Kriss Blades - Good, Bad, or Ugly?

[medusaoblongata]

What do you think about kriss blades.

I really like the way they look on swords, daggers, and stilettos. I've heard they make nasty wounds upon thrusting.

How do they compare in sword to sword fighting? Are they preferable to straight blades? etc..

Whatever, all thoughts are welcome.


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Jason aka medusaoblongata
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"I have often laughed at the weaklings who call themselves kind because they have no claws"

- Zarathustra

 

[Smoke]

Jason, you've got about 3 different types of blades from at least 3 areas.

The flame pattern from Europe, the kris from Indonesia, and the kris from the Philippines.

The Filipino Kris come in 3 types but all have a slight forward cant. Anyhow, all waves, half wavy, and straight. These swords can chop and thrust and the waves should be odd according to the Muslim tradition and are about 26"-28".

The Indonesian Kris is mostly a dagger with the same forward cant and influenced the Filipino model. Both types have damascus blades but Indonesian krises sometimes are treated with venom or poison as well as lime. They don't cut real well and there are kris spearheads.

The flame pattern, I'll leave to the experts.

Fighting wise, a sword is always up to the person.
I prefer a Muslim straight kris because it's light for me, more waves=more weight. The pommel can be anything from round or the shape of a cockatua. The more ornate pommels are for Datus(chiefs). There is a rather large backstrap which I don't like too much but it's very multipurpose, one thing is protect the user from cutting himself. I've also seen footage of the both types of Asian kris being used.

Personally, I don't think the waves themselves give a huge advantage.

[This message has been edited by Smoke (edited 08-11-2000).]

 

[Stiletto Raggio]

I think they are pretty much pointless. The design would seem to make proper differential treating difficult, and would make a fracture more emminent. Not to mention difficulty in production.

I would go with a "straight", which would of course curve towards the end. Most Kris blades I have seem would be pretty poor at piercing. Besides, that is waht Rapiers and Broadswoards are for.

 

[Robert Marotz]

Every known design was created with an objective in mind. Whether it was partly ceremonial or not is irrelevant, the concept would not survive if it wasn't able to be used under the circumstances it was used in.

I cannot claim any superiority of a particular weapon form over another...everything came to be for a reason, and those weapons that were used effectively were adopted. Those that did not have capability of effective utilization would die off.

Martial arts are what surrounds the purpose and capability of every style of sword. It dictates the effectiveness of a weapon in its environment.

Some were more decorative, and historically we know which styles were retained for ceremonial or other purposes. But often we will notice that every style of traditional sword is in general symbiosis with the martial arts it stemmed from.

So it all depends how you're going to use it.

Shinryû.