[walking arsenal]

I'm looking into getting a serious sword, thinking crecy or war sword, albion seems to make good ones but they dont say anything about if you can use them, if they come with scabbards or if they come sharpened. Cold steel looks good but im kinda looking for authenticity. any opinions on the two?

W.A.

[Kjay]

Albion is one of the best producers of real very usable swords - no wallhangers in the bunch. Yes, they are sharp and yes you can get a first rate scabbard. The Albions are head and shoulders above Cold Steel in materials, construction, fit, finish, and authenticity. Buy one (or more) you'll not regret. I happen to like their Roman shorties. :D

[MrAcheson]

Albion makes wonderful swords. They are sharp with good historical weight and balance. I believe the scabbards/sheaths are extra. I also believe the albion swords have pommel nuts which is not as historically accurate as peening, but is better for a sword that will see use.

Cold steel makes good swords too, but they are heavier and a little clunkier and are peened. Cold steel swords are still excellent cutters and probably have a better edge than anyone elses.

Another alternative to albion is atrim swords which can be found at allsaintsblades.com

[Kjay]

Atrim swords are also great performance swords - they use pommel nuts to secure handle. Soemwhat less historiclly accurate than Albions. Albion's tangs are peened over the pommel. ;)

[MrAcheson]

The pommel nut wasn't uncommon in the later periods of sword use (renaissance). Plus it means you can tighten up the hilt and do maintenance on the sword easily. This is really important if you intend to use the sword for more than a wall hanger.

[Drjones]

I've got this: http://www.albionarmorers.com/swords/deltin/dt5154.htm

and it is AWESOME. They are most definitely functional, usable blades and you can tell when you handle one.

Excellent, friendly customer service too!

[Lone Star]

My son showed me his Albion Roman spatha, their longer (than gladius) cavalry sword. Very well made.

You might also look at 19th Century foot artillery swords, which closely resemble Roman designs, and were good, solid Government issue in many countries.

Lone Star

[gun-fucious]

some of the Deepeeka products are a good value
http://www.deepeeka.com/swords/swords/index.htm
nice work:
http://www.thelonelymountainforge.com/middle_earth.htm

[Drjones]

Gun-Fucious:

If I'm not mistaken, the Deepeeka products are, frankly, cheap POS's made in India or Pakistan.

No offense, but they are far from a quality sword.

[gun-fucious]

some of the Deepeekas are certified for roman reinacting
http://www.deepeeka.com/swords/dan.htm

[Drjones]

Well, that doesn't mean much. If anything, it proves my point. From my understanding, blades meant for contact, reenactment, theatre, etc. are basically thick slabs of whatever metal shaped to look like a sword.

Real swords aren't designed for blade-on-blade contact, and as such, are designed quite differently.

You don't use a good, "real" sword for reenactment purposes.

Might want to check with these guys: http://forums.swordforum.com/index.php?s=


:)

[gun-fucious]

Seems to me the process is pretty much established for forging a sword
the material cost is slight
the labor costs are supreme

if i buy a sword for real world action
i think the Himalayan Imports Katana is on my short list

i do have a Toledo "El Cid" that i arc welded the hilt onto the tang

but i favor my WWII BAS khukuri

[nomadboi]

Ideally a stage sword should be just as well built and tempered as a cutting sword, just with thicker edges. If anything they need to take more abuse than the real thing, since most standard stage choreography relies heavily on hard, static edge parrying.

I've used a number of del Tin swords for stage combat, and they work fine- or they can be ground down and used for cutting.

Other options- Lutel (www.lutel.cz), arms & armor (armor.com), odinblades (?)... there are others out there. I'd avoid depeeka for anything other than cheap daggers or wallhangers, though.

[gun-fucious]

watching the LTOR TT DVD
they have a section on the armories of middle earth filmaking

they used urethane rubber in the hilts to absorb the shock
and only broke 1 blade in the filming

the prop master insisted that they used traditional techniques to forge the arms & armor
no arc welds just butt lapped forged steel

pretty cool

i think deepeeka is making the United cutlery replicas of the LOTR swords

http://www.deepeeka.com/swords/swords/ringswords.htm

http://www.armsofvalour.com/miva/merchant.mv?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=AOVL&Category_Code=LR

for 200 bucks i am not expecting an american craftsmans labor investment

but Deepeeka makes a ton of swords
and thier techniques have got a fair level of craftsmanship

[Sunray]

"...a sword for real world action..." If you get into a place where you have to defend yourself with a sword you have done something terribly wrong. You need to re-think your tactics. Nay, your whole strategy is defective. There is no "real world action" that involves a sword. Quit watching those so-called medieval movies. Albion says right on their page that it's $25 extra for them to ship sharp.
"...certified for roman reinacting..." What? That doesn't mean they are real or particularly accurate as repo's. It means they don't break or chip easily. Any re-enacting puts the liablity of the group first and foremost. Safety first. Somebody gets hurt and they sue, the group is gone.
Have a look at the 'profile' page on Deepeka's site. They're like Colt Industries. They sell everything from cat food to buttons.

[Red Dragon]

the swords used in most movie combat scenes are made of aluminum alloys and they have numerous copies of the same sword for use in multiple scenes. as far as stage or field re-enactments, its not a very good idea to have sharpened weapons. most weapons used in stage combat have false edges to decrease injuries. I have done some stage sword fight coreography and we keep the weapons fairly dull and with most swords, if there is edge to edge contact, the blades will nick and in come cases chip. its almost unavoidable unless the contact is very coreographed or the steel is superhard which then tends to lessen flexability.

[mikexxxx]

Some of the swords used in movies were the real thing, I have a few from the Original movie "Private Lives Of Elizebeth And Essex" they are actual high quality fencing swords.
I also have one from the 1959 movie "Ben-Hur" with Charlton Heston.
That is a copy of a Roman Gladiator sword and it is an Aluminum prop sword.
Another way to go for a Quality sword is the Del-Tin line and a little less pricey but excellent Quality for the price is the Paul-Chen line.