Who owns a sword by JPH/Salamander Armouries?

Triton · Aug 9, 2000

I have asked this question on two other forums with a surprising lack of results. Specifically I want to know if anyone owns one of JPH's production swords and what the weights on these models are like. If anyone happens to own his "mini bastard" I would be extremely interested in a picture as well. What do you think of his production work?

TOMBSTONE · Aug 10, 2000

I used to own his Valkyrie sword.I don't recall the exact weight,but all his swords are made of the highest quality.His swords are made like the originals and proportion,weight etc.You'll be satisfied with anything you purchase from him.Chow,Ralph

Loki · Aug 10, 2000

I have several of his Daggers and one short-sword/really big dagger (23" blade). His work is first rate - you should see his wire-wrapped grips. The weight and balance of the pieces seems right. If you order from him make sure you specifiy either a thick edge (for reenactment) or a thinner edge for real cutting work. I recommend him. You might want to contact him, he recently got a severe eye injury and is just now getting back to work so his wait list might be long.

Triton · Aug 10, 2000

Does anyone know how long that waiting list might be? It will be a year or so before I can afford another sword (just got that Atrim 15 century mercenary) but should I go ahead and get on the list?

christoper wardlow · Aug 12, 2000

I have not seen any of his pieces and would like to. How can get a hold of him? And what are the average prices? I am on a military salary.

Triton · Aug 13, 2000

Check out his website at www.atar.com You can also buy one of the several books that he has written online. His prices are in the 500.00 and on up range for swords, but that is about what you are going to pay for a superior production piece no matter who you buy from.

jggonzalez · May 14, 2003

I have a large Viking sword that Jim made for me. It has a 5160 blade about 30" long and 2" wide with a slight distal taper. The grip is made of white bone with bronze studs and the hilt and pommel are made of a bronze/fileworked silver/bronze sandwich. Its a massive beast and weighs about 4 to 4.5 lbs. He warned me it would be too big for me to wield when I ordered it, but I wanted a blade fit for a Viking.

My other JPH piece is a beautiful pattern-welded Viking dagger with a 12-inch "hugs and kisses" patterned blade. Both pieces are incredible and I really recommend his work. He's been out of the country for a while, so he has a big backlog to handle, but he should be taking orders in a few months. His website at www.atar.com has some beautiful examples to look at.

Triton · May 15, 2003

Whooo here's an oldie but a goodie. I've actually acquired one of his swords since I made this post through a trade. It's a little short sword with phosphor bronze fittings and is extremely nice. However I've also found that making an order with JPH seems to be a bit problematic, the man is just to much in demand. There are viable alternatives elsewhere although he does do some nice work.

jggonzalez · May 15, 2003

Originally posted by Triton
However I've also found that making an order with JPH seems to be a bit problematic, the man is just to much in demand. There are viable alternatives elsewhere although he does do some nice work.

I've had a similar experience, but many of the delays were due to events beyond his control. Emergencies with his wife's health and an accident that nearly took his eyesight resulted in very long delays. He was also recalled to active military duty. I'm hoping that things will settle down for him so he can devote more time to his business and family. Considering what he's been through the past few years, I'd say he's handled things rather well. I'm expecting a cable damascus and stag dirk from him in the next week or two. I'll post a quick review.

Another smith who seems to do excellent work is Glen Parrell. His website is www.vikingmetalworks.com. Have you checked out his site? He's making a leaf-bladed shortsword for me right now. I'm hoping to receive it by the middle of June.

Triton · May 15, 2003

Sure, I'm not throwing stones at his reasons or veracity or anything. All I'm saying is that for whatever reason it seems
to be difficult to communicate with him and or get a project done. If I might ask when did you commission your latest projects?

As for Glen Parrell yes he seems to do some very nice stuff as well. I've seen several satisfied customer reviews. The only complaint I have heard is that some of his stuff seems to be a tad heavy but that may very well be simple user preference. A lot of people these days favor swords on the extreme light end of the scale.

jggonzalez · May 15, 2003

Originally posted by Triton
Sure, I'm not throwing stones at his reasons or veracity or anything. All I'm saying is that for whatever reason it seems
to be difficult to communicate with him and or get a project done. If I might ask when did you commission your latest projects?

As for Glen Parrell yes he seems to do some very nice stuff as well. I've seen several satisfied customer reviews. The only complaint I have heard is that some of his stuff seems to be a tad heavy but that may very well be simple user preference. A lot of people these days favor swords on the extreme light end of the scale.

My first sword took about six months, I think. This latest knife has taken about a year and a half. You're right about him being difficult to reach, but his work is outstanding. I'm thinking of ordering one of his bastard swords in the future, but I'm waiting until things settle down for him.

Glen has been real easy to work with. I ordered my leaf-blade from him in January and he should be finishing it in a few weeks, so that's pretty quick. He sent me a bunch of JPEG's showing the sword in various stages. I noticed the weight issue and discussed that with him when we designed it, so it should work out.

I'm also expecting a Criswell 28" katana in a few days. I've been reading about his stuff here on the forum and it sounds like it will be a really nice blade for tameshigiri and takegiri. I admit I usually prefer 5160 for my sword blades, but I've heard plenty of stories about how tough Criswell's blades are, so I'm not worried on that account. If I really like the katana, I might get one of his 20" wakazashi next.

Triton · May 15, 2003

Wow 6 months and a year and a half?! You must be doing something right. That isn't the norm from what I hear but perhaps it is now I don't know. Anyway I'd dearly love to have one of his swiss bastards, its my eternal regret that I let one go on ebay for 700 dollars back before I knew what I was doing.

I'd love to see pics of your Parrell piece when you have it.

As for the Criswell, it isn't traditional by any means but they do have a certain charm of their own. For one thing you aren't afraid to mess them up by using them. Rob told me that he goes and clears brush with one every once in a while. Not something you would want to do with your war sword but it does say something about their ability to take abuse. He has improved drastically, some of the early ones I saw were pretty terrible (well golly it was his early stuff after all) but last year at blade his stuff looked darn good. He's also an interesting guy to talk to just as a by the by.

jggonzalez · May 16, 2003

Originally posted by Triton
Wow 6 months and a year and a half?! You must be doing something right. That isn't the norm from what I hear but perhaps it is now I don't know. Anyway I'd dearly love to have one of his swiss bastards, its my eternal regret that I let one go on ebay for 700 dollars back before I knew what I was doing.

I'd love to see pics of your Parrell piece when you have it.

As for the Criswell, it isn't traditional by any means but they do have a certain charm of their own. For one thing you aren't afraid to mess them up by using them. Rob told me that he goes and clears brush with one every once in a while. Not something you would want to do with your war sword but it does say something about their ability to take abuse. He has improved drastically, some of the early ones I saw were pretty terrible (well golly it was his early stuff after all) but last year at blade his stuff looked darn good. He's also an interesting guy to talk to just as a by the by.

That bastard sword must have been beautiful. I traded an archer's sword with a beautiful wire-wrapped grip back to him for credit towards a pattern-welded dagger. The dagger is incredible, but now I wish I'd found a way to get the dagger AND hang on to the archer's sword. Oh well, we all have a few regrets!

I've owned one of Rob Criswell's earlier pieces with the ring hilt. I loved the blade, but that ring really irritated me. It was always in the way when I tried to grip the blade. His new design looks much cleaner and refined. I'm off to the post office in about half an hour to pick it up. I'll let you know how it looks.

I can't post pics on this forum, so I sent you an e-mail with a few pics of my sword in progress. Glen's responsiveness has been fantastic. Even with the task of moving his forge, he's managed to keep his turnaround time down to about five months. Hey Jim, are you reading this?

Triton · May 17, 2003

I think that was a common complaint that Criswell had with his early stuff. He's proud of his work, but he does listen to customer feedback and tries to improve.

I'll check the picture.

Yes the swiss bastard was beautiful, complex hilt beautiful blade... sigh.