APOC Yataghan follow-up video review and testing
Mar 17, 2021 10:57:48 GMT
Post by Adventurer'sBlade on Mar 17, 2021 10:57:48 GMT
Introduction
CAS Iberia's APOC line of tactical swords has been a welcome addition to the modern sword scene in the last couple of years. It brings higher end features - distal taper, removable G10 scales, and premium 9260 spring steel - to the budget price range by producing these designs in CAS's experienced Dalian, China facilities.
The Waning Moon Yataghan is one of the smaller blades in the line-up, straddling the line between sword and knife. Here's how the folks at CAS describe it:
It's a cold world now, not just literally. No warm thoughts of sunshine on your face or the comfort of your bed or close companionship. Nothing is colder than your perspective than the piece of steel wielded in your hand. Nothing helps you more with the chilly reality that your APOC Yataghan. Built for the brawl, the 17" blade helps you split the difference between a long knife and short sword with an overall length of 23 3/8". The slightly recurved black oxidized coated blade is capable of powerful cuts for a single hand weapon. This full tang beast of a blade bashes out destruction as needed.
It's a little dramatic, but I think you'll find through my testing that this short sword is indeed a highly practical tool and weapon, fit for field use.
Historical overview
Turkish yataghan swords were the sidearms of janissaries and other warriors in the age of muskets and rifles, although the slight recurve design goes back much farther. Typical yataghan swords were longer than this little 17" short sword. The yataghan blade form was also popular for sword bayonets, which would have been much closer to our APOC in size.
Full Disclosure
The first yataghan you see in the video was purchased here in the forum classifieds, barely used and factory fresh. Unfortunately, it snapped in half during testing. I then had the following exchange with CAS Iberia customer service:
Good morning,
I recently bought an APOC Yataghan secondhand and broke it during testing and review. The testing can be seen here:
I would like to know if this is considered a defective heat treat, and therefore the kind of breakage that would be covered by warranty. I understand that CAS Iberia's warranty only extends to the original purchaser. However, if you consider the yataghan above to be defective (please look at the steel grain shown in the forum post), I would be happy to test a replacement and share those results with the sword community so we are not left with only the first example. Please advise.
From CAS:
Good morning,
Apologies it has taken some time to get back to you, we're usually short staffed through the holidays and last year busy at the same time...
Very sorry to hear of the break, during prototype testing we had two failures that led to some changes for production - however neither was the Yataghan model.
Would you send the yataghan to us for inspection? It's difficult to tell from the photos whether a crack was present after heat treatment (usually indicated by a dark area near the edge) or it was caused during use. Either way our preferred result of failure would have been a bent blade, not a break. I'd like to test the hardness and have a good look at the steel grain.
You can send the knife to our office here:
ATTN: APOC Warranty / Blake
CAS Iberia, INC
650 Industrial Blvd
Sale Creek, TN 37373
Thank you,
CAS Customer Service
So I did send it to them. They replied with this:
Went through some testing with your Yataghan and some others here. At present it looks like an isolated heat treat issue on that blade. I took another Yataghan and bent it (with the help of a 3' bar) to the point it took a set at a near 45 degree angle. That is my preferred failure result on this line. The same test on the tip section of your yataghan produced another similar break leading me to think a crack or other steel flaw in that location alone is unlikely to be the problem.
Testing hardness at the tang yours was around 55 HRC averaged over 3 points (one even registered at 57) while the sample I bent measured at 45 HRC on average. The tang is typically softer than the edge so I would say the blade is definitely overly hard. In addition the grain on your example is not ideal.
I could not break the other sword I tested so I cannot compare the grain at this time. I'll take this info back to the forge for their feedback as well.
I am going to send you a replacement - USPS Tracking #
Thank you and let me know if you have any issues with the replacement,
Blake
So I ended up with a fresh new sword, out the cost of shipping them the broken pieces. I considered this a fair trade because in truth, their warranty only extends to the original purchaser of the sword and they could have told me to pound sand. Wouldn't have been wise, but they could have. Instead, Blake was quick to identify the flaw in the sword and used it as feedback to improve production. And I got a new sword, which held up just fine to my barrage of intensive field tests.
I'm not going to go over all the rest of my conclusions about the blade's handling and performance - please watch the video for that. I'll be happy to answer any questions though.
In summary:
Pros
-Good customer service response from CAS Iberia
-Handles exceptionally well
-Good cutting performance for its size
-Good thrusting performance
-Second example proved extremely durable
-Unobtrusive and easy to pack around compared to other tactical swords
-Scales are comfortable, durable, and removable
-Blade is a true full tang
-Scabbard is easy to lash to things, lightweight, water resistant and has decent friction fit
-Good factory edge for a secondary bevel
Cons
-First example was defectively hard and snapped in half
-Kydex scabbard chape doesn't lock onto grip scales the way it supposedly should
The Bottom Line
You owe it to yourself to pick one of these up if you want a long blade in your bug out bag. Best if paired with a larger weapon like a spear, or if carried as an accessory to firearms.
I'm definitely going to try other APOC blades. The big gladius should be a riot.