Hanwei Side Sword quickreview
Aug 4, 2010 9:53:05 GMT
Post by Deleted on Aug 4, 2010 9:53:05 GMT
Right, after reading a bit about it and realizing I won't be able to afford an Arms and Armor or Christian Fletcher cut and thrust (or Cervenka for that matter;)) I decided to buy a Hanwei Side Sword.
Since I'm in a bit of a hurry at the moment this will only be a quick review. I hope you'll forgive me for that.
Specs (from Hanwei website)
Overall: 37 3/4"
Blade Length: 30"
Handle Length: 5 1/2"
Weight: 2lb 8oz
First impressions: This is one nifty little sword. When I first got it out of its box I was struck by how small and nimble it felt. Then I compared it to one of my other swords (which happened to be Hanwei's practical medieval one-handed sword) and realized that the side sword wasn't short at all, it just fel like that. One reason for this is that a good two inches of the ricasso are under the finger rings, giving the illusion of shorter blade.
The second thing that struck me was how cool this sword looks and feels. It's not the most historically accurate piece from what I've gathered but the detailsare nice and it has a pleasing aesthetic. Any young, cockynobleman would be able to carry this without worrying about insults and if he does get insulted, well read on.
Handling:
This weapon handles quite nice. I don't have much experience with cut & thrusters but I'd say it handles well with both cuts and thrusts. I was able to stab a half liter plastic bottle multiple times (although it fell off the stand due to my horrible thrusting skills) and the cuts where so clean almost no water leaked out.
I would NOT want this thing poking my soft belly!
The Blade:
The blade is in my opinion, very nice. It's thin enough to be a convincing stabbing weapon but still wide enough to be able to do at least slashing cuts.
Don't expect to chop coke bottles in half since the edge isn't that sharp out of the box.
On thing I didn't like about tha blade was that the very tip got bent after I accidently hit the hard plastic cap of a water bottle I was stabbing at. It was easy enough to fix but I expected a bit more from a weapon such as this.
The grip and the other parts.
I'm guessing that the tang is threaded since the pommel seems screwed on (but I've yet managed to move it the slightest when trying to unscrew it) and the grip (which is VERY nicely wrapped) sounds hollow when tapped, just as expected. It's still quite sturdy, in my opinion. We'll see how she holds up.
The wrapping on the grip is beautyfully done with the alternating size of the steel wire and the silver turk's heads. This gives the weapon a very fashionable look without it being over the top. Suitable for the practical gentleman swashbuckler perhaps.
One thing that worried mea bit though was that after a few swings at water bottles and juice boxes I could feel something rattle inside the grip. It doesn't seem that anything is coming loose or is about to break, rather that a small piece of plastic or epoxy is moving around inside the hollow grip.
The quillon and crossguard are handsomely done and the diamond shaped points of the crossguard are even cooler up close than in the pictures.
The Scabbard is not much to talk about. It does its job. Mine was tight enough to hold the sword upside down without it falling out. One downside is that since the blade is so light it will be hard to mount the scabbard to hang properly from a belt. The sword is light enough to carry in your off hand all day though so if you expect ruffians that is alsoa viable solutions. ;D
Overall I'm pleased with this sword. Like I said, it's not arms and armor or ATrim but it's still a nifty little thing that you could easily carry around all day, either with a main gauche or a buckler, ready for some swashbuckling adventures.
Except for the three things mentioned (the bent tip, the hollow grip and the scabbard's PoB) I haven't found anything to complain about.
If you want a handy, everyday civilian sword get one o these. If the hollow grip bothers you unscrew the pommel (and then tell me how you did it) and make your own. That's what I'll do if it ever becomes a problem.
I call it "La Aguja" ("The Needle"), partly after Terésa Moreno, late wife of Lieutenant Colonel Richard Sharpe. A fitting name for both of them.
Since I'm in a bit of a hurry at the moment this will only be a quick review. I hope you'll forgive me for that.
Specs (from Hanwei website)
Overall: 37 3/4"
Blade Length: 30"
Handle Length: 5 1/2"
Weight: 2lb 8oz
First impressions: This is one nifty little sword. When I first got it out of its box I was struck by how small and nimble it felt. Then I compared it to one of my other swords (which happened to be Hanwei's practical medieval one-handed sword) and realized that the side sword wasn't short at all, it just fel like that. One reason for this is that a good two inches of the ricasso are under the finger rings, giving the illusion of shorter blade.
The second thing that struck me was how cool this sword looks and feels. It's not the most historically accurate piece from what I've gathered but the detailsare nice and it has a pleasing aesthetic. Any young, cockynobleman would be able to carry this without worrying about insults and if he does get insulted, well read on.
Handling:
This weapon handles quite nice. I don't have much experience with cut & thrusters but I'd say it handles well with both cuts and thrusts. I was able to stab a half liter plastic bottle multiple times (although it fell off the stand due to my horrible thrusting skills) and the cuts where so clean almost no water leaked out.
I would NOT want this thing poking my soft belly!
The Blade:
The blade is in my opinion, very nice. It's thin enough to be a convincing stabbing weapon but still wide enough to be able to do at least slashing cuts.
Don't expect to chop coke bottles in half since the edge isn't that sharp out of the box.
On thing I didn't like about tha blade was that the very tip got bent after I accidently hit the hard plastic cap of a water bottle I was stabbing at. It was easy enough to fix but I expected a bit more from a weapon such as this.
The grip and the other parts.
I'm guessing that the tang is threaded since the pommel seems screwed on (but I've yet managed to move it the slightest when trying to unscrew it) and the grip (which is VERY nicely wrapped) sounds hollow when tapped, just as expected. It's still quite sturdy, in my opinion. We'll see how she holds up.
The wrapping on the grip is beautyfully done with the alternating size of the steel wire and the silver turk's heads. This gives the weapon a very fashionable look without it being over the top. Suitable for the practical gentleman swashbuckler perhaps.
One thing that worried mea bit though was that after a few swings at water bottles and juice boxes I could feel something rattle inside the grip. It doesn't seem that anything is coming loose or is about to break, rather that a small piece of plastic or epoxy is moving around inside the hollow grip.
The quillon and crossguard are handsomely done and the diamond shaped points of the crossguard are even cooler up close than in the pictures.
The Scabbard is not much to talk about. It does its job. Mine was tight enough to hold the sword upside down without it falling out. One downside is that since the blade is so light it will be hard to mount the scabbard to hang properly from a belt. The sword is light enough to carry in your off hand all day though so if you expect ruffians that is alsoa viable solutions. ;D
Overall I'm pleased with this sword. Like I said, it's not arms and armor or ATrim but it's still a nifty little thing that you could easily carry around all day, either with a main gauche or a buckler, ready for some swashbuckling adventures.
Except for the three things mentioned (the bent tip, the hollow grip and the scabbard's PoB) I haven't found anything to complain about.
If you want a handy, everyday civilian sword get one o these. If the hollow grip bothers you unscrew the pommel (and then tell me how you did it) and make your own. That's what I'll do if it ever becomes a problem.
I call it "La Aguja" ("The Needle"), partly after Terésa Moreno, late wife of Lieutenant Colonel Richard Sharpe. A fitting name for both of them.