We got the cutting stand out for a play this weekend. I didn't have enough newspaper to roll targets out of but four of us went through I don't know how many PET bottles and milk jugs and we all had some fun.
Having no practical idea of correct technique but having read all I could find on this forum I was pretty happy with what I learned. I didn't have any real issues with edge alignment but I definitely found that there was a huge difference when I managed to hit with "relaxed speed" rather than really trying to hit hard. Lots to un-learn from doing SCA fighting but I was learning a little bit with every shot.
One thing I'm still not sure of is the 'right' way to grip a sword like the Albion knight. What I found was that I was tending to start in a hammer-like grip and partway through the shot was transitioning to more of a handshake grip. Is this bad? Looking at these I'm also twisting my body a lot more than I thought I was at the time.
Herewith some pics of the fun, including pics of the adjustable cutting stand we made last weekend. This is designed to go high enough to put water bottles on and low enough to put rolled newspaper targets on.
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![actionshot.jpg](files/actionshot_996.jpg)
Successful cut. Don't know if my stance is any good, but it worked.
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![followthrough.jpg](files/followthrough_209.jpg)
Follow though. Is it ok to be bending my wrist this much?
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![trimbottle.jpg](files/trimbottle_174.jpg)
In NZ low fat milk is sometimes branded "Trim" milk, so of course we had to do what it said on the bottle!