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Post by csills2313 on Apr 20, 2019 20:07:29 GMT
It’s a rainy afternoon today and I was looking at KultofAthena’s rapier and side-sword offerings. Not sure which one of these is the best value for the money. www.kultofathena.com/swords-renaissance-price.aspAnyone willing to share their opinions on these? I am most interested in battle ready ones
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 20, 2019 21:37:06 GMT
What is your budget?
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Post by csills2313 on Apr 21, 2019 1:45:10 GMT
$600.00 is the most I would pay for a good rapier. Anything lower I would consider
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 21, 2019 2:10:59 GMT
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Post by Jordan Williams on Apr 21, 2019 2:54:00 GMT
Castille also within that budget, I believe they will custom make a sharp. My own is a very nice sword and they are quite user friendly.
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Post by dchisenh on Apr 21, 2019 3:14:41 GMT
I can't really help you when it comes to rapiers, but I can say that I really, really liked the Kingston Arms Renaissance Side Sword I recently sold. Once my finances improve I'm going to set aside the cash for it so when it comes back in stock I'll be able to nab one. They're WELL within your budget, so I'd strongly recommend you get one if you can find it!
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christain
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It's the steel on the inside that counts.
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Post by christain on Apr 21, 2019 3:36:50 GMT
I'll second that on the KA side sword. I have the original Hanwei side sword, and it is an awesome handling beauty. If you can ever catch one in-stock, I say go for it.
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Uhlan
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Post by Uhlan on Apr 21, 2019 4:27:41 GMT
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Post by leviathansteak on Apr 21, 2019 4:45:23 GMT
Id go with the kingston arms sidesword if i wanted to remain well within budget. Del tin if i wanted to scrape the ceiling of the budget.
I understand that windlass rapiers are a bit too short and flexible for rapier fun so maybe read some reviews before proceeding with those
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Post by AndiTheBarvarian on Apr 21, 2019 4:55:33 GMT
I really like my Hanwei Taza. It's not a very heavy rapier overall but has its weight in the solid blade, not in the hilt (2/3 - 1/3). My Windlass Florentine is a beauty but has the weight in the hilt and a very light blade I wouldn't t(h)rust when it comes to a fight.
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Post by csills2313 on Apr 21, 2019 18:17:35 GMT
Thanks everyone for your input. I may buy the Windlass Christus Imperiat first because it is in stock from several sources. I had been looking for the KA sidesword but it is out of stock most everywhere I have looked
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Post by AndiTheBarvarian on Apr 21, 2019 18:59:14 GMT
I forgot to mention that im just waiting for a Windlass Patton sword, it's backordered, I hope it arrives the next two weeks. I'm interested how good a rapier it is, from what I've read here it could be a nice Zorroesque sword.
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Post by csills2313 on Apr 21, 2019 20:48:57 GMT
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Post by AndiTheBarvarian on Apr 21, 2019 21:02:42 GMT
Yes that's it. It was "backordered" for more than 6 months now, my German store said the last months it will be in stock on 4/30. Now it's available at AC, I hope my store is right!
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Post by strigoil on Apr 21, 2019 22:00:04 GMT
Not sure if you're considering EU makers or anyone with long'ish wait times, I think Cervenka is about 9 months?
I'm not sure about the exact price of his rapiers but I've seen some of his other swords sell for 4-500, so could be worth dropping him a mail and checking? Supposedly very good quality.
I also THINK Danelli Armouries offers sharps?
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Post by csills2313 on Apr 21, 2019 23:35:54 GMT
Thanks Strigoli. I will check into that
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Uhlan
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Post by Uhlan on Apr 22, 2019 4:22:04 GMT
You'll be pleasantly surprised by the Christus Imperat. An exceptional sword and exceptional value for your $$$. Dave Kelly's review is somewhere in here. Even he was impressed and that is saying something. Windlass has this habit of producing outliers every once in a while that punch way above their weight. All those ages old, tired and stale prejudices get blown out of the water. Everybody goes ,,Huh?'' And then they revert right back to producing the standard Windlass fare which isn't bad for the money, but still.... Crazy.
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Post by AndiTheBarvarian on Apr 22, 2019 7:46:26 GMT
You'll be pleasantly surprised by the Christus Imperat. An exceptional sword and exceptional value for your $$$. Dave Kelly's review is somewhere in here. Even he was impressed and that is saying something. Windlass has this habit of producing outliers every once in a while that punch way above their weight. All those ages old, tired and stale prejudices get blown out of the water. Everybody goes ,,Huh?'' And then they revert right back to producing the standard Windlass fare which isn't bad for the money, but still.... Crazy. Just looked it up, it's your review, Uhlan! Someday I'll perhaps order a classic "heavy" rapier, the Christus Imperat or the bigger one from CS. I'm hesitating with the Christus Imperat a bit because of my Florentine, which has a too light blade and a heavy hilt. My Hanwei Taza is also light but has the main weight in the blade, ca. 2/3, and I think it has a solid blade. Is the Christus Imperat's weight due to a solid heavy blade or like my Florentine or Munich because they made an overweight hilt to get the POB near the guard?
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Uhlan
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Post by Uhlan on Apr 22, 2019 10:12:16 GMT
It has a very good blade, but all the bars on the hilt help a bit also. But the blade is very good indeed. And long. Windlass did not use the old trick of bringing the POB back by building an over size hilt. Far from it. The hilt is as it should be and the blade too. For once they got it right. I can even defend the following: If you would take the Taza and the Imperat and give them a good makeover and antique them professionally and then would take them to an auction house or an antiques fair, they would not stand out immediately as modern repros. I bet you would sell them then and there. Yes, I think the Imperat is that good and it would not surprise me when they would show up in an auction catalogue in the future. It takes some time to get to grips with it. It is on the heavy side at first because, like most people, one does not expect something as substantial. People still expect a rapier to feel like a small sword. Well, they don't and more important, they didn't in the past. It was foremost an Army oriented weapon for Infantry and Cavalry. One needs a substantial sword for Cavalry use and reach. They could cut too. That civilians also liked it and used it does not imply that therefore the rapier must have been light. You had to take lessons to be able to wield it. Of course there were lighter versions, but the mainstream of rapiers was a weapon of substantial build. The Imperat fits in unlike any other on the marked, except maybe the Hanwei Taza. Same thing, it takes a couple of hours to get used to it, like it should, but when through the introductory fase, you do not want to let go of it. It rocks. Yesterday I stumbled on the SBG page where my review was featured. I did not know they used it. Never got a notice, which is not very polite. I know stuff one posts here is property of SBG, so they can do whatever they want, but still. It does not automatically imply that I am biased. Far from it. I have nothing to gain with doing reviews, nothing to gain with stating a product is good or bad. I just give my opinion based on the facts as I understand them. So let nobody think I am plugging the Imperat for some reason. I do not. I am simply stating that if the OP wants a rapier and just like anybody else wants maximum bang per buck, he's in principle good with the Imperat. For the price one gets more bang than with a Del Tin, because one gets a Del Tin level sword for the price of a run of the mill replica. Go find Dave Kelly's review if you do not trust my opinion for some reason. Dave has another approach, I am sometimes somewhat baroque in my writing, while he is more to the point and technical, but in the end he was just as enthusiastic and taken in by the Imperat as I. With the Taza, the Imperat is the only real rapier on the market at this price point. If you think the Taza light you should not have any problems with the Imperat at all. I have this feeling about the Taza that Hanwei may have taken a German example of the design. I don't know, but for some reason it gives me the feel I get when I pick up a Prussian M1852. Very Germanic. Reitschwert.
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Post by AndiTheBarvarian on Apr 22, 2019 10:44:35 GMT
Thanks for the information! I'm now leaning towards the Christus Imp. But first the Patton.
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