[Elling Polden]

I recieved my fist Christmas present this wedesday, A lovely new SB 1452 from Uncle Angus.




Overview

The SB 1452 is designed as a practice sword rather than a repica of a historical sharp weapon. The hilt is a simple cruciform, with a slightly concave disc pommel.
The blade is for all intents and purposes a of diamond cross section, though a very shallow, blackened fuller has been added, to give the blade the look of a "earlier" blade. The blade itself, however is far narrower than a blade from this time period, to compensate for the blunted edges.
The sword was designed for use with rubber blunts to cover the tips, wich we will not be using. Therefor we have shortened the blades by about 5 cm, and rounded down the tips.

Handling Characteristics

The sword handles like a dream. The sword only weighs 2 oz. Despite this, the balance is well forward, giving the sword a comfortable blade presence. It is quick and responsive, while retaining good control through high speed maneuvers.
Many of the low weight blades that I have tried have been dedicated "sporting" pieces, with the balance as far back as posible. While this makes the sword very maneuverable, it also lessens control somewhat, because the sword requires "manual guidance" at all stages. When fighting light contact, like we do, this also means that you have to dampen the blow more actively, whereas blades with a forward CoB can be slowed down 5 cm before impact, and allowed to "drift" in.

Fit and finish

Perhaps the most intriguing thing about the sword is its assembly. the hilt is held together by a nut, wich on my particular sword is of the kind that is intended for manual tightening. Being able disassemble my sword in a matter of seconds feels a bit weird, and brings back memories to field stripping my G3 rifle during army service.
The nut unscrews itself during use, but this would be fixed by applying thread tape, or something similar.
The pommel was not perfectly finished, but this was quickly fixed with a powertool. Otherwise the parts are well made, and solid.
The steel quality seems to be good so far. While hard edge on edge impacts leaves a visible mark, has yet to get any real notches. Time and use will show if this keeps up.

Conclusion

The SB1452 is by no means a "historical" sword. It does however do a good job simulating one. As a sparring weapon, it is light weight, fast, and controllable.
Over all, I am quite happy with my purchase.[/url]

[Roger Hooper]

Congratulations on that purchase. I think that sword will serve you well. I'm curious to know how well the edges stand up to some inevitable punishment.

The pommel nut you describe is a standard feature on virtually all ATrims. I think it is particulary suited to sparring and stage combat. If your hilt loosens up, then you can quickly tighten it, whereas the same situation with a peened pommel is much harder to fix.

I have my eye on one of the SB longswords. They aren't pretty, but should be good, durable, fast stage combat swords

[Steve Grisetti]

Congratulations and Ho, Ho, Ho! I think that your SB 1452 is very attractive - it has a simple elegance. Though, maybe its just your photography

[Elling Polden]

Actualy, it's the official Atrim Direct image
but, yes, it is a very sleek weapon.