Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jul 9, 2015 10:36:16 GMT
Hi folks, I'm wondering what people's experience and opinion on the Cold Steel Jade Lion Gim, what do you think of this sword? Curious about the weight and balance compared to historical gim/jian and what you think of the cutting and handling, suitability for forms work, especially if you're a Chinese Sword Art practitioner. Thanks!  |
|
|
|
Post by geoffreylao on Jul 9, 2015 11:59:22 GMT
I bought this sword from KoA a few weeks ago and I like it alot. Just holding it in one hand, it seems a bit on the heavy side compared to the swords we use in our Kung Fu school (those are super flimsy though, so that's not saying much). I have relatively small hands, so I can hold it in a one-and-a-half-sword style if I wanted, but looking at the grip, it seems to have been designed with one hand use in mind.
According to the Cold Steel website the weight is supposed to be 31.7 oz (~ 900gr), but the actual weight of my sword (without scabbard) is 1040gr (36.6 oz). The balance point is located about 11.5cm (4.5") away from the guard.
Sadly, it didn't come very sharp. I've tried cutting water bottles with little success, but my technique is not very good yet either. Thrusting worked fine - it went through the bottles like a hot knive through butter.
Easthetically speaking, it is a beauty. The blade,the fittings and the scabbard are just amazingly beautiful. There is one problem with the scabbard though: The fit is very tight. So tight indeed, that whenever I pull the sword out, there are some streaks on the blade.
|
|
|
|
Post by Daigoro on Jul 9, 2015 15:14:01 GMT
I'm very surprised it wasn,t that sharp. CS swords are usually quite sharp. Actually, I'd say they are generally stupidly sharp. Assuming you haven't damaged it, you could try returning it to KOA for an exchange. In my experience, they have a fairly generous return/exchange policy.
|
|
|
|
Post by geoffreylao on Jul 9, 2015 17:44:56 GMT
A return is no option, I'm afraid. I live in Germany which means that I'd have to pay around 120$ for shipping, so I might as well invest that money into having the sword sharpened and polished properly. It's not really a deal braker for me, really.
|
|
|
|
Post by Jayhawk on Jul 9, 2015 18:02:56 GMT
I think sword sharpening and polishing are fun and easy to do yourself. I am utterly amazed at all the detailed threads on the topic available to guide you, but I do think we go way beyond what is normal or needed and make it much more complex than it needs to be. Mankind has been sharpening tools for thousands of years...it is not rocket science.
|
|
Sean (Shadowhowler)
VIP Reviewer
Retired Moderator
No matter where you go, there you are.
Posts: 8,828
|
Post by Sean (Shadowhowler) on Jul 9, 2015 21:28:00 GMT
I'm very surprised it wasn,t that sharp. CS swords are usually quite sharp. Actually, I'd say they are generally stupidly sharp. Assuming you haven't damaged it, you could try returning it to KOA for an exchange. In my experience, they have a fairly generous return/exchange policy. I agree with this... Cold Steel swords are normally very sharp. I had a Cold Steel Gim at it was stupid sharp. Always liked the look of the Jade Lion Gim a lot. |
|
|
|
Post by Timo Nieminen on Jul 9, 2015 21:33:52 GMT
Curious about the weight and balance compared to historical gim/jian and what you think of the cutting and handling, suitability for forms work, especially if you're a Chinese Sword Art practitioner. Weight (the heavier than Cold Steel's specs of 900g weights given above and on KoA (about 1kg)) is typical for gaudy jian like this. Balance looks fine from the specs. It's made by Huanuo, who have a good tracks record on jian weight and handling. Sometimes the Cold Steel models are different from the direct-from-Huanuo; the CS Gim has a heavier pommel, so the sword is heavier and balanced closer in. But not so much as to hurt anything - the CS Gim is well-balanced. So based on Huanuo's track record, and my experience with CS jian, should be good for cutting, have good and authentic handling, but expect 1-1.05kg in weight. Which is slightly heavy for a jian, and normal for a gaudy jian like this (which tend to be heavier than average). A review: sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/thread/21879/cold-steel-jade-lion-gim |
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jul 10, 2015 10:11:33 GMT
I bought this sword from KoA a few weeks ago and I like it alot. Just holding it in one hand, it seems a bit on the heavy side compared to the swords we use in our Kung Fu school (those are super flimsy though, so that's not saying much). I have relatively small hands, so I can hold it in a one-and-a-half-sword style if I wanted, but looking at the grip, it seems to have been designed with one hand use in mind. According to the Cold Steel website the weight is supposed to be 31.7 oz (~ 900gr), but the actual weight of my sword (without scabbard) is 1040gr (36.6 oz). The balance point is located about 11.5cm (4.5") away from the guard. Sadly, it didn't come very sharp. I've tried cutting water bottles with little success, but my technique is not very good yet either. Thrusting worked fine - it went through the bottles like a hot knive through butter. Easthetically speaking, it is a beauty. The blade,the fittings and the scabbard are just amazingly beautiful. There is one problem with the scabbard though: The fit is very tight. So tight indeed, that whenever I pull the sword out, there are some streaks on the blade. Thanks for the information!
You can just touch up the edge with a fine diamond stone, no need for a whole polishing that costs money. Also, a jian is not necessary the same sharpness along the length of the blade, the tip may be sharper than the rest - see Timo's comment in another thread sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/post/622432/thread
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jul 10, 2015 11:52:36 GMT
Curious about the weight and balance compared to historical gim/jian and what you think of the cutting and handling, suitability for forms work, especially if you're a Chinese Sword Art practitioner. Weight (the heavier than Cold Steel's specs of 900g weights given above and on KoA (about 1kg)) is typical for gaudy jian like this. Balance looks fine from the specs. It's made by Huanuo, who have a good tracks record on jian weight and handling. Sometimes the Cold Steel models are different from the direct-from-Huanuo; the CS Gim has a heavier pommel, so the sword is heavier and balanced closer in. But not so much as to hurt anything - the CS Gim is well-balanced. So based on Huanuo's track record, and my experience with CS jian, should be good for cutting, have good and authentic handling, but expect 1-1.05kg in weight. Which is slightly heavy for a jian, and normal for a gaudy jian like this (which tend to be heavier than average). A review: sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/thread/21879/cold-steel-jade-lion-gimThanks Timo. I've noticed that the weight of handmade swords does vary. On Scott Rodell's website sevenstarstrading.com/site/huanuo/ he states "The blade of each Huanuo Sword is individually hand forged and polished. Jian blades are 30″ (76 cm.) long plus or minus 1/2″ and each jian on its own, without the scabbard, weights 2 lb. (.9 kg.) plus or minus 3 oz." Looks like there is variation from sword to sword, that would be expected.
It's interesting how tastes differ between individuals when it comes to jian because they can look so different from each other. Just curious which jian you would consider nice looking?
|
|
|
|
Post by Timo Nieminen on Jul 11, 2015 0:36:11 GMT
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jul 11, 2015 8:50:17 GMT
Timo, looks like you have a thing for the swept back (ming style?) jian guards. Interesting to see that some of those jian are 1.5-1.7kg! Sinosword make a really plain understated jian www.sinosword.com/Chinese-Jian-Classic-T10-steel.html. What quality are the Zhi forge swords? Don't know much about them... |
|
|
|
Post by Timo Nieminen on Jul 11, 2015 10:01:20 GMT
The Zhisword weights are with scabbard (I think, at least for most models). I don't have any of their one-handed jian, but have two two-handed jian from them, and they're good. Overall, I think they're reasonable value, at least up to the $300-$400 price point. Their really cheap stuff is about the same as the better stuff at similar prices from Chinese forges (i.e., a $100 Zhisword is about as good as you can expect a $100 dao to be). That's an OK jian from Sinosword. I do prefer the swept back guards, though. There are Song and Ming examples, but my impression is that they only become the dominant jian guard mid/late Qing, through into Republic. My Zhisword jian:  The longsword-sized one (bottom) is 1350g, PoB at 6.5". I got to play with a (late Qing?) antique of the same size. Weight, balance, and grip size and profile felt the same. The antique had the usual late Qing swept-back guard and typical pommel, rather than the funky ones on this sword. The bigger one is a dedicated two-hander, at 1960g, PoB 4". Excellent point control, with forward pivot point close to the tip (maybe 3"?; OK, that isn't really close, but it's pretty close on a blade this long). |
|
|
|
Post by Walt66 on Jul 11, 2015 11:33:26 GMT
Hi Timo,
did you cut with your Zhisword two-handed Jians?
|
|
|
|
Post by Timo Nieminen on Jul 11, 2015 11:45:21 GMT
The big one isn't sharpened. I've cut with the other one (and so have others). Cuts fine.
|
|
