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Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2009 1:04:57 GMT
So last year I bought myself a sword, or something that tried to be one. It's a smallish claymore with a stainless steel blade, and swinging it feels more than a little precarious. Then this year I bought a friend a nice Musashi katana for Christmas, and decided I want a decent sword for myself. I don't want to spend a whole lot, and this one really caught my eye. www.strongblade.com/prod/sba-ospreyviking.htmlStrongblade has a good reputation, but I haven't seen any feedback on this specific model. Has anyone seen it in person, or do I need to take my turn as a guinea pig.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2009 2:47:17 GMT
Vellcomin to the board! The thing I heard about strongblade, is make sure they temper the blade, and low and behold, on the site you have the option, of course the non tempered one is out of stock! So the choice is easy, some one did a revue of a sword from them here some where...SanMarc.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2009 7:45:25 GMT
That pommell and guard are also not "viking" but more early medieval.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2009 13:21:16 GMT
Unsuprisingly the blade isn't typical of Viking swords either. If historical accuracy means anything to you, avoid this one. For a few dollars more, there are multiple offerings of Vikings from Windlass that are modelled on the real thing. If historical accuracy isn't important, this looks like an OK sword, though for that price I wouldn't expect much.
On Strongblade: I can't speak to their quality, but what I see when I visit their site is a lot of knockoffs of other company's swords, with completely inaccurate product information. Not all that long ago, there was a blurb on that site suggesting that all swords made in the medieval period were cast. I don't know who's behind strongblade but I suspect that their knowledge of the product they offer is minimal at best and they are just interested in undercutting the established makers, eg; Hanwei, Cold Steel etc. They only started offering tempered swords in the last year or so iirc, before that they were really just a wallhanger company. (still are imo but my opinion is best taken with a grain of salt)
A lot of new users here on SBG come in asking about the cheapest brands, hoping to hear something great about them. The old saying, "you get what you pay for" rings true in the sword world too. I'm not telling you to go buy a $400 sword, just saying if you get the cheapest sword you can find, you'll have the cheapest sword you can find. That said, if you do get this sword, please let us know about it. ;D
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Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2009 14:56:48 GMT
I know from nothing about Strongblade, but a look at their site seems to back up pretty much what Maz has said. It looks like you will get what you pay for there. They appear to have some good stuff and some less good stuff - but the prices more or less line up accordingly.
However, if I were looking for a "decent" sword, as you say, I would not be looking at one that has no listed stats whatsoever. How big is that thing? What is it made of, is it tempered? How is it assembled, Where is it's point of balance.... and so on? Heck... who makes it?
Plenty of people here will be happy to offer up some alternate choices, if you like. But - How much are you willing to spend? And what was it about this one in particular that you like? Did you want a 1-hander, 2-hander or something inbetween? What are you planning to do with it? Hang it, swing it, get it sharp and cut stuff?
Historical accuracy? Even with my lack of expertise, I would be willing to say this is pretty far off the mark for a "viking" sword. At least what usually gets called a viking sword. Heh - I think I may have just heard Cold Napalm's head explode somewhere.
Buff
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SlayerofDarkness
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Post by SlayerofDarkness on Jan 7, 2009 16:36:45 GMT
YRX- If you want to know more about this sword, just email them at: info@strongblade.com
Their Customer Service is quick to respond and very helpful, not to mention that the head of the company has an account here at SBG.I, personally, own none of their weapons, but I can attest to their excellent service.
I sincerely doubt that they are scammers or trying to undercut the others in any way, whatsoever. Of course, this is just my opinion, but I believe that these facts I mentioned will ring true with a bit of investigation on your part.
Maz-Do you even have any of their swords? They sell wallhangers, yes, but the line they produce themselves (discernable by the SBA-prefix in the item #) appear to be excellent quality, if I am to believe the reviews here at SBG. Please take a bit of time to research before slandering a company's reputation. I don't mean to be offensive at all, so please forgive me if it come across that way. Nonetheless, I believe my points are valid.
I hope this helps!
-Slayer
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Marc Ridgeway
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Post by Marc Ridgeway on Jan 7, 2009 16:53:33 GMT
YRX- If you want to know more about this sword, just email them at: info@strongblade.com Their Customer Service is quick to respond and very helpful, not to mention that the head of the company has an account here at SBG.I, personally, own none of their weapons, but I can attest to their excellent service. I sincerely doubt that they are scammers or trying to undercut the others in any way, whatsoever. Of course, this is just my opinion, but I believe that these facts I mentioned will ring true with a bit of investigation on your part. Maz-Do you even have any of their swords? They sell wallhangers, yes, but the line they produce themselves (discernable by the SBA-prefix in the item #) appear to be excellent quality, if I am to believe the reviews here at SBG. Please take a bit of time to research before slandering a company's reputation. I don't mean to be offensive at all, so please forgive me if it come across that way. Nonetheless, I believe my points are valid. I hope this helps! -Slayer An excellent post... doen't mean I agree with all the points... but I definitely like the way you state and defend your opinion... Kudos +1 to you sir !
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SlayerofDarkness
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Post by SlayerofDarkness on Jan 7, 2009 17:12:17 GMT
Thanks, Marc...remember, it's all thanks to you! ;D
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Post by code on Jan 7, 2009 18:20:19 GMT
Strongblades customer service is (as mentioned here many times) second to none. I only own one of their swords, the strongblade, which iirc is the cheapest medieval sword in my collection. Still its one of my favorites and sees quite a lot of use. As well as a little unintentional abuse Their scabbards are pretty nice too, you don't see wood and leather scabbards in that price range often. I *really* wish they offered a sharpening service though...
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SlayerofDarkness
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Post by SlayerofDarkness on Jan 7, 2009 18:33:24 GMT
Yeah, if they had that, it would make them just about perfect. Taking into consideration the pricepoint, of course .
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Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2009 23:07:38 GMT
I went ahead and emailed them. I probably won't be buying anything for a while, but no harm in asking. ;D
In general, does the angle of the edge make much of a difference to cutting ability? This one has mostly parallel edges, while I've seen others with more of an angle. Or is this just compensated with how you handle the sword?
As for the historical placement, I'm not too concerned with how accurately you could label a particular sword. For my own use, I just want something that handles well and looks good, and I'd like to think my Viking ancestors wouldn't be too offended by that mindset, haha.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 8, 2009 1:04:02 GMT
I sincerely doubt that they are scammers or trying to undercut the others in any way, whatsoever. Maz-Do you even have any of their swords? They sell wallhangers, yes, but the line they produce themselves (discernable by the SBA-prefix in the item #) appear to be excellent quality, if I am to believe the reviews here at SBG. Please take a bit of time to research before slandering a company's reputation. -Slayer To address your first point, I didn't say they were scammers. When I said "trying to undercut the established companies", I meant that they are known to have less well made(heavier, lacking details) and cheaper versions of swords carried by some of the other companies. Examples: www.strongblade.com/prod/sba-ringhiltbastard.htmlwww.strongblade.com/prod/sba-irishtwohander.htmlwww.strongblade.com/prod/sba-twistedclaymore.htmlGranted I didn't research their site heavily before posting, but I've been there before. /index.cgi?board=swordreviews&action=display&thread=7317^^ I dare you to use the word quality -lol Dan's review was actually pretty favorable, The warspike looks decent for what it is.. /index.cgi?board=swordreviews&action=display&thread=2157also, this: Facts in hand, I hardly think I was out of line. Anyway, people ask these questions because they want opinions, there's mine ;D
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Post by Deleted on Jan 8, 2009 3:22:26 GMT
Hehe, Maz...kinda sad what a 100 bucks gets you in a katana compared to euro swords ain't it? Yeah the pictures of strong blade stuff isn't what I call pretty. As for their CS...didn't whoever buy the stardust sword have some rather sever issues with CS? Having good CS when selling an item is meaningless...it's what they do when SHtF that it matters most. As for their stuff...well their LARP stuff is top notch. Only thing I have experience from them with .
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SlayerofDarkness
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Post by SlayerofDarkness on Jan 8, 2009 18:31:45 GMT
The guy with the Stardust DID have some issues with CS, but they were fixed eventually and he got a sincere apology from the owner. I would guess that out of all the people who have bought from then at least 85% are happy.
I mean, you're more likely to post about a negative experiance than a positive one, right?
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Post by code on Jan 9, 2009 17:30:55 GMT
I mean, you're more likely to post about a negative experiance than a positive one, right? After working in retail for quite a few years I know all too well how true this is I guess it's just human nature to complain
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Post by Deleted on Jan 9, 2009 17:31:37 GMT
Still waiting for a reply with the specs. Bla.
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SlayerofDarkness
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Post by SlayerofDarkness on Jan 9, 2009 19:36:41 GMT
Try their other email; I've had problems with that one too. Sorry I gave you the wrong one...My bad ;D!
Here's the other:
service@strongblade.com
I've always gotten quick response from here.
Hope this helps, Slayer
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Post by Deleted on Jan 11, 2009 18:59:02 GMT
Greetings,
Thank you for your interest in Strongblade.
Overall Length: 39 inches
Blade Length: 32 inches
Widest Blade Width: 2 inches
Hilt Width: 10 inches
Weight: 3.5 lbs
Regards,
Strongblade Customer Service
Just got this from them. Sound decent?
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SlayerofDarkness
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Post by SlayerofDarkness on Jan 11, 2009 19:46:44 GMT
Sounds a little heavy, but what viking swords aren't? I'd say it sounds and looks good, but then again, I don't have much experience. I guess it's up to you; if you deside to get it and it's junk, then- A. send it back (they have great CS from what I've heard) or B. you're out $130 bucks. I would say that the odds are in your favor, but that's just my opinion. If you get it, make sure to submit a review! -Slayer
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Avery
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Post by Avery on Jan 11, 2009 22:55:21 GMT
I have their crusader, and have handled a couple of others. My experience with them was positive. I will say that there blades have no distal taper which makes them just a little bit heavier than others. The blade took about 2 hours to sharpen and holds a decent edge. I did a review of it if you are interested. /index.cgi?board=swordreviews&action=display&thread=6971
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