Windlass Blacksword Review
Feb 6, 2013 4:40:57 GMT
Post by THE_SUPERWEIRDO on Feb 6, 2013 4:40:57 GMT
Introduction
Hello SBG Forums! I'm here to review on my new Windlass Steelcrafts Blacksword. Other than just review for the heck of it, I've noticed there are basically no official reviews for this particular sword. This sword is also getting a bad rep, with some saying that it handles like a wet noodle or it's very cumbersome to be used for actual cutting. So this review is also serving as whether this sword is actually a good sword for the money or the sword that lives up to it's bad reputation.
Historical overview
According to the sword's "backstory":
"Forged by the dark elves in ages beyond counting, the sword was held by the wood elves for hundreds of years until it was gifted to a man known by many names, but called ''Blacksword'' thereafter. Feared by orcs, dwarfs, men and evil beasts alike, the bearer of the sword carried out many great deeds until his death while slaying a great evil dragon."
("Great deeds"? This sword just looks like it's for the villain. :mrgreen: )
Full Disclosure
This is my first Windlass sword and my second sword off from Kult of Athena. This is also my second Medieval styled sword, so I do have experience with handling something similar to this sword. I have paid full price and I am just an ordinary sword enthusiast with decent experience with handling swords.
Initial Impressions
The sword came in a UPS shipping box (A.K.A. a free cutting object) and was packaged with brown paper to prevent damaging the sword during transit.
The sword and the scabbard was packaged separately, with the sword being wrapped with plastic around it and a plastic protector covering the tip.
The sword itself, being advertised as being around 3lb, seemed pretty light for me. Comparing my Hanwei Tinker Bastard Sword, this sword is noticeably slightly heavier and is slightly tip heavy.
The blade did have a "Windlass Steelcrafts" Sticker on it, but my habit of taking stickers of lead me to a very messy looking sticker residue on the blade. Great. Yet, after some quick wipes with Goo Gone, it was off the blade completely. :mrgreen:
Statistics
Info collected from the Kult of Athena site:
Blade Length: 32 1/2"
Handle Length: 7 1/2"
Overall Length: 42 1/2"
Point of Balance: 3"
Weight: 3lb 7.5oz
Components
The Blade
The blade is most likely made of 1090 steel and throughly hardened, making this blade fairly "whippy". Though, the blade is not as whippy as i expected, the sword is nice and solid when I make a couple of swings with it. It was only flexible when I actually flexed the blade or when I tried to check the Center of Percussion, whatever that is... :? But I know it's something about when the sword is hit on the side and the blade wobbles. :mrgreen:
The blade features a unique blade geometry, where it has two "spikes" or whatever they're called near the guard instead of the whole blade being just straight. The blade is blackened with an even finish. After the optional sharpening service provided by Kult of Athena, the edge does have a secondary bevel, revealing the shiny metal to contrast the black spine of the sword. The whole look of the blade is just what makes this sword look like it does belong in a fantasy.
The point is also nicely done, it's very sharp and looks like it can me a good piercing tip.
The Handle
The handle is wrapped in leather and has a spiraling design for a nicer grip. It also features metal studs on the grip, more of a decorative feature than a functional feature. The grip is nice and the handle is thicker than the handle on my Hanwei Tinker Pierce Bastard. The handle is great for those who likes to have a thicker handle to hold on to rather than a handle that feels a bit thin than it should be.
The Guard and Pommel
The guard is curved rather than straightened. It also features a design in the middle, which makes this sword more fantasy looking than a practical sword. The design also overlaps when sheathed, so it looks like this when sheathed:
Both the guard and the pommel is blacked and has no carvings on them, it just has these curvy shapes as the design.
The Scabbard
The scabbard that came with this sword would probably be best described with the word:...
Simple. It's made of leather and two metal fittings. The first time I put the sword in the scabbard, the fit was very tight. A couple of draws later, the scabbard started loosening. The fact that it's made of leather, it's probably not a great scabbard for the outdoors. In some people's minds, the scabbard would've been better made of wood.
The scabbard does leave this white residue on the blade when I draw the sword out of it. Still not sure if it's a good idea to store a sword in a leather sheath... :?:
Handling Characteristics
The sword was never whippy when swinging. The sword was actually lighter than I expected. Obviously, compared to my Hanwei Tinker Bastard Sword, this sword is not as fast and as agile, but it's handling is enough to get the job done. I personally recommend the best handling of this sword is when it's wielded with two hands rather than one.
Test Cutting
I took the sword and cut up my usual test targets, the postal box.
The sword makes decent cuts on cardboard and the tip was very efficient with stabbing. The blade also cuts through paper decently and part of the skin of my thumb while cleaning. :cry:
Due to the secondary bevel, this sword is sharp enough. :mrgreen:
Conclusions
This sword is just a good sword to add to a collection. Especially when a someone is looking for a sword that's not plain and looks similar to the sword next to it.
So, I still don't understand why this sword is getting a bad reputation. It's not a great sword, but it's quality sword to a majority if this sword would've been a tad bit cheaper.
I mean, it can cut, it looks cool, it's price is debatable... This sword can at least deserve a second chance.
Pros
- Very unique all black look
- Blade was nicely sharpened and not very whippy
- One of a kind sword in the market
Cons
- The scabbard would be better off made of wood
- Sticker made a huge mess on the blade, but I was able to clean it up :?
- Might be a bit cumbersome to some people
The Bottom Line
This sword is absolutely one of a kind. Literally the only sword like this on the market as of 2/1/13. The design might be similar to few swords, but this might be the only one that has the evil blacked out look to it.
I would recommend this sword to anyone who wants the evil looking sword in the Fantasy Sword market. :twisted:
Hello SBG Forums! I'm here to review on my new Windlass Steelcrafts Blacksword. Other than just review for the heck of it, I've noticed there are basically no official reviews for this particular sword. This sword is also getting a bad rep, with some saying that it handles like a wet noodle or it's very cumbersome to be used for actual cutting. So this review is also serving as whether this sword is actually a good sword for the money or the sword that lives up to it's bad reputation.
Historical overview
According to the sword's "backstory":
"Forged by the dark elves in ages beyond counting, the sword was held by the wood elves for hundreds of years until it was gifted to a man known by many names, but called ''Blacksword'' thereafter. Feared by orcs, dwarfs, men and evil beasts alike, the bearer of the sword carried out many great deeds until his death while slaying a great evil dragon."
("Great deeds"? This sword just looks like it's for the villain. :mrgreen: )
Full Disclosure
This is my first Windlass sword and my second sword off from Kult of Athena. This is also my second Medieval styled sword, so I do have experience with handling something similar to this sword. I have paid full price and I am just an ordinary sword enthusiast with decent experience with handling swords.
Initial Impressions
The sword came in a UPS shipping box (A.K.A. a free cutting object) and was packaged with brown paper to prevent damaging the sword during transit.
The sword and the scabbard was packaged separately, with the sword being wrapped with plastic around it and a plastic protector covering the tip.
The sword itself, being advertised as being around 3lb, seemed pretty light for me. Comparing my Hanwei Tinker Bastard Sword, this sword is noticeably slightly heavier and is slightly tip heavy.
The blade did have a "Windlass Steelcrafts" Sticker on it, but my habit of taking stickers of lead me to a very messy looking sticker residue on the blade. Great. Yet, after some quick wipes with Goo Gone, it was off the blade completely. :mrgreen:
Statistics
Info collected from the Kult of Athena site:
Blade Length: 32 1/2"
Handle Length: 7 1/2"
Overall Length: 42 1/2"
Point of Balance: 3"
Weight: 3lb 7.5oz
Components
The Blade
The blade is most likely made of 1090 steel and throughly hardened, making this blade fairly "whippy". Though, the blade is not as whippy as i expected, the sword is nice and solid when I make a couple of swings with it. It was only flexible when I actually flexed the blade or when I tried to check the Center of Percussion, whatever that is... :? But I know it's something about when the sword is hit on the side and the blade wobbles. :mrgreen:
The blade features a unique blade geometry, where it has two "spikes" or whatever they're called near the guard instead of the whole blade being just straight. The blade is blackened with an even finish. After the optional sharpening service provided by Kult of Athena, the edge does have a secondary bevel, revealing the shiny metal to contrast the black spine of the sword. The whole look of the blade is just what makes this sword look like it does belong in a fantasy.
The point is also nicely done, it's very sharp and looks like it can me a good piercing tip.
The Handle
The handle is wrapped in leather and has a spiraling design for a nicer grip. It also features metal studs on the grip, more of a decorative feature than a functional feature. The grip is nice and the handle is thicker than the handle on my Hanwei Tinker Pierce Bastard. The handle is great for those who likes to have a thicker handle to hold on to rather than a handle that feels a bit thin than it should be.
The Guard and Pommel
The guard is curved rather than straightened. It also features a design in the middle, which makes this sword more fantasy looking than a practical sword. The design also overlaps when sheathed, so it looks like this when sheathed:
Both the guard and the pommel is blacked and has no carvings on them, it just has these curvy shapes as the design.
The Scabbard
The scabbard that came with this sword would probably be best described with the word:...
Simple. It's made of leather and two metal fittings. The first time I put the sword in the scabbard, the fit was very tight. A couple of draws later, the scabbard started loosening. The fact that it's made of leather, it's probably not a great scabbard for the outdoors. In some people's minds, the scabbard would've been better made of wood.
The scabbard does leave this white residue on the blade when I draw the sword out of it. Still not sure if it's a good idea to store a sword in a leather sheath... :?:
Handling Characteristics
The sword was never whippy when swinging. The sword was actually lighter than I expected. Obviously, compared to my Hanwei Tinker Bastard Sword, this sword is not as fast and as agile, but it's handling is enough to get the job done. I personally recommend the best handling of this sword is when it's wielded with two hands rather than one.
Test Cutting
I took the sword and cut up my usual test targets, the postal box.
The sword makes decent cuts on cardboard and the tip was very efficient with stabbing. The blade also cuts through paper decently and part of the skin of my thumb while cleaning. :cry:
Due to the secondary bevel, this sword is sharp enough. :mrgreen:
Conclusions
This sword is just a good sword to add to a collection. Especially when a someone is looking for a sword that's not plain and looks similar to the sword next to it.
So, I still don't understand why this sword is getting a bad reputation. It's not a great sword, but it's quality sword to a majority if this sword would've been a tad bit cheaper.
I mean, it can cut, it looks cool, it's price is debatable... This sword can at least deserve a second chance.
Pros
- Very unique all black look
- Blade was nicely sharpened and not very whippy
- One of a kind sword in the market
Cons
- The scabbard would be better off made of wood
- Sticker made a huge mess on the blade, but I was able to clean it up :?
- Might be a bit cumbersome to some people
The Bottom Line
This sword is absolutely one of a kind. Literally the only sword like this on the market as of 2/1/13. The design might be similar to few swords, but this might be the only one that has the evil blacked out look to it.
I would recommend this sword to anyone who wants the evil looking sword in the Fantasy Sword market. :twisted: