OT: Anybody know a swordmaker?

Lion's Roar

Lion's Roar

Joined
Apr 11, 2004
Messages
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I would like to get a sword made- and I don't want to bother Uncle Bill right now, for obvious reasons. Does anyone know a swordmaker? I'd like to get a functional Burmese Dha made, around 36". Doesn't need to be as nice as the Japanese swords, but enough to handle a workout. Any ideas?

Thanks,

David
 
What about looking for a Burmese dha?

Having one made is expensive,
probably find a decent one for less.

Unless maybe you've looked already.
 
Al Massey is a great guy to deal with. I am hoping to have a Damascus schiavona made by him someday.
 
Mass produced blades you should try CAS-Iberia, Hanwei, or Paul Chen. They may not be what you're looking for.
Custom makers that come to mind are: Kevin Cashen who dabbles in almost anything the customer wants, Michael Bell at Dragonfly forge(Almost exclusivley Japanese patterns though), and some canadian I spoke with a few years ago named Randall Graham(Try DragonFist Forge) who was pretty flexible with what he'd take on as a project. Jim Hrisoulas(Salamander Armory) has been a fixture at SCA for years and is well regarded and his prices seem really reasonable but tends to feature SCA type patterns. Also some guy named Kirby Wise that specializes in SCA patterns as well. I've heard Wise can be difficult to deal with at times though.
You could probably buy an antique for a lot less than most custom makers would charge you and you wouldn't have to wait the year and a half to get on their list.
 
Doesn't Valiant Arms also make such a sword?

Edit:
It's not Valiant arms I'm thinking of. What's the name of that place that makes all sorts of swords, indonesiain knives, khukris and all sorts of weapons and tools in both high carrbon and damascus? I thought I had their website but I don't evidently.:(
 
www.valiantco.com
'World 1' button
DAMASCUS BURMESE DHA
i-DhaDam.JPG

Cat.#AW-09D
Blade: 23 1/2" - 1/4" hand-forged-to-shape Damascus Steel, grooved, tapered, sharpened & hardened.
Handle: Buffalo horn, brass pin and fittings.
Sheath: Ironwood, brass fittings.
Length: 35".
Weight: 700gr; OA = 1.30kg.
Price: SOLD OUT!

not available anyway
Valiant has a lot of nice blades
but some seem to lean away from traditional shape
 
I would buy an old Dha if i were you. Back then, they were made for people whose lives depended on them. These days, they are not. I do not think an old one would cost much more than a new one.

alf
 
Thanks all. What a bunch of good options! Most of the feedback from MA's on the net has been positive about Paul Chen's Banshee. Although I haven't heard of the company before. Valiant is beautiful, but sold out...argh.
I haven't been able to find an old one the size that I like, for a reasonable price... found one for $750, but that would rule out feeding the kids for a while. lol. I'll have enough explaining to do to my wife with getting another blade...

I appreciate the suggestions, leaning heavily towards Paul Chen for the moment. I'll let you know what happens.
 
This site might be one to watch:
http://www.azibaza.com/us.php?vue=fu#

ditto:
www.therionarms.com
new & old, site takes some work to navigate,
page links can be hard to figure out.
www.therionarms.com/antiques/index.shtml


old article on dha/dah
http://www.therionarms.com/articles/index.shtml
"Six large jpg images of Carter Rila's "The Dah", published in Blade Magazine, Nov/Dec 1988. Made available here at the request of the author."

also link to :
" jpg image transcription of the Apocrypha from P.S. Rawson's "The Indian Sword" - to whit, a section describing 160 Indian swords in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum, said documentation discovered by Ian Greaves in a manuscript edition predating the book's publication.
More details can be found in this discussion thread "Original Rawson manuscript on Indian swords", posted on the Ethnographic Edged Weapons Discussion Forum.
Attempts to contact Mr. Rawson or his estate has proven futile so far. Mr. P - if you're out there, stop by the Forum Board - we're not worthy, but we'd love to talk with you."
 
There are 3 for sale on Ebay right now. Don't know how good they are, as I have no experience with them...yet. I have one on the way that I bought from a gentleman on Swordforums. You could also post on the Ethnographic Edged Weapons forums at
http://www.vikingsword.com
They have a swap forum, and several of the members collect dha. Swordforums is at
http://forums.swordforum.com

Good luck, and if you get the Banshee, let us know how you like it.

Steve Ferguson
 
LionsRoar,

You can also try John Lundermo at www.odinblades.com. I remember sometime ago, he made a Dha for one of the collectors on Swordforum.com. If you go to his Swords IV Page, you can also see a picture of the Dha in question.

Arvind
 
Here's a small but very nice gallery of dhas:

http://members.cox.net/thedhapage/SwordsFrame1Source1.htm
"Welcome to the Dha Research Index. This is a free-access resource for those interested in the study and appreciation of the dha (also called dah, daab, darb or dai dao), a sword common through-out mainland South-East Asia, but often called "the national sword of Burma."
 
Don't forget to try fellow forumite Bill Marsh who took over Shah Jahan's.
 
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