[Lafayette C Curtis]

For the last couple of weeks I've been thinking of buying a relatively low-cost sword or two as "loaner pieces" that I could lend out for things like WMA practice, photoshoots, and the like. I'm not sure what exact kind of sword to get, though.

Let's start with a steel blunt (probably a H/T blunt longsword since I've just found a local shop that carries one). On the plus side, it's much safer than a sharp blade -- of course, it can still do a great deal of blunt force damage, but at least there's far less risk of cutting other people's things (or the people themselves!) by accident. It'd also be possible to bring a blunt sword into many events and places that prohibit the carrying of sharp weapons into them. And of course it'd come in handy as an extra weapon whenever I set up a WMA practice or demonstration session around here.

A steel sharp (probably a Hanwei Albrecht II, which is also available through the local shop -- unfortunately it doesn't carry any H/T sharps) has the greatest bling value simply because is sharp and is thus more of a "real" sword to some audiences. I'd also be able to lend it to anyone who needs a blade for cutting practice (perhaps a more important factor in this case since I'm rather reluctant to lend my higher-quality sharps except to people I know really well). But on the downside I'd have to keep a closer watch over the sword and whoever is holding it at the moment just to make sure that it's being used in a reasonably safe manner.

Last, there's the option of getting nylon wasters. Far cheaper than steel, needs far less attention, and I'd suffer even less should one get damaged beyond the possibility of easy repair. But the bling factor is far less significant, too, and I'm not completely unaware of the weight and flexibility issues that many people have raised about these synthetic wasters.

Any ideas or suggestions about which one I should pick? To put this in context, I live in Indonesia, where there's currently no formal WMA group that I know of, and public awareness of medieval European weapons and martial arts is even lower than it is in the US or Europe. Right now I'm trying to spread awareness about these two things by a subliminal approach through my contacts with various fantasy fan groups/societies. So in a way I'm trying to find out which kind of sword would give the most value for its price in the role of a "public service weapon."

[Luka Borscak]

Although sharp H/T is a great longsword, for educational purposes without actual sparring, I think Albrecht would be better educational tool than blunt H/T. And you can slightly dull the Albrecht if you want for safety.

[Tom King]

you could also regrind the flat tip of the H/T to a more swordlike cross section. Not pointy, just a bit more spatulate. I could see a H/T with a grip rewrap and a "point" would do well as a loaner and look good doing it.

[Mark Moore]

Judging from what you have said, I would say that LARP-(live action role play) swords would be good for your purposes. They can be had from Kult of Athena, Therion Arms, or Museum Replicas Ltd at good prices. Safe for everyone. If you feel you must have sharp steel on a budget, get a Deepeeka sword from KOA with their sharpening service.(About $18-25 depending on the sword.) Their new Sword of Saint Maurice looks pretty good, and I plan to get one myself. Just a suggestion...; ....McM

[Lafayette C Curtis]

Well, LARP weapons wouldn't fit the bill since they're too light, I can make them myself, and I already have a whole bunch of them to lend out whenever I need to. I'm asking the question in the first place because I need something with a more realistic weight than ultralight LARP swords (that need to be so for safety reasons).

Anyway, a fourth option has presented itself, and it's a collaboration with a local swordsmith to produce a working European sword model. The problem here is that the swordsmith has only ever done Japanese and Chinese sword types and is rather unfamiliar with the familiar with the features of European swords, so I'll have to feed him with all sorts of information about dimensions, balance, profile and distal taper, and all that kind of stuff, and I'm obviously not Gus Trim, Tinker Pearce, or Peter Johnsson. So this is probably the most high-risk, high-reward option at the moment.

Maybe I should just sleep on it and let it ferment until after the New Year.