Hi all (again)

Well my recent German oddysey started with this messer.

It was a comission for a left handed client; hence the nagel position.

I was provided with some reference regarding the profile of the nagel and the pommel and an image from a fight book and the rest was largely down to me trying to marry up the hard information with the rather loose information provided from the book.

In conjunction with my client an early foray into forward facing tips to the quillons was abandoned although there was some evidence from the fight book image for this, we both agreed it didn't look right so the guard was altered. Although the grip is quite long, it seemed to marry with the image quite well.

I posted up looking for information on scabbards and although there was a great deal of information provided none of it seemed to marry with this project directly so I took some elements of pieces and put them together, notably the supension ssytem, which was one I had not come across before. The scabbard is a double layer leather construction.

The knife has a spring steel blade and mild steel fittings with box wood scales to the messer and the byknife.

The blade is 24" long by about 2" wide and 5mm thick at the base tapering to 2.5mm at the start of the false edge. Sorry for the mixed units.
POB is 3.75" from the guard
POP is 15.5" from guard
weight is 2lb/900g

Tod

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That is one beautiful creation! I love the cross guard. Wow... :cool:

hi Tod! NIce work. I'm curious about the suspension. Can you give a look at the back to show how it works? I don't get it.

That's VERY nice, Tod. I like messers.

Will you have it at TORM this weekend?

Nathan Robinson wrote

Quote:

I'm curious about the suspension. Can you give a look at the back to show how it works? I don't get it.

I lifted the suspension layout from the picture below that was posted up when I was looking for information on messer scabbards. One of the reasons I decided to do this system was because it was unknown to me so I wanted to have a look and the other is simply because I like the look of it.

Obviously with only a front view and no other referance I had to infer alot. Basically as a low to middle strata item I had already decided to go with a all leather scabbard without a chape and so the suspension fitted with that in that there are no metal fittings I could see. The main load strap is wrapped around the scabbard under the top leather layer and comes out the back. If I had just brought them through slits the weight would tear it after time, so I doubled the straps over each other so the top leather layer was not unduly loaded and then they come out and are stiched to the belt.

The steady strap is also stiched to the belt but as it is not so load bearing I felt this could be secured by the top layer OK so I slit the leather and pulled it through, doubling the end of the strap to stop it being pulled back through.

As I say this is mainly speculation brought on from a single source, which is always slightly dangerous, but I love experimental archeology; it all seems to work in engineering terms, aesthetically and socially with the item so I went for this interpretation.

See you there Glen - 2 days to go and working like a madman! The messer will be there along with a recent longsword.

Tod

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I love how the tang is not centered with the blade. It looks more wicked. ;) Well done!

Very nice messer there; that is really wonderful work! :)

I like it a lot, Tod, and without any reserve. That's a perfect combination of art and function. Congratulations!

Cheers,

David

That's a very smart suspension solution, Tod, and now that I've seen it the painting detail below makes more sense to me. I wonder if that's what we're seeing here:

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I had the pleasure of handling this messer today and it is a beautiful weapon. The stats don't do it justice; it just floats in the hand. It is agile, manoeuvrable, and wicked fast. It would be a superb fighting tool.

The new owner is a VERY lucky person. And I'm quite, quite jealous. :)

Seconding what Glennan said, had a handle & chat session at the market today - this messer is soo much more than the photo's do justice too.

Tod is such a nice bloke to talk to too, I just wish I could afford to commision a piece from him especially the nice black handled gorgeous piece he's just finished ..... I'll leave it at that until its been posted up !

Adam