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Post by Germanic on Jan 13, 2015 0:59:51 GMT
A very cursory look at this weapon.
Suffice it to say, I will NOT be returning this sword. My first impressions are very good.
I must spend a little time on the edges before performing a full review.
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Post by Curtis_Louis on Jan 13, 2015 1:24:55 GMT
Dude! That sword is you! You make that sword look like it was made specifically for you. Congrats on a great sword.
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Post by Germanic on Jan 13, 2015 2:12:45 GMT
Dude! That sword is you! You make that sword look like it was made specifically for you. Congrats on a great sword. Thanks! I like that the length is that of a standard Longsword, but the heavier blade is nice especially given that it is relatively well-balanced with nice leverage from the long handle.
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Post by Jussi Ekholm on Jan 13, 2015 2:20:19 GMT
Nice to see that you like it. I think you might have gotten better one that I had years ago and of course you are more built so that'll make effect too. Would be nice to see a really light sword in your hands as you said even that one is quick.
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Post by Germanic on Jan 13, 2015 3:24:12 GMT
Nice to see that you like it. I think you might have gotten better one that I had years ago and of course you are more built so that'll make effect too. Would be nice to see a really light sword in your hands as you said even that one is quick. :) I believe the current model is made in China from the Hanwei Forge.
I don't really have a good double-edged singled handed sword, but I have a bunch of cutting videos using cheap swords. www.youtube.com/user/jmaths117
Those are some videos of me messing around with various swords.
I was looking at the Ronin Katana Euro single-handed series...they look pretty good. Except, they seem a bit small. The handles and blades and the entire design appears small. What do you think about them?
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Post by nddave on Jan 13, 2015 5:57:10 GMT
Glad you like it and that the handle isn't too bulbous for you. Like the video reveal too.
Also how flexible is yours? Maybe it was just the camera but it looked pretty flexible when you were swinging the flat around. Mine is really stiff with barely any flex. Also you said your fullers were even right? Mine are off slightly of each other. If so perhaps Hanwei has put some extra effort and Fit and Finish to the Iberia Line.
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Post by RicWilly on Jan 13, 2015 12:21:48 GMT
Looks pretty good, Germanic. Is the grip round or oblong? I'm thinking in terms of maintaining edge alignment. Also could you measure around the grip to give me an idea of the size? At any rate looks better than I expected. I look forward to see how it cuts.
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Post by Germanic on Jan 13, 2015 14:27:24 GMT
Glad you like it and that the handle isn't too bulbous for you. Like the video reveal too. Also how flexible is yours? Maybe it was just the camera but it looked pretty flexible when you were swinging the flat around. Mine is really stiff with barely any flex. Also you said your fullers were even right? Mine are off slightly of each other. If so perhaps Hanwei has put some extra effort and Fit and Finish to the Iberia Line. I'll do another video but the flexibility is much stiffer than my CS Italian Longsword. It has a moderate flex. The fullers aren't perfect, but they are more or less even. Looks pretty good, Germanic. Is the grip round or oblong? I'm thinking in terms of maintaining edge alignment. Also could you measure around the grip to give me an idea of the size? At any rate looks better than I expected. I look forward to see how it cuts. It's slightly oblong. If I could shave a bit of material off the sides, I would, to improve edge alignment. Not sure how I would go about doing that. It feels more oblong towards the pommel. Gripping it in both hands gives me a good sense of edge alignment but I haven't cut with it so we'll see how that goes. Yea, I can measure the circumference.
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Post by nddave on Jan 13, 2015 14:38:40 GMT
Glad you like it and that the handle isn't too bulbous for you. Like the video reveal too. Also how flexible is yours? Maybe it was just the camera but it looked pretty flexible when you were swinging the flat around. Mine is really stiff with barely any flex. Also you said your fullers were even right? Mine are off slightly of each other. If so perhaps Hanwei has put some extra effort and Fit and Finish to the Iberia Line. I'll do another video but the flexibility is much stiffer than my CS Italian Longsword. It has a moderate flex. The fullers aren't perfect, but they are more or less even. Looks pretty good, Germanic. Is the grip round or oblong? I'm thinking in terms of maintaining edge alignment. Also could you measure around the grip to give me an idea of the size? At any rate looks better than I expected. I look forward to see how it cuts. It's slightly oblong. If I could shave a bit of material off the sides, I would, to improve edge alignment. Not sure how I would go about doing that. It feels more oblong towards the pommel. Gripping it in both hands gives me a good sense of edge alignment but I haven't cut with it so we'll see how that goes. Yea, I can measure the circumference. Ok so it was more of a camera trick then. Sounds more similar to mine now. To chime in and answer Ric's question (since I have the stats) the handle is less oblong and more round and barrels out in the middle. It's 4" round at the guard, was about 4 1/2" in the middle and tapers down to 3" at the pommel.
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Post by Germanic on Jan 13, 2015 14:54:36 GMT
I'll do another video but the flexibility is much stiffer than my CS Italian Longsword. It has a moderate flex. The fullers aren't perfect, but they are more or less even. It's slightly oblong. If I could shave a bit of material off the sides, I would, to improve edge alignment. Not sure how I would go about doing that. It feels more oblong towards the pommel. Gripping it in both hands gives me a good sense of edge alignment but I haven't cut with it so we'll see how that goes. Yea, I can measure the circumference. Ok so it was more of a camera trick then. Sounds more similar to mine now. To chime in and answer Ric's question (since I have the stats) the handle is less oblong and more round and barrels out in the middle. It's 4" round at the guard, was about 4 1/2" in the middle and tapers down to 3" at the pommel. I wonder if there's a way to remove some of the material to make it more oblong?
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Post by nddave on Jan 13, 2015 15:16:17 GMT
Ok so it was more of a camera trick then. Sounds more similar to mine now. To chime in and answer Ric's question (since I have the stats) the handle is less oblong and more round and barrels out in the middle. It's 4" round at the guard, was about 4 1/2" in the middle and tapers down to 3" at the pommel. I wonder if there's a way to remove some of the material to make it more oblong? If you have the right tools absolutely it's a pretty thick wooden handle. I took almost to around 2" off the overall handle and never touched the tang. I also made it more oblong and comfortable. If not you could do it the hard way like me and sand the sucker down by hand. Just don't get aggravated by all the crude humor thrown your way while sanding...Lol! Here's a link to my customization thread when I redid my handle, sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/thread/41485/
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Post by Germanic on Jan 13, 2015 18:38:55 GMT
I wonder if there's a way to remove some of the material to make it more oblong? If you have the right tools absolutely it's a pretty thick wooden handle. I took almost to around 2" off the overall handle and never touched the tang. I also made it more oblong and comfortable. If not you could do it the hard way like me and sand the sucker down by hand. Just don't get aggravated by all the crude humor thrown your way while sanding...Lol! Here's a link to my customization thread when I redid my handle, sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/thread/41485/I believe I could sand the handle...I have a belt sander so it wouldn't take too long.
The only problem is that I seriously doubt I could wrap the handle in a way that I would be satisfied with.
EDIT: What about something like this?
www.woodenswords.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=GripTape%2DBlack
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Post by nddave on Jan 13, 2015 19:26:35 GMT
If you have the right tools absolutely it's a pretty thick wooden handle. I took almost to around 2" off the overall handle and never touched the tang. I also made it more oblong and comfortable. If not you could do it the hard way like me and sand the sucker down by hand. Just don't get aggravated by all the crude humor thrown your way while sanding...Lol! Here's a link to my customization thread when I redid my handle, sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/thread/41485/I believe I could sand the handle...I have a belt sander so it wouldn't take too long.
The only problem is that I seriously doubt I could wrap the handle in a way that I would be satisfied with.
EDIT: What about something like this?
www.woodenswords.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=GripTape%2DBlack
If that stuff is anything like Hockey Grip Tape I'd stay away from it. Not the most ideal for swords plus it separates and gets real sticky. I tried grip tape on my Hanwei/Tinker Bastard before going with a full re-wrap with leather. Good for hockey sticks not so much for swords. You could always just stain the wood after sanding it down if you wanted. I almost did that but then I lucked out with that blue jacket from my grandpa so I went full leather with risers. It is pretty difficult to wrap that sword with the handle intact, but it can be done. There's also threads in the customization section about loosening a peen and re-peening if you wanted to go that route. I'd say go with a natural but slightly darker wood stain, I always thought that would look good.
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Post by Germanic on Jan 13, 2015 19:45:42 GMT
If that stuff is anything like Hockey Grip Tape I'd stay away from it. Not the most ideal for swords plus it separates and gets real sticky. I tried grip tape on my Hanwei/Tinker Bastard before going with a full re-wrap with leather. Good for hockey sticks not so much for swords. You could always just stain the wood after sanding it down if you wanted. I almost did that but then I lucked out with that blue jacket from my grandpa so I went full leather with risers. It is pretty difficult to wrap that sword with the handle intact, but it can be done. There's also threads in the customization section about loosening a peen and re-peening if you wanted to go that route. I'd say go with a natural but slightly darker wood stain, I always thought that would look good. I'm really not sure what it is like. I was wondering if you had any idea.
Staining it would work...but the synthetic wrapping would leave a gap at the guard and at the pommel, so how would I remedy that?
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Post by nddave on Jan 13, 2015 20:04:26 GMT
If that stuff is anything like Hockey Grip Tape I'd stay away from it. Not the most ideal for swords plus it separates and gets real sticky. I tried grip tape on my Hanwei/Tinker Bastard before going with a full re-wrap with leather. Good for hockey sticks not so much for swords. You could always just stain the wood after sanding it down if you wanted. I almost did that but then I lucked out with that blue jacket from my grandpa so I went full leather with risers. It is pretty difficult to wrap that sword with the handle intact, but it can be done. There's also threads in the customization section about loosening a peen and re-peening if you wanted to go that route. I'd say go with a natural but slightly darker wood stain, I always thought that would look good. I'm really not sure what it is like. I was wondering if you had any idea.
Staining it would work...but the synthetic wrapping would leave a gap at the guard and at the pommel, so how would I remedy that?
I just took the blade out of a box knife and cut out bits of leather sticking out. You don't have to worry about cutting the wood too deep because it'll blend with the sanding. You'll want the leather to stay under those ringlets to keep them tight though so don't rip it completely out underneath them.
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Post by Germanic on Jan 13, 2015 20:38:00 GMT
I'm really not sure what it is like. I was wondering if you had any idea.
Staining it would work...but the synthetic wrapping would leave a gap at the guard and at the pommel, so how would I remedy that?
I just took the blade out of a box knife and cut out bits of leather sticking out. You don't have to worry about cutting the wood too deep because it'll blend with the sanding. You'll want the leather to stay under those ringlets to keep them tight though so don't rip it completely out underneath them. I'm not sure I understanding your post. The metal towards the pommel and the metal at the guard would stick out if I removed the synthetic wrapping and sanded the wood down, so what I am wondering is how I would blend it so it is a smooth transition.
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Post by nddave on Jan 13, 2015 21:54:25 GMT
I just took the blade out of a box knife and cut out bits of leather sticking out. You don't have to worry about cutting the wood too deep because it'll blend with the sanding. You'll want the leather to stay under those ringlets to keep them tight though so don't rip it completely out underneath them. I'm not sure I understanding your post. The metal towards the pommel and the metal at the guard would stick out if I removed the synthetic wrapping and sanded the wood down, so what I am wondering is how I would blend it so it is a smooth transition. Oh gotcha. Well I guess that depends on how much you take off those ends. The wood by the guard's ring isn't that fat it's the middle where it's most round and fat. Personally I worked down the middle and blended it up towards the guard. If you do it that way you'll have less chance of taking too much off where you don't want to. Either way those rings will slightly stick out. I guess you could sand the metal too but they shouldn't be too noticeable depending on how slim you sand your handle down. I sanded mine really low but avoided that issue with using the risers like I did. On my first wrap in black I just used the rings as kinda faux risers. I guess if you really wanted to you could probably remove the guard ring but I think the pommel ring is fixed to the pommel.
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Post by Germanic on Jan 14, 2015 0:49:30 GMT
I'm not sure I understanding your post. The metal towards the pommel and the metal at the guard would stick out if I removed the synthetic wrapping and sanded the wood down, so what I am wondering is how I would blend it so it is a smooth transition. Oh gotcha. Well I guess that depends on how much you take off those ends. The wood by the guard's ring isn't that fat it's the middle where it's most round and fat. Personally I worked down the middle and blended it up towards the guard. If you do it that way you'll have less chance of taking too much off where you don't want to. Either way those rings will slightly stick out. I guess you could sand the metal too but they shouldn't be too noticeable depending on how slim you sand your handle down. I sanded mine really low but avoided that issue with using the risers like I did. On my first wrap in black I just used the rings as kinda faux risers. I guess if you really wanted to you could probably remove the guard ring but I think the pommel ring is fixed to the pommel. Good points, thanks.
Maybe I can cut some leather and wrap it in something to create a riser on each end. You've given me many ideas. I do like your idea of staining the wood.
As it is now, and as I use it more, I realize how absurdly fat the circumference is of the handle.
Simply for the sake of edge alignment, I would put the time and effort into this sword to make it an epic cutting sword.
I just re-profiled both edges with my belt sander and it took about 2 hours, and I haven't even begun to hone it yet. This steel is not soft IMO. I am not exactly sure what kind of steel it is, but it is harder than most blades I've taken to the Belt.
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Post by nddave on Jan 14, 2015 1:32:14 GMT
Oh gotcha. Well I guess that depends on how much you take off those ends. The wood by the guard's ring isn't that fat it's the middle where it's most round and fat. Personally I worked down the middle and blended it up towards the guard. If you do it that way you'll have less chance of taking too much off where you don't want to. Either way those rings will slightly stick out. I guess you could sand the metal too but they shouldn't be too noticeable depending on how slim you sand your handle down. I sanded mine really low but avoided that issue with using the risers like I did. On my first wrap in black I just used the rings as kinda faux risers. I guess if you really wanted to you could probably remove the guard ring but I think the pommel ring is fixed to the pommel. Good points, thanks.
Maybe I can cut some leather and wrap it in something to create a riser on each end. You've given me many ideas. I do like your idea of staining the wood.
As it is now, and as I use it more, I realize how absurdly fat the circumference is of the handle.
Simply for the sake of edge alignment, I would put the time and effort into this sword to make it an epic cutting sword.
I just re-profiled both edges with my belt sander and it took about 2 hours, and I haven't even begun to hone it yet. This steel is not soft IMO. I am not exactly sure what kind of steel it is, but it is harder than most blades I've taken to the Belt.
No problem happy I could help! Yea its made of some tough stuff as another member told me when I first received mine, "it ain't pretty but it'll beat the crap out of anything you throw at it." Lol. Be sure to post some updates on your progress and feel free to ask any future questions. I'm not sure what steel is used either as it's always described as "high carbon" only. It could be possibly 1065 or 5160 as that's what Hanwei tends to use for it's medieval and practical lines.
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