Lost Treasure: The Hanwei Shaolin Dharma Jian.
Jan 20, 2016 18:38:35 GMT
Post by Uhlan on Jan 20, 2016 18:38:35 GMT
I got this Jian about 5 years ago, when I was stil lurking here and saw this thread: sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/thread/22482/
At that time the sword was already out of production, so I had to order it from the last dealer who had one, in Italy somewhere.
It was love at first sight. Italy is not the most cheap country to order from, but hey, you want one or not?
KOA had it once too, see: www.kultofathena.com/product.asp?item=SH2443&name=Hanwei+Shaolin+Darhma+Sword
After a while Cold Steel filled the void with the Jade Lion Gim in which I detect a lot of Hanwei.
What is rather astonishing is that this sword sunk without a trace, as far as I can see. Hence the titel. A link to the SBG article was the only reference to it I could find at the time and this link is still the only one around where something useful is said about this Jian, as of now.
There are many discussions here at the forum complaining about the products the forges want us to buy today, the major complaint being the lack of distal taper.
And here is a sword having good distal taper for once and all other ingredients of a winner and it goes right into the digital black hole dustbin. I could not localise any chatter, nothing.
I know, Chinese swords are not everybodies taste, but still, I had expected a little more cross boundery enthousiasm over the years.
Maybe people had other things to worrie about.
The Hanwei Shaolin Dharma jian.
Please forget about the Shaolin jabber. That is the marketing department trying to hook clients with Kill Bill, Far Eastern mystic hype talk.
This is just a civillian Jian used by the Chinese gentleman class, those steeped in the study of old books and artefacts, writing poetry and witty tales. Judges and other officials, bureaucrats and landed gentry. Older and younger geezers sipping tea and contemplating the shiny black hair of a female servant. You know, human people, not flying killer monks.
This one hell of a nice sword.
Hanwei has this flair for design that is hard to beat and can easily be detected from 100 yards away.
Immaculate eye for detail, sharp casting of the German silver* ( Pakton* ) hilt and scabbard parts, the use of real bamboo for the scabbard and the grip and the simple high quality hemp cord accents to bind it all together,it is all reminiscent of typical Hanwei products. Everything fits well, there is no flash on the casts, no open seams in the ,,wood''. It is a really well cared for package.
And the nice thing for me is that the sword, even after standing in its rack for say 5 years, right next to an outlet for the central heating system, shows no signs whatever of decay. It is still as good as new. Wonderful.
The grip.
It is made from bamboo. It has a flat diamond cross section and it tapers in the direction of the pommel.
The length is 10.5 cm or 4.13". The pommel itself is good for another inch before it swells and makes an excellent stop to the hand.
The flat diamond cross section makes edge alignment a jiffy and there is enough space for either a hammer or an open grip, with the thumb on the guard.
The hemp cord is knotless, what makes it very strong and helps to ensure a good grip, as the bamboo is quite smooth.
The blade.
The blade continues the flat diamond cross section of the grip, so there is a straight line going from the pommel and down to the tip of the blade, only interrupted by the guard. The polish is about 60 grade, a nice even satin finish,
It is 67 cm or 26.4" long and 33 mm or 0.13" wide. The thickness at the guard is an effing 8 mm or 0.31". WOW! , and tapers down to just under 3 mm right before the re-enforced tip.
POB is 9 cm or 3.54" from the guard, which is not bad at all, surely for a Jian type sword, albeit this is a civillian type.
The thickness and the distal taper are things we sabre and Euro replica nuts can only dream of.
The tip is strengthened. It has an appleseed configuration I believe its called. Maybe Chinese sword buffs can say more about that.
Under the guard is an etched decoration, continuing the pattern on the metal furnishings.
The only thing I do not like is the black fill in. I tried to remove it, but it will not budge whatever I throw against it. Paint remover gels, various acids of leathel strength, acetone, alcohol, nothing makes it go away.
The stuff is Ulahn proof and that is saying something.
The blade comes sharp and I mean sharp. There is no secondary bevel to speak off. Of course it can be improved, but as is it is, it is very nicely done and it will cut right out of the box.
The scabbard.
Again this is made from bamboo slats glued together and again the flat diamond pattern continues from the mouthpiece down to the drag.
Even after 5 years of torture standing there in a very dry environment ( my books are great moisture suckers ), it is straight and I cannot detect anything pointing to decay.
All the metal parts still fit very well. Nothing moves. Everything is tight and just as good looking as the day I got it.
The sword still slides into the scabbard with a satisfying ,,clunk'' in the end and the fit is still 100%. Turn it up side down and the sword will not drop out.
The mouthpiece has a build in belt hook and the drag is sufficiently sturdy and heavy to function as the weighted end of a club. All metal parts are bound with the simple hemp cord. Beautiful.
The fittings.
Well cast and free of flaws. The Peony pattern reminds me of Tang decoration. There is some Persian influence there too, which was tres a la mode around 800 - 900 AD at the Tang Court, but the guard is modelled after Ming dynasty examples.
The proportions are well designed. What more can I say. They are perfect for this sword.
Handling.
Do not get fooled by the pretty looks or the perceived smallness of this Hanwei. This is a killer.
Pick it up. It weighs 830 grams clean off the hook ( 1165 grams with the scabbard ) and the balance is such that you directly feel this is a sword, not an iffy Tai Chi implement. The blade is well tempered and is quite stiff.
One of the first commenters on the SBG thread thought it to be Tai Chi oriented, as you can read here: sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/thread/22482/ but he soon found out this sword is not a joke.
For me it balances very well. It is fast, it will cut anything and with that re-enforced tip it will stab anything too. It fences but is not averse to raw power operation.
A very good sword for in the house, it weighs about the same as my waki, but is longer. It will do equally well outside, as the Chinese gentlemen of old have testified. They carried this type of Jian for protection when going about the town.
This thing is serious.
Conclusion.
Money well spend on a serious sword that has, as least to me, killer looks too.
The build quality is superb. The fittings are strong. The blade is well balanced.
What more do you want?
If you were to find it second hand and the condition is still good, go for it. You will not be disappointed.
Cheers.
Notes: German silver* / Paktong*: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nickel_silver
Ming dynasty: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ming_dynasty
Tang dynasty: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tang_dynasty
The lanyard does not come with the sword.
I made it after the design of a Tang dynasty military one, which, lucky for me, was quite simple.