Ryansword Folded Steel Glamdring
Dec 31, 2020 6:40:25 GMT
Post by Tiers1 on Dec 31, 2020 6:40:25 GMT
First off, I know there are many that avidly dislike this company. I politely ask that you refrain from yelling at me/discussing business practices in this thread.
Blade Length : 89cm / 35" Handle Length : 30cm / 11.8"
Blade Width : 4.5cm Blade Thickness : 6mm
Blade Material : 1095 Folded Steel
Sword weight: 2.8lbs
P.O.B 5.5 inches in front of guard
I wrote a whole long intro paragraph that I accidentally deleted, and I am too lazy to write it again, so let's get right to the review.
The blade: The blade is, like the blade of the last sword I got from them, probably the most impressive piece of the equation. The sharpening job is top notch and the lines are clean. The blade has an attractive folded steel pattern. The sword is light and fast. One major problem- the blade shape I received did not resemble in the slightest the leafblade which was pictured on the site- moreso it looks very much like a folded steel version of the longsword they sell. I brought this up, and the company apologized and offered a discount on a future item. I do believe that many in this case simply would have asked for a refund, but I on the overall liked the sword enough to keep it.
The fittings: The grip is comprised of Rosewood, with an attractive grain and good in-hand feel. The grip came double pinned, another change from the picture. The fittings are relatively clean and well done, with a very nice polish and sheen....the big problem- they were not iron as advertised- they were some kind of alloy. Having both the blade and fitting material differ substantially from the advertised sword was more than I was willing to accept, and I requested a refund, which I promptly received.
The scabbard: The scabbard is made of the same attractive Rosewood as the grip, and has two tight bands of cord wrap which are a nice touch and should assist with split prevention. The chape is heavy iron or steel affixed with glue, which is slightly visible under the gaps between the metal and wood at the top of the fitting throat.
I had been told some time ago by their sales rep that the 1095 folded steel they offer is their most durable option, and significantly better than their straight 1095, T10, regular folded steel, etc. My curiosity regarding this claim got the best of me. Once I knew I would be receiving a refund, and I decided to take the sword against what I would call a historically plausible hard target- the mild steel rim of a shield- for a single strike, just to see how things would shake out. They did not shake out particularly well, unfortunately. While the sword is indeed very sharp and does not have much niku, the strike was light and the damage received by the edge was a decent bit beyond what I have seen on other swords on a similar or identical target. Based on this experience and other info out there regarding Chinese production swords in general, I would say that the hrc is likely lower than you would think it is...that being said, the lack of high hardness contributed to a small amount of elbow grease being sufficient to go a long way towards repairing the damage. As has been said before, a softer edge is not necessarily a worse edge.
I also discovered a very similar looking sword on Ebay from another seller. It had a different and lower quality looking grip, the appropriate advertised blade shape, and no scabbard. The fittings were identical and the pattern on the blade was also pretty much the same style. It cost $150 less. Now, one can't say for certain, but Occam's razor would opine that this is some indication Ryansword is just assembling after all, rather than fabricating some things on their own. I do think that they do their own sharpening and whoever does it is very good, as all three swords I have gotten from them have uniformly excellent sharpening jobs.
Overall, I would say this is a good sword. As was my last sword from them, this is a bona-fide weapon. It handles well, is fast, and is very sharp. While it isn't brought up to the hrc that the steel is likely capable of, I am confident it is tempered to acceptable parameters. In Matt Jensen's recent Ryansword Katana review, he noted that while the edge took more damage than others in bottle cutting, it remained very capable of cutting and I am confident this sword would do the same. I have since sold it at a substantial discount, and believe it will make the new owner happy.