Which would be better?
- Thread starter slow1
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Triton
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It seems like it would mostly be a matter of personal choice. For example I hate small swords. I think that they are foppish and the last degraded vestige of the sword before it disappeared. However, some people really love them. As to the quality of the Chen products I am afraid I have not handled either one.
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The Hanwei Pappenheimers are great beaters, they're a little hilt heavy, they may take some tweaking on your part to get them "right" but for the money, they're a good deal.
By all means, if you can afford to spend a little more, go with Darkwood;
http://www.darkwoodarmory.com
or Del Tin
(do a yahoo search, many suppliers)
The steel is much better in those than in the Hanwei, but for those on a limited budget or those who intend to use their swords HARD, the Hanwei may be the way to go. Hanwei replacement blades can be had for 60 bucks or so, and my hanwei pap is still working on the original blade. (I've had to replace two windlass blades in the same time period.)
The Washington small sword?
Haven't handled one of them yet, but I like what I've seen of it so far. Very pretty and it's on my "to buy" list.
As for which is "coolest" style I've got to say I much prefer the rapier.
I fight Rapier and Main Gauche, using the Hanwei Pap and a Del Tin Swordbreaker gauche. They've both stood up well to (close guesstimate) 300 or more duels each.
For me, learning and mastering the art of fighting with two blades is a journey I'll be on for the rest of my life.
It's odd though, when I first started out, it felt odd and clumsy to fight two blades, then I went through a phase where I felt I could not fight WITHOUT both blades (and losing my gauche meant losing the duel!) and now I am finally comfortable either way.
In every duel, I learn something new about how better to employ two blades and I wouldn't trade sword styles for love nor money. (For now.)
Anyway, I suppose this MORE than answers your question. I have a tendency to ramble when I get on my favorite sword topic.
Any other questions, please feel free to ask!
By all means, if you can afford to spend a little more, go with Darkwood;
http://www.darkwoodarmory.com
or Del Tin
(do a yahoo search, many suppliers)
The steel is much better in those than in the Hanwei, but for those on a limited budget or those who intend to use their swords HARD, the Hanwei may be the way to go. Hanwei replacement blades can be had for 60 bucks or so, and my hanwei pap is still working on the original blade. (I've had to replace two windlass blades in the same time period.)
The Washington small sword?
Haven't handled one of them yet, but I like what I've seen of it so far. Very pretty and it's on my "to buy" list.
As for which is "coolest" style I've got to say I much prefer the rapier.
I fight Rapier and Main Gauche, using the Hanwei Pap and a Del Tin Swordbreaker gauche. They've both stood up well to (close guesstimate) 300 or more duels each.
For me, learning and mastering the art of fighting with two blades is a journey I'll be on for the rest of my life.
It's odd though, when I first started out, it felt odd and clumsy to fight two blades, then I went through a phase where I felt I could not fight WITHOUT both blades (and losing my gauche meant losing the duel!) and now I am finally comfortable either way.
In every duel, I learn something new about how better to employ two blades and I wouldn't trade sword styles for love nor money. (For now.)
Anyway, I suppose this MORE than answers your question. I have a tendency to ramble when I get on my favorite sword topic.
Any other questions, please feel free to ask!