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Post by chrisperoni on Aug 17, 2010 23:34:51 GMT
Today I received this sword, purchased through the classifieds for a very nice price from Rob/Stromlo-Swords (thanks Rob!) Can anyone tell me: -who made it? (I'm guessing Deepeeka) -how bad/dangerous is the partial tang to welded rod? -should I just never cut with it? -what is the best way to go about sharpening it? I bought this a project sword so I will be 'tricking' it out for practice and fun. No matter what comes of my questions I'm happy because I got what I was expecting and for a crazy good deal IMO. (Rob stated in his ad this is high carbon-I'm assuming 1045. He also advised the handle was loose and I could see in the photo the blade was attached to the pommel/grip by a nut, so I assumed it was screwed together. I just wanted that to be said so no one thinks I'm dissing Rob. He was actually really cool about the sale- I screwed up my paypal account and it took over a week for him to get my money, which was no problem for him. I really appreciated his understanding)
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Post by stromloswordsusa on Aug 18, 2010 0:26:54 GMT
Hi Chris
Yeah I think I made $4 on that after shipping and paypal, so for $4 you did ok!
It came as a sample blade from some place out of India, who said it was "high carbon", one that approached me randomly. I got a Viking and a 1860 Sabre too, but they were not up to even discussing ordering. I had never even taken it apart because I only considered it parts!
It I remember where I'll let you know, but I may have blocked out those memories with alcohol on purpose to forget how much it cost ...
Oh - and I'm not sure on the tang question either. Cheers, Rob
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Post by chrisperoni on Aug 18, 2010 2:44:47 GMT
4$ profit? Man, I hope Stromlo-Swords is earning you higher returns than that ;D
Seriously though- Thanks for the deal and super fast shipping.
I'm going to take the blade and start from scratch for everything else- started drawing up some ideas already today.
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Avery
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Post by Avery on Aug 19, 2010 0:05:41 GMT
Chris, I've seen that sword before, but I can't place it. I swear its a Deepeka though. Ricwiley would be the one to ask.
As for the tang, thats not safe, not in the least from what I see. I wouldn't advise cutting with it. Something you could do is either have it properly welded and treated or redo the whole tang.
Edit: oh and as for sharpening, this works well.
/index.cgi?board=repair&action=display&thread=15462
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Post by Deleted on Aug 19, 2010 0:26:03 GMT
I highly doubt it is a Deepeeka. I've seen a couple of old and newer Deepeeka pompeii and the grip of this sword (if it is made of bone) looks much better than Deepeeka's hilt. Here is a picture of Deepeeka newer pompeii: www.kultofathena.com/images%5CAH4211N_2_l.jpgSlightly older version (grip pretty much the same, major improvement on scabbard fitting and pommel) kultofathena.com/product.asp?item=AH4211&name=Roman+Bone+Handled+Pompeii+GladiusThe grip seems to be similar to this one (nice scabbard fittings ): legvi.tripod.com/armamentarium/id189.htmlIf it is bone, the grip valley could be deepen just a little with a rasp and half round file and the peaks rounded off. Oh yeah wear a mask when working with bone, plus it is going to stink a little. you could get more information here www.larp.com/legioxx/gladhnts.htmlI personally would not cut with this gladius. The welded tang does not look too sturdy is designed for Roman reenactment in mind. By the way, the newer version of Deepeeka does not have welded tang. It will take quite some time to put an edge on it. Tom's sharpening method will work, but I would suggest using lower grit (60 grit) sandpaper to work on getting a flattened-diamond blade geometry.
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Post by chrisperoni on Aug 19, 2010 4:41:50 GMT
If Ric doesn't see this thread I'll try a pm- I guess he would know since he has pretty much every gladius ever made (at least it seems that way ) How would I go about replacing the tang altogether? Would it be easier to remove the rod and have a replacement welded on properly? It does look a lot like one of the Soul of the Warrior swords- one of the older versions. The grip is bone as far as I can tell, and the rest looks like a pretty fair match, right down to the welded rod (which seems to be how they used to do it). Do you guys think it's been heat treated? If you're still checking into this Rob- what are your thoughts? -thanks guys, and anything else you want to add is always appreciated
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Post by chrisperoni on Aug 19, 2010 4:44:23 GMT
Even if I don't end up cutting with it I'm still going to do a complete replace of the pommel guard and handle. If nothing else, It'll be a great display sword when I'm done. 'Course it'd be way better if it can be used..
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Post by Deleted on Aug 19, 2010 5:04:46 GMT
If you ask my opinion, I would not put too much effort on it because it requires a lot of effort in making it right. Aside from the hilt, you will need to get the blade profile right. From the second and third picture, the end seems very blunt and more of a rectangular geometry. To get it to flattened diamond profile, there will be a lot of grinding. You don't want to put too much heat on it when grinding or you might affect the temper....but then again most roman swords are made of mild steel...so when it comes to edge retention it is pretty historical accurate . I don't really know how to work on the tang... sorry. But I think it involves something of cutting it off and properly welding it back... The hilt is much easier to customize. The overall shape of the guard is pretty decent but the brass needs to be inset into the hilt, remove the brass sheet from the hilt and make reduce its diameter by about 1/2" (smaller oval shape). Onwards to the wooden guard itself, use a dremel and carve out the wooden guard. The recess needs to be only slightly deeper than the brass thickness...so you will end up something like this: kultofathena.com/images%5CANR6_2_l.jpgAbout the grip, you could make the valleys a little deeper and grind off the peaks. Bone dust are hazardous so use a mask when working with it. The pommel looks a-okay to me. I would leave it as it is. Once done, sand the pommel and guard a little and soak it with linseed oil for a day, take it out wipe out excess and let it dry for a day or so. At the end of the day... I think if will make a nice display gladius. Once the tang is fixed, you could try light cutting with it, though a gladius is mainly a stabbing weapon. You could get more info here (written by Matthew Amt) www.larp.com/legioxx/gladhnts.htmlAnother fun and cheap project is to turn a Windlass Qama to a fulham gladius. Windlass temper is pretty decent (better than Deepeeka too) and the blade shape would make it a nice project. Have fun though! Edit: There is a way to tell if the sword is properly hardened/tempered. File a small section using a needle file to see how hard/soft the edge is. Keep in mind that most steel back in those days were quite mild (except for some good gladius were the edge is harder than the body)...but something has to be done with the tang to make it functional.
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Post by YlliwCir on Aug 19, 2010 10:39:22 GMT
Sorry, Chris, I have no clue who made that one. I've looked around and can't find one like it. I agree with Eques, it doesn't look like any Deepeeka I've ever seen. I wouldn't cut with it because that tang weld doesn't look good. That being so I wouldn't bother to sharpen it, that'd probably take a lot of time. Having said that, I do like the look of it.
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Post by chrisperoni on Aug 19, 2010 13:08:37 GMT
Great stuff! thanks for the links and ideas. As far as sharpening, the edges are about 1.5mm thick right now...
As for the parts: -The pommel has a long drip of clear glue down one side, and it's just too big for my tastes -The guard is pretty beat up across the top- for some reason it has several small holes drilled/punched into the brass plate here and there, and the carvings on the side are not very well done. -The bone grip is alright- but I want to replace it with one I've made myself, and have it be cylindrical rather than octagonal.
I always had it in mind to use the blade and make all my own parts, rather than rework the existing pieces. I've already drawn out designs for a completely new guard, grip and pommel- something that's been in my head for a while now. It might not be terribly historically accurate but that was never my plan. I want to personalize it and make it into something visually appealing and unique...and I like the idea of starting from scratch because it gives me more to do/ more to build- which of course is the fun part ;D
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Post by stromloswordsusa on Aug 19, 2010 16:41:20 GMT
Good luck Chris!
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Post by chrisperoni on Aug 20, 2010 1:09:20 GMT
Sorry, Chris, I have no clue who made that one. I've looked around and can't find one like it. I agree with Eques, it doesn't look like any Deepeeka I've ever seen. I wouldn't cut with it because that tang weld doesn't look good. That being so I wouldn't bother to sharpen it, that'd probably take a lot of time. Having said that, I do like the look of it. Ha! I JUST looked at the name on your post and realized it's Ric! I was on SBG at work all day but almost all picture links are broken at work due to the IT website lockouts, so I didn't see your avatar during the day. IT tries to keep our surfing to a minimum by blocking certain sites- youtube, photobucket, facebook etc. It's a pain on SBG because I have to wait until I get home to actually SEE any pics people are talking about. So just now I'm at home and thinking who would use Ric's picture? Do they realize it's a fellow forumite or do they think it's straight outta Star Wars? -No, none of that. I'm just not too observant is all
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