Tactical Short Swords?

Personally I don't care if modern short swords have any "tactical" use (I only heard some stories about "crowd control" role of swords in modern military), I'm going to get Hisshou, and maybe some Filipino sword, and will have some bladesmith make me a 13 inch bowie.
It will be just for fun, and to compare different ideas about short(10-20 inches) edged weapons from different cultures
 
Swords,knives. It's all good. It is fun to have some of every type of edged tool.
Here is one of two I made for my brother and I, back in the 90's.
28"oal, 5160 steel, professionally heat treated to 57 RC, then Chromium Carbide coated for corrosion restiance. Tia guard and buttcap.
Good speed and balance.
We don't need them, but they are fun bottle/pumpkin slicers.;)
 
dirtpig67 said:
Swords actually have been used in recent combat ops by the US military..... well sort of.

Back in the fall of '03, I was about midway through my wonderful 358 days of fun in the sun OIF1. I was a M1A1 tank commander and had recently "found" this huge arabian looking sword and had it stashed right next to the TC hatch on top of the tank.

Anyways, my tank platoon had quick reaction force duty one day and we got called out for a traffic accident outside the wire involving a civilian car and a Bradley right next to an outdoor market area. Normally you would just get the heck out of the area when involved in an accident as it had been a tactic used to get us to stop so we could be attacked. The Bradley had messed up the track so they could not leave so they called for backup. By the time we got there, a crowd of civilians (crowds=bad) had gathered nearby and would not disperse or leave no matter how hard we tried to chase them off or how loud we yelled "get the **** out of here!" in english (I'm sure they got the message though). So I improvise and jump off the tank with that huge arabian sword, waving it around and generally looking very pissed-off. Before my feet hit the ground, that crowd was gone. I have never seen people run so fast!!! That sword stayed on the tank for the rest of the tour and handed off to the unit that replaced us.

So, yes swords are still being used in modern armies and have been proven to be very effective in modern conflicts:D
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That was a great story. I guess people really are more afraid of edged weapons! Hmm, M1A1 or old arab sword. I think i know what i would be more afraid of!
 
I a guy in my unit carried around a tomahawk whenever we deployed, but we were not going outside the wire and actually humping around. He just liked to be prepared "just in case."
 
idaho said:
Personally I don't care if modern short swords have any "tactical" use (I only heard some stories about "crowd control" role of swords in modern military), I'm going to get Hisshou, and maybe some Filipino sword, and will have some bladesmith make me a 13 inch bowie.
It will be just for fun, and to compare different ideas about short(10-20 inches) edged weapons from different cultures
Click to expand...

You should check out our Himalayan Imports forum, especially the Deals of the Day, where Yangdu often offers large sword and bowie models. And these aren't just wallhangers, they are functional tools and weapons.
 
There would be a tactical use for such a blade, I know Tunnel Rats liked to have a blade long enough to probe ahead of them to find traps but preferred a handgun for actual contact in the tunnels. Was not uncommon to strap an flash to the LBE and have a handgun in one hand and a machete in the other. The NVA were experts at booby trapping the tunnels and a long blade could ferret out many of these traps.

But to use one in a stand up fight? No thanks. If it came down to that I think I would rather fasten my bayonet to a long stick and make a spear...at least that would provide some distance from an attacker. When you are out of bullets it is time to un-ass the AO and E&E.

Having said all that...go for it! I own a very nice katana custom made for me, will I ever use it in combat? I seriously hope not but it is fun to own and fun to practice with. Want and need are two completely different things at times, nothing wrong with buying something you simply want.
 
Esav Benyamin said:
You should check out our Himalayan Imports forum, especially the Deals of the Day, where Yangdu often offers large sword and bowie models. And these aren't just wallhangers, they are functional tools and weapons.
Click to expand...

+1

I have several and I am quite happy with them. Good quality, excellent customer service.

To date, only the brush and downed limbs in my south 40 have suffered their wrath, though. ;)
 
idaho said:
Personally I don't care if modern short swords have any "tactical" use (I only heard some stories about "crowd control" role of swords in modern military), I'm going to get Hisshou, and maybe some Filipino sword, and will have some bladesmith make me a 13 inch bowie.
It will be just for fun, and to compare different ideas about short(10-20 inches) edged weapons from different cultures
Click to expand...

You should talk to John Gonzalez of Dervish Knives ( http://www.dervishknives.com/swords.htm ) and see if he can hook you up with something. I have a couple from him (the Yataghan and Black Sea Yataghan shown at that link) and think highly of him and his work.

I also had him take a MMHW Bowie and re-handle it for me. The blade is 12" and the sharpened clip is 7":

Before:

starlightbowie-1.jpg


After:

pigsticker0.jpg


Swords:

yataghan2.jpg


With the Bowie for scale:

yataghan4.jpg


Rick
 
Originally Posted by dirtpig67
Swords actually have been used in recent combat ops by the US military..... well sort of.

Back in the fall of '03, I was about midway through my wonderful 358 days of fun in the sun OIF1. I was a M1A1 tank commander and had recently "found" this huge arabian looking sword and had it stashed right next to the TC hatch on top of the tank.

Anyways, my tank platoon had quick reaction force duty one day and we got called out for a traffic accident outside the wire involving a civilian car and a Bradley right next to an outdoor market area. Normally you would just get the heck out of the area when involved in an accident as it had been a tactic used to get us to stop so we could be attacked. The Bradley had messed up the track so they could not leave so they called for backup. By the time we got there, a crowd of civilians (crowds=bad) had gathered nearby and would not disperse or leave no matter how hard we tried to chase them off or how loud we yelled "get the **** out of here!" in english (I'm sure they got the message though). So I improvise and jump off the tank with that huge arabian sword, waving it around and generally looking very pissed-off. Before my feet hit the ground, that crowd was gone. I have never seen people run so fast!!! That sword stayed on the tank for the rest of the tour and handed off to the unit that replaced us.

So, yes swords are still being used in modern armies and have been proven to be very effective in modern conflicts
Click to expand...

gamma_nyc said:
That was a great story. I guess people really are more afraid of edged weapons! Hmm, M1A1 or old arab sword. I think i know what i would be more afraid of!
Click to expand...

I also thought that the sorry was quite amusing.The Arabian sword may of brought back some unnerving memories of beheadings:D:D:D

Looks like someone has been to one too many beheadings.
 
Several of the tribes in Afghanistan and families in Iraq all have great respect for large knives and swords. I worked with a few MTT's and a couple of the guys carried some pretty good sized local knives/swords. Most commands would frown and discourage troopers from carry large knives, but I ran into one guy that had a tomahawk and another that had a Khukurie. The biggest blade I carried only was a 5" bladed knife (I took a few to "play" with). With all the gear, it's just not feasible to carry anything larger unless it's in your ruck.

When out playing in the back yard, I really like my Szabo Bush Sword (one at the bottom):

Choppers-1.jpg


But in reality, the largest blade I've used was 12" machete when I spent several months in Ecuador/Peru. It's probably one of the best tools, and most people won't flip out if you have it tucked into your ruck when out in the field.

Most Soldiers just don't have the luxury to carry a large chunk of sharpened steel along with everything else, especially if it's just designed as a weapon with little "tool" function.

ROCK6D
 
JFO said:
I love tactical short swords and want one very bad for no good reason
I'm not a soldier or practicing martial artist, just a poser
Have any veterans out there ever used one or wished thay had one with them on a mission?
Am I wrong to think that these badass blades are made for guys like me or do pros use them?
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Short swords would be great for guys like you if you didn't swing them around like you knew what you were doing. Either buy it for display or go get some training in that sort of thing.
 
Moloko Plus said:
Short swords would be great for guys like you if you didn't swing them around like you knew what you were doing. Either buy it for display or go get some training in that sort of thing.
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Yes, I would strongly recommend getting proper training before swinging around a sword. I've heard of one soldier from one of the other branches of our military who borrowed a ginunting from one of the Marines, tried to show off to his buddies, got little carried away with his "demo", and nearly cutting off his own arm with the weapon.

It's not like swinging around a toy lightsaber. You need to always be aware of the edge all the time and learn to control the weapon throughout its arc. It's easy to get complacent and make a mistake.
 
Esav Benyamin said:
You should check out our Himalayan Imports forum, especially the Deals of the Day, where Yangdu often offers large sword and bowie models. And these aren't just wallhangers, they are functional tools and weapons.
Click to expand...

I can certainly understand you wanting to pimp HI's traditionally made bladely goodies, Esav, but I don't know if they'll fit the OP's definition of "tactical"... which since the 90's seems to mean synthetic handles and black-coated tanto blades. :confused:

Cause otherwise I'd totally be plugging the Uddha sword :D:

UddhaSwordByBuraInHand20070916_sm.jpg
 
I have a Junglee Short Sword which I love. Granted, I use it like a machete, but if you want it, get it.
 
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