- Joined
- Jul 20, 2000
- Messages
- 626
Well, Canada Post finally got around to a second delivery attempt this afternoon (see my post in Community about the 1st "attempt") and so, I now hold in my oh-so-vaguely Irish hand, my first functional sword.
Visual review, blade: Sighting along the blade, it's pretty clear that the edges aren't "smooth" along the concave edges; also, the centre ridge isn't perfectly straight - it snakes about a half-millimeter or so in a couple of spots. Nothing you'd see at a glance. Distal taper virtually non-existent, though I'm not sure if distal taper would be appropriate for a sword of this length & profile. Such as it is, about 4" from the point is where it kicks in.
Visual review, hilt: Once again, I'm surprisied by how well people who get paid almost literally peanuts fit their products together. I can see no spots on the pommel/nut indicating where the tool used to screw it on gripped it. A couple of tiny imperfections in the wood are all I've found, and it took a deal of searching before finding those.
Dry handling: Weight seems pretty light to me. Haven't got a scale to really find out, but I'd be surprised if it's more than 2 lbs. COP is 6.5ish" from the tip, just a little forward of the widest point of the blade. COB is 3.5" from the bottom of the U-shaped guard. Not sure what COB would be appropriate for this type of sword, but feels pretty lively to my (very inexperienced) hand. Very substantial pommel, much beefier than it appears on KC's website, could account for that. Harmonically very nice, the node is right on the money, right at the guard (discovered by "spanking" the pommel a couple of times). The grip is a litle on the long side; I could see the brass discs getting uncomfortable after a while, and I could see slippage as an issue if/when it ever sees some real cutting swings. About a half inch shorter in the grip would be just about right, I think.
Haven't done any cutting with it, aside from a couple of stabs through the box it shipped in. Still, feels sharper than some of my knives. (I don't know if that's a reflection on the keen-ness of the edge or my poor knife-sharpening skills
)
Conclusion: Exceeds my expectations, even taking into account the many good reviews it's already received.
So, anyone up for some cattle-raiding?
Visual review, blade: Sighting along the blade, it's pretty clear that the edges aren't "smooth" along the concave edges; also, the centre ridge isn't perfectly straight - it snakes about a half-millimeter or so in a couple of spots. Nothing you'd see at a glance. Distal taper virtually non-existent, though I'm not sure if distal taper would be appropriate for a sword of this length & profile. Such as it is, about 4" from the point is where it kicks in.
Visual review, hilt: Once again, I'm surprisied by how well people who get paid almost literally peanuts fit their products together. I can see no spots on the pommel/nut indicating where the tool used to screw it on gripped it. A couple of tiny imperfections in the wood are all I've found, and it took a deal of searching before finding those.
Dry handling: Weight seems pretty light to me. Haven't got a scale to really find out, but I'd be surprised if it's more than 2 lbs. COP is 6.5ish" from the tip, just a little forward of the widest point of the blade. COB is 3.5" from the bottom of the U-shaped guard. Not sure what COB would be appropriate for this type of sword, but feels pretty lively to my (very inexperienced) hand. Very substantial pommel, much beefier than it appears on KC's website, could account for that. Harmonically very nice, the node is right on the money, right at the guard (discovered by "spanking" the pommel a couple of times). The grip is a litle on the long side; I could see the brass discs getting uncomfortable after a while, and I could see slippage as an issue if/when it ever sees some real cutting swings. About a half inch shorter in the grip would be just about right, I think.
Haven't done any cutting with it, aside from a couple of stabs through the box it shipped in. Still, feels sharper than some of my knives. (I don't know if that's a reflection on the keen-ness of the edge or my poor knife-sharpening skills
)Conclusion: Exceeds my expectations, even taking into account the many good reviews it's already received.
So, anyone up for some cattle-raiding?
