Why only oriental swords???

vikingblade

vikingblade

Joined
Feb 28, 2002
Messages
85
ive been shopping around for a quality short sword. lots and lots of high quality oriental wakizashi's out there, custom and production. from chen to criswell. sharp, strong deadly swords. HOWEVER, What if i want a double edged short sword... Gladius Style. the only options i see are Museum Replica type stuff.. heavy, almost non existant edge, low tempering etc...

Ive yet to see a Gladius offered with a 16" double edged blade of A2 tool steel, razor sharp for $300-$350. the thought of a criswell short gladius is sweet. what gives? am i the only one who would love a blade like this? and if they are out there, please let me know
thanks guys
 
If you check out http://store.swordforum.com/armart/catalog-viking.php , the store section they have sells a Gladius that is made in carbon steel, and is made to historical standards, meaning light and balanced. I think it weighs a pound or two. The price is also fairly good and the handle is wrapped in leather with or without fur trim on the guard area. Go check it out and see if it's what you wanted.
 
I think you might. From what I understand Kirby does good work (if a bit heavy) but his business practices seem to be a bit on the erratic side.
 
Yep, but didn't he want a gladius of some sort? CF doesn't carry anything like that although Albion used to. Whether or not Albion still has anything in stock I don't know. They have been trying to retool and have thus been out of the arena for a few months. (pun intended)

He might want to try Armart over at the Sword forum mueseum store, I think that they will do custom work sort of.

Other then that I think that full custom is about the only way to go.
 
Albion has three models of the gladius now available - Pompeii, Fulham, and Mainz. The new blades appear to be at least as good as the AT versions and the finish is better.
 
I'll be darned, you are correct. It looks like they have finally gotten something back into production!
 
Lots of places to look. i appreciate all the suggestions. the albion offerings look pretty nice. a tad long but definately gladius. unfortunately, still doesnt seem to be any modern'ish razor sharp models available. i get the impression ya not gonna get anything but a basic utility edge and a rc hardness of no more than 52 on the available traditional blades.. i may have to go custom. can ya picture a cold steel tai pan with 16" blade! i know jim hrisoulas does some nice custom work, long waits though. anyone know if criswell does custom requests and how to get in touch with him.
As always, thanks for the help.
 
Razor sharp swords? Swords aren't the same as knives. You really don't want the blade as sharp as a knife's. Sharper equals weaker. I know you might think well it won't cut but the dynamics of a sword cut are different from a slash from a knife. The Albion Mark and Angus Trim swords come with a good functional edge and all make very very impressive cuts and thrusts. The Albion models are reproductions so you're getting a close to the real thing. Hrisoulas makes very nice stuff but is next to impossible to get an order filled.
 
point taken Loki.. however, what about all these razor sharp wakizashi's and katanas floating around with edges of rc60. i understand sword dynamics but im sure the blades i see making multiple clean, fast cuts thru bamboo mats etc... are better than funtionally edged. i just find it strange that japanese style blades are big on very sharp hard edges and western styled double edged swords are always funtional or utility or reproduction edged.
 
Actually, traditional Japanese swords aren't razor sharp, anything that shows otherwise is an exaggeration. The clean cuts have more to do with the dynamics of the cut, how the cut was done, the skill of the person behind the blade, and so on. No historical Japanese sword was ever hair shaving razor sharp, but sharp enough that people on the receiving end of the swing would certainly be cut very, very badly.
 
I agree about the "sharp as a razor" comments. A katana is sharp and for that matter so is a good western sword. However if you get the edge bevel too thin it is either going to chip or more likely if it is a decent quality weapon get dull really fast. As for an RC of 60 that sounds pretty high to me. Being to brittle in sword lengths is another thing that can cause breakage or chipping.

Unless you run into JPH at a festival I would probably steer clear, to much of a waiting list and more erratic business practices as far as I can tell. Jeez am I panning enough makers?

To be more positive, Criswell, Arms and Armor, Howard Clark, Kevin Cashen and Vince Evans all do awesome work and deliver when they say they will. :)
 
ok... i guess that razor sharp comments are exaggerating. its used to describe very sharp so often, i guess i forgot what it really means. let me correct myself. not razor sharp... that of course would require a very, very thin and consequently weak edge. what i am referring to is a keener than funtional or utility edge most typically seen on medieval, straight double edged swords currently available. i mean, what im really trying to determine is
are the best gladius from say albion, del tin etc.. as sharp, well tempered and solidly constructed as the wakisazhi from cold steel, hanwei etc... is there a gladius available that can compare with a chen shinto or oriole wakizashi in terms of sharpness, edge retention, balance, construction... not to mention a comparison between a hanwei tiger, orchid or bushido. i kno, i kno the hanwei are more expensive. good point. my point. are their any super high quality western blades available? without going custom.

i can get a paul chen tiger wakizashi with a blade of forged/folded ASSAB K-120C powdered Swedish steel. highly polished. tempered using the traditional clay process producing a hard cutting edge of 60 RC while maintaining the body of the blade at 40 RC hardness for resilience and shock absorption. beautiful tsuka, tsuba and saya.
all for $450! i can buy this sword now. i dont have to deal with a custom maker and wait 6 months. NOW, my question is.... I bet yas already guessed it. can i find a gladius of similar quality at a similar price available right now????

Have at it gentleman.
 
Yep, like I posted earlier: http://store.swordforum.com/armart/catalog-viking.php
I actially own the one that has no fur with the fuller going into the guard, the S5. It's balanced, made of carbon steel, and cut through 2 liter bottles filled with water with no problem for over a year (I just have to play with this toy). It's done to historical specs and other than going all out custom, this can't be beat.
 
Don... it does look legit. i wish they provided more pics and info on the sword. not much there. also, its kinda big. really looking for a gladius size... 15"-20" blade.
 
i just saw the wait on the viking sword. whooaaaa long time to wait.

"Please allow up to 8 months for these fine swords to arrive"
 
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