O.K. so I do makes blades occasionally- a rapier

[Kevin R. Cashen]

First, that is a most phenomenal piece or work. Spectacular detail and extreme craftsmanship. I truly admire the effort you put into it. Second, and this is not to belittle the work, but how about some action shots of the build? As you point out, this is an educational/informational forum. Just seeing the finished product of such a magnificent piece isn't enough. Even a jpg of the separate pieces prior to assembly would be wonderful!

Give me just a bit here, I do have a couple of shots, not much but a couple.

 

[Kevin R. Cashen]

kevin....fantastic piece....a couple of questions if u don't mind.....the part of the tang i guess u could call it....why does it extend past the hilt/guard area.....it seems like it's wasted space....is tehre a reason for it being constructed like that?.....sorry for my terminology-don't know what exactly that area is called......also-did u take the engraving and cut-out areas from designs u saw on original examples?....or did u use artistic liscense and just come up with a design......last question if u don't mind.....what time period and location would a sword like this be from?.....ryan

Function, it is all function. Nothing on original swords was just for looks without functional considerations. Without a common terminology it is hard for me to be confident I am addressing exactly what you mean, but I believe you are referring to the ricasso area. The blades of this period were the first to heavily introduce that feature to European edged weapons. This was a pure thrusting weapon so point control was the highest priority, the weapon was held with the finger and/or thumb in front of the guard with the ricasso being an extension of the grip. The edge running into this space would not only be pointless, it would be a hindrance.

The engraving pattern came from a Spanish hilt from the very early 18th century. That was a cup hilt but I took the pattern off from the quillons, knuckle bow and arms (formerly known as pas dans).

The Walloon and Pappenhiemer styles were popular from the early to mid 17th century.

 

[ryan9977]

thanks kevin....i appreciate the answers.....wish i could have seen it in person to really appreciate it.....ryan

 

[Kevin R. Cashen]

" It's feel and handling" Recently I was trying to explain swords when the subject of 'sweet spot' on tennis rackets came up. The swords may have more than one sweet spot , or more properly 'center of percussion' . Where is the center of percussion on this rapier and how many ?

Primary COP is generally around 2/3 of the blade from the guard on many cutting swords, but mass distribution heavily effects that and that is why when recreating swords it is very important to have inch by inch cross sectional measurements. The overall weight and length cannot tell you where the mass is distributed. Even having the balance point will not give you the dynamics of mass distribution to either side of that point. This why folks like Peter Johnson and myself bury ourselves in endless numbers concerning dimensions, weight and handling and can spend hours just excitedly chatting over the minutia.

COP is not at all the same nor as critical on rapiers as they are a thrust weapon with a single displace and strike motion attack as opposed to the parry-riposte of fencing and small swords. This makes a sweet spot for a lateral blow inconsequential when compared to rigidity and point control.

The cross sections of these blades are extremely complex and would actually be easier to shape by hand than on a grinder, it would just take a little longer. Most modern replicas simply have a flat taper that maintains the same plain from start to finish, the real thing has a continually changing edge angle with differing rates of taper for special mass distribution and rigidity to drive that tip through any flesh and bone target (eye sockets through the back of the skull is a common target shown in the old manuals of the period)

 

[J.Marsillo]

Wow!!! That is what I call a big payoff to alot of hard work!!! Weel done :thumbup:

 

[Kevin R. Cashen]

... so THIS is what you've been fussing over! I'd say it was worth your customer's patience, my friend! Exceptional, and likely too much of it is lost to my untrained eye. Will a cigar bribe at Ashokan buy me a bit of ear-bending regarding the geometry of such a piece?

Depends on the cigar, a Macanudo may get you the brief run down on grinding and what Jamaican stogies women like best, but a good Monte or A. Fuente may get you a full discussion on the cross sections, and the rich flavors of a good Dominican.

 

[David Wesner]

Great looking piece Kevin :thumbup: :thumbup:

The details are exquisite !

 

[Kevin R. Cashen]

First, that is a most phenomenal piece or work. Spectacular detail and extreme craftsmanship. I truly admire the effort you put into it. Second, and this is not to belittle the work, but how about some action shots of the build? As you point out, this is an educational/informational forum. Just seeing the finished product of such a magnificent piece isn't enough. Even a jpg of the separate pieces prior to assembly would be wonderful!

Here is the best I got. The idea is to keep things in one piece as much as possible and split the components off, that is how they did it and it works best. The cage work is worked down to sheet which is then domed and hammered to shape hot before moving on to cold work for plannish hammering and polishing on dapping blocks. Piercing the pattern is another story and is a bit more involved than just drilling holes, think about drilling 1/8" holes in sheet that overlap each other and you will realized that you can't quite do it that way. You start our with smaller holes to get you through the material and when file and cut the quadrifoils to size and shape. Also remember that piercings also were not merely decoration on these weapons- you did not want your opponents tip glancing and sliding off you hilt and sliding up your arm, you wanted to catch, snag and tangle his tip as much as you could.

Those old blades were beautiful because form always followed function. Their elegance and grace came from the practical functionality every special touch had, we have lost that today and our lunky and awkward looking creations often result from going for a different look first with practical function being an afterthought.

 

[mete]

COP . Kevin thanks for that explaination. As an old epee fencer we always were very particular in choosing a stiff blade as point control was a big part of things. We didn't want a whippy blade to interfere !

 

[avigdor]

kevin
i realy hate the background of the picture you can realy do better

now seriously it is rare to see work that looks like the finger of good touched them
i think it can stand next to the works of michelangello and leonardo gust perfect

makes me inspired and love this hoby more

avi :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

 

[phes]

finest sword i've ever seen

 

[Fletch Helical]

Depends on the cigar, a Macanudo may get you the brief run down on grinding and what Jamaican stogies women like best, but a good Monte or A. Fuente may get you a full discussion on the cross sections, and the rich flavors of a good Dominican.

Hay wait, I have a couple A. Fuente's in my humidor at the moment. Matter of fact I had one about 2 weeks ago . When is Ashokan again?