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Zach Gordon
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Posted: Tue 30 Jun, 2009 12:18 pm Post subject: |
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Don't most MRL's come with a chappe? An easy solution. Would be to just use the old one and use a jewlers saw to cut in your design. Then you could use a blow torch and hammer to re-size it to fit the new scabbard shape.
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Sean Flynt
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Maurizio D'Angelo
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Posted: Tue 30 Jun, 2009 1:19 pm Post subject: |
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great job Sean,
same question:
is the blade hardening?
which you used to glue the wood? Epoxy?
Regards
Maurizio
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Sean Flynt
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Julien M
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Posted: Fri 03 Jul, 2009 6:49 am Post subject: |
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Any chance of a full scabbard shot?
Cheers,
J
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Zach Gordon
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Posted: Fri 03 Jul, 2009 7:04 am Post subject: |
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And a full finished sword shot!!!!
What kind of scabbard suspension are you going to use?
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Sean Flynt
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Posted: Fri 03 Jul, 2009 7:35 am Post subject: |
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Yep, I'll have lots of photos to share very soon. As for suspension, I'm using a narrow belt with the basic knot often used in this period. You'll often see swords of this length suspended by a single knot in a very narrow belt at the top of the scabbard. This is shown worn very loosely around the waist, with the right side of the belt resting at the natural waistline and the weapon low on the left hip. It's very simple and surprisingly comfortable.
-Sean
Author of the Little Hammer novel
https://www.amazon.com/Little-Hammer-Sean-Flynt/dp/B08XN7HZ82/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=little+hammer+book&qid=1627482034&sr=8-1
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Maurizio D'Angelo
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Posted: Mon 06 Jul, 2009 12:03 pm Post subject: |
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Is a great satisfaction to see your finished work. If it is even more perfect.
Here we are all impatient to see the work complete.
Ciao
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Sean Flynt
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Posted: Wed 08 Jul, 2009 9:09 am Post subject: |
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Well...I'll call this finished although I'm still struggling with the chape. The sword is 2 pounds 4 oz. Sword, scabbard and belt together are 2 pounds 10 oz.
Here are a few quick shots and a couple of images of similar suspensions. (See better shot of hilt on the next page).
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-Sean
Author of the Little Hammer novel
https://www.amazon.com/Little-Hammer-Sean-Flynt/dp/B08XN7HZ82/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=little+hammer+book&qid=1627482034&sr=8-1
Last edited by Sean Flynt on Thu 09 Jul, 2009 7:56 am; edited 1 time in total
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Artis Aboltins
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Posted: Wed 08 Jul, 2009 9:37 am Post subject: |
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Excelent work, Sean! The sword looks even better than I expected from the progress pics.
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Bill Grandy
myArmoury Team
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Posted: Wed 08 Jul, 2009 9:43 am Post subject: |
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Sean, you never cease to amaze. I can't believe how well you transformed that sword. Wonderful work!
HistoricalHandcrafts.com
-Inspired by History, Crafted by Hand
"For practice is better than artfulness. Your exercise can do well without artfulness, but artfulness is not much good without the exercise.” -anonymous 15th century fencing master, MS 3227a
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Sean Flynt
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Sean Flynt
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Julien M
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Posted: Wed 08 Jul, 2009 11:46 am Post subject: |
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Holy crap Sean!
You raised the customisation bar higher with that project no doubt. Starting from period art is also on my to do list.
Very elegant and clean work all around, and the fact that you worked on budget material makes the all thing even more interesting to me. I'm especially impressed by the grip and cross work, very clean lines...and I was sure your first scabbard would turn very well (all in all, a simple scabbard isn't that hard to achieve).
Are you going to keep the rain guard as plain? It seems to beg for a stamp or light carving of some sort.
How does it handle, has the point of balance moved forward a bit? (there is more wood on the pommel side, but the guard now being much further down the blade...).
Anyway, congratulations!
Julien
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Nathan Robinson
myArmoury Admin
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Posted: Wed 08 Jul, 2009 12:02 pm Post subject: |
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That looks great, Sean. I'm especially happy to read through the topic and see the inspiration and then progress through the project.
Julien M wrote: | Are you going to keep the rain guard as plain? It seems to beg for a stamp or light carving of some sort. |
Really, that type of thing needs to be done before dying and finishing. Doing it now would not result in crisp details.
.:. Visit my Collection Gallery :: View my Reading List :: View my Wish List :: See Pages I Like :: Find me on Facebook .:.
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Sean Flynt
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Posted: Wed 08 Jul, 2009 12:08 pm Post subject: |
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Julien M wrote: |
Are you going to keep the rain guard as plain? It seems to beg for a stamp or light carving of some sort.
How does it handle, has the point of balance moved forward a bit? (there is more wood on the pommel side, but the guard now being much further down the blade...).
Julien |
The sword seems elegant but plain to my eye (almost Art Deco,) especially considering the elaborate chappe decoration shown in paintings. Interestingly, some of the Massacre of the Innocents images I studied for this project show the usual thugs using relatively short swords with little or no apparent decoration, with simple scabbards suspended by a single strap and lacking chapes (see below--although one of the figures in these images appears to be welI-dressed and sporting a decorated sword belt). I conceived this piece as being a bit better than that, so I think it needs a chape. As for decoration...You can just barely see a decorative line around the bottom of the chappe. My original intent was for that to mark the upper edge of a painted gold band. I thought about using gold paint on the cross bevels and peen block (the Bayerisches XVIII is gilded in these areas) and then making a brass chape. That might be too fancy for my taste. I think it needs something but I'm not sure yet what I'll do. I'm going to redo my Dürer again using some of the skills I developed on this project, and that might be the better canvas for decoration.
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-Sean
Author of the Little Hammer novel
https://www.amazon.com/Little-Hammer-Sean-Flynt/dp/B08XN7HZ82/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=little+hammer+book&qid=1627482034&sr=8-1
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Sean Flynt
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Posted: Wed 08 Jul, 2009 12:38 pm Post subject: |
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Someone has wondered why so many of the paintings I've referenced here show infanticide. These are depictions of the Massacre of the Innocents (Bethlehemitischer Kindermord,) part of the Christian belief tradition (part of the Christmas story, in fact, although modern Christians don't dwell on this event to the degree our medieval European ancestors apparently did.)
Here's the long version:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massacre_of_the_Innocents
Here's the short version: The famous "three kings" stopped in to visit Herod the Great, king of the Jews, on their way to pay their respects to the newborn "King of the Jews" in the town of Bethlehem. Herod didn't like the sound of that at all and ordered the murder of all infant males in Bethlehem, just to make sure the baby in question couldn't threaten his throne. The hero escapes, of course.
The story has Jesus, Mary, Joseph, anguished women, a violent Jewish tyrant, pious "kings" and horrifying bloodshed--what more could a medieval European Christian want in a religious painting?
So many of these have turned up in my studies because:
• Many (most?) paintings of this period depict religious themes, so no matter what I search for ("sword," "scabbard," etc.) the results usually come in that context.
• The Massacre of the Innocents is one of two religious themes in which you can expect to see bare blades. Depictions of the martyrdoms of saints are valuable for the same reason. Saint Catherine typically is depicted with a longsword in her hand--sometimes bare, sometimes in scabbard--so there's another avenue of research for you (saints are often shown with the instruments of their death). The other advantage of these images is that they tend to focus on a few individuals rather than a large crowd (as in crucifixion and battle scenes). This relatively small, "you-are-there" scale allows/requires the artist to include more detail of use to arms and armour students.
• Finally, the thugs shown in Massacre of the Innocents images are apparently low-status individuals, so these paintings might give us a better impression of what the ordinary soldier might have used. I'm interested in common infantry weapons, and that's what these paintings show.
I LOVE KIDS!
-Sean
Author of the Little Hammer novel
https://www.amazon.com/Little-Hammer-Sean-Flynt/dp/B08XN7HZ82/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=little+hammer+book&qid=1627482034&sr=8-1
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David Sutton
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Posted: Wed 08 Jul, 2009 1:33 pm Post subject: |
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Absolutely outstanding work Sean, looks very professional, have you ever thought of going into business customising swords?
I like your use of historical sources too.
'Reserve your right to think, for even to think wrongly is better than not to think at all'
'To teach superstitions as truth is a most terrible thing'
Hypatia of Alexandria, c400AD
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Sean Flynt
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Posted: Wed 08 Jul, 2009 1:36 pm Post subject: |
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Julien M wrote: | How does it handle, has the point of balance moved forward a bit? (there is more wood on the pommel side, but the guard now being much further down the blade...).
Julien |
I forgot to answer this part of your question. The POB is still right around 2.5" below the cross. This feels just right for this narrow blade--just enough blade presence for cutting while allowing an amazing quickness and accuracy in thrusting. It feels wonderful.
Here's something interesting, which I didn't notice until late in my project:
My Sword
32.5" Blade
2.5" POB
18" COP
Sword X
33.5" blade
2.125" POB
18" COP
Let that soak in a second.....o.k., Sword X is Albion's Svante, a northern European sword of the same period. How can it be? Svante is 4 lbs! Yes, but Svante's grip/pommel are 4" longer (46" overall vs. my 41"). Svante's blade is wider and almost certainly thicker through that medial ridge, but that extra-long grip and large pommel keep the POB close to the cross, probably making the piece feel deceptively light. My sword does the same thing with its long grip and massive pommel, but balancing a thinner and narrower blade, so the pommel can be significantly closer to the cross. I find it very interesting that things worked out this way with my sword. I feel that maybe I've done something right (although if anybody wants to trade their Svante for my project I'll be happy to oblige!).
-Sean
Author of the Little Hammer novel
https://www.amazon.com/Little-Hammer-Sean-Flynt/dp/B08XN7HZ82/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=little+hammer+book&qid=1627482034&sr=8-1
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Sean Flynt
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Posted: Wed 08 Jul, 2009 1:51 pm Post subject: |
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David Sutton wrote: | Absolutely outstanding work Sean, looks very professional, have you ever thought of going into business customising swords?
I like your use of historical sources too. |
Thanks! Here's the catch: Just out of curiosity I added my cash investment to a reasonable hourly rate and came up with a figure comparable to what Albion and A&A charge for their swords. I will flatter myself and say that I think my cross is more detailed than either the Munich or Dürer crosses, if not as well finished, but the time and labor involved is outrageous. Albion and A&A could do the same thing (actually, they'd do much better work) but the extra expenditure of resources would price their work out of the range they seem to have figured people will accept. Given their overhead, I don't know how they make any money anyway! I know they're MUCH more efficient but still....My hat's off to those guys (and I'm eager to see if Albion is going to have a faceted Bayerisches-style cross on their Museum Line Munich).
As for doing this as a money-maker...I figure I can do my thing on my own (slow) schedule, enjoy the projects for awhile and then sell them for a reasonable profit, which I then put back into the hobby. Some of my recent work is funding a new commission for E.B. Erickson (another German sword!). I think that's about as close to business as I want to get. Nobody screams at you when you're making stuff for yourself, though you'll probably do plenty of screaming on your own.
-Sean
Author of the Little Hammer novel
https://www.amazon.com/Little-Hammer-Sean-Flynt/dp/B08XN7HZ82/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=little+hammer+book&qid=1627482034&sr=8-1
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