I just got my "New Coustille" on July 3rd. I wanted this piece because I thought it would make a great campanion dagger for the Type XIV I bought.
It was almost perfect as a companion and looks every bit as good as the Type XIV. It's going to make a very nice display.

My Brother n law tells me that "this anit no dagger! It's a very short sword!". It almost feels like it. If you have ever did any Florentine Fighting then this is the pair to do it with. Handles excellent and they are both well balanced.

If you like the Windlass Type XIV, then your going to love the Mini XIV!

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What do you mean by "Florentine" fighting? I know of no such term.

Thats what they call fighting with a short and medium length weapon in the SCA, allegedly because Florentine soldiers did it at some point.

A hatchet with an arming sword, a mace with an arming sword, a short-sword like that dagesse with an arming sword, a short sword with an axe etc. would I believe be considered 'florentine'...

I think it can actually be pretty effective, some people get very good at it. Not sure if it could hold up against HEMA sword and dagger or longsword, I think the greater range differential between a sword and a dagger actually makes that combination more dangerous.

I wonder if there is anything like 'florentine' in any HEMA manual? I have never seen anything like that.

J

Unfortunately, "Florentine" is about as historical as a Madu.

Actually, I believe a madu is a historical weapon, whereas I do not know of any connection between modern "Florentine" two-weapon fighting and the Italian city of Firenze.

A madu is an Indian buckler-type shield, with two spikes attached; the spikes are in the plane of the shield (they don't stick out, unlike some Scottish targes) and at 180 degrees. Think of them as continuations of the grip, sticking out beyond the edge of the shield. Sometimes antelope horns were used.

First off, cool new acquisition, Gary. I have a fondness for those weapons which aren't quite daggers but aren't quite swords, either.

Now, I apologize for taking this thread even further off topic, and perhaps this topic should even be split because of it, but I wanted to address "Florentine" styled fighting. There is no historical evidence of any two-weapon fighting called "Florentine" to my knowledge, prior to circa 1970. It is a modern-made style developed for use in modern sword sports such as SCA fighting. (though there are historical two weapon styles) From what I have seen of it, it works very well within the SCA rules. The name, to the best of my knowledge, comes from an image that was passed around in Ren Fairre and SCA circles a number of years ago showing a man with rapier and dagger, and the caption read, "A Florentine." Hence the birth of the name.

Gary, you gave a few links there. One is to a video of Nova Scrimia, who are not doing Florentine, they are fencing spada y daga. I bring this up because I am quite certain the folks of Nova Scrimia would likely not care to find out people assumed they are doing the same style as what most people call Florentine. You also linked to two Kendokata who are practicing Nito-ryu. Nito-ryu is a traditional Japanese artform. I know for a fact that many Kendokata would be offended to hear this being termed as Florentine.

I don't bring this up to mince words with you, or to pick a fight, or even to point fingers. But it is sort of the equivalent of telling a licensed physician that he is doing the same thing as Reiki spiritual healing. This is not to say that one is better than the other, but it is certainly saying that there is a difference, and that to lump them together can be considered distasteful to many.

*clears throat* Back to topic...

I've been looking at the MRL Coustille for some time now, as I consider it a very intriguing piece. I think I'm going to just go ahead and get one (possibly together with MRL's "Poignard") pretty soon, at least as part of a Ren Faire costume I'm trying to piece together...

Would you happen to know what the differences are between this version and the first MRL Coustille?

So far, Windlass still has a ways to go, in terms of lines, proportion, and blade geometry, but they do have a few that look really nice. I'll cite the Coustille as one example, as well as the "Italian Falchion" and their "Longsword" (the one with the side rings and waisted wire half-wrap grip). Their "Type XIV" is also pretty impressive, as the blade profile is pretty close to that of Albion's "Sherrif," complete with the brief flare a couple inches before the guard. They even make a single-hander with a Type N pommel (the boat-shaped one), which the leaders in the repro market haven't even touched yet...

I have two of the older style coustille and they are very nimble little blades. I bought them through MRL and had them sharpen them. My only problem is with the leather on the grip which is poor quality and had huge stitches. If I ever get around to it I'll regrip them. They are great for two weapon fighting at clost quarters whatever we are calling it ;)

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The Coustille is definitely on my wish list! The only martial weapons practice I've done is modern stuff with things like knives, daggers, and batons, so what I know translates a lot better to short swords than longer weapons.
One of my favorite weapons is this one http://www.coldsteel.com/88nd.html. Its quick and deadly against stuff like boxes and cardboard tubes, and looks about the same length of the MRL. What I like doing, is using a stick or baton of similar length to the sword in my left hand, for parrying or beating, and the sword used mostly to thrust. I guess a buckler might be better for that though.