Hey all, I ordered a Windlass European sword last night, does an one have any comments about this sword?


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Hi Joel,

I used to have the European sword. I was pretty impressed with its quality for $175. Others who have bought it have liked it as well.

http://www.myArmoury.com/albums/photo/4855.html
http://www.myArmoury.com/albums/photo/5815.html
http://www.myArmoury.com/albums/photo/4854.html
http://www.myArmoury.com/albums/photo/5116.html
http://www.myArmoury.com/albums/photo/6400.html

My brother has one. It's light, well balanced and quick. The only complaint I have is that the gaurd rattles a little but I can fix that.

Well, i got the piece yesterday, and have to say that i am very impressed with it. My dad who knows absolutely nothing about swords even said that it was a lot nicer then my other ones. :)
I have a couple of questions about it though.
first of all, what should the balance on the thing be like. It seems a little blade heavy. I'm not sure if this is just this sword or if it is the same on all swords.
My other question is whether or not the relatively small (in my uneducated opinion) grip circumference is also typical of other swords. If i were to get a higher quality sword, Del Tin , Albion, or Angus Trim, would i see a difference in the afore mentioned features?
I realize of coarse that such things very from style to style and from sword to sword, but i was just wondering how accurate the proportions and balance on my new sword were.
Thanks in advance for any input. :)

The proportions look OK, but the question is whether the mass distribution is optimized or not. The problem with many sword repros is that they look good from the side, but have less than ideal dimensions when it comes to the taper of the blade, thickness of pommel, etc.

Hi Joel...

I have never handled this particular sword, but I have always thought that it would handle well considering the demensions and weight given in the catalog. It is close to three pounds, but with its profile taper it seems that the Point of Balance would be closer to the hilt, putting most of the weight in your hand. What is the (POB) Point of Balance on your sword?

Also IMHO "blade heaviness" is relatively subjective term... for instance here are a couple of my experiences:

My opinion about "blade heaviness" has varied with what I have been familiar with. I can remember when I got my first single hand medieval sword (a Albion DelTin 2140) I thought it was terrible blade heavy because I was familiar with a couple of gladii and a short halstatt sword that I had at the time. Now that I have been swinging around a couple of type X and a type XIII, I took the 2140 off the rack and it does not feel blade heavy at all.

Also I suspect that the shape of the grip could also play a part. I have an Albion DelTin St. Maurice (2130) Turin sword which has a grip that is very small in circumference for my hand. The sword feels heavy in the blade until I squeeze harder on the grip. It blade feels even lighter (to me at least) once the sword is in motion.

The one Atrim sword I have handled and both of my Albion swords have grips that seem small in circumference for my hand. It is possible that I just have large hands. I try to justify the smallness by saying that the knights that used these swords would have worn gauntlets or leather gloves. And when I put on my work gloves the grip does feel much more secure.

ks

Also you can choke-up on the grip and wrap your index finger over the guard. It puts the center of gravity a little closer to your hand and makes for a more secure grip. It will make the handleing better and this style gripping was in common useage with most medieval single handers.