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Post by Deleted on Jun 26, 2008 5:27:27 GMT
Hi! I'm currently looking for a sword, and I'm wondering what would be good for my size (5' 7''). I'm mostly looking at viking swords because everyone seems to make at least one model of them, but the period that I'm particularly interested in is late antiquity/dark ages. Windlass' Beowulf sword has caught my eye, it's got just the taper I've been looking for though seems like it might be a little too big for me, but maybe by only a few inches. I really like the decorations on the hilt, they're pretty but not gaudy. I did read the one review of it that's floating around here where ring supposedly broke off because it was plastic, so that has me a little worried. Can anyone recommend this sword, or maybe suggest something similar?
Thanks!
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Post by ShooterMike on Jun 26, 2008 5:46:40 GMT
Hi! I'm currently looking for a sword, and I'm wondering what would be good for my size (5' 7''). I'm mostly looking at viking swords because everyone seems to make at least one model of them, but the period that I'm particularly interested in is late antiquity/dark ages. Windlass' Beowulf sword has caught my eye, it's got just the taper I've been looking for though seems like it might be a little too big for me, but maybe by only a few inches. I really like the decorations on the hilt, they're pretty but not gaudy. I did read the one review of it that's floating around here where ring supposedly broke off because it was plastic, so that has me a little worried. Can anyone recommend this sword, or maybe suggest something similar? Thanks! Hi Michelle, I'm only 5'6" and I've never seen a normal Viking sword that was too long for me. Most seem to be in the 28-31" range as far as blade length. I personally find single hand swords with 31-32 inch blades to be perfect for me. Paul Southren and others here have tested several Viking swords from Windlass, and they have just about all gotten pretty decent marks. You could also take a look at the Viking sword Tinker designed for CAS Hanwei, discussed here on myArmoury. It isn't available yet, but should be hitting stores (and websites) later this year. It's on my short list of "need to buys" and promises to be outstanding. Also, Kult of Athena has announced that they will begin carrying Del Tin swords in the near future. Del Tin offers a number of very nice looking Viking swords, as well as some migration-era blades that might catch your eye. Is this something like you're looking for?
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Post by Deleted on Jun 26, 2008 6:24:57 GMT
I don't think blade length will be much of an issue if your 5'7". Now if your like some asian girls I know who barely break 5 feet...then we could have some issues . However, the handle might be a problem. If the sword has a standard viking handle that is meant to be held in the handshake grip, it might be a problem for female users. In general male and female hands are different. When a man makes a fist, the knuckles line up straight. For females they curve. Now some men's curve and some women's are straight, but if you have the curved fist hand, the handshake grip is pretty hard to do. This also throws off targeting when fighting or cutting as well so that is something to keep in mind if your instructor has differing hand. Yeah it seems so minor, having different hands, but it makes a pretty big difference (I had to learn SCA fighting from a women because everything the guys kept telling me didn't work for me ). As for the sword itself, not too big of a fan of this style of sword (partially because of aesthics and mostly because of my hands) so I don't give good advice on it other then del tin swords are pretty well done...if a bit out of the price range of this forum.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 26, 2008 10:17:05 GMT
Watch out with Del Tin Viking swords, most of them are too heavy. But that migration 2070 model is light and well balanced... It's harder to find a migration era sword than a typical viking sword from 9th or 10th century...
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Post by rammstein on Jun 26, 2008 14:27:41 GMT
HAHA you've got girly hands! *insert additional gender questioning statements here*
Wait..so do I ;D
That's actually a rather interesting observation. I've noticed among men that the pointer finger is shorter than the ring finger and on most women the ring is longer than the pointer. I personally have the woman's setup, but I've never noticed any difference in the handshake grip? Of course I've never tried it with man-hands before so maybe I'm just not experienced enough to make that assessment and could be having a bad grip all along!
Anyway karma for making me think.
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Post by alvin on Jun 26, 2008 14:41:30 GMT
I've noticed among men that the pointer finger is shorter than the ring finger and on most women the ring is longer than the pointer. Hey Ramm, Please explain that again. HaHa, Rammy's got girlie hands !!
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Post by rammstein on Jun 26, 2008 14:48:16 GMT
turn the back of your hand towards you but keep your wrist straight.
generally men have a longer ring finger than their pointer and with women this is reverced.
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Post by alvin on Jun 26, 2008 14:50:19 GMT
turn the back of your hand towards you but keep your wrist straight. generally men have a longer ring finger than their pointer and with women this is reverced. Thanks Ramm. Now I understand !! The finger arrangement between men and women ore reverced.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 26, 2008 15:31:30 GMT
One thing that concerns me about that Beowulf sword is those two nubs on the crossguard facing the grip. I could see those gouging the hand. I love the sheath, though.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 26, 2008 18:59:56 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2008 7:32:51 GMT
I don't think that sword is that expensive mrblack, that is quite exquisite.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2008 13:42:47 GMT
Yes well I meant compared to the Beowulf by Windlass, and also I am unsure if this one comes with a scabbard which may be a further expense. I agree that it is a very nice sword and the grip looks to be small so it might also be good for a womans hands.
Cheers
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2008 14:31:26 GMT
It doesn't come with the scabbard. The price would be about $400 or more...
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2008 20:20:40 GMT
I thought it came with a sandwhich leather scabbard...
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Post by hotspur on Jun 27, 2008 23:38:09 GMT
Del Tins do not come with a scabbard, although Fulvio had added scababrds as available on the Del Tin homepage a couple of years ago (odn't know if that is still so). Del Tins are sold as blunts but can be sharpened. So, it becomes a bit of a "What are you going to do with it" kind of situation. Art Elwell, linked above, will put an edge on one for you and also does do scabbard work. Viking Shield www.viking-shield.com/ is generally selling for about ten dollars less per sword (at least one substantially less though) than Art does but does not offer a sharpening service. These folk also have other offerings for the genre. When Kult of Athena has Del Tins in hand, it may still mean if you want a sharp, that is not going to be done by them. The Windlass swords they offer sharpening on are not done in house, it is being done at the AC/MRL end. Also to keep in mind that the Del Tins are not truly inexpensive and that a little more is reaching into the Albion Squire line swords. Kult of Athena does stock the Beowulf sword and irrc, it is at a decent price. I'm not finding a review of it I thought someone had done but there is this thread elsewhere that might be helpful. forums.swordforum.com/showthread.php?t=72606 I guess the stickler for some is the plastic spacers and bits but it is overall a fairly pretty package. if it is to be used more for appreciation than hard use, as good a buy as any, I guess. I simply refused to be talked into a given sword when I was looking for the first one. I did a lot of shopping around and ended up buying the Windlass version instead of the Del Tin. In hindsight, I still want the Del Tin version (5160) but the Windlass has served me well and did come with a scabbard. That plus costing a good bit less when I wasn't sure how deeply I would delve into collecting. Sometimes its good to get that first one that you really want out of the way and remember it as a marker of where yuo began. The genre in general doesn't want to be overweight and some of the Del Tins really are but a couple are right in there and I have to imagine will handle a good bit better than the ones over three pounds. For a delightful but plain and spendy viking sword, I would heartily suggest the Arms & Armor Shifford. www.armor.com Then there are the Albion offerings as well. Both of these companies are going to give (sell) you a sword that will handle nicey and like the real deal. A&A does sell simple scabbards and I have never had an issue with my threee being stored in their plain leather ones. I'm still quite in love with my Hanwei Godfred, even though I am now on the second blade in these fittings (can't get/find the bare blades anymore). Although a bit anachronistic, so many things about it just seem right, not the least of which is the way it handles. I had a very skeptical collector of antiques pick it up one day and his eyes and expression betrayed him. These do handle extremly nicely and are wicked little tip cutters. They even smell right. Best of luck with the decision. Hotspur; the A&A Shifford was on my lists for years and I just never got around to it
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Post by randomnobody on Jun 28, 2008 2:14:25 GMT
I'll second Hotspur's sentiments on the Godfred. I'm currently on the verge of selling mine, as I'm desperate for money, but I won't be letting it go easily, and as soon as I'm back in the green I'll be getting another. They had a bit of a rough beginning, with several blade failures and a few tang problems, but they seem to have sorted that out now and are very fine swords. Of course, they fetch a fair dime, too. Cheapest I've seen lately is Kult of Athena for about $315. Might not be the "era" that you're after, though. (Not necessarily representative of any "era," per se, as it is)
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Post by alvin on Jun 28, 2008 2:50:29 GMT
Here is the review of the Windlass Beowulf by jyoungblood. The initial review indicated a nice sword, but later j had a breakage problem with one of the plastic parts.
/index.cgi?board=swordreviews&action=display&thread=2115
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Post by Deleted on Jun 28, 2008 19:21:05 GMT
Windlass Dark Age Sword might be good for you... Right period but quite heavy sword... Depends on what you want to do with it...
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Post by Deleted on Jun 29, 2008 0:22:05 GMT
Arms of Valor still has the Darksword Armory 10th century viking sword in stock and discounted! www.armsofvalour.com/miva/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=AOVL&Product_Code=1311&Category_Code=DSAOnly $225, comes with a wodden scabbard, and for $36 extra they will sharpen it. Daniel has done a review on one. While most DSA blades are well over built his copy weighed the listed weight of 2lbs 5oz or so. If you search the review forums you should find it. I own several DSA blades. They are pretty good despite what most here would want you to believe. Some of them are just insanely heavy like a lot of Del Tins but this blade isn't one of them.
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Post by hotspur on Jun 29, 2008 2:43:37 GMT
One thing that seems a real pity about Darksword is how they can get some things right and other things so wrong. As is often the case, the ad copy could use a lot of work in correcting some pretty basic mistakes in wording. As to the sword, they seem to have made a pretty honest attempt at recreation except for the ferrules on the grip and the guard. if they would work a bit on wording dates correctly, it could help save a lot of misconceptions about their credibilty down the road. www.yorkshiremuseum.org.uk/Page/ViewNewsArticle.aspx?ArticleId=10Cheers Hotspur; there are actually a couple/three of versions of this sword out there
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