[Robert Hinds]

Hello,

I went to my first cutting party yesterday and realized how bad off my edge alignment is. I was wondering if the myArmoury community could suggest some good inexpensive longswords I could use to practice with.

I originally was going to save up for a Albion Talhoffer, but that seems kind of ridiculous since I have a minimum wage job and even my WMA teacher has just an ATrim. So basically I'm looking for something under $500 that has as much historical accuracy as I can get for that price (I realize historical accuracy and inexpensive are not really compatable).

Thank you for checking out my topic and thanks in advance for your help.

[Mikko Kuusirati]

Well, personally I do love my Valiant Armoury Signature Collection "Kriegschwert". Blade designed by Angus Trim, furniture designed by Christian Fletcher, and all around incredible value for the money especially considering it comes complete with belt and scabbard. The same can be said of the other Signature Collection swords, too.

Other than that, look through the reviews on Sword Buyers Guide; this is exactly what that site is for. And don't forget the Sword Reviews forum or the archived reviews from their old forum, either.

[Roger Hooper]

if your purpose is cutting, The Albion Talhoffer would be a bad choice. It's is a type XVa,more for thrusting than cutting.

If you want a good performance cutter, then try something from Tried and True Armory like the Mercenary X1Ia.2 -- it has the advantage of being made by Gus Trim, himself, rather than by someone in China to his specs (Valiant Signature swords)

You should ask this question over at SBG too.

[Jeffrey Faulk]

I do have to agree that 'historical accuracy' and 'inexpensive' don't always go together. However, in my opinion many inexpensive swords are not terribly out of place historically; yes, they might not fit perfectly, especially in the terms of their construction (many are hex-nut or threaded tang rather than peened), but beyond that they'd fit okay. As in, if you brought them back in time, people might look at them and go "huh, that's kinda funny-looking, that bit there", but once they wave them around or use them, they'd be like "whatever, it's fine".

Ahem. That being said:

--For the best cost to value ratio, with the caveat that there's quite possibly going to be some aftermarket work involved: Hanwei/Tinker. Might very well have to sharpen them up and change out the grip; other than this, they're fine swords. Historical accuracy questionable, but they're quite adequate considering the price and in some senses far better than other swords at similar price levels. Plus, they're VERY customizable!

--Next step up... well, there's really nothing in between Hanwei/Tinker and Valiant's ATrim Practical line, unless you're willing to consider a Windlass/MRL sword. The German Bastard and 15th Century Longsword are two decent Euros from that range.

--Valiant ATrim Practicals-- not many options to choose from, only a longsword and a single-handed sword. However, both are quite decent and will be sharp out of the box. The single-hander is rather light for many people, though-- the same sword with slightly different fittings and a much better scabbard is the VA Signature Crusader, which retails for rather more. The main problem is these sell out quickly!

--After this, I'd recommend either the VA Signature line or an ATrim from Tried and True Armories; the latter has the option of having a peened assembly if you order one rather than buying one off the shelf, may cost more but I'm not sure exactly. Either way, both of these are quite excellent buys, and with the VA Signature you get a very nice scabbard as well; I'm not sure if a belt is included, but I think so.

--Then there's always the various classifieds on different forums...

Good luck and be sure to tell us what you go for!

[Robert Hinds]

Thanks for responding guys.

I've checked the SBG reviews Mikko, thanks for letting me know about them.

I've found 2 other swords you guys didn't mention but that I'm curious about...

The mercenary XIIa1415 from Tried and True, it looks like pretty much the same sword that you posted Roger, except with a different hilt. (I like wasted hilts)

And the Hanwei Bastard Sword. I've handled the blunted version of this and it's one of the heavier handling swords that I've seen personally, but does anyone know how good the sharpened version is?

[P. Cha]

If you wanna work on your edge alignment, I would say a XVa is a GREAT choice because it'll lets you know when you screwed up as you bat the target. More cutting oriented swords will lets you get away with more sloppy techniques. Also whatever style of WMA you train in, I would say get a sword of the style you are training in. The hanwei tinker bastard sword is a very fast short longsword. I like it for fiore, but for the german schools, I would use the longsword. Both swords give pretty good feedback on when you mess up (hey batter batter). That said, if you go with this line...you MUST be able to redo the edge...or know somebody who can. There is a very high chance you will get a very badly done edge.

The swords at tried and true are all gus blades so they are great performers...not so much on the historical looks. If you do WMA, I would look at their XVI and XVIII longsword over the XII longsword. In anycase, if you can afford it, a gus blade is definately worth the money.

Another option is the albion squire line. The bastard sword is 490. With the sharpening it'll be a smidge over 500 though.

And finally over the 500 limit by 80 bucks....but there is the used market.

http://www.kultofathena.com/product.asp?item=...tard+Sword

If not this one, you can always keep an eye out in the marketplace sections at various forums.

[Michael Edelson]

[Craig Peters]

Go with the Albion Squire Line for cutting. They look good, handle well, and you have the option of selecting a more thrust-oriented XVa blade, or a cut-oriented Type XIIa blade. The Squire Line has the benefit of having blades that are very similar in design to their Next Gen counterparts, only with a bit thicker edges (still perfectly capable of cutting when sharpened) and less acute point sections. They're by far your best option, and they fit nicely within your price range, especially because you want something with reasonable historical accuracy.

[P. Cha]

[Robert Hinds]

The Squire Line is nice, but the bastard sword's grip is almost too small for me to grip it with 2 hands.

I'm interested in the ATrim XVIa.3 they have at Tried and True, but it's in the upper level of my budget...

I know it's probably not a good idea, but I'm severely tempted by the Hanwei Bastard sword because it's only $165 and I could have it in a month... (as opposed to the 4-5 months for the ATrim above)

[P. Cha]

[Robert Hinds]

I think you misunderstood which sword I was talking about, I'm talking about this one sold at KOA:

http://www.kultofathena.com/product.asp?item=...+Antiqued#

The grip is 9 and 1/4", which is almost perfect for me. But I've handled the blunt version and it's a bit heavier than my old Hanwei practical longsword, and since the sharp is just a few onces lighter I'm worried it would be heavier than a good sword should. (people on this forum are always talking about a bad handling sword messing up your technique)

[Roger Hooper]

[Craig Peters]

[Michael Edelson]

[Luka Borscak]

Hanwei Bastard is not really an optimal sword for longsword fencing... If you want a cheap sword, Hanwei Tinker Longsword would be the most acceptable choice. I have one it's relatively good cutter for the type and handles well. But I really dislike the hex nuts...

[Greg Mele]

[Michael Edelson]

[Robert Hinds]

Thanks for all your help guys. Here is my current plan...

While the crecy is a bit expensive for me right now I will save up for it in the future. But for right now I'm planning on getting the German Bastard Sword mentioned earlier in the thread to hold me over because I can have it by the end of the month and get cutting right away.

Thanks for all your help.

[P. Cha]