A couple months ago a delighted friend/training partner and I received and spent an entire evening enjoying our first sharp swords, made by Peter Regenyei in Hungary. We waited a total of around seven months from the design submission to reception and over that time both Scott Brown at HEMA Supplies in Florida and also Regenyei and Ferenc themselves were incredibly helpful and patient with us and our inquiries.
I thought that since this forum is one of my primary web sources for information on swords and historical weaponry/martial culture, I might try and give back a little by sharing my experience thus far, since Peter'e custom work is not as widely known or used as his Federschwerts. As he has a reputation as a quality sword smith (esp. for those looking for excellent blades at a doable $350-550 price) I thought I would divulge my thoughts on the sword via this post.
PHOTO LINKS AT BOTTOM OF REVIEW (Apologies, not sure how to place photos inline)
INTRO:
My friend Mattia and I began training Fiore's Italian longsword from Il Fior di Battaglia (mostly through Guy's translation and modern books) in December of 2014 and jumped around between various authors and synthetic trainers until we picked up some Regenyei Feders and began to train a little more seriously. Between the necessity of sharp swords to understand mechanics of the crossings and the unspoken desire to have a real example of the weapons with which we are training Armizare, we quickly agreed to commission some custom swords.
The design I submitted to Regenyei was drawn up in Photoshop and altered a few times. Having just started to look at other sources, Matt and I were taken with the long hilts and increased dimensions of later German sources and also Morozzo's plates. We also were not educated in Oakeshott's typology and thus lacked that vocabulary.
I specified to Regenyei that we would like swords with waisted, leather-wrapped handles with ovular cross sections, curved flared quillons, a faceted disc pommel for me and an octagonal scent-stopped for my friend, and long, narrow-fullered blades with appleseed edge geometries, and sharp edges. I did not specify a sharp, acute point. The sword was to have an ultimate length of 135cm with a 100cm blade and 30cm hilt + 5cm pommel. The cross guard was to be 24cm long, as per their standard model. The commission was made with an agreed cost of $460 for the sword itself (not including shipping).
INITIAL IMPRESSION & SPECS:
After unboxing these swords, Matt and I appreciated the blade presence of the swords (handling almost identically) when compared with Feders, although it really came as no surprise. The blades are both the specified 45mm wide at the cross and taper to roughly 18cm a little less than 10cm from the point. There is sufficient distal taper also to allow the blade a little less profile taper and keep the CoG back at around 2.75". The swords both weigh just over 3.5lbs, which is justified given their length. The point is sufficiently acute to puncture a vinyl kicking/boxing target with moderate force, but (as you can see) not particularly pointy. The fuller is uniformly ground, which is unfortunate aesthetically however ultimately keeps the cost way down. It is clean and although it looks a little modern doesn't detract too much from the sword's look(I think).
The grip is long, comfortable, and soft after a little leather-cream was rubbed into it. It is very narrow, and in the case of my sword the thick disc-pommel rises dramatically and offers a very ergonomic topography via which multiple grips and great leverage are found naturally when practicing anything from Guy Windsor's cutting drills to Anders Linnard's interpretations of various reverse-grips. The cross guard is a little short for the grip-length and that is my first remorse; not specifying it to be at least 28cm or even 30.
HANDLING:
This sword allows a short (5'8" on a good day) kid like me reach that I might not have with a longsword of more late 14th/early 15th century proportions. I have drilled to the point where I no longer need to check the terrain to avoid swiping the ground. The grip length means that someone with stocky arms like me can coil and unwind strikes of considerable reach and power at the cost of a little speed. The weapon is maneuverable, if not a little cumbersome for some of the plays of Fiore's Zogho Stretto. The satin finish, consistency of the grip leather, grip profile, and wide pommel all provide good, comfortable surfaces for interfacing with the sword without any gloves. Being a firm convert Guy Windsor's thumb-middle-finger grip form, The sword doesn't fatigue my hands like some other narrow, long swords have done. The grip is also pretty flat (Regenyei's grips tend to be more rectangular. I specified an ovular grip cross-section to try and encourage a compromise, it seems to have worked) in the plane of the flat, and transitioning grips with the naked hand is incredibly comfortable as a result, since the grip is of course flush with the cross.
I have not tried cutting with the sword, because I don't have a readily available medium and all the vegetables and fruit in the home are eaten pretty quickly. I did have a print of an illustration on 80# paper that was printed off-color and thus useless, I let the blade fall through it and the cut was pretty clean.
The edge itself is well-executed. It is sharp and seems (to my unpracticed eye and finger) even. There is no noticeable bevel, which is very pleasing for a sword at this price, coming from someone whose specialty is blunts and training weapons. The edge is not terrifically sharp, and I can run my hand up and down it with light contact being kept the whole time with only a crease being left on my palm. I intend to hone the edge a little with a sharpening stone at some point (there is a scabbard on the way from Tamas Varju at the end of this month), but for now it suits the purpose of being propped against the wall and swung through the air every morning I'm home on San Juan Island. the blade is fairly stiff (far more so than any feder or blunt I own, as is proper) and won't go past 25 or so degrees in the last third without some elbow grease.
FIT AND FINISH:
This sword seems well put-together, which makes sense given the enduring reputation of Peter's blunts and feders. The peen is somewhat rough but tight and the entire hilt is a solid, noiseless assembly and excellent medium between the hands and blade. There are minor blemishes and some faint scratches from shipping and handling on the weapon, that could be easily removed by someone that was bothered by such things. After about two months, plenty of handling, and one light application of baby oil, there is a tiny rust spot developing on the underside of the pommel.
The leather of the grip is a modest, flat black and is firm in the hand. The leather seam is visible but after plenty of drilling with and without gloves it has not shown signs of uplifting and is barely felt even in motions that turn the grip in the palm.
One notable thing about the guard that is a little unfortunate is that since it's a standard model, the opening at the tang's shoulder is wider than the blade itself. I can't tell quite how deep the opening goes (and how steeply it slopes) because I haven't looked at it with a flashlight, but it's noticeable at a distance and, in a practical circumstance, might increase the intake of moisture and grime into the recesses of the cross/tang vertex and even allow moisture into the grip core/around the tang at the hilt (shudders). Fortunately, for my use of it, this is a minor concern and is allowable at the price point, since the sword is tightly assembled and also of custom dimensions.
CONCLUSION:
This sword is a great first sharp for me and taught me a few lessons about do's and don'ts of the commissioning process. Everyone at Regenyei armories was polite and patient with me and my questions and advised when asked to do so. For the price the swords handles well, is well-constructed, and as Mr. Windsor encourages, is pleasing to my eye. I am always happy to pick it up for a few morning molinelli. Things I would change would be the the length of the cross guard, proper indication that I wanted a slightly sharper point, and specification of shorter fuller. I might also scale the dimensions down about 5cm for the hilt and the the blade to make it really fit me. It's not a big deal, just a big sword. I encourage anyone who has the money to put down and the time to wait for a Regenyei custom to consider doing so if you care to have quality custom work done at an affordable price.
Thanks for reading! (sorry for any typos, it's late-ish and I've got exams tomorrow, and wanted to write this out)
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