Excalibur - impractical or absolutely necessary?

rschuch said:
Well, I should have known better than to ask here for the strength to resist buying a sharp object! I got the Legacy Arms Excalibur. I did some research and, while most say it's too heavy to practice with for a long period of time, for me to look at from time to time and say, "Holy crap, that's a BIG sword! That must be Excalibur, sword of kings from the dawn of time! When when death was but a dream.." and all that nonsense. The reviews from DS were saying there were production flaws and for almost $700, that's uncool. The Legacy version is supposedly improved from the Gen 2 version, lighter with a better temper, plus the blade is truly full tang and peened, whereas the DS version is screwed on and bolted and then the bolt is peened, which doesn't seem right. BUT there seems to be a LOT of LA cutting swords for around $300 that handle a lot better, so I may be looking at a new collecting craze?!? Stop me!
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Congratulations, definitely better than my first sword purchase! Enjoy your new find! If I can suggest spend some time researching before your next purchase. There are some high quality production manufacturers out there, but for nearly the same money you can buy a custom piece.
 
Well, not my FIRST sword purchase, but we'll see if it ends up being my last. Obviously, I could have gotten something far better as an actual weapon that is lighter, more balanced and practical, but if I wanted to defend myself, I would have bought a gun. I wanted the Sword of Power!!!! That last comment sold me... It's NOT practical. It's a romantic ideal and symbol of chivalry and knightly ..., uh, stuff. And I didn't have to yank it out of a stone to get it! Just fork over some hard earned cash.

I had no idea a custom could be had at around the same price! I do check all the buy and sell forums on here, much to my wallet's dismay, and all the customs I've ever seen have been well out of my price range. If you have some suggestions, I'd love to hear them to have a place to start looking.

I'm in the market for a decent dagger, actually. Something medieval looking... I saw one YEARS ago I almost got that was custom, and it was very reasonable, maybe $200 or less, double edged with blued steel, possibly damascus (I forget now) and a stacked leather grip, but just gorgeous, and now of course it's an itch in my brain. I've checked on other sites like Etsy and the Bay and most in that range are just crap, Pakistan steel made to look nice but that's about it. The LA daggers seem pretty nice and functional. You really DO have to research because some of these sellers claim their stuff is fantastic and then you read the reviews and they're junk. But then not everyone is knowledgeable and some that claim they ARE great may not have an eye for detail or what to look for. Which is why I'm here.

Found the one that I wanted a few years back. $150! I could kick myself for not getting it.
https://imgur.com/a/gwa6l0m
 
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rschuch said:
Well, not my FIRST sword purchase, but we'll see if it ends up being my last. Obviously, I could have gotten something far better as an actual weapon that is lighter, more balanced and practical, but if I wanted to defend myself, I would have bought a gun. I wanted the Sword of Power!!!! That last comment sold me... It's NOT practical. It's a romantic ideal and symbol of chivalry and knightly ..., uh, stuff. And I didn't have to yank it out of a stone to get it! Just fork over some hard earned cash.

I had no idea a custom could be had at around the same price! I do check all the buy and sell forums on here, much to my wallet's dismay, and all the customs I've ever seen have been well out of my price range. If you have some suggestions, I'd love to hear them to have a place to start looking.

I'm in the market for a decent dagger, actually. Something medieval looking... I saw one YEARS ago I almost got that was custom, and it was very reasonable, maybe $200 or less, double edged with blued steel, possibly damascus (I forget now) and a stacked leather grip, but just gorgeous, and now of course it's an itch in my brain. I've checked on other sites like Etsy and the Bay and most in that range are just crap, Pakistan steel made to look nice but that's about it. The LA daggers seem pretty nice and functional. You really DO have to research because some of these sellers claim their stuff is fantastic and then you read the reviews and they're junk. But then not everyone is knowledgeable and some that claim they ARE great may not have an eye for detail or what to look for. Which is why I'm here..
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For medieval daggers, the only real place to go is arms and armor for production pieces. I recently purchased a very Oakeshott XVa from a maker in Eastern Europe, a custom piece at a production price. I will have to put up some pictures.
 
Well, no Excalibur. I bought and paid for it...2 weeks go by and I inquire where my tracking number is and I'm told, "Oh sorry. It's not in stock anymore. We have no clue when it will be."
So I cancelled it. Big let down.

So I've been looking for something to take it's place, but it seems every single sword I find that has good reviews also has bad reviews of it either breaking or having inconsistent builds.
I wanted something big like a bastard or long sword, but there's not much in stock these days. Kind of settled on either a Hanwei Bastard sword or Scottish claymore or the Windlass Acre sword, and only because these are the only ones in stock. I'd prefer to get a Hanwei Tinker longsword or Windlass Agincourt or Bosworth or Ronin Euro 2. All these are in my price range. I may pull the trigger on the Euro 2.

Any suggestions on under $400 battle ready peened sharpened swords as Excalibur replacements?
 
Update: Kult of Athena were out of stock (got a full refund), so I ended up getting the Darksword Armory version. I'm...ok with it. Fit and finish are not what I'd expect on a $700 sword, but I guess you're paying for the name and movie resemblance. It's big and heavy, which is what I expected, but also impressive and kind of scary. Not something to swing around casually! The peen is a bit rough and the gap between the blade and hilt HUGE! I don't think I'll get rid of it, but since it's arrival, I've gone on a bit of a spending spree and got some MUCH more user friendly blades:

Windlass Battlecry Agincourt
Kingdom of Arms Kern Irish Ring Pommel
Hanwei ATrim arming sword
Hanwei Tinker longsword
Ronin Katana Dojo Pro #5
Ryujin Shobu Zukuri

Oh yeah, got a couple of Tod Cutler daggers, too!

The KoA is a bit on the heavy side as well, but it has a ricasso and, if you use the one finger over the guard approach, it helps a lot with weight and edge alignment. The rest are very light and agile and a pleasure to swing about and admire!
I'm planning on adding maybe one or two more in the future, maybe a Renaissance rapier (though from most reports a lot of the repos are too whippy) and almost certainly a jian (deciding between the LK Chen Gale Wind or the Rodell Cutting Jian).
 
rschuch said:
Update: Kult of Athena were out of stock (got a full refund), so I ended up getting the Darksword Armory version. I'm...ok with it. Fit and finish are not what I'd expect on a $700 sword, but I guess you're paying for the name and movie resemblance. It's big and heavy, which is what I expected, but also impressive and kind of scary. Not something to swing around casually! The peen is a bit rough and the gap between the blade and hilt HUGE! I don't think I'll get rid of it, but since it's arrival, I've gone on a bit of a spending spree and got some MUCH more user friendly blades:

Windlass Battlecry Agincourt
Kingdom of Arms Kern Irish Ring Pommel
Hanwei ATrim arming sword
Hanwei Tinker longsword
Ronin Katana Dojo Pro #5
Ryujin Shobu Zukuri

Oh yeah, got a couple of Tod Cutler daggers, too!

The KoA is a bit on the heavy side as well, but it has a ricasso and, if you use the one finger over the guard approach, it helps a lot with weight and edge alignment. The rest are very light and agile and a pleasure to swing about and admire!
I'm planning on adding maybe one or two more in the future, maybe a Renaissance rapier (though from most reports a lot of the repos are too whippy) and almost certainly a jian (deciding between the LK Chen Gale Wind or the Rodell Cutting Jian).
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You are well and truly caught now my friend. I would love to see what you picked up from Tod to! Reminds me, I still owe you a picture of my custom!
 
Tod does amazing work. I've got a couple of his rondel daggers. They are outstanding. Its a fun collection you are amassing there!
 
Could I draw attention to 19th century cavalry sabers and bayonets? They are not from the dawn of time, that's true, but they are genuine and certainly frightening.
Good condition cavalry swords can be had for 750-900 $, for example at "Antique-Swords" or "JCMilitaria".
A very good repro of German bayonet model M98/05 can be had for about 90 € from Amazon. Dimensions are like a short sword. Good genuine old ones probably cost about 300-400 € plus shipping:
preuszen-bajonett-m-.jpg


Personally I think it's so cool to use an old bayonet for sabring champagne bottles:
 
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Triton said:
Tod does amazing work. I've got a couple of his rondel daggers. They are outstanding. Its a fun collection you are amassing there!
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Got the Windlass Christus Imperat rapier coming now, but that's IT! No more!

Ha! Almost believed myself for a second there!
 
Luke_Chambers said:
Could I draw attention to 19th century cavalry sabers and bayonets? They are not from the dawn of time, that's true, but they are genuine and certainly frightening.
Good condition cavalry swords can be had for 750-900 $, for example at "Antique-Swords" or "JCMilitaria".
A very good repro of German bayonet model M98/05 can be had for about 90 € from Amazon. Dimensions are like a short sword. Good genuine old ones probably cost about 300-400 € plus shipping:
preuszen-bajonett-m-.jpg


Personally I think it's so cool to use an old bayonet for sabring champagne bottles:
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Well, there ya go. The "bayoneting champagne bottles" puts it solidly in the "absolutely necessary" catagory. Does that work on beer bottles, too? Could get messy, having bottle caps laying around everywhere and, as the party wore on, the occasional finger.
 
rschuch said:
https://imgur.com/a/ALvTbHw

Just thought I’d ask the experts. I normally collect folding knives because they’re practical and, I guess to me, they’re pocket swords (which is why I like big ones). I have a few regular sized swords (a couple cheap replicas and a couple authentic civil war era musician’s swords), but they’re so impractical, BUT I also want something that’s not a rat tail tang that’s going to fall apart if it drops on the floor. And there’s the whole “want” vs “need” argument, so maybe I just need someone to talk me out of it…

SO, I recently watched The Green Knight, which really put me in the mood to watch (take a look at my avatar and guess) Boorman’s 1981 “Excalibur” (and then Monty Python’s Holy Grail, but that’s another story). I’m at a point in my life where I could probably drop $650 on the Darksword Armory version, which from the reviews seems pretty well made, and not feel it too bad. Maybe this is the wrong group to ask, or maybe it’s the right one. Seems most of the decent “working battle ready” swords are going for the same amount, movie replicas or not.

Just wanted a show of hands who’d actually get one and who wouldn’t and why or why not. Thanks in advance for your opinions!
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I wouldn't get a Darksword. They've had WAY to long a history with poor construction mostly surrounding rat tail tangs that just aren't very durable. I mean if you plan to just hang it on the wall it's fine. But if you have any thoughts of ever using it... I'd buy the Albion version.
 
Triton said:
I'm going in this case with size does matter! How heavy is it??
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According to KoA, 3 lbs 4 oz. Over a 38" blade. Most of the weight is in the hilt though, so it doesn't feel too bad...but I have a small condo and just walking around with it is very dangerous for anyone visiting, or if I had a cat or pet. Walls, doors, couches, whatever gets in its way is getting impaled.
 
Infi-del said:
I wouldn't get a Darksword. They've had WAY to long a history with poor construction mostly surrounding rat tail tangs that just aren't very durable. I mean if you plan to just hang it on the wall it's fine. But if you have any thoughts of ever using it... I'd buy the Albion version.
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Yeah, I know all the controversy. I got it and it seems sturdy enough. I've seen plenty of videos of people doing heavy cutting with it so I think this one is OK. I'm not going to be chopping down any trees or cording firewood with it... maybe a pool noodle or two or if I'm feeling frisky maybe I'll get a tatami mat. I don't know if the peen is the tang or a threaded nut with a bolt that's been peened over, but I trick I was shown is to look at the shape of the peen. Mine is square, which tells me its probably the tang since nuts don't rotate as well on squares. The Albion Discerner is way out of my price range! There one for sale used on the SBG forum right now and it's still $2K plus shipping from Europe, so unless a rich relative dies suddenly and leaves me their estate and some spending cash, someone else will have to contact the "moistened bint" and get their own sword of power. They say it's light and a dream to wield!
 
rschuch said:
Yeah, I know all the controversy. I got it and it seems sturdy enough. I've seen plenty of videos of people doing heavy cutting with it so I think this one is OK. I'm not going to be chopping down any trees or cording firewood with it... maybe a pool noodle or two or if I'm feeling frisky maybe I'll get a tatami mat. I don't know if the peen is the tang or a threaded nut with a bolt that's been peened over, but I trick I was shown is to look at the shape of the peen. Mine is square, which tells me its probably the tang since nuts don't rotate as well on squares. The Albion Discerner is way out of my price range! There one for sale used on the SBG forum right now and it's still $2K plus shipping from Europe, so unless a rich relative dies suddenly and leaves me their estate and some spending cash, someone else will have to contact the "moistened bint" and get their own sword of power. They say it's light and a dream to wield!
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I was gonna point you to that one on SBG if you hadn't already seen it. As far as I know DS peens their tangs. The only maker I know that does a ground over threaded tang is Angus Trim... but he's one of the best in the biz so I'd trust his work anyday. Hell, I own one.
 
Infi-del said:
I was gonna point you to that one on SBG if you hadn't already seen it. As far as I know DS peens their tangs. The only maker I know that does a ground over threaded tang is Angus Trim... but he's one of the best in the biz so I'd trust his work anyday. Hell, I own one.
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An Angus Trim original is definitely out of my price range! That's cool you have one! Which one? It's funny, he just posted on Facebook a leaf bladed fantasy number like Glamdring and I got that DSA Sage on SBG this afternoon. I'm sure his is a lot better but hey, I'll take what i can get.
 
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