Darksword Armory – Two Handed Medieval Sword of Svante Nilss
Nov 22, 2011 18:50:55 GMT
Post by adtharp on Nov 22, 2011 18:50:55 GMT
Darksword Armory – Two Handed Medieval Sword of Svante Nilsson Review
Drew Tharp
Full Disclosure
I have never worked for, nor do I sell or make weapons for Darksword Armory. I was given this sword by Paul Southern to review, and because he appreciated the articles I had written for the SBG Digest.
Introduction
Now, the sword of Svante is one of my favorite swords of all time. I think it is a beautiful example of a late 15th century Swedish longsword. I was SUPER excited about getting this sword. I mean, like five year old on Christmas morning excited. When I finally saw the box my heart skipped a beat, I grabbed the box and ran inside. I have had the opportunity to handle both the Albion Svante and the Deltin 5161, so I will give a comparison review, of course, the Deltin is at least twice the price of this one, and the Albion is a good ten times the price, so I will consider that as well.
So, there are two questions that need to be asked about this sword. Is it a good replica of the sword it is trying to recreate? Also, is it a good sword?
Historical Accuracy
This sword is in a unique niche, since we actually have a sword to compare it to, it was designed after a specific blade. It is well known that the Albion version is by far the most accurate, and I understand that DSA is in no way competing with a $3500 blade. But, we still have to compare this one to the original, since they are claiming it is the Svante.
It is a far representation – of a 15th century Swedish longsword. It is not a great representation of this particular one. A novice could easily point out the substantial differences between this one and the original. The original has a hollow-ground blade with a strong central ridge; the DSA is merely diamond cross section. There is not really a central ridge on this one, and it is not hollow-ground. Interesting, the lack of a hollow-ground blade would generally make the sword heavier than the original, but in this case, the sword is more than a full pound lighter than the original.
In addition, as some have pointed out, they dropped the leather “rain guard” from the Albion, and made something similar out of metal. The real problem that I have here is that there was not necessarily a rain guard on the original. Albion threw that on because they thought it looked good, and was period inspired, but we have no idea if it was there on the original. Why DSA would then take that a make it into a strange little metal piece is beyond me. It’s not bad though, it doesn’t harm the sword particularly; it is just strange.
So, that answers the first question – is it a good replica of the sword it is trying to recreate? Sort of – it gets the gist of the sword, but it isn’t perfect. On the other hand, I don’t have $3500 to spend on a replica. For the price I think it is fair, but not great.
Initial Impressions
Now, this is where we get into the question of whether it is a good sword. Right off the bat, I was a little underwhelmed with Darksword’s packaging. It was fine, but they just wrapped it up, and threw it in a box that was about 2 sizes too big. Again – fine, the packaging was fine. It got the sword here safely. But in comparison to packaging by Cold Steel, Kult of Athena, Hanwei, and Valiant, it just wasn’t as good.
When I got the sword out, I liked it. It handles well – like a longsword should. It’s not the best sword I have ever held, but it is certainly good. It is SOLID – it is a DSA after all. Nice, peened assembly with no signs of weakness.
Stats
Total length: 45.2"
Blade length: 32.8"
Blade width at base: 2" after ricasso
Blade width at ricasso: 1.5”
Weight: 2 lbs. 12 oz.
POB: 3 ½ inches from cross
POP: 14 inches from tip
The Blade
The blade on the Svante is “okay.” Like I mentioned in the HA section, it is not hollow-ground as it should be. It is about the right length and the right width. The ricasso is significantly different from the original, but I don’t think that is necessarily a bad thing. The biggest problem I had with the blade was its cross-section. It is a diamond cross section, and a very thick one at that. This causes several problems – it is nearly impossible to sharpen properly, and it is makes it a very poor cutter. It is important to note here that the POP is a good 14 inches down the blade. This makes cutting with the blade a little strange, but other than that it doesn’t cause too many problems. The blade is very solid, so that means it’s vibrations are not noticed as much.
The Hilt
The hilt is well done, and I think it is my favorite feature of this sword. The leather is done very well. The pommel is nice – it is not as angular as the original, but it still looks great. The guard is elegant and pleasant, although it does make some traditional longsword techniques difficult (but of course, it is historically accurate, so I assume people just got over it…). The grip feels to be the right size, and it is pleasant to handle.
The Scabbard
The scabbard is very good. For the price it is very nice. The belt fits well. I don’t know much about the historical accuracy of belts, but it seems like it would fit in. The stitching is well done, and the chape is well made. Over all, it very much fits the sword – not just in the sense that it holds the sword (which it does, even if turned upside down), but rather, it looks like it is in the style of the sword and makes for a nice companion piece. It has a wood interior and came with instructions on how to attach it. I had to widen the attachment holes just a bit, but that wasn’t a problem. The leather is of decent quality. It’s not the best I have ever seen, but it does the job. There was some question as to how the top bit fit over the metal “rain guards.” As you can see in the picture below, it does so just fine. You just have to be a little careful when putting it into the scabbard to make sure the leather doesn’t get caught under the rain guard.
Handling
This is a DSA piece – and it handles like it. It is heavy – not just in weight, but also in hand. That is a good thing. For a while, I was under the impression that if a sword was at all blade heavy or heavy in weight, it was no good. That is of course a myth that I finally got over, and I am glad I did. Light swords don’t cut as well and often just feel….toy like. (My biggest experience with this is the H/T longsword.) This one doesn’t feel that way at all – it is made for war, and it feels like it. I have absolutely no qualms about beating this thing against a pell, and I did, and it still feels great. Not a single wobble or rattle. It definitely holds up to the Darksword standard. It may seem odd to put this in handling, but it really is an element of the handling – it “feels” like I could take on a Skyrim dragon with this baby.
Cutting
Ok, here it is – this is where I am completely and utterly disappointed in both this sword and DSA. If you want a cutting sword – DO NOT GET THIS SWORD. When it came to me, it was supposed to be sharpened. It had a really crappy secondary bevel – which might have been fine, but it was still as dull as a butter knife. Not joking, it couldn’t even cut through the box it came in, or a milk jug.
My advice would be to not order the sharpening service if you get something from DSA; it is definitely not worth the 30 dollars they charge for it. I realize sword manufacturers can’t seem to figure out this sharpening thing, and that’s fine, but don’t charge people for it if you can’t do it correctly.
In addition – and this might just be the sword in general, this baby is not a good cutter. The VERY thick cross section combined with this horrible edge seems to really screw up cutting mechanics.
Sorry, no cutting videos, and by cutting videos I mean “batting water bottles across the yard” videos, because it was horribly sharpened, and that combined with incredibly hard steel and me not having any sharpening equipment = sad, dull sword.
Conclusion
Pros:
- Very sturdy, well made piece
- Handles well, good war sword
- Price point – the closest is the Deltin, and even then, you might as well save up for the Albion. This one is 1/10th the cost.
Cons:
- Horrible sharpening
- Not perfectly accurate, far enough off that calling it the Svante is a little questionable
- Not great for cutting
So – question one – is it a good replica of the Svante? Not really.
Question two – is it a good sword? Sure. I like it, and I really think it is a great improvement over some of the previous offerings from DSA, Eyal is doing something right here, it just needs a little more work to be perfect.
I will use it as a beater for newbs. I like having a sword around that I know, if it hits the stand, or the brick wall, I don’t need to worry. Then I don’t have to risk my Atrims and Albions. In all honesty, this is a good sword, if you like the style I don’t think you will be disappointed, as long as you don’t go in expecting a good cutter or great replica of the original Svante.
I would give this sword 3 ½ out of 5 stars. It would have been 4 if the sharpening had been done well, I would have taken one off for historical inaccuracy. But the sharpening is just so atrocious, I have to take at least another half away.
(After I wrote up this review, Paul informed me that he would like to see this sword with a better edge, and I agreed, so we are sending it to Dadaochen for a sharpening. I will post new cutting results when it has a better edge – so watch for an update!)
Drew Tharp
Full Disclosure
I have never worked for, nor do I sell or make weapons for Darksword Armory. I was given this sword by Paul Southern to review, and because he appreciated the articles I had written for the SBG Digest.
Introduction
Now, the sword of Svante is one of my favorite swords of all time. I think it is a beautiful example of a late 15th century Swedish longsword. I was SUPER excited about getting this sword. I mean, like five year old on Christmas morning excited. When I finally saw the box my heart skipped a beat, I grabbed the box and ran inside. I have had the opportunity to handle both the Albion Svante and the Deltin 5161, so I will give a comparison review, of course, the Deltin is at least twice the price of this one, and the Albion is a good ten times the price, so I will consider that as well.
So, there are two questions that need to be asked about this sword. Is it a good replica of the sword it is trying to recreate? Also, is it a good sword?
Historical Accuracy
This sword is in a unique niche, since we actually have a sword to compare it to, it was designed after a specific blade. It is well known that the Albion version is by far the most accurate, and I understand that DSA is in no way competing with a $3500 blade. But, we still have to compare this one to the original, since they are claiming it is the Svante.
It is a far representation – of a 15th century Swedish longsword. It is not a great representation of this particular one. A novice could easily point out the substantial differences between this one and the original. The original has a hollow-ground blade with a strong central ridge; the DSA is merely diamond cross section. There is not really a central ridge on this one, and it is not hollow-ground. Interesting, the lack of a hollow-ground blade would generally make the sword heavier than the original, but in this case, the sword is more than a full pound lighter than the original.
In addition, as some have pointed out, they dropped the leather “rain guard” from the Albion, and made something similar out of metal. The real problem that I have here is that there was not necessarily a rain guard on the original. Albion threw that on because they thought it looked good, and was period inspired, but we have no idea if it was there on the original. Why DSA would then take that a make it into a strange little metal piece is beyond me. It’s not bad though, it doesn’t harm the sword particularly; it is just strange.
So, that answers the first question – is it a good replica of the sword it is trying to recreate? Sort of – it gets the gist of the sword, but it isn’t perfect. On the other hand, I don’t have $3500 to spend on a replica. For the price I think it is fair, but not great.
Initial Impressions
Now, this is where we get into the question of whether it is a good sword. Right off the bat, I was a little underwhelmed with Darksword’s packaging. It was fine, but they just wrapped it up, and threw it in a box that was about 2 sizes too big. Again – fine, the packaging was fine. It got the sword here safely. But in comparison to packaging by Cold Steel, Kult of Athena, Hanwei, and Valiant, it just wasn’t as good.
When I got the sword out, I liked it. It handles well – like a longsword should. It’s not the best sword I have ever held, but it is certainly good. It is SOLID – it is a DSA after all. Nice, peened assembly with no signs of weakness.
Stats
Total length: 45.2"
Blade length: 32.8"
Blade width at base: 2" after ricasso
Blade width at ricasso: 1.5”
Weight: 2 lbs. 12 oz.
POB: 3 ½ inches from cross
POP: 14 inches from tip
The Blade
The blade on the Svante is “okay.” Like I mentioned in the HA section, it is not hollow-ground as it should be. It is about the right length and the right width. The ricasso is significantly different from the original, but I don’t think that is necessarily a bad thing. The biggest problem I had with the blade was its cross-section. It is a diamond cross section, and a very thick one at that. This causes several problems – it is nearly impossible to sharpen properly, and it is makes it a very poor cutter. It is important to note here that the POP is a good 14 inches down the blade. This makes cutting with the blade a little strange, but other than that it doesn’t cause too many problems. The blade is very solid, so that means it’s vibrations are not noticed as much.
The Hilt
The hilt is well done, and I think it is my favorite feature of this sword. The leather is done very well. The pommel is nice – it is not as angular as the original, but it still looks great. The guard is elegant and pleasant, although it does make some traditional longsword techniques difficult (but of course, it is historically accurate, so I assume people just got over it…). The grip feels to be the right size, and it is pleasant to handle.
The Scabbard
The scabbard is very good. For the price it is very nice. The belt fits well. I don’t know much about the historical accuracy of belts, but it seems like it would fit in. The stitching is well done, and the chape is well made. Over all, it very much fits the sword – not just in the sense that it holds the sword (which it does, even if turned upside down), but rather, it looks like it is in the style of the sword and makes for a nice companion piece. It has a wood interior and came with instructions on how to attach it. I had to widen the attachment holes just a bit, but that wasn’t a problem. The leather is of decent quality. It’s not the best I have ever seen, but it does the job. There was some question as to how the top bit fit over the metal “rain guards.” As you can see in the picture below, it does so just fine. You just have to be a little careful when putting it into the scabbard to make sure the leather doesn’t get caught under the rain guard.
Handling
This is a DSA piece – and it handles like it. It is heavy – not just in weight, but also in hand. That is a good thing. For a while, I was under the impression that if a sword was at all blade heavy or heavy in weight, it was no good. That is of course a myth that I finally got over, and I am glad I did. Light swords don’t cut as well and often just feel….toy like. (My biggest experience with this is the H/T longsword.) This one doesn’t feel that way at all – it is made for war, and it feels like it. I have absolutely no qualms about beating this thing against a pell, and I did, and it still feels great. Not a single wobble or rattle. It definitely holds up to the Darksword standard. It may seem odd to put this in handling, but it really is an element of the handling – it “feels” like I could take on a Skyrim dragon with this baby.
Cutting
Ok, here it is – this is where I am completely and utterly disappointed in both this sword and DSA. If you want a cutting sword – DO NOT GET THIS SWORD. When it came to me, it was supposed to be sharpened. It had a really crappy secondary bevel – which might have been fine, but it was still as dull as a butter knife. Not joking, it couldn’t even cut through the box it came in, or a milk jug.
My advice would be to not order the sharpening service if you get something from DSA; it is definitely not worth the 30 dollars they charge for it. I realize sword manufacturers can’t seem to figure out this sharpening thing, and that’s fine, but don’t charge people for it if you can’t do it correctly.
In addition – and this might just be the sword in general, this baby is not a good cutter. The VERY thick cross section combined with this horrible edge seems to really screw up cutting mechanics.
Sorry, no cutting videos, and by cutting videos I mean “batting water bottles across the yard” videos, because it was horribly sharpened, and that combined with incredibly hard steel and me not having any sharpening equipment = sad, dull sword.
Conclusion
Pros:
- Very sturdy, well made piece
- Handles well, good war sword
- Price point – the closest is the Deltin, and even then, you might as well save up for the Albion. This one is 1/10th the cost.
Cons:
- Horrible sharpening
- Not perfectly accurate, far enough off that calling it the Svante is a little questionable
- Not great for cutting
So – question one – is it a good replica of the Svante? Not really.
Question two – is it a good sword? Sure. I like it, and I really think it is a great improvement over some of the previous offerings from DSA, Eyal is doing something right here, it just needs a little more work to be perfect.
I will use it as a beater for newbs. I like having a sword around that I know, if it hits the stand, or the brick wall, I don’t need to worry. Then I don’t have to risk my Atrims and Albions. In all honesty, this is a good sword, if you like the style I don’t think you will be disappointed, as long as you don’t go in expecting a good cutter or great replica of the original Svante.
I would give this sword 3 ½ out of 5 stars. It would have been 4 if the sharpening had been done well, I would have taken one off for historical inaccuracy. But the sharpening is just so atrocious, I have to take at least another half away.
(After I wrote up this review, Paul informed me that he would like to see this sword with a better edge, and I agreed, so we are sending it to Dadaochen for a sharpening. I will post new cutting results when it has a better edge – so watch for an update!)