I just got one of these to see if the Tinker blades represent a good option for projects:

http://kultofathena.com/product.asp?item=OH2402

For $105, shipped, (KOA) I got what I would tentatively call a Type XVIIId blade. My first impression is surprise at the thickness of the stock. In this respect it compares favorably to the blade of my A&A Town Guard sword, which is a seriously intimidating field weapon. I don't have calipers on hand but it looks to me like the tang and thickest part of the blade are ~.25", with distal taper (esp. below the forte) to an acute point. As you would expect, it's a very stiff blade, thicker and stiffer than anything I've seen from Windlass. The edges of the lower half of the blade are quite sharp. The edges of the upper half are similar to the stock Windlass edge.

I work almost exclusively with Windlass blades, which tend to be relatively thin and not acutely pointed (which is not necessarily a-historical, depending on the overall design of the sword). For me, this Hanwei-Tinker blade is a bit frightening.

I'm not sure how I should mount this robust blade. It's short enough for a riding sword but strong enough for a field sword. There's enough tang to make a bastard sword, though I think I'd probably cut off the welded-on threaded rod. XVIIId is typically a single-hand sword, but I think you'd need plenty of weight in the pommel to mount this for single-hand use. A complex guard would help, too. I have some faceted scent-stopper pommels and a guard with double side-rings, but I don't currently have any ideas for mounting. I think it could be mounted in a multitude of styles, including as a plain infantry sword of the early 17th c. Hmmm....and I also have a buckler project in mind. Could make a nice colonial pairing.

Whatcha reckon? Suggestions? Ideas?

---

 Attachment: 86.77 KB

Perhaps you could look at what Hanwei has done with their complete sword and put your own spin on it. Use similar dimensions and sizes (pommel, cross etc) but make your own combination of actual furniture. This would allow you to be creative, without having to worry about balance as much. That wouldn't be as interesting as mounting it as a single handed sword, but it would avoid the balancing hurdles.

What are your impressions of quality on these blades Sean?

I have considered in the past getting my hands on one and making all the fittings. Good luck, and let us know where you go with it.

In my somewhat amateurish opinion the weight is rather important for whether it should be fitted as 1 or 1½ hand sword, it sounds like it would be too heavy for 1 hand.
Also it seems to me that the longer handle of 1½ hand would enable you to balance it with a smaller/lighter pommel than a 1 handed and thereby keep the overall weight down.

My initial impression is only from handling it in the confines of a (parked) car, but it seems to be of good quality--even finish (coarse satin?), proper heat treatment, no sharp corners at tang,plenty of tang to work with in length, width and thickness. Compare it to buying one of the better Windlass Deal of the Day swords for, say, $140 shipped. If you're building a supply of parts or like the overall sword, go Windlass. If you know you'll have to assemble your project piece-by-piece, the H-T seems like a better choice. If all of the H-Ts are as robust as this one, that's another important consideration. If the type you like calls for a strong diamond section, Windlass generally isn't a good choice. This particular H-T is impressive in that regard. There's a longsword blade, too, and KOH offers a rebuilt H-T bastard sword that looks fantastic (with scabbard, it's about $370).

The more I think about it, the more I think that this blade would make a nice infantry sword of ca. 1600, English or German. I have that two-ring guard and could get a nice acorn pommel from Darkwood Armoury. See the sword in the hand of a desperate Virginia colonist in a tableau at the Frazier International History Museum in Louisvill, KY:

---

 Attachment: 190.95 KB



 Attachment: 155.62 KB

Or something like this:

---

 Attachment: 90.35 KB

Length (`33") width and taper should be right. Not sure about weight, but some of these things were pretty thick at the tang, as in the case below. With the right pommel I think it might work. I'll know more tonight.

---

 Attachment: 78.4 KB



 Attachment: 88.66 KB

I tried some loose bits on the blade just to get a sense for how the piece would balance as a single-hand sword. Turns out, I think you could do worse than using the (modified) guard and pommel of the Windlass "15th century longsword". I prefer the more globular pommel, but this ain't half bad. Ferrules and fish skin, ferrules and filets or a twisted wire binding with turks' heads.

The blackening and gilding is by the sword's original owner, Christopher Finneman. Good idea! Might steal it, since my own black riding sword of this period is set aside for a new owner.

Whatever I do for a pommel, I really do like the guard, minus the inside ring, as shown in the crude "artist's conception" image below. It's not overbuilt and clunky like so many Windlass guards. I'd bend it downward, of course, and change the section, eliminate the decorative bits and add new filing, etc. Balance as shown is ~3" below the guard.

I REALLY like this blade. In fact, I just ordered the H-T longsword blade because I'm so impressed with this one.

:D

---

 Attachment: 186.35 KB



 Attachment: 183.14 KB



 Attachment: 203.75 KB

Yeah, the fullered Type XVIIIa or XVIa is the one I just ordered. I already know how I want to use that one. :D

I'm not crazy about the stock furniture, either, especially the screw-on pommel. But look at the modified H-T bastard sword kit somebody is offering through KOA:

---

 Attachment: 151.74 KB

FWIW, I just got the H-T longsword blade. I'd call it a XVIa, and it's impressive, especially considering the price. Same thick and generous tang as the bastard sword blade. It's not a war sword--acutely pointed but not stiff enough for thrusting into gaps in armour, it seems to me. I think it'd be a good choice for a 15th c. "civilian" longsword blade, maybe in the general direction of the famous Brescia sword, but without the complex section. That might be how I mount it, in fact. So, that's two-for-two with the H-T blades.

Sean, I was also very impressed with these 'Tinker' blades from a functional standpoint. It's nearly impossible to find such stiff blades with such a strong distal taper at this price point. I had the Norman sword for a while but have traded it away. I was less impressed with the finish - very obvious grind marks outside of the fuller. This seems to be a Hanwei thing, so isn't it the case for these bastard blades as well? But I guess if you don't like the finish, it would be pretty easy for you to fix considering the far more difficult things you do with sword components. -JD

J.D. Crawford wrote, "... I was also very impressed with these 'Tinker' blades from a functional standpoint. It's nearly impossible to find such stiff blades with such a strong distal taper at this price point.I had the Norman sword for a while but have traded it away. I was less impressed with the finish - very obvious grind marks outside of the fuller."



Well, I have the Hanwei Tinker Viking sword and while the finish can't compare with my Albion sword I think the grinding and finish on the blade I have is very good on the faces but not very well done in the fuller itself. I wonder how much of this work is done by hand at Hanwei. I bought the Hanwei Viking sword as a project and my thinking is that if I were to antique the blade the variations in the fuller would add an illusion of authenticity to the completed sword.


While I only have the Albion and the Hanwei for comparison purposes I do think that the Hanwei blade is a very good value.