[Bruce Tordoff]

(Firstly a quick note to Nathan, I am not sure which catergory this particular sale falls under, so I apologise if I've got it wrong and feel free to bump it to the 'makers and manufacturers' forum).

This is a sword made by my friend, Paul Holwell, of England. who is not an industry professional, but however, having known me for some time has been swept up by my love for historical weaponry and thus, utilising his great crafts skills has had to dabble in making a few 'one off' swords as purely a hobby. This does not however, detract in any way from his meticulous attention to detail and craftsmans work ethos.
This sword, which he wishes to sell, is a Falcata, the first of this type he has ever made, in my opinion also his finest work.
I am therefore proud to represent my buddy here in advertising this finely crafted 'one off' for sale.

Made in the UK, this blade is made from EN45, which is a tempered silica manganese spring steel. Made using the stock removal method.

The Hilt fittings are hand carved from bronze, no cast parts whatsoever.
The grip is made from Black Indian water Buffalo horn, which has a nice natural look and feel with natural different coloured veins visible. The grip is rivetted through the tang, which incidentally has the same profile as the entire hilt. Also note worthy is the fact that round the entire hilt, which is 'sandwiched' onto the tang there are no burrs or overhangs, so the sword feels comfortable to hold.
Still on the grip, the rivet 'washers' are decoratively 'disguised' as eyes, in Nickel Silver, with the 'pupils' being the copper rivets, which are countersunk and ground flush.
The 'crossguard' and pommel are also rivetted through the tang, using the same bronze as the fittings and are rendered invisible to the naked eye. (Trust me, they really are!)
As the pictures describe, the pommel features a horse head design. The incising work is of a generic period type, very fine and meticulous work.
The blade also features several expertly incised grooves along most of its length, which follow the graceful contours of the blade..

The sword also comes complete with a very hansome scabbard, made with wooden inner core and black leather outer.
It is lined with with leather, the suede side facing the blade.
The leather outer is stitched along the bottom edge very discretely.
The metal fittings on the scabbard are made from 1.5mm sheet brass, including mouth, chape and two straps, which include two small finials with holes to attach a suspension ring of the owners choice.
These fittings are neatly soldered together on the backside. The chape is made in two halves which were formed and soldered together very well.

The blade slides very well into and out of the scabbard, with a snug, push fit for the last inch, and thus, does not rattle or fall out when inverted.

As this piece is a 'one off' and is very beautifully hand crafted, And would suit the collector or the serious 'Hoplite'
My friend Paul wishes to offer this sword for the sum of £500

Shipping would be extra, Obviously overseas from the UK would incur greater charges. Prices upon request.

To respond to this, please PM me on behalf of Paul. I will then furnish you with his email address, at which point you can discuss the preferred and most suitable payment method. Plus any other details etc.

Dimensions:
Overall length; from tip to pommel; 24 1/2" (620 mm)

Blade length; 19 7/8" (540mm)

Blade width at widest point; 1 15/16" (50mm)

Blade width at narrowest point; 1 3/8" (34mm)

Blade thickness; 1/4" (6mm)

Distal taper; 1/4" (6mm) @ 31/4" (80mm) from tip

Hilt length; 4 11/16" (118mm)

Grip opening; 3 7/16 (88mm)

Hilt Thickness; 9/16 (15mm)

P. O. B 14 7/8" (378mm) from Tip.

C. O. P. N/A

See attached photo's;

[Luke Zechman]

WOW... I love this falcata! Very lovely shape, and very clear lines and execution. If I had the money this falcata would be mine in a heart beat.

[David Wilson]

That IS nice!!!!

A couple questions -- how much does it weigh? And have you handled it? What's your opinion on handling?

[Bruce Tordoff]

David,
Blast! I knew there was something we forgot to do, Weigh the thing.
Don't worry, I'm going round to Pauls later, we will weigh it and post the results.
But off the top of my head I would suggest its around the same weight as one of those big early Germanic seaxes. (If that helps!)
It is a chopper and no mistake, It would cleave anything it hit, when used with conviction. I have no doubt of that.
I am 6foot tall with, average sized hands, and it fits my hand like it was tailor made. Which gives it a really confident grip. This enables one to slash it around like a man possessed.
Obviously given the nature of this blade, the weight emphasis is towards the front of the blade, Which I guess is why a Falcata has the wide portion near the tip and gets narrower nearer the grip.
Paul has put a bluntish cutting edge, on it, as he was unsure of the purpose the potential buyer would require it for.
It would be more logical to sharpen it if required, than blunt it if a sharp is not needed, But even in its present state, I could chop wood with it. (Not that I ever would with a sword like this, before any of you explode!)
I personally prefer swords a little on the heavy side, so it feels ok to me.
But, on behalf of Paul, cheers for the kind comments guys.

[Bruce Tordoff]

Hi guys,
Just weighed the sword, It is 2lb 6oz or in new money, its 1.1kg.
Again, just had a swing about with the thing, It hefts really well and changes direction adequately. Although, making several hacks, slashes, thrusts and parries to thin air, doesn't really give an accurate representation of its use in 'real' combat. But common sense dictates that it would be useable in a historical context.
Incidentally, although the pictures don't show the spine of the blade, you can see the actual thickness of the spine in the tang and grip area, which at the area of the spine remains uniform along the length of the blade till the distal taper.
Cheers,

Bruce

[G Ezell]

That is one of the nicest falcata reproductions I have seen, if not the nicest. I love the fullers...

[Bruce Tordoff]

Hi Guys, thanks for all the views, Paul is very grateful to you for the kind words also.
In fact he will be signing up to myArmoury himself. So expect more stunning projects in the near future.
Cheers,
Bruce

[Bruce Tordoff]

Oh, I nearly forgot to mention. The sword has now sold. But don't despair if you were, 'thinking about it'.
Paul would be happy to make one to your own requirements.

[David Wilson]

Well, not meaning to brag, but I am the one who purchased this sword.
How shall I put this, in a tasteful and mature manner? I won't. It's freaking SWEET! The pictures are nice, but they don't tell the whole story. It's gorgeous. The detail work is amazing. The handling and feel are just exactly as Bruce described -- the sword is certainly blade biased, but not at all clumsy or awkward, in fact in short order it develops a flow, a liveliness, all it's own. The scabbard is very nice too!

I am not familiar with his other work, but based on this sword, Paul Holwell is darn talented. In fact, I'd put him up there near some of the best western-style sword makers working today (again, just based on this one sword).

This is one sword-making talent to keep an eye on.... I, for one, can't wait to see what he comes up with next.....

[Paul Holwell]

Hi All.

I would just like to thank Bruce for posting my falcata on myArmoury for me. Without his input and encouragement i may not have started to make swords in the first place......Cheers Bruce!!

Also, thanks to Dave for his post and kind words. I am realy pleased you like the sword.

Thanks to all who took the time to view the sword.

Paul

[Paul Holwell]

Hi all.
I shall shortly be posting some pics showing my construction method for one of these swords.

cheers, Paul