[Matthew G.M. Korenkiewicz]

One of my favorite swords in my small collection is The Albion Duke. A simply designed
broadsword with great blade presence and surprisingly elegant lines. This is actually my
second Albion Duke. I sold my first to finance another project and upon reflecting about
swords-I've-sold that I would have liked to have kept, found The Duke at the top of the list.



For a time I didn't think The Duke needed a scabbard. It actually looked quite composed " in
the raw," if you will. Inevitably though, one wants to protect a blade from the elements. I also
wanted to test the Scabbard-maker waters beyond the safe harbor of Christian Fletcher, so
contacted Greg Griggs who has done a few scabbards for members here; most notably the
worthy and thoughtful Patrick Kelly ...

After initial how-do-you-do's Greg and I settled in to discuss the commission. Then, crayola,
tracing paper, and pencil in hand I drew up a very basic design :



What recently has driven me a bit crazy is scabbard maintenance. I've had a number made by
Christian Fletcher, some with less metal, some more, and I have found the scabbard bits
and pieces often demand pain-staking, careful attention. One can easily muck-up the leather
trying to flitz-out some oxidation on a chape. Of course, this is just the nature of things. BUT with
maintenance in mind, I wanted as little metal on The Duke's scabbard and rig as possible ...

And so, Greg went to work :





As you can see, Greg nailed the design. And while I hadn't drawn-up the rig, I did express my
interest in something -- again -- very basic, with little metal, that one might wear over the back
or shoulder. Furthermore, Greg received my sword on September 27th and the commission
was finished and returned to me on October 30th. This was an excellent turn-around, but mind
you likely the result of Greg not yet being as busy as, for instance, Christian Fletcher ...

I plan to take a few of my own pics soon, and perhaps note the differences I see in each maker's
works. I do want to say Greg was excellent to work with. Updates were prompt once the show was
underway, and direct questions replied to in a patient and conversational tone and manner. This
made me feel very comfortable with my decision to contact him. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend
Greg to my fellow forumites ...

[Greyson Brown]

That looks very nice while still being definitively in the functional camp. I do have to say that Greg does great work. There I times when I begrudge him that slightly, but there is no denying it. If nothing else, I really like the proportions on Greg's half-round throat flaps.

-Grey

[Michael Edelson]

Really nice work. I like the square chape...it's very fitting for that type of sword.

If this were my scabbard, I'd remove the modern looking rivets near the ring and sew the strap ends shut, but that's a minor thing.

The leather work on the scabbard itself is really nice...especially the stiching around the flaps.

[Matthew G.M. Korenkiewicz]

Hi guys, thanks for your comments ... I really wanted to keep things simple, and rather like the squared
off look myself. Furthermore, I hoped to keep the cost of the project as reasonable as possible without
necessarily sacrificing a certain amount of quality.

[Jared Smith]

I am a fan of the risers, and you did a nice job. Congratulations.

I would appreciate a view of the back side stitching and any description of your method (gluing leather, wetting and shrinking, etc.) This is not for purposes of criticism, it is just something I have struggled with on my previous attempts. So I would enjoy an amateur success story.

Sincerely,

Jared

[Robin Smith]

[Greyson Brown]

[Greg Griggs]

Thanks for the compliments guys. Any observations, good or otherwise , are alwas appreciated. I'm glad Matthew was happy enough with the project to post the pics and say such kind words about the work. He was great with his input, and as with everyone else from this forum I've done commissions for(Robin for one), he was a real pleasure to work with. We have a wonderful community here!

Like Grey, I'm not really big on risers, but these actually serve a functional purpose with keeping the suspension from sliding along the scabbard, plus with the spartan "I'm a man of business" look of the sword and scabbard it just kind of gives that certain something keeping it from being entirely too plain. Don't know why, but I neglected to take pics of the back to show the stitching. I know some guys have great luck with gluing the leather around the wood core, but I started out using a stitch system that Peter J. described and have just stuck with it. BTW Greyson, remember, I've seen your work and it's top-notch itself.

I've been fortunate in that the last three commissions each have had completely different styles of suspensions and chapes, so it's given me a chance to broaden my horizens a bit. Wish I could say that I was past the "amateur" stage, LOL. But I am working on it.

All the best to all,
-Greg

[Matthew G.M. Korenkiewicz]