Hello all, I recently bought an Albion Trajan gladius and I gotta say the thing is cool beyond belief. But I reached a bit of a little situation. I read on filmswords that leaving bronze hilt components (which the trajan has) in a box or in packaging can alter the finish. First off I'm one of those people that like's to have a markless sword and i never use them (though I would really like to. Anyway I decided to display it on a stand I stole from one of my katanas. Imagine my worries when I put the sword on the stand and a paint chip was on the blade :eek:. I understand I may worry a bit much but this is my first Albion and I love to take care of my stuff in general. Anyway I cleaned the paint chip off the blade and now I can't decide if I should leave it in the box and wait for a proper stand, or leave it on the stand if the paint does not stain the blade. So can paint stain a carbon steel blade? or should i just leave it stored in the box?

I doubt that paint can leave permanent damage on steel. Things you will need to be wary of are fingerprints, rust, etc. BreakFree CLP is great to wipe down your blade with (keeps moisture off, etc.); even if you don't "use" the sword, give it a rub-down every once in a while. As for the brass components, I'm not sure what to recommend (none of the Albions I own have brass parts) - hopefully someone else here will have some good suggestions.

One of the great things about Albion's swords is their resilience (speaking as one who uses both their blunted trainers and sharps as part of regular practice).. so there's no need to worry excessively about keeping them in prime condition. Fingerprints and dust can be wiped off with no averse effect, and even if you get a little rust, that too can be polished off - carefully - and never notice any difference from its fresh-from-the-workshop finish.

I don't think the paint would stain the blade; fingerprints are more likely to do that. If you keep everything oiled and do so regularly you should be fine. I've had my Albion Crecy for about 5 years now and it still is in as-new condition - and it has spent most of its time in the box. I use Balistol and/or Tuf-cloth to maintain my swords, as well as some sort of automotive metal cleaner soaked into cotton wadding.

My best guess as to why the box might change the surface on the fittings would be maybe the pH of the cardboard or foam might react with bronze, though I'm not sure. It hasn't done anything to the steel on my sword thus far though.

In the event anything does leave a patina you don't like on either the steel or the bronze, it is really easy to clean it off with a light grit sandpaper (I would start at 240 and work your way up to 400 or 600 for anything minor) on a sanding block. Then finish with a scotchbrite pad and you'll never even know it was there.

Good luck!

I'd try a metal polish on the bronze before I'd take sandpaper to it, but that's just me. :) With the steel, gray or maroon Scotchbrite usually takes care of little things. I save sandpaper for deeper stuff (and I don't let stuff get to the point where it would be that deep).

Keep the steel oiled and touch up with Scotchbrite as needed. I like the look of tarnished bronze, though not when it gets the really green verdigris going.

Generally, I'm not one who likes artificial aging on weapons. I prefer my stuff to look cared for, as I believe period pieces were. I don't like super-shiny stuff nor artificially aged stuff. Just the look that comes from natural age and good care. :)

Thank you all for the advice it is most helpful. I got Breakfree CLP, and now I'm looking for a proper cloth to oil the blade with, I was thinking about one of those soft cloths used for wiping down LCD screens and such. I do not posses one at the moment though. The person at the gun shop i got the oil from recomended using an old T-shirt. So what are your thoughts on that?

my Albion gladius has been in its shipping box for over 3 years without a problem. the blade is coated with CLP and i wipe it down every 3-4 months, using a cotton rag i swiped from work a couple of years ago. i've done nothing special with the brass and it hasnt even taken on a patina yet. i'm thinking of switching to CLP Collector as its supposed to be geared more towards long term storage. has anyone else used it?