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Post by Croccifixio on May 19, 2017 14:34:39 GMT
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Post by SandStormZA on May 19, 2017 15:59:45 GMT
Full disclosure: I've never handled Roman swords, reproductions or otherwise.
So, my 2c is that those look amazing. The woodwork has a little more fancy designs than I've seen on other repros, but you could pretend they're officer's weapons. Also, maybe it's just the angle, but the top sword looks longer than standard Pompeii types.
All in all, they look spectacular. If the quality is there, I'd say go for it.
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Post by Croccifixio on May 19, 2017 16:56:56 GMT
I'm quite confident in good heat treat and very tough steel, alongside very sharp geometry. This is making it hard for me not to sell most of my other swords. There are just so many good deals right now - far too good to ignore.
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AndiTheBarvarian
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Bavarianbarbarian - Semper Semprini
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Post by AndiTheBarvarian on May 19, 2017 17:16:21 GMT
I like the third, the fulham gladius, and the pugio dagger is nice, but the first sword looks strange to me, a spatha with a wrong tip or a pompej gladius with a much too long blade.
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Post by Croccifixio on May 19, 2017 17:26:36 GMT
Supposed to be a Spatha interpretation but I do agree that the angular tip looks weird on anything that isn't a gladius. It's what I'm leaning towards though cause everything else looks so damn good.
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Post by Timo Nieminen on May 19, 2017 20:20:29 GMT
If you want Roman, Deepeeka is far, far better than this (as long as you pick the right models - they still have some of their older, less accurate, models in production). The newest Deepeeka Romans also look like they might have authentic handling.
These should win in terms of quality if we don't count authenticity. In prettiness, perhaps - eye of the beholder and all that.
I'm not seeking Roman-inspired fantasy swords, so I wouldn't seriously consider these.
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Post by celegon on May 19, 2017 20:27:40 GMT
that last one is beautiful
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Post by legacyofthesword on May 19, 2017 20:55:26 GMT
Those are awesome! Though like Timo said, there are a number of details that would not be found on a historical gladius. So: it all depends on what you want - a sweet Roman style sword, or a accurate reproduction of an actual gladius? These would fall into the first category.
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Post by Croccifixio on May 19, 2017 23:51:47 GMT
If you want Roman, Deepeeka is far, far better than this (as long as you pick the right models - they still have some of their older, less accurate, models in production). The newest Deepeeka Romans also look like they might have authentic handling. These should win in terms of quality if we don't count authenticity. In prettiness, perhaps - eye of the beholder and all that. I'm not seeking Roman-inspired fantasy swords, so I wouldn't seriously consider these. Yeah. I was thinking of how far into fantasy is this? The weird flat ridge is a bit off putting to me, but what about the other features such as the brass seppa (for lack of a better term), or the blade profile? Completely anachronistic? |
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Post by Timo Nieminen on May 20, 2017 0:01:07 GMT
The brass plate on the face of the guard is sort-of normal. The real thing would be smaller, and inset into the wood. The blade profiles are a bit funky. The thing I find most off-putting is the grips - really long grips, and small pommels. You wouldn't get the functional advantages of the real thing with these.
I also wonder about the balance.
I was playing with some Moro swords this morning. Beautiful hilt ergonomics. So hilts that deviate from the historical, in ways that will make them less functional, strike me as a bad idea.
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Post by Croccifixio on May 20, 2017 0:07:10 GMT
The brass plate on the face of the guard is sort-of normal. The real thing would be smaller, and inset into the wood. The blade profiles are a bit funky. The thing I find most off-putting is the grips - really long grips, and small pommels. You wouldn't get the functional advantages of the real thing with these. I also wonder about the balance. I was playing with some Moro swords this morning. Beautiful hilt ergonomics. So hilts that deviate from the historical, in ways that will make them less functional, strike me as a bad idea. As is often the case I will follow your reasonable advice Timo, thanks. They look pretty. What a shame! I suppose I will have to try their other wares on the next production run. |
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Post by Timo Nieminen on May 20, 2017 0:34:46 GMT
The pommels are small because the grips are long. If the grip is such that the hand fits snugly between guard and pommel, a nice fat pommel supports your hand really well, and you have a good secure hold on the sword, in hammer grip, without needing to tense the hand. Make the grip longer so that you can extend the blade in line with your forearm (typically in handshake grip), and a big pommel like that will get in the way. So they make the pommel smaller, for comfort. But then it becomes an ornament, rather than a functional piece of the grip. For Roman-ness, Deepeeka easily wins (and Del Tin, and Albion). The newer Deepeeka gladii are good. E.g., kultofathena.com/product.asp?item=AH2007kultofathena.com/product.asp?item=AH2010 |
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Post by Croccifixio on May 20, 2017 1:11:36 GMT
Deepeekas look good indeed, though I dunno how well they'd do vs say bamboo. But yeah I'll just pass on these :p still looks nice though.
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Post by legacyofthesword on May 20, 2017 5:54:40 GMT
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Post by Croccifixio on May 20, 2017 9:58:34 GMT
Thanks for this! I have seen only a few samples and mostly just the blades. It's not really in my area of interest but I was just so intrigued by these and the price is ridiculously good for the quality (at least if I wasnted to cut with it).
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Post by legacyofthesword on May 23, 2017 5:18:00 GMT
No problem! What I fine most amazing about those particular artifacts is the excellent condition the organic hilts are in. Really an incredible thing!
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Post by pete085 on May 24, 2017 18:13:22 GMT
Those are awesome! Though like Timo said, there are a number of details that would not be found on a historical gladius. So: it all depends on what you want - a sweet Roman style sword, or a accurate reproduction of an actual gladius? These would fall into the first category. What sword makers would fall under the the second category, an accurate reproduction of an actual roman gladius? The Albion models? |
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Post by Timo Nieminen on May 24, 2017 20:43:29 GMT
Albion (but no scabbard), Del Tin, Deepeeka, Manning Imperial. Some of the earlier Deepeeka models, still in production, are poor replicas, so you need to pick the right Deepeekas. Some of their mid-generation models (not the really early ones, but not the latest) get the look right, but are overweight.
"Accurate" as in accurate appearance and accurate handling. Generally, they'll have much better steel and heat treatment than typical originals.
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Post by Croccifixio on May 25, 2017 2:32:46 GMT
Albion (but no scabbard), Del Tin, Deepeeka, Manning Imperial. Some of the earlier Deepeeka models, still in production, are poor replicas, so you need to pick the right Deepeekas. Some of their mid-generation models (not the really early ones, but not the latest) get the look right, but are overweight. "Accurate" as in accurate appearance and accurate handling. Generally, they'll have much better steel and heat treatment than typical originals. A related question Timo: have you tried cutting with the Deepeeka swords? How do they hold up against medium targets (tatami and newspaper)? Or at least, how do you think they would hold up? |
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Post by Timo Nieminen on May 26, 2017 2:35:49 GMT
Deepeeka gladii, no. Other Deepeeka, sometimes but not often. Their blades tend to be heat treated fairly soft, so the edges might not like hitting hard things. (Note that some of their blades aren't heat-treated at all!) Their tangs tend to be skinny. Probably worthwhile removing the pommel and checking if there's excess space between tang and grip (and epoxying if there is). The fun part will be sharpening it in the first place. See this review: www.sword-buyers-guide.com/maintz-gladius.htmlfor a look at a Deepeeka gladius tang. Originals tend to have skinny tangs too, but better (i.e., rounded) transition from blade to tang. |
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