Curiosity got the better of me - I ordered one and it arrived today.
First impressions:
Historical Accuracy: overall a good rendition of a rather plain and general type X with a B pommel and a spike hilt guard. Its a bit on the small size for a post-Viking sword, but one can pull out historical examples with very similar dimensions. It does not have the classic blade profile of an X, which would be pretty much parallel for the first 2/3 and then gently tapering to a spatulate tip. This blade profile actually has a slight bulge in the middle followed by a sudden transition to a more narrow, linearly tapering second half. Kind of looks like it started X and then changed its mind to XII halfway through. However, if one looks at the variations in historical examples one can see that they are not all 'classic', so one cannot say this is wrong*. But see my notes on the finish below.
Handling: As the specs would predict, this is a very sweet handling little sword. The
distal taper is much more developed than one normally sees in swords in this range, resulting in excellent balance and mass distribution without the need for heavy hilt components (which are in fact relatively light)- it is a real 'floater', especially compared to other swords of this type. It accelerates and stops with ease - very easy to control. The grip is just the right size and shape for this sword and provides excellent traction. The pommel is rather flat and slides easily along the palm for hammer-handshake grip transitions. If you don't like handshake, you can pretty much stick with hammer except at the most extended blade positions the pommel edge will hit the wrist. In summary, great, great handling.
Blade: the edge geometry is also superior for a sword in this range. The edge appears to be integral with the blade - no secondary bevel. So even if it is not super sharp from the factory, it should still cut like a demon (haven't tried yet). The manufacturer claims that the blade is harmonically balanced, and from what I can tell in dry handling this is true.
Scabbard: quite above average as well -decent leather over wood- and the swords fits nicely into it.
Fit: everything seems tight. I like that the blade fits snugly into the guard, in contrast to Windlass products.
Finish:
- The fullers are not perfectly even but pretty good
- The hilt components are refined in a very plain and simple way
- I just don't like the blade finish on Hanwei products. It has a very obvious machined look that screams out industrial age.
- Moreover, it clashes with the mirror finish on the hilt furniture. I guess both of these could be evened out to be more or less shiny with fine sandpaper (see Patrick Kelly's article)
- looks like the person who did the peening missed a few times and dented the pommel, no big deal**
So, it is not perfect. For that, one needs to pay at least another $500. In an alternative universe where all swords cost the same, I would rather have the slightly wider and more uniform blade of the Albion Reeve***, and I actually prefer swords with more blade presence, especially those from this historical period. However, I am not aware of another sword of this type, in this price range, that can deliver this level of functional quality and potential for performance. In fact, even if you have a Reeve I would still reccommend this Norman sword for guilt-free test cutting etc. Moreover, if the blunt version handles like this one it would be a great pick for someone who wants a sword with an early medieval look that can be used for fencing.
I would say that these Tinker-Hanwei and Fletcher/Trim-Valiant collaborations are really re-defining the middle level of the market in terms of combining reasonable historical accuracy and performance at a production scale. Hopefully Windlass catches on to this trend as well, I would like to see more of this happening.
-JD
PS - if there are any requests, I can take some pictures tomorrow (I'm off work this week).****
Editorial updates:
*I think I was expecting a blade profile more like their Tinker/Hanwei 9th century Viking sword, but assuming the profile on this Norman sword was designed intentionally by the Artist, one can't blame him for wanting to do something different.
**Looking again, the peen job was not sloppy. They simply did not polish it down afterwards, at least not as much as done on some swords. However, there are a few scratches on the guard that I missed the first time.
***Or, to be fair, the Tinker/Hanwei Viking sword, which only costs a bit more. But more cutting power on the blade always has a cost in terms of handling, so one can't have it both ways.
****pictures have been added below.