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Post by Bryan Heff on Mar 25, 2015 22:01:56 GMT
Wow...I grabbed one of these this weekend on the deal of the day for about $130 shipped (used the SBGWEB discount of course) and I gotta say....this sword is darn nice and for the price its ridiculous. Really really well done. I know its been talked about before and it comes up a lot as one of the better/best Windlass models....but I am really surprised at just how nice it is. Really well done blade. Good handling, pretty darn stiff, nice fittings and it seems pretty right and tight.. Just a clean sell executed sword. No bent or twisted blade, fullers are straight. Blade has waves/hammer marks as is pretty standard with Windlass but you can only see it if you look down the blade in the right light. The eye test tells me that there is not a lot of distal taper, and so it does have some blade forward presence...but it's not heavy. I put this model on a Del Tin level of overall fit and finish and it a 1/4 to a 1/3 the price.
I was planning on building a custom scabbard and regripping it and all that to sell, but I may just keep this. Nice sword!
Windlass Rocks with this one.
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Post by Caboose on Mar 25, 2015 22:54:23 GMT
It's a shame MRL only uses UPS for shipping (or at least they did last I checked) which basically means it would cost a fortune to ship internationally. No Deal of the Day for me, unfortunately.
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Post by Croccifixio on Mar 25, 2015 23:12:55 GMT
Sigh, so hard to let this one go. I could've gotten it for the deal of the day too but shipping was at least 190 usd and I couldn't justify that.
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pgandy
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Posts: 10,296
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Post by pgandy on Mar 25, 2015 23:20:45 GMT
I would have liked that one too but with the rapier in January and with a German Bastard Sword setting in customs I had to pass. It looked like a supper deal. I have no idea on how they are going to charge me on that German sword. They let the rapier pass with no extra charges. I have my fingers crossed on this one and should know something by tomorrow or the next day for sure.
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Post by Gunnar Wolfgard on Mar 25, 2015 23:47:28 GMT
Ut Oh, do I sense a sword review coming?
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TomK
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Post by TomK on Mar 26, 2015 1:40:19 GMT
You should look again at the distal taper, I think you will find there really is a good amount
Even Gus was impressed by this sword. I think he said something to the effect of "this is a windlass steelcrap? Oh no, that's really pretty good"
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Post by Bryan Heff on Mar 26, 2015 1:43:25 GMT
It was just an eye test...you might be right. I will check it with my Gus-o-meter when I get a chance.
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Post by celegon on Mar 26, 2015 16:31:39 GMT
i read that the sheath is just leather, are you haveing any issues with it?
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Post by Bryan Heff on Mar 26, 2015 16:37:04 GMT
i read that the sheath is just leather, are you haveing any issues with it?
It is just leather. Honestly the sheath I did not even unwrap yet, so won't comment on the fit which is probably bad. I will steal the chape of that thing and build a proper scabbard at some point in the future. Windlass scabbards by and large are crap...just thick leather sheaths. The chapes can be pretty nice though so I just take the chapes and throats and chuck the rest.
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Post by celegon on Mar 26, 2015 17:12:33 GMT
on my mora knife sheaths ive put hot beeswax on them and let it soak into the leather. i like how it makes the leather much harder and stiffer. so i wonder how it would work with a leather sword sheath. maybe it would make it brittle? not sure. i think id be a bit nervous to try it but its a thought lol
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Post by RicWilly on Mar 26, 2015 19:04:37 GMT
on my mora knife sheaths ive put hot beeswax on them and let it soak into the leather. i like how it makes the leather much harder and stiffer. so i wonder how it would work with a leather sword sheath. maybe it would make it brittle? not sure. i think id be a bit nervous to try it but its a thought lol Sometimes Windlass gets it right. As for leather sheaths. I been keeping my Windlass Sword/Rapier in it's leather sheath every since I got it several years ago. Absolutely no problems with rust and the like. I also keep my Windlass Gladiator in it's leather sheath, same thing, no problems. Sometimes it just bees like that. Usually with Windlass pieces, at least in my experience.
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Post by Bryan Heff on Mar 26, 2015 19:18:11 GMT
Bryan - you recently tore one of these down & rebuilt it (I think?). If so - KEEP IT :). Use that amazing skill to get that sword JUST the way you want it :).
I did not tear this model down, no. It was the Sword of Homoldin Hill I did recently.
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Post by Voltan on Mar 26, 2015 21:10:21 GMT
Bryan - you recently tore one of these down & rebuilt it (I think?). If so - KEEP IT . Use that amazing skill to get that sword JUST the way you want it .
I did not tear this model down, no. It was the Sword of Homoldin Hill I did recently.
...and a stellar job on it, I would add!
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Post by chukissaki on Mar 27, 2015 4:36:02 GMT
I picked one up as well but it wouldn't let me use the sbg discount. still a great deal on a nice sword.
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Post by Bryan Heff on Mar 27, 2015 11:10:12 GMT
Yeah, the "blow my mind" part is completely tied to the quality vs the price I paid. They practically give it away on that Deal of the Day and its really quite nice.
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Post by Bryan Heff on Mar 27, 2015 12:43:04 GMT
So after having spent some more time with this sword I want to share an observation. The handling while nice is not all that great...depending on what you are after. This feels and handles like a battlefield WAR sword. Its not exactly a quick and nimble longsword. It has definite blade presence, which can be good if your looking for a heavy hitter vs a lighting quick dueling sword. Just something I wanted to share. I was focusing on quickness of the sword and recovery time. Nothing very scientific here but since the "I want to buy my first bastard/longsword" question is pretty popular this observation may be of some use. If you want a light and quick "longsword"...this may not be the best choice in that particular department. And to be perfectly honest, the Roven is a XXa which is a war sword type described over in the myArmory article in this way - "Swords of Type XX are generally long-gripped, fullered war swords with broad blades, a description that could easily apply to many of Oakeshott's blade types. What sets them apart, though, is the number and configuration of the fullers. Many of these have three fullers: two short, shallow fullers surrounding a longer third fuller." And "Oakeshott has created a subtype, known as Type XXa. The main difference is in the taper of the blade: examples of the subtype taper acutely to a point suitable for thrusting." Full article here - myarmoury.com/feature_spotxx.htmlFor handling reference and comparison, I compared to the following. Again, nothing overly scientific, just some basic dry handling. Albion Sempach long sword H/T non fullered bastard sword with my custom made fittings (nearly same stats though as the stock bastard) Del Tin XIIIa great sword Hanwei Rhinelander The Roven handled closest to the Del Tin. Both are heavy hitters with not very fast recovery time.
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Post by Bryan Heff on Mar 27, 2015 12:46:29 GMT
All that being said...still an excellent piece in the sub $200 price range. I am really liking the ricasso and fuller arrangement on this sword, very handsome.
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Luka
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Posts: 2,848
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Post by Luka on Mar 27, 2015 13:37:58 GMT
I didn't handle this sword, but based on what you say, it sounds just right for a type XX sword. If the pommel was peened I would already have bought this sword, but since it's not, its price plus taxes to bring it to Croatia plus customizing the pommel to be peened, it would be a bit too much. For that money I could get Alojz Krišto to make me something similar...
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Post by Bryan Heff on Mar 27, 2015 15:34:52 GMT
So check this out....kinda interesting and valuable info for potential buyers. I read some other Roven reviews and they have different stats than mine. Also, Marc Ridgeway in his review as well as TomK (above in this thread) mentioned good distal taper on the Roven. Well I mentioned mine appeared to have almost none, so I measured it and true enough, my version has next to none. As a result...my POB is also 1 full inch further out than what was reported in other reviews. I must have for sure gotten the war sword version : ) Other 2 SBG reviews POB - 6 1/4" Mine - 7 1/4" And the taper, pics speak a thousand words...and right after the fuller it actually gets thicker, the fuller section has obviously removed the high point of the diamond cross section. Take away, and this should come as no surprise, many makers and many swords...even the same model you can see pretty significant variance between swords.
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Post by William Swiger on Mar 27, 2015 15:48:31 GMT
Pretty common with Windlass on the same model. I had a Baron sword a few years back that had a very flexible blade. Sold it and ended up with another from the Deal of the Day that has a very stiff blade. Still have it.
I had a Roven I sold and just picked up another one on the recent sale. Old one had some taper. Curious what the new one will be like. Either way, good sword for the money.
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