not much. The double fullers on the blade are nicely done, and the runic etching in the blade looks better than I expected. The blade also has an unsharpened riassco, it kind of throws the look off, though for the price I find it more than accetpable. This sword was also never marketed as an exact historical reproduction. The blade is also quite heavy and thick, almost certianly thicker than the original sword. Overall, I like the blade on this sword, it looks better in person than it does in photographs. (especially mine.)
Handle
I find the handle on this sword to be well sized and comfortable. It is leather wraped over something, and it seems to give a fairly good grip. After my much posted about Windlass Effigy sword, I was happy to find the handle on this sword seems tight and solid.
Guard
The guard on this sword is close in apperance to the original, though it looks a bit shorter. It is bassicaly a steel cyliner that flares near the ends. It seems solid.
Pommel
The pommel on this sword is fairly simple in design, though I like it. It is a thick steel disc. It is peened on the back, and there are some ding marks where it was peened, though this doesn't bother me, as long as it stays tight. As far as resembling the original sword, the pommel is the single closest part.
Scabbard
As I said before, I'm happy that the scabbard with this sword is much better than i was expecting. It is wood, leather wraped with a steel throat and chape. It also has 2 steel hanging rings. Overall it resembles the scabbards with the Hanwei/Tinker line. It can retain the sword upside down, though the blade is easy to sheathe or remove. Easialy the best scabbard I own.
Here's a low quality photograph:
Handling
As I said earlier, this sword handles better than I thought it would. It is somewhat blade-heavy, though not eneough to be unwieldy. This is my heaviest sword, though it is not overly heavy. I'm certian the original sword was lighter and more balanced. Though I actually like the way this sword handles and feels, it seems like a powerful cutting sword, would be good at thrusting, too.
Test cutting
Although this sword is a heavy cutter, it is not ideal for bottle cutting, due to the thick blade and chisel-like edge.
It's a good thusting sword, though:
Okay, predictably, I can't embed the video. Here's a link:
Conclusions
Overall, I like this sword, and I think it's a superb sword for the price. I origionally got it as a cheap sword to play with, though it also looks better on a wall than I would have thought. So far it seems durable, to. You should get The Hanwei River Witham if you want a good quality, low priced beat-whack sword. Just be prepared to do aditional sharpening if you want if for bottle cutting.
Pros
-I like it's apperance.
-Low price at Kult of Athena.
-Seems durable and solid.
-Inspired by a historical piece.
Cons
-The beveled edge is quite steep.
Bottom line
Yes, I would certianly recomend this sword to anyone not obsessed with total historical accuracy. I might get another CAS Iberia sword if this one holds up, since they seem like an ideal budget sword.