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Post by Kilted Cossack on Apr 7, 2013 3:05:55 GMT
Sorry---that was a total brain fart on my part.
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Post by Onimusha on Apr 7, 2013 3:29:20 GMT
Oh no, that was helpful. I may get one of the scratch n dent ones and grind it q down. I've got to get another charcoal barrel before I can forge anything. I've got too many projects.
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Post by Timo Nieminen on Apr 7, 2013 4:59:45 GMT
No, that's from other people's measurements. Both published in books and posted on www. The measurements I've found have been consistent, usually 2lb 6oz or 2lb 7oz, for full-length with langets and original hatchet point. (A spear-pointed specimen of the Austrian sword they copied was a little lighter, just over 1kg.) The heaviest measurement I've seen was 2.5lbs, and that was in a book with weights rounded to the nearest 1/4 lb.
Robson (Swords of the British Army) discusses the adoption of this sword. The 1788HC had a reputation as heavy and unwieldy, and the 1796HC was intended as an improvement, and did improve on it. The main complaints against the 1796HC were that the straightness didn't help slashing, and the point was poor for thrusting. Robson's specimen with weight given is 2lb 6oz.
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Post by Onimusha on Apr 7, 2013 5:52:07 GMT
I read that a lot of regiments ground the point to be more acute or ground a spear point out of it.
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Post by Timo Nieminen on Apr 7, 2013 8:36:10 GMT
I don't know how common, but it certainly happened. The spear-pointed ones are usually 2-3" shorter. You don't need to take off this much length just to turn a hatchet point into a spear point, so the shortening is probably to get a thicker point, so it doesn't crumple up on a thrust. The tips on the originals were very thin - replicas tend to be much thicker in the tip, and therefore much heavier in the tip, which results in the extra weight and worse handling.
The same kind of difference between originals and replicas is seen in the 1796LC as well, with a lot of replicas being 100-200g heavier (about 900g is typical for an original). Antiques are typically thinner than 2mm near the tip, while many replicas only thin to about 4mm. (The Cold Steel 1796LC is one of the better ones in this regard, but it's still thick at the tip.)
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