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Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2009 4:20:27 GMT
Hi, I am a new user, and I am new to sword buying. I like the look and history of the civil war period swords. Maybe an 1860 Light Cavalry saber, Yankee- Union Foot Officers sword, and the Confederate Cavalry Officer's saber. I have done some research and they appear well made, does anyone have any personal experience with them? I have read the review by G. Scott Hoagland. These swords can found at Arms of Valor, if anyone has any other recommended civil war sabers or places to buy that would be great. I have one other question. What is the difference between British Military Spec Steel and Hight Tempered Carbon Steel. If anyone has the answers to any of these questions that would be great!
gabeclark
P.S. Should have a solid brass hand guard or a steel hand guard and is a hand made sword better than a factory made sword? Also, Arms of Valor does not always state what the blade is made of what should I assume? Thanks!
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Post by hotspur on Jan 7, 2009 9:56:46 GMT
Hi Gabe, Welcome to the boards. If you are approaching the subject from a complete start, I would spend some time thinking about what your end purposes will be. If you are looking for aesthetic and less anachronistic reproductions, little details are going to make a huge difference in choice. For me, i wanted a modern made sword of suitable size that I could wing about and cut stuff. The end result was a somewhat accurate saber but the little details fall short of the historic sword. I'm sharing some photos here of my foot saber and an original as an example. My one reproduction example (as shown) has been a lot of fun. It did need to be sharpened and I have used it for both bottles and tatami mats. Also as shown, the reproduction falls a little short of being an exacting copy of these. What is often the case with the American Civil War reproductions is accurate proportions of blade thickness and the castings of swords such as the officer examples. The best bet for the American Civil War right now is to approach the offerings that deal with the Windlass offerings through another vendor or straight from Atlanta Cutlery www.atlantacutlery.com/If a broader selection and sharpening are not as much an issue to you, then an outfit named Legendary Arms is probably what you might want to consider. The disadvantage is going to be if you feel you want a sharp and such vendors do not offer the service. While my sword came from Blockade Runner, the same line up shows up at many ACW vendors/sutlers. Note that some will offer a range of the same sword and that the $129 dollar sword is usually a better buy than the $79 dollar sword. www.legendaryarms.comSpend some time in the Post Rennaisance and Military subforum here and there are a good many threads regarding the relative offerings, merit and supply outlets. A forumite listed as Stromlo is distributing from www.weaponedge.com and may be worth your while in research and possibility. /index.cgi?board=military A very real thing to consider is the structure of pricing and one will notice tiers of price. While some of the less expensive swords may feel they are worthwhile, don't lose the fact that one often gets what one pays for. That is not an absolute but often quite true. My want for a using saber was strictly based on a shape and size I was after, more than the prettiest or most accurate. Mileage is going to vary incredibly when making that decision. My wants and desires lend more to reasonably priced antiques but I did want something I could have a good time with that would not see the stresses of using period swords. On that note, if someone is looking for usuable period swords, there is quite a range of period swords from the 20th century one might consider. Just something to watch and learn about. as mentioned, browse a whole bunch before making the plunge or just jump if one seems froggy. Sometimes it can be good to get the first one out of the system before reconsidering what exactly the purpose and hobby is going to lead one to. I know that for me, I spent a long, long time looking at reproductions before going through a decade of collecting them and all the while selecting antiques I could (and should have) afford. Let me end with this question. What are you going to do with it? That will help narrow your focus and other's help. Cheers Hotspur; my one drill and cutting sword was probably the only reproduction of them I will ever buy again for that specific prurpose
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Post by Deleted on Jan 8, 2009 3:03:12 GMT
Thanks a lot, that was very helpful. I am looking for a sword that I could do some action with, a durable sword. If the sword is a little inacurate historicaly that is alright with me. So in essence I have the same wants as you do in a sword.
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