Hanwei Tinker EMSHS Bare blade w/custom mounting
Oct 1, 2010 13:24:36 GMT
Post by TomK on Oct 1, 2010 13:24:36 GMT
A while back I ordered a replacement EMSHS blade from Marc at wiwingti sword supply and mounted it with a Valiant Armory AT303 cross guard and pommel.
I had heard a lot about these swords and I wanted to see one myself but I didn't like the grip they came with or the scabbard so I decided to go custom. it was a lot of work but fun.
STATS: after my work which shortened the blade a little more than an inch to make room for my peened hilt components
Blade Length: 30 1/2 inches
Grip Length: 3 7/8 inches
pommel to cross guard: 6 inches
Center of Gravity: 4 3/4 inches from cross guard
Center of Percussion: 21 1/2 inches from cross guard
Weight: 2 pounds 6 Ounces
THE BLADE:
there was a lot of talk about how Hanwei can't put a good edge on a European blade. I immediately could tell that the edge was pretty good. the geometry was also very good. the odd thing is that the blade was only sharp on the half nearest the tip. starting from the cross guard the blade is extremely blunt for about 8 inches and would be very hard to sharpen by hand. with a little work hand sharpening using sand paper I was able to make the blade sharp all the way up to about 9-10 inches from the cross guard. to sharpening further I'll need to use my belt sander and a fairly coarse grit belt to sharpen that area. when I say blunt here's what I mean:
HILT:
I wanted a tough and rugged looking sword like a grizzled veteran might carry. tough, hard used, but well taken care of
I think I got it about right.
here's the tang after I ground off the threaded part
my seam turned out ok even though I don't have all the right tools.
the grip turned out fatter than I expected but not too fat. I like the feel of it. it is very grippable.
the peened end:
I had a hard time with this part and ended up doing it twice.
HANDLING AND CUTTING:
With the balance point nice and close to the hand and the swords only weighing 2lbs 6 oz it is very fast and handy but still has lots of oomph for the authoritative cut one expects from a type XII sword.
the first test I did was with the factory edge right out of the box the only work I had done was to mount the hilt on.
next I cleaned up the edge a little bit with hand polishing using 400 and 600 grit sand paper.
then I cut tatami:
discussion on distal taper of the sword and slow motion chop to a brick to show flex on impact.
Conclusions:
I like this sword a lot but I don't know how it compares to the swords as done by hanwei. as a project blade it was pretty easy to make work and it was very forgiving of my inexperienced touch.
Pros:
1 Price. nice cheap project blade
2 well designed so they are hard to screw up even when you're new.
3 great blade geometry makes for a really good cutter.
4 good sharp edge right out of the box
Cons:
1 blunt near the cross guard so if you want that part sharp you have a lot of work to get it there. (I like it the way it is but I'm one of the few from what I hear)
2 hard to find part that fit right. it wasn't INTENDED to be a project blade so there aren't any parts out there made for it that you can swap in and out easily. still working out these problems is why customizing is so much fun!
3 not enough things to complain about. these realy are good blades and I can't think of any other con that has to do with the blade and not my work.
Bottom line: Hanwei has done the DIY-er a HUGE favor by offering these replcement blades at such a good price. if you are into doing your own custom mounting these are a great thing, go get one!
if you want to read more about the process of custom mounting this blade read here: sbgswordforum.proboards.com/inde ... read=12163