I have been interested in the mortuary sword for quite some time. Making a basket was out of the question for me, but after poking around I found KOA had the Hanwei practical in stock so I bought one to see if it would work with an H/T blade I already had. Of course the tang needed to be cut down and rethreaded, the basket tang slot etc needed to be widened to accommodate the wider tang. After a fair bit of work I am almost complete. Everything is put back together with a new wood grip core. Last but not least I will have to finish the grip. I am thinking a spiral wrapped cord along the length, covered in leather and perhaps twisted steel wire in between the cord. Not sure though.
Anyway....thoughts? I realize the blade type may not fit exactly with what was typical for this type of hilt, but I have seen blades that have a similar profile and maybe even slightly diamond cross section on Mortuary swords, but I am no expert.
Also, the POB is looking to end up around 5 3/4" from the basket. Is that within and acceptable range historically for this type of sword? Any comments are appreciated. Thanks for looking.
Original blade - very small, felt like a toy
![Photobucket image](http://myarmoury.com/images/pb/img.php?i=http://i1259.photobucket.com/albums/ii553/bheff1066/20150417_181810_zpsyrkyoguv.jpg)
H/T next to it for comparison
![Photobucket image](http://myarmoury.com/images/pb/img.php?i=http://i1259.photobucket.com/albums/ii553/bheff1066/20150417_163109_zpsxpje639y.jpg)
Component parts and tang work under way
![Photobucket image](http://myarmoury.com/images/pb/img.php?i=http://i1259.photobucket.com/albums/ii553/bheff1066/20150420_203742_zpsmuu5iynf.jpg)
![Photobucket image](http://myarmoury.com/images/pb/img.php?i=http://i1259.photobucket.com/albums/ii553/bheff1066/20150420_203921_zpsexwb8iml.jpg)
Sword almost done. Everything back together and super tight. Rings like a bell.
![Photobucket image](http://myarmoury.com/images/pb/img.php?i=http://i1259.photobucket.com/albums/ii553/bheff1066/20150422_145051_zpshcagcu2o.jpg)
![Photobucket image](http://myarmoury.com/images/pb/img.php?i=http://i1259.photobucket.com/albums/ii553/bheff1066/20150422_145035_zpsnv3w2qxp.jpg)