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Post by Elrikk on Jul 20, 2017 20:14:41 GMT
I have the Sergeants, and love it...where ya goin' for the money?
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Post by howler on Jul 20, 2017 22:47:11 GMT
Recently I have fulfilled me a childhood dream and got me not mere one, but two halberds. Namely the Swiss and Sergeant’s halberd offered by Cold Steel... Of course I won’t have to say that these are not constructed in the traditional way, as everyone who saw a Matt Easton video or two and then pics of the CS models on the net will be able to tell. So I won’t get into that at this point – only say that the CS models are well made and durable and perfectly functional for any kind of exercise I would want them to serve me for. Until now, I have only tested them on a soaked and soft piece of tree trunk and that revealed no problems so far, even though the Sergeant’s halberd came with a – very − slightly bent tip (less than half a centimeter from plain, bend starting around 3 inch from tip). Because I have tested both the CS bowie bushman spear and the Assegai extensively and the halberds are made in a similar manner, I feel rather safe to assume that they are very durable. Also the 1055 is CS’s standard machete steel (the bushman`s and assegai’s are made from the harder “SK 5”), so I’d be rather surprised to see them brake any time soon – bending, well that’s another question, although none of the blows and thrusts I gave the wooden log was able to harm any one of those halberd’s blades (on my assegai, around one inch of its tip did once bent around five millimeters after repeatedly stabbing a dry hanging log of fir wood – the bend wasn’t too severe and could be bent back easily, with no problems after that, despite of further testing in the same way). The Sergeant’s halberd spear flexes a lot more than the Swiss’ – it seems to be tempered more “springy”. During my testing, I could not make out a need for using any kind of set screws – having sanded the shafts rather carefully with a file and sandpaper to make them fit the sockets, this provided enough friction and with the famous duct tape method on top of it this was enough the weapon’s heads from shifting or turning. I am not too discontent with the Sergeant’s halberd coming with a round shaft either, since gravity and centrifugal forces aid correct blade alignment – or enough so for my needs. If I had to use a halberd “in earnest”, I’d probably prefer a cornered shaft like on the Swiss halberd. On both of these the edges are nicely sharpened. I like that CS didn’t design the Sergeant’s model’s heel and toe bits too fragile/pointy. I love the pronounced hook and its long and broad spear tip. As you can tell from the specs, the Sergeant’s halberd is a lot lighter than the Swiss, ‘though that doesn’t mean the Swiss isn’t a lot of fun to play with. Not surprisingly, the sergeant’s halberd can be used with more “finesse”. While swinging it lets you empathize with a Renaissance night guard about chasing away ennui, the Swiss’ weight and heft blow your mind right into the arrays of a bloody medieval battlefield. One last thing I’d like to point out is something that would have saved me from a bit of an annoyance, if I would’ve known in advance. So it turned out I wasn’t smart enough to realize that the halberd’s blades are kind of sandwich welded in their sockets, meaning that the shafts will have to get a channel sawn into hem to fit all the way in. My failure let me to shorten the Swiss halberd’s shaft too much. It was the first one I got and I made the mistake and thought I could not get it to fit into the shaft properly, if I wouldn`t saw it off to get a thicker end than it came with. This was wrong – you need to saw a cut along its length to make it pass along both sides of the blade inside the upper part of the socket, where the blade is welded into a cut-out part of the socket. So my Swiss halberd now is around 8 cm shorter than it would need to be, if I would`ve been a tad more thoughtful – or would’ve read the amazon reviews in depth. Oh well… So, just wanted to say, I’m very happy with my CS halberds and can recommend them. I got both the Sergeants and the Billhook, as the head of the Bill is far lighter than the Swiss. I did have to carefully cut the top of the staff to form fit the Sergeants, and will be very careful in doing so with the thicker handle Billhook (which mine is round, btw). Two very different animals, due to the weight and handle thickness, as Sergeants uses Assegai shaft while Billhook uses Boar shaft. Against heavy clothing I think I would go for the Bill, as you can really chop with that extra weight, as well as do damage with a whack from the heavy staff, but you would probably need extra training vs. the Sergeants, which is a quick stabbing, slashing beast.
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Post by howler on Jul 21, 2017 1:33:35 GMT
I got both the Sergeants and the Billhook, as the head of the Bill is far lighter than the Swiss. I did have to carefully cut the top of the staff to form fit the Sergeants, and will be very careful in doing so with the thicker handle Billhook (which mine is round, btw). Two very different animals, due to the weight and handle thickness, as Sergeants uses Assegai shaft while Billhook uses Boar shaft. Against heavy clothing I think I would go for the Bill, as you can really chop with that extra weight, as well as do damage with a whack from the heavy staff, but you would probably need extra training vs. the Sergeants, which is a quick stabbing, slashing beast. I thought hard about getting the billhook first, and one of the reasons was that the weight seems very practical. Liked the shape of the Swiss’ and especially the Sergeant’s head a little better, though. The Swiss’ head is a bit lighter than advertised on all the internet sources I know of. The Sergeant’s is just approx. 1 - 3 ounces heavier than a solid oak quarterstaff of the same length would be, but with the weight centered more forwards, of course. It can be both quick and nimble with the smaller movements for efficient poking / ripping as well as hit with a lot of force when used in the wider chops. Perhaps I`ll get the billhook, too, who knows. It certainly is very appealing. Good thing it has a stronger shaft. It sure would be nice if other companies offered pole arms...the king of the battlefield. People who bad mouth Cold Steel are insane, as nobody COMES CLOSE in offering the wide variety of interesting products (a lot of which will not destroy your wallet). People focus on the items than may not work (for THEM) while ignoring the many home runs. Pure envy. The Sergeant is gorgeous and the Bill has an old school feel, while I suppose the Swiss is a hybrid of the two and a true chopper (but with some loss of speed). I got the Boar Spear as well and consider that a pole arm, for its weight and ability to chop.
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Post by howler on Jul 25, 2017 2:47:54 GMT
For your general amusement here are some vids of my first tentative steps with those things. My newborn son doesn’t seem too impressed… Swiss: Sergeant's (audio warning!): Of course there is much room for improvement, and what immediately strikes my eye is that I should try to… • rotate my forward foot outwards with the back-swings • lean less backwards • stretch my arms more • sit more into the hips at the end range of the strikes Perhaps you’re able to make out some general handling characteristics/differences of those both weapons…. And, of course, constructive criticism is always welcome, and any knowledgeable advice is greatly appreciated. Lots more speed to that Sergeants, but that is to be expected. There are some YouTube vids on how these things were used historically, very close to that of a pole ax. You swing those beasts like a great sword or axe, where it is hard to move in on you. I've seen it used more like a spear, where you lung forward while thrusting, or step back to keep out of range. Scholagladiatoria has some imput on how these were used as well. If I were walking into my back yard and could grab only one bladed weapon to deal with one or two creeps, some type of pole arm would be my choice.
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pgandy
Moderator
Senior Forumite
Posts: 10,296
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Post by pgandy on Jul 25, 2017 2:50:43 GMT
When I watch a video that I made I always see room for improvement. I believe that I should make more as a self improvement aid.
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Post by howler on Jul 26, 2017 1:21:40 GMT
Thank you very much for your replies, gentlemen. howler , yes, the Swiss is quite a handful. My frisky playfulness doesn’t exactly help concentrating on good technique, either. Here are some of the vids I use to aid my training… www.youtube.com/user/Hroarr/videosBig shout-out to Roger Norling from HROARR, by the way. I have the outmost respect for this man. Tomorrow I’ll try to go at a bit more disciplined again (was rainy all day long – not much of a problem, as I’m heavily jet-lagged anyways, lol). pgandy , as I’m just beginning to find out, I feel video analysis to be extremely helpful. It's so much better than relying on the “feeling” of movements alone. Sadly at the moment I don't have anyone to train staff / polearms with / learn from first hand, and video helps me to control my learning process - at least to a certain extent. Willing polearm practitioners were SO much more plentiful...several centuries ago. Damn you firearms and gunpowder! Even the way you were swinging your weapons, you'd still be a nightmare for any bad guy ya crossed...minus them having the afore mentioned firearms (damn yo...uh, I already expressed my feelings on them).
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Post by howler on Jul 26, 2017 20:03:55 GMT
Willing polearm practitioners were SO much more plentiful...several centuries ago. Damn you firearms and gunpowder! Even the way you were swinging your weapons, you'd still be a nightmare for any bad guy ya crossed...minus them having the afore mentioned firearms (damn yo...uh, I already expressed my feelings on them). Lol, yeah, I guess terms like „peacemaker“ and „the great equalizer“ etc. didn’t came up for nothing. Now, even Meyer lamented over the decline of the “manly” arts, teaching/writing in the middle of the 16th century. And he doesn’t miss out on reminding that in times of technical/mechanical failures (misfires, empty ammo etc.) the old “knightly” arts might come in handy. I also feel that training the polearms, specifically, holds a good amount of carryover to unarmed techniques, e.g. certain moves of wrestling, due to the rather high importance of perfect body mechanics to generate speed and power. Yes, even when one removes those nasty spikes, hooks, edges, you still have a long staff that gives you all types of advantages in power, speed, and leverage that are tied in wrestling principles. The polearm is the top of the non ballistic food chain. However, since you can't have one stuffed into your pocket or pants, a fixed bowie knife or folder (when you need to be more discrete...and obeying local knife laws) can still go toe to toe against firearms at close range.
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Post by howler on Jul 26, 2017 22:19:45 GMT
Yes, even when one removes those nasty spikes, hooks, edges, you still have a long staff that gives you all types of advantages in power, speed, and leverage that are tied in wrestling principles. The polearm is the top of the non ballistic food chain. However, since you can't have one stuffed into your pocket or pants, a fixed bowie knife or folder (when you need to be more discrete...and obeying local knife laws) can still go toe to toe against firearms at close range. Yes, knives… Don’t need ammo, don`t jam, no parts to get entangled or caught up (at least less so on fixed blades), dangerous in many directions. Quick to change hands in a clinch. Knives… Oh, I have made distinct experiences with knives, especially during my disco door work days. Knives − very dangerous, very deterring. Stopping power is often questionable (I guess the bigger the better - as long as it's sharp enough). Don't get me wrong though - I can enjoy me a nice knoife for sure. …Tried those staff flows with an eight foot staff of fir wood today. Very light, doesn’t give good feedback in the swings. Will use the Sergeant’s halberd and my six foot oak staff for a while, to build up towards the Swiss. Slow drills with the Swiss might be worth a try, too. Another interesting thing about the Meyer method and especially in polearm usage is that "strength" alone will only take you so far – you also need a fluid fascia and flexibility to make full use of the guards and develop momentum in the strikes. Yeah, the only real stopping power to a knife (thinking standard 3-4" folder) would be in the psychological realization that you were/would be stabbed or cut, unless you were poked in the eye/face/throat/neck area. Larger blades like machete, large bowie, any heavy bladed sword type deal would clearly be a different kettle of fish, with even faster incapacitation (hands and head REMOVED). Disco door days...gulp (though that sounds like a killer name for a punk band), now say that three times.
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Post by howler on Aug 1, 2017 20:13:08 GMT
I like Cold Steel. Some people do criticize, but I like something solid, that feels strong in the hand and won't seem to let you down. I actually like the vids they post, too. Some say those things can't do what they say, but I'm afraid they can, I've experimented. They offer such a large array of items that it would be literally impossible NOT to like at least some of their stuff. Sour grapes and snobbishness is the main problem with the naysayers.
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Post by legacyofthesword on Aug 6, 2017 4:50:38 GMT
I like Cold Steel. Some people do criticize, but I like something solid, that feels strong in the hand and won't seem to let you down. I actually like the vids they post, too. Some say those things can't do what they say, but I'm afraid they can, I've experimented. They offer such a large array of items that it would be literally impossible NOT to like at least some of their stuff. Sour grapes and snobbishness is the main problem with the naysayers. I think a lot of people hate the company (various issues and business practices), which spills into hating it's products. I've never had a single problem with any CS folding knife (bought a number of them), and I highly recommend them. Some of their other stuff is overbuilt and heavier than it could be, but that simply translates to a tougher weapon, which I'd prefer to light and flimsy (though of course, well balanced and tough would be best). By the way Rasputin, I thought you were supposed to be dead... You're looking pretty good for guy who got poisoned, shot twice, stabbed, beaten, and drowned.
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Post by AndiTheBarvarian on Aug 6, 2017 6:00:27 GMT
... they didn't use a Cold Steel Sword!
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Post by howler on Aug 6, 2017 9:40:45 GMT
They offer such a large array of items that it would be literally impossible NOT to like at least some of their stuff. Sour grapes and snobbishness is the main problem with the naysayers. I think a lot of people hate the company (various issues and business practices), which spills into hating it's products. I've never had a single problem with any CS folding knife (bought a number of them), and I highly recommend them. Some of their other stuff is overbuilt and heavier than it could be, but that simply translates to a tougher weapon, which I'd prefer to light and flimsy (though of course, well balanced and tough would be best). By the way Rasputin, I thought you were supposed to be dead... You're looking pretty good for guy who got poisoned, shot twice, stabbed, beaten, and drowned. CS is a very large company with such a varied array of products that the "haters" are a pretty small lot. You have the folders, the machete style blades, swords, hawks, fixed blades, miscellaneous items...just a lot of stuff. Some of the stuff is "you get what you pay for", some of the stuff may fall short, some of the stuff is good, and some of the stuff is amazing for the money. Lynn Thompson has a dream job.
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gandermail
Member
Bill, WEWolf, Slackitude...I need to settle on a name.
Posts: 248
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Post by gandermail on Aug 10, 2017 20:01:18 GMT
I suppose the case could be made you should have read the reviews more closely re: cutting a channel in the shaft but in fairness to you it should have come with some instructions telling you that. This isn't your mistake, it's Cold Steel's.
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Post by howler on Aug 11, 2017 4:04:10 GMT
I suppose the case could be made you should have read the reviews more closely re: cutting a channel in the shaft but in fairness to you it should have come with some instructions telling you that. This isn't your mistake, it's Cold Steel's. Yes, it would have been nice to know, as it was a chore to cut away in order to get the shaft seated.
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Post by howler on Aug 13, 2017 19:57:38 GMT
Yes, it would have been nice to know, as it was a chore to cut away in order to get the shaft seated. I imagine it would be rather difficult to have to cut the channel into the shaft without the use of electric power tools. I'd not be happy having to rely on the strength of the socket alone, with little support at the socket/head junction. Could still be sufficient, but still... Recently I bought this blunt, decorative halberd head for training: astor-versand.eshop.t-online.de/WebRoot/Store6/Shops/Shop10643/458C/90A9/42ED/F0DF/E795/AC14/5009/4371/1801040300.jpgIt is quite nice and made in the same sandwich weld way than the CS. It's around 100 g lighter than the Sergeant`s halberd head and the socket has a larger inner diameter (28 mm vs. 24 mm on the CS). I'm probably gonna wrap the Sergeants with something or other to enhance strength, as it is the thinner Assegai shaft and all.
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Post by howler on Aug 14, 2017 19:24:29 GMT
I'm probably gonna wrap the Sergeants with something or other to enhance strength, as it is the thinner Assegai shaft and all. I`ve thought about wrapping/taping some kind of improvised sheet metal langets to the shaft, but decided against that. A slightly broader socket would do no harm; and I personally would like the toe bit to be a tad more pronounced - more like on the decorative one I've linked to. In general the Sergeant’s would do well hafted on a 32 x 28 mm oval shaft, imo, regarding handling. Otherwise the CS ash shafts - or at least the ones I got - are good, straight with a nice grain. Although the Sergeant’s shaft bleeds some paint, and the Swiss’ one doesn’t. Maybe para cord with resin impregnation, or something to stiffen the wrapping material. I don't think it would take much reinforcement, but would feel better about its durability.
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Post by howler on Aug 17, 2017 23:16:49 GMT
Regarding on fitting the shaft again… Recently I got me this "Gothic Halberd": www.kultofathena.com/product.asp?item=XB3941, otherwise known as a voulge: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VoulgeThis comes with the two eyes slightly misaligned, which means that a standard straight shaft won’t fit the eyes exactly. I already kjind of expected that and will try to fix the bad fit using wooden shims. Point is, no one tells you that, either. What a chopper, with a 4lb. head 25% heavier than the CS Swiss Halberd. Chop, chop. Misaligned eyes...how fun.
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Post by howler on Aug 18, 2017 2:15:30 GMT
Oh yeah, standard case of „you get what you pay for“, I guess (paid around two thirds of the CS Swiss’ price here in Germany, including an extra ordered piece of ash). It actually weighs 1618 g, 25% more than the CS Swiss I got is correct. Although I’m not happy about the fitting, this thing certainly gives you the “vibes”. Don’t know if I’m gonna hit anything full force with it any time soon, so I can live with it for a while, I guess - will see how it turns out. A proper fit would certainly be mandatory, to not rattle the neighbors’ cage, swinging that thing anywhere near his bolthole. Went with a 190 cm, 35 mm ash ballet bar to make for a shaft, by the way. Stiff and tough. And round. Compared to the relative price of swords, you can get quite an interesting collection of Polearms (around $90 each, here in the states) to embellish an entryway, to the point where someone would expect you to be sitting on the Iron Throne instead of a sofa in your living room. I have three polearms, the Sergeants Halberd and Billhook...but also the Boar spear (which I count as a polearm). I also have a long shaft Assegai and MAA lance point spear. All are CS. A few more and I will have a small corridor/spear tip tunnel on which to walk through to get to the man cave/throne room. It's an acquired taste...err...sickness.
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Zen_Hydra
Moderator
Born with a heart full of neutrality
Posts: 2,625
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Post by Zen_Hydra on Aug 18, 2017 15:20:41 GMT
I think you can safely get away with calling any weapon on a pole, a polearm.
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Post by howler on Aug 18, 2017 20:27:10 GMT
I think you can safely get away with calling any weapon on a pole, a polearm. Just about. It seems the only difference between polearms and spears is the weight for chopping and slashing vs mainly thrusting. Just about every weapon is enhanced with a pole, which increases power, reach, leverage. You could even say that poles are like caramel fudge topping, sprinkles, nuts, chocolate chips, etc...on ice cream, if ice cream were a weapon...maybe I'm going off the rails a bit, but in a good way.
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