[Jean Thibodeau]

I just noticed that Kult of Athena has a Michael Pikula pattern welded sword Viking sword for sale on their site.

To me this is good news if it means that Michael will get more exposure to potential buyers and help him sell his work.

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

Not everyone can afford the price, but for the quality of work that Michael can do, and with a custom pattern welded sword from a high end maker the price is well worth it.

Michael's work is well known on this site, but he isn't as widely known as some of the established makers that command many times the price for their work, and have long long long wait times.

Also, available now from a reliable vendor like Kult of Athena makes buying a low risk high satisfaction customer service experience.

I have commissioned custom work from Michael Pikula in the past, and also bought some of his mono steel hand forged swords and can attest to the great quality. I also bought them early a few years ago when he was barely known and his prices where about the same as for an Albion, but for a completely hand forged sword: In other words at least half of what they should have cost for the quality of the work.

I can praise Michael's work as at very top level of skill and workmanship as well as in the authentic handling of his swords.

Also, dealing with Michael directly for custom work was a completely satisfactory design experience with delivery times as promised.

[Jon Makar]

Ooh, I'm a sucker for a nice, sleek Type H pommel....and that pattern weld....*drool*

[Greg Ballantyne]

I'm glad to see this - also glad to see that KOA put a little more into the description. There are differing forging methodologies of "pattern welded" blades out there.

[William Swiger]

Agree 100% with Jean. I have three Viking items I bought a few years back. A custom L6 Viking sword, L6 Langseax and a regular seax. This was when Michael's items were priced comparable to Albion. Great guy to work with and his swords are outstanding.

Very glad he is still in the game.

[Jean Thibodeau]

[Eric Sherwin]

I'm anxiously awaiting the arrival of his six bar Viking sword. I would post my impressions of it when I have it in hand, but I can already say that I'll be very pleased. I have one of his earlier Viking swords that I won at an auction he threw to raise money for UNICEF. It still has a special place in my collection.

Michael's skill with pattern welding is a rare talent, especially for a young guy. You're right, Jean, he could be charging a lot more for his work, and justifiably so.

[Jean Thibodeau]

[Eric Sherwin]

I bought a different one directly from Michael's site. If you go to his site and look at his past works, mine is the six bar sword that's pictured in montage format.

I'll be sure to post my impressions and maybe try to snap a few pics.

[Sam Barris]

I just purchased this sword. You know, I wasn't going to do it and then I wasn't going to do it and then I still wasn't going to do it... and then I did it. Thank the gods for an understanding spouse.

I'll post pictures and impressions when it arrives. As far as I know, this is the last of that batch of seven to find a home. And it will be the second of Michael's swords to join my collection. I can't wait to meet it.

[J. Nicolaysen]

Sam and Eric I'm glad you bought a sword from Michael. This run was truly amazing and I too feel lucky to have some of Michael's work. I'm very sorry that he has stopped making weapons since I would have liked to work with him on a spear or something, but I feel fortunate with what I have. The skill of pattern welding is really incredible. I am hoping to someday get another weapon made from bloom steel from him since that seems to be the direction he is going now.

Jean, I had to add, I'm glad you consistently supported Michael's work since I saw your good words about a spear of his several years ago on this forum, and your positive review did help me also decide to own some of his great work.

[Tim Lison]

Michael is a great guy and I'm happy to see this piece sold. You're a lucky man Sam.

[Joseph Perrigo]

[Jean Thibodeau]

[Sam Barris]

Kult of Athena still lists the sword as in stock, but it has arrived. I'll snap some pictures as soon as time allows, but honestly, the pictures on the listing itself are quite good, and they also made a YouTube video about it which you can get to from the listing, so hopefully that's enough documentation for now.

So, some first impressions. This sword is breathtaking. Being familiar with Michael's work, I went into this purchase expecting exceptional craftsmanship and that's exactly what I got. The pattern welding is completely flawless, and the grainier wrought iron texture of the guard and pommel is extremely cool. I can just stare at the blade, tracing the intricate lines in the steel. It's almost meditative. The scabbard is simple in appearance with no metal fittings except the loop (which is concealed under leather), but it's very well made and fits the sword like a glove. In general, I find that a scabbard looks somewhat unfinished without a chape, but this one has changed my mind on that whole issue.

As for handling, the sword is perhaps a bit heavier than I'd like. I don't know whether it's outside the realm of historical feasibility, but for reference it's almost half a pound heavier than Albion's heaviest Viking offering and on par with the Tritonia, so at the very least it's on the heavy side for a weapon meant for a single hand. In fairness, it's also quite a bit wider than most reproduction swords one sees, so that will naturally bring more metal to the party. It has a noticeable distal taper that distributes the weight about as effectively as one can reasonably expect as well as respectably beefy hilt components that also help shift the point of balance handward. Still, all of my training in the last five years or so has been with two-handed implements like bokken and suburito, so it was still a shock when I drew it for the first time. Happily, it feels much better after only a few days, so I'm sure most of the issue is on my end and I just need to get some underutilized muscles back in the game. The grip is extremely comfortable, with room enough for either hammer or handshake without my hand feeling cramped between metal bits, but no more than that.

Overall, I am a very happy camper right now.

P.S. I haven't seen any reviews of the other six swords from this batch. If anyone is out there who owns one, I'd be interested to hear any thoughts about my sword's siblings.

[Houston P.]

I'd love to see how it cuts, if you ever get around to it! I'd understand if it was too pretty for you to hit things with though. Speaking of this as the first batch, does anyone know if he's doing another? His website seems to have been removed. I suppose he could always just sell them through K.O.A., but I wanted to know if anyone else had heard anything.

[Carl W.]