Hey there

I got a cupon from a family member to buy myself a sword. Around 200$, the rest I will pay myself.

My hesitation is between 2 kind of swords :

1) a decorative sword, from the witcher or the litch king (wacraft) i could hang up on the wall.

2) Or I was hesitating with a a federachwert to train my skills with a blade,

3) Or even buy a zweihander sword that could be decorative & used for training like a federachwert.

Now, not every sword has the same purpose or budget. What would be your recommendations for a decorative /cheaper sword, and for a more useful/ practical sword ?

Some of my preferences inputs :

- Decorative sword : is cheap, nostalgia, but is fragile and may become junk in a few years because of poor build.

- Training sword : robust, you can train with, can be decorative, very nice overall, but quite expensive too for a good one, cheaper can be good but less decorative.

- Zweihander : Probably a robust sword, maybe less practical because it's a nice piece(too afraid to damage it?), but can be used for practice. Is decorative by itself, holds history. Quite expensive.

I would love to get a zweihander, but it seems overkill for a first sword ?

Hello,

I am currently ordering a custom Katana from, first sword so it's fairly basic. Will zinc alloy fittings (tsuba, etc.) stand up to beginner cutting practice? Or should I get iron/brass right off the bat and just accept the extra cost? I understand zinc is more brittle, of just like some idea of how big of a difference it makes to a beginner. And would the menuki need changing too? Or is it fine to remain alloy even if I upgrade the rest?

Thank you in advance

Located in western Australia and looking for something not fully functional but definitely sturdy and well made enough to at least look real, but im sceptical about etsy as even for a couple hundred dollars is still a lot to waste... any help would be appreciated

I bought this back in the early 2000's. Lost the paperwork a long time ago. Pretty sure I paid $300-$350 for it. It's got a little dust on it but overall in great condition. I know its a display piece. I remember Marto advertising the dragons were made with 24k gold. LOL i know i know...I cannot find any reference of it today. Anyone recognize it?

Anyone doing re-wrapping services on Japanese swords in the US?

I have a Type 95 Shin Gunto that could use a freshen-up. The blade is in TERRIFIC shape, so worth giving some TLC.

Recommendations appreciated.

So I order the sword in the last image, then after putting in the order I realized that on other sites was a different version so I emailed him asking about if the variant shown on the site that I ordered was what I ordered, he replied after a number of days and informed me that the company discontinued the variant on the site that matches the dagger I have in image 3, and assured me it was a better quality, the sword arrived today and it doesn’t fit in the scabbard properly and I have noticed the guard seems bent, what should I do about this? I’ve never spent this much on a sword before and I don’t want to be a difficult customer (I sent many emails inquiring about the variant after I ordered before he replied) but I also feel like I should be happy with what I’ve ordered and I don’t think I am.

EDIT: thank you all, I’ve emailed Hal and will be returning the sword for a refund

I've got these earlier today and want to have a better idea as to what specifically Im looking at. Google image search is saying that the yellow one is from mid 1800's and the black (eagle) on is either modern Damascus or 1400's traditional tamahagane. Note the yellow has nothing on the tang where as the eagle has something. Both have a singular pin and I am told 1960's or older... I have put the yellow then the eagle in photos, so if you are looking at the photos, please keep that in mind.

I am thinking/planning getting these authenticated/appraised, but I want a better understanding before then.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Got this rapier from Arms & Armor a while back and was supposed to make an unboxing video but it didn't go quite as planned, so we're doing a reveal and first impressions video instead! Also had Andy Sunda which I think we all know well at this point to make me a scabbard.

The hanger is from Karl Robinson, a leatherworker from the UK.

First proper youtube video outside of a few cutting videos, planning to do unboxings and reviews of my entire collection eventually so would of course appreciate subscriptions!
First two upcoming reviews will be an Albion Doge with another Andy Sunda scabbard and then a Shadowdancer Katana I made with the Swordis lite builder.

I'll do another post with my usual set of photography tomorrow so keep a look out for that as well!

Lastly, any critique or tips are welcome, I'm new to the whole video thing so still learning. Audio and how to get it sounding crisp seems to be my biggest hurdle so far, so hoping to improve over time.

Recently Completed Custom Katana – Fully Wrapped Genuine Rayskin Saya

Hey ich bin für jede qualifizierte Info Dankbar

Threw together this little scabbard for a newly acquired Albion Reeve the other day. I could only spare a day or so to make a scabbard just for me, so I went simple, doesn’t even have a chape. This has gotta be my favorite color combo though.

A new custom dhaab just made it in time for the wedding.

A custom Lotus tip profile blade with stamp and fuller.
With Ayuthaya style fitting in brass and black natural lacquer and brass scabbard fitting.

Did not have time to take a good photos with all the raining in Thailand.

"古人一句“十年磨一剑”，放在工坊里，倒也贴切。

机磨、手磨，剑身一段段处理。沈广隆的剑，还在师傅手上做着。"

The old line, “Ten years to hone a sword,” feels fitting in the workshop.

Machine grinding, hand grinding, each section of the blade worked in turn. At Shen Guanglong, swords are still taking shape in the makers’ hands.