1) That swords cannot be made of stainless steel

2)That chain mail has no "chain" on it

3)why the grips of Viking swords look so freakishly small

4)who that Oakeshott person was

5)what a harmonic point is

6)That there is a company called Albion

7)That they made nice swords

8)why medieval geeks would spend more than $600 in a sword

9)that I must be a medieval geek because I ordered mine yesterday

10) why some sword-ends look so pointy

11) why some sword-ends look so roundy

but most important, that it is ok to like swords

I am sure there is more...

12) while many things are more or less historically likely, almost any weapon you can think of has been done by someone, somewhere. At least once.

13) the samurai vs knight debate will never be resolved, but will never expire from forums

Alfonso,
I think that's usual for many sword blades. Some have pointy ends, some roundy. There are no such things as swords with blades shaped like anything else.

So... it seems I didn't learn as many things as I thought.

Jean Thibodeau wrote:

Ben Sweet wrote: Quote: 1) That swords cannot be made of stainless steel swords can be made of stainless steel... Bob Engnath made them, Barry Dawson has been making them for many years, Barry's niece Lynn also makes stainless steel swords and her husband Dennis too, Jay Fisher is another stainless steel sword maker. The problem here is that most stainless steel swords are decorator pieces made out of 420J steel that is NOT one of the really good stainless steels and there is the conventional wisdom that long blades made of stainless steels tend to be more brittle at any equivalent blade hardness that simple carbon steels or spring steels. The right hardness and heat treat using a high quality stainless might make a good sword if steel makers formulated a stainless alloy researched to have the right qualities for a long blade. There is also the fact that carbon steels are " traditional " and a known quantity as far as producing an optimum sword.

Lets say we want to make the most resileant sword possible (flexible body, hard edge, etc) and that we have no historical concerns. In that case stainless steel will be a better option than carbon steel (easier to maintain)? It has no other penalties?
I guess my question is if we suddenly went back to using swords we will still be making them out of carbon steel or will we use our current metalurgic technology to try a different metal (be it stainless or something more exotic like titanium)

Do you know Anders, the Prophet Muhammed used to carry a two-pronged sword while leading his followers to battle. Now replicas of his sword are kept in museums worldwide.

I must confess,

Through myArmoury I have learned, either directly or indirectly, through being pointed towards a given book. nearly everything I know about A&A.

I also learned that some A&A sites are better than others. ;)

Jeremy

Well, it seems to me that some swords have guards, while some don't.

I've learned a great deal. Most importantly, I learned about, and got a book through here, called "Arms and Armour of the Medieval Knight". That, is a done deal in and of itself.

M.

(14) Some people don't like questions.

(15) The Marketplace is more than often filled with quality items.

I still have to get that book "Arms and Armour of the Medieval Knight", it's a must have!
Wow! What haven't I learned here because of myArmoury!?
I was fortunate to befriend one of the former moderators and a former member here "Patrick Kelly" and he spent a lot of time writing me emails with information sending me in the right directions and a few phone calls too!
I always knew that I had a whole lot to learn, which is why I sought out this website in fhe first place, I came here to learn because I was totally in love with my new found interest and focal point which has surpassed all former interests, even those that still interest me!
I already knew that a good hand and a half sword was going to cost me over $600.00 because I happened upon the
Arms & Armor Boothe at the Bristol Ren Fair on the IL and WI border the summer of 2005 and in the previous 3 summers, in fact I'd already bought a spear, dagger and after 2 years of contemplation my first sword The German Bastard Sword from them. However, I did not yet know who Albion was, but I was not here very long before I found out and Wow was I ever impressed with their company!
I've met a few of the members in person, gone to a couple of cutting fests that Shane Allee held and really enjoyed myself and I am hoping for another one this spring or summer and wow have I got the plastic jugs to bring! LOL
I learned about Chivalry Bookshelf because of myArmoury also, and I've bought 18 or 19 of their books including
In Service of the Duke, which is the showpiece of my related library!
I could go on and on and write a really long post listing the things I've learned here, but I will spare all of you by saying that without myArmoury I would be far behind where I am at now!

Nathan you have helped so many people in such a big way :!:

Bob