Hanwei Qi Jian Sword
Mar 4, 2011 8:42:54 GMT
Post by SwordFan on Mar 4, 2011 8:42:54 GMT
Introduction
As mentioned in my previous Hanwei Song Sword review I have found myself more and more interested in Chinese swords and after receiving the Hanwei Beile Dao a while back I decided to order the Hanwei Qi Jian Sword .This purchase was purely based on that I liked the look of the sword as well as the idea of the one piece construction as there is not much out there in terms of reviews on this piece .
Historical overview
The sword’s name originates with the Qi nation, one of the many warring states that eventually formed modern China. Legend has it that Feng-Xuan, one of the Qi people and a central character in a well known folk tale, possessed such a one piece sword and would use its ringing quality to accompany his singing.
Initial Impressions
After a bit of a long wait the box from KOA finally arrived at our Customs section ,there were some large delays with it arriving here purely because of all the bad weather abroad which resulted in delayed flights etc etc . So once it had arrived at our Customs department I was quick to jump in the Car and go and collect it as delivery to me would have taken another couple of days as Customs were sitting with a backlog of items to process .After collecting it and paying the 38% in Customs and taxes I was on my way home to “play with my new toys” as my wife likes to put it .
The swords (Song Sword , Qi Jian and CS Jade Lion Dagger ) inside the 42” box were well packaged (as always from KOA) .At this point I would just like to make mention of the excellent service I always receive from Ryan at KOA . Their service and help has been nothing short of excellent with us over the years .So much so that I will only buy from them .I love that they always inspect my swords carefully (at my request) for any faults before packaging especially with me being an international buyer as trying to return a damaged item is nothing short of a huge headache and a very expensive .
After removing the brown packaging from the Hanwei Qi Jian Sword and taking it out of the maroon sword bag I removed the blade from the scabbard as the first thing I wanted to check was the sharpness of the blade after hearing that it was rather dull in general ,but to my surprise mine had a nice edge to it ,not paper cutting sharp but it handled some bottles and mats just fine !As for the rest of the sword, Hanwei have done a really good job with this piece as everything was tight and looked really good .
Statistics
Taken from Kultofathena :
From the master sword smiths of the Hanwei forge comes the Qi Jian, a re-creation of an ancient design that utilized one-piece forging. The entire sword, from pommel to tip, has been forged from a single billet of steel. This forging technique provides unparalleled strength and balance while exhibiting a clear, bell-like tone when lightly struck.
The Hanwei Chinese Qi Jian is made from one solid piece of carbon steel, antiqued on the guard and pommel and mirror polished on the blade. The grip is wrapped in genuine rayskin, and matches the wrap on the scabbard throat. The included scabbard is made of wood with antiqued iron fittings. Truly a unique piece
Blade Length: 28 1/2” Long
Handle Length: 5 3/8” Long
Overall Length: 37 3/4” Long
Weight: 2lb 9oz
Thickness: 5.8mm – 3mm
Width: 30.4mm
Components
The Blade:
The blade is very well polished to a mirror finish . It has a nice sharp edge which while not paper cutting sharp is plenty sharp enough to handle bottles and mats .The blade itself has a lovely shape to it which makes handling it a pleasure and yes when tapping the blade on a hard surface a very clear bell like tone is heard – So a sword and Musical instrument all in one (Lol) . Oh and one last thing the blade is nice and rigid in use ,no whippy blade movement at all !
The Handle
The handle is wrapped in aged rayskin and is very well done with the seam being very hard to see unless one really looks for it .
The Guard:
Not much to say here other than it has been antiquated and suits the sword .
The Pommel:
The Pommel features a antiquated design which is very hard to make out exactly what it is meant to be . The hole is obviously the mouth and there are eyes and some other facial features ,but as to what exactly the head is of ( a demon , person ?? Who knows ) is a bit of a mystery , well to me anyway .The whole thing ties in well with the sword though giving the whole sword that aged look of a real sword .
The Scabbard:
The matching scabbard is made of wood (looks to be rosewood) with antiqued iron fittings which tie in well with the rest of the sword . No rattle at all with the scabbard with a nice snug fit on the blade .One thing I noticed is that the scabbard is rather heavy. With the sword sheathed it feels a little heavy , remove the blade and well that's a whole different story .It also has a Rayskin wrap on it which covers the top third near the scabbard mouth .This matched the Rayskin found on the handle .
Handling Characteristics
This is my first chinese sword of this type so I have nothing to compare it with per say .So all I say is that it is very quick in hand and effortless to wield . This sword is very nimble and really is a joy to dry handle and swing around .
Cutting
Well unfortunately the weather has been really poor of late here ,so Iv not had a chance to do too much cutting other than a couple of water bottles and a Mat or two which the Qi Jian Sword handled with ease .I cant wait to give it a longer cutting session ,but ill have to wait for the weather to improve as space is limited in my garage .It really is a very fun sword to wield because of its lively blade and feel to it .
Conclusions
Overall I love this sword and is actually far better than what I was expecting ,especially with mine coming with a decent edge to it ! I like the whole antiquated look to it and the “forged from one billet” is another rather unique factor together with the tone produced when tapping the blade .At $359 I think its pretty well priced and a worthy addition to any collection .
Pros
Sharp blade (which was a pleasant surprise) with a great shape to it and a mirror polish
Full Rayskin wrap on handle and a partial wrap on the scabbard (top third of scabbard)
Quality fittings throughout that have been antiquated and look great
One piece construction – giving you a sword and musical instrument all in one (Lol)
Great handling – Very fast and agile blade
Cons
The scabbard seems a little on the heavy side ,but I think this is largely due to the heavy iron fittings
The Bottom Line
A great offering from Hanwei and if you get one with a decent edge like I did then it makes it even better .
As mentioned in my previous Hanwei Song Sword review I have found myself more and more interested in Chinese swords and after receiving the Hanwei Beile Dao a while back I decided to order the Hanwei Qi Jian Sword .This purchase was purely based on that I liked the look of the sword as well as the idea of the one piece construction as there is not much out there in terms of reviews on this piece .
Historical overview
The sword’s name originates with the Qi nation, one of the many warring states that eventually formed modern China. Legend has it that Feng-Xuan, one of the Qi people and a central character in a well known folk tale, possessed such a one piece sword and would use its ringing quality to accompany his singing.
Initial Impressions
After a bit of a long wait the box from KOA finally arrived at our Customs section ,there were some large delays with it arriving here purely because of all the bad weather abroad which resulted in delayed flights etc etc . So once it had arrived at our Customs department I was quick to jump in the Car and go and collect it as delivery to me would have taken another couple of days as Customs were sitting with a backlog of items to process .After collecting it and paying the 38% in Customs and taxes I was on my way home to “play with my new toys” as my wife likes to put it .
The swords (Song Sword , Qi Jian and CS Jade Lion Dagger ) inside the 42” box were well packaged (as always from KOA) .At this point I would just like to make mention of the excellent service I always receive from Ryan at KOA . Their service and help has been nothing short of excellent with us over the years .So much so that I will only buy from them .I love that they always inspect my swords carefully (at my request) for any faults before packaging especially with me being an international buyer as trying to return a damaged item is nothing short of a huge headache and a very expensive .
After removing the brown packaging from the Hanwei Qi Jian Sword and taking it out of the maroon sword bag I removed the blade from the scabbard as the first thing I wanted to check was the sharpness of the blade after hearing that it was rather dull in general ,but to my surprise mine had a nice edge to it ,not paper cutting sharp but it handled some bottles and mats just fine !As for the rest of the sword, Hanwei have done a really good job with this piece as everything was tight and looked really good .
Statistics
Taken from Kultofathena :
From the master sword smiths of the Hanwei forge comes the Qi Jian, a re-creation of an ancient design that utilized one-piece forging. The entire sword, from pommel to tip, has been forged from a single billet of steel. This forging technique provides unparalleled strength and balance while exhibiting a clear, bell-like tone when lightly struck.
The Hanwei Chinese Qi Jian is made from one solid piece of carbon steel, antiqued on the guard and pommel and mirror polished on the blade. The grip is wrapped in genuine rayskin, and matches the wrap on the scabbard throat. The included scabbard is made of wood with antiqued iron fittings. Truly a unique piece
Blade Length: 28 1/2” Long
Handle Length: 5 3/8” Long
Overall Length: 37 3/4” Long
Weight: 2lb 9oz
Thickness: 5.8mm – 3mm
Width: 30.4mm
Components
The Blade:
The blade is very well polished to a mirror finish . It has a nice sharp edge which while not paper cutting sharp is plenty sharp enough to handle bottles and mats .The blade itself has a lovely shape to it which makes handling it a pleasure and yes when tapping the blade on a hard surface a very clear bell like tone is heard – So a sword and Musical instrument all in one (Lol) . Oh and one last thing the blade is nice and rigid in use ,no whippy blade movement at all !
The Handle
The handle is wrapped in aged rayskin and is very well done with the seam being very hard to see unless one really looks for it .
The Guard:
Not much to say here other than it has been antiquated and suits the sword .
The Pommel:
The Pommel features a antiquated design which is very hard to make out exactly what it is meant to be . The hole is obviously the mouth and there are eyes and some other facial features ,but as to what exactly the head is of ( a demon , person ?? Who knows ) is a bit of a mystery , well to me anyway .The whole thing ties in well with the sword though giving the whole sword that aged look of a real sword .
The Scabbard:
The matching scabbard is made of wood (looks to be rosewood) with antiqued iron fittings which tie in well with the rest of the sword . No rattle at all with the scabbard with a nice snug fit on the blade .One thing I noticed is that the scabbard is rather heavy. With the sword sheathed it feels a little heavy , remove the blade and well that's a whole different story .It also has a Rayskin wrap on it which covers the top third near the scabbard mouth .This matched the Rayskin found on the handle .
Handling Characteristics
This is my first chinese sword of this type so I have nothing to compare it with per say .So all I say is that it is very quick in hand and effortless to wield . This sword is very nimble and really is a joy to dry handle and swing around .
Cutting
Well unfortunately the weather has been really poor of late here ,so Iv not had a chance to do too much cutting other than a couple of water bottles and a Mat or two which the Qi Jian Sword handled with ease .I cant wait to give it a longer cutting session ,but ill have to wait for the weather to improve as space is limited in my garage .It really is a very fun sword to wield because of its lively blade and feel to it .
Conclusions
Overall I love this sword and is actually far better than what I was expecting ,especially with mine coming with a decent edge to it ! I like the whole antiquated look to it and the “forged from one billet” is another rather unique factor together with the tone produced when tapping the blade .At $359 I think its pretty well priced and a worthy addition to any collection .
Pros
Sharp blade (which was a pleasant surprise) with a great shape to it and a mirror polish
Full Rayskin wrap on handle and a partial wrap on the scabbard (top third of scabbard)
Quality fittings throughout that have been antiquated and look great
One piece construction – giving you a sword and musical instrument all in one (Lol)
Great handling – Very fast and agile blade
Cons
The scabbard seems a little on the heavy side ,but I think this is largely due to the heavy iron fittings
The Bottom Line
A great offering from Hanwei and if you get one with a decent edge like I did then it makes it even better .