Rapier info ?

To be honest, it may prove to be 19th century vs 17th century. Also, a lot of information not being shown or shared. Need more views of the hilt and grip (both sides) and better pictures of the entire blade. It was not uncommon to see older blades made up in the 19th century with new parts. I see a few mismatches. Why does this one look familiar to me from somewhere (i dunno)? Let's see the end of the pommel (for instance).

In the end, sure. Buy it and then take it to someone like Jeff Forgeng in Worcester Ma on his once a year appraisal days, or find a reputable dealer. Antiqueweaponstore and Faganarms just a couple of the "only OK" dealers in old rapiers.

I am suspicious by nature. vikingsword.com or track down E.B. Ericsson (Eljay) on myArmoury or Sword Forum International.

Cheers

GC
 
horseclover said:
Why does this one look familiar to me from somewhere (i dunno)?
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When I was still seriously looking at production blades, both from reputable dealers and the bay, that was one of the most common hilt designs I ever saw, if not the most common.
 
Yes please, more photos. If there is no peen showing, most assuredly a composite of sorts but there are other things that don't quite gel together.

Re current and past modern reproductions, they don't show as many mismatches as this one does (to me anyway). When I mention looking familiar, it is this particular piece.

Dimensions as well. Grip length, blade length etc. The hilt seems way oversize in the overall pic, especially so with a person in the foreground. Oversize worked great for wall decoration.

Cheers
GC
 
Correct me if I am wrong here but I see faux wire work. Open image in a new tab for larger. Both cast and embossed sheet grips another tip off. A lot of things that might look right at a distance become more obvious in hand or under deeper scrutiny.

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Here is a composite I bought knowingly and for the blade shard only, not for the mismatched pieces that included earlier and later objects but again, I was after the blade itself. It remains as a composite as an offhand dagger.

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Cheers

GC
 
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Looking at it on a bigger monitor and the wire seems ok, rather than a sheet job. Still hard to judge stuff until in hand.
 
horseclover said:
Looking at it on a bigger monitor and the wire seems ok, rather than a sheet job. Still hard to judge stuff until in hand.
Click to expand...

I didn't even notice until you said it, that it looked like a sheet and not real wire. I would have a hard time not buying that if the price was low. Swing it around and if it goes accurately right where you want it to go without having to fight against it's inertia, I'd say to buy it!
 
I've seen the guys on the Man At Arms youtube series show how they texture a brass sheet handle to save on weight for heavier builds. That instantly came to mind when I saw this handle.
 
The grand illusions. Perhaps one of the most common 18th century use was on the British p1796 infantry officer swords but it had begun before that. One of my spadroons from the 1780s had once had a sheath of silver or gold. The imprint still evident on the wood core and when first acquiring it wasn't sure it wasn't dirt impacted copper wire.
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Then, the composite I posted above has a cast faux wire, as do all the ACW nco and musician swords,
L8Uz1KX.jpg


Silver used a lot on mid 19th century officer swords on both ACW presentation swords and copies of earlier swords such as the US 1833 general officer's sword.
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Something you may have encountered re inertia and steering is that a neutral feel avoids over and understeer. Oversteer if the balance is too close to the grip pivot and understeer if the balance is way out. The spadroon I posted at the beginning of this post has a cog six inches down the blade and has quite neutral steering. A rapier with a cog too close to the grip pivot tends for oversteer when one is getting off the gas. The same true of a Porsche 911 with trailing throttle oversteer. At an extreme limit. front wheel drive can also spin you out but understeer under power until one lifts and then you turn into the corner. Gross oversteer exhibited by a rear drive V8. Mass in motion (imertia) can wreak havoc while steering longer blades. A tendency for understeer requiring less effort to point where you want without the forward pivot being driven by the hilt. Four to six inches out from the grip often about ideal for mass distribution but not always the case.

One buzz phrase from the nw sword makers a decade or so ago was "low polar moment". I found the oversteer and understeer analogy easier to describe/explain.

Cheers

GC no doubt I have run on about this before here at bf
 
Most certainly a composite then. A castle decoration. The blade may be period though but the shape is a bit awkward, for its length.

Turks heads follow a couple of techniques as well. They baffle me at times but I wupped up this one while noodling about.

HIIhr2k.jpg


The 19th century hilt stuff show up with great regularity and actually have collector value in and of themselves. There is a reason 16th and 17th century swords/rapiers sell in the thousands of dollar/euro range. 350 euro is less than one would pay for a Del Tin or Lutel rapier.

Cheers

GC
 
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