[Nathan Robinson]

Today's update:


The Workbench: An English Tuck (Estoc)
An article by Sean Flynt


Windlass Steelcrafts English Tuck (Estoc)
A hands-on review by Sean Flynt


As always, you can see our Complete History of Updates listed right from our home page.

[William Goodwin]

Well done Sean, on both articles!!


Bill

[Jean Thibodeau]

Fascinating reading for both articles and very useful. The idea of workbench articles is genius I think and I look forward to reading more of this new series.

A twinned article of review and how to of the same piece is a bit like looking under the hood and kicking the tires.

Loved seeing the tang as this is for me THE deal breaker when it looks badly designed. ( Not in this case. )

Congratulation Sean.

Oh, just a question / suggestion / concern: With using the guard as leverage to unscrew the pommel it seems that in this case it was a great idea but I wonder if with a different sword design or " cheap " materials like some zinc / pot metal alloy a guard might bend or break ?

With these kind of things the line between a great idea or a dumb idea can be found only after success or that sinking OOOPS moment after something goes terribly wrong.

In any case it was a great idea this time but I thought I should at least ask the question.

I also enjoyed all the other antiquing tips and handle recovering. The photography is also great. ( As usual. )

[Pamela Muir]

Please forgive me! I have to gush this morning. I wish I could place a vote above excellent. I loved the workbench article. And to think it's just the first of a series! I'm looking forward to more.

Sean, excellent job!

[Sean Flynt]

Thanks for the kind words, folks! We thought this would be a popular new feature. There are many more to come and they're not all from me. I actually think the second one I did is even better. It's a very different subject, and I'm working on one now that's radically different! You'll have to wait and see.... The series is open to all authors, so start tinkering!

As for the danger of the leverage idea--I think this concern resolves itself. A sword with a cross long and flimsy enough to bend or break during this process is probably not as solidly built as the average MRL/Windalss piece. The pommel might not be as firmly attached, so you might not need to use a vise anyway. It's something to consider, though. I'd say you just have to go slowly, avoid sudden exertion of force and know when to stop if the pommel doesn't immediately loosen. I find that tapping the pommel with a mallet first really does make a huge difference. You don't have to smash it because all you're doing is shifting the pommel enough to break loose the dried glue. In any case, the main problem is not that the pommel is completely frozen in place. Rather, it's that the pommel is decently glued and too small and smooth to really get a grip on it. I didn't have to exert much force at all once the pommel was firmly held by the vise.

[Jonathan Hopkins]

I, too, am looking forward to future entries into the Workbench series. I might need to run to the hardware store this weekend to get some materials to breath some new life into an old Windlass that is collecting dust in the attic. Mabe I'll start with a re-grip..

Thanks, Sean!

Jonathan

[Michal Plezia]

Great!Give us more workbench series articles!!

[Richard Fay]

Hey Sean!

Interesting articles. I actually got to see the MRL Tuck in person (didn't get to handle it, though), and I was actually surprised at how nice the piece looked close-up. The photos never did it justice, and perhaps that's one of the reasons that particular model didn't do well. MRL might sell more if they spent a bit more in photography. I think this has been mentioned before, but it's worth repeating.

By the way, I like the idea of the "Workbench" series. Useful information for those of us who like to tackle some minor improvements and other tinkering projects.

Keep 'em coming!

Stay safe!

[Thomas O'Neal]

I have to agree with the other comments praising the Workbench article. It has me looking at my MRL falchion in a different light. Sean, you've written a very inspiring piece.

I hope this becomes a regular series. It would be a great addition to an already excellent body of material at myArmoury.

[Sean Flynt]

[Matthew K. Shea]

Very nice work on the estoc, Sean. I can tell the Workbench series is going to become an instant favourite of mine. You guys have really outdone yourselves (yet again!).

One question about using shoe polish on the grip: do you find that it tends to rub off with use? I love the idea of being able to wrap a grip myself, and to be able to customize its colour so easily, but I'm worried about it coming off on my hands or gloves.

[Steve Grisetti]

The workbench series is a fabulous idea, and I loved this first installment. Well done, Sean!

I do have a question that relates to this picture in the article:

The right side of this photo seems to show a significant overlap in the chamois material while you are winding. I did not notice any remark in the article about how you resolved that overlap. Did you trim the overlap with a knife? Did the cord wrapping simply flatten out and obscure the leather overlap? Or was there another solution?

[Sean Flynt]

Shoe polish: Just think of your polished shoes. You rub the stuff into the pores, then buff it off. It doesn't come off on your hands but it'll stain the cuff of your white linen suit. I don't think the polished grip would discolor your hands, but it probably could stain a light-colored glove. I assume the dyes in the polish are relatively permanent, so as long as you do a good job of buffing, you should be able to remove the goo and leave the dye. I guess the general rule is just to buff until the cloth shows no sign of stain. The polish will dull over time, especially with use. I don't train with my swords or handle them a great deal, so I can't comment on durability except to say that the surfaces of my grips are very hard and show no sign of problems from casual handling. Pamela has regripped "working" swords using these methods and may want to comment about the durability.

Seam overlap: I overlap my grip seams by .25" to .5", and I make no attempt to keep the edges perfectly straight. The chamois is so thin and the cord does such a good job of compressing the edge and blending that I rarely have to trim things further. I wrap the chamois so that when I hold the weapon my fingers rest on the overlapped material. This prevents me from putting stress on a seam by pulling one edge away from another. The little seams on the risers are not compressed by cord, of course, so before the glue is fully dry I rub those seams with a fingernail or other smooth object to help them blend.

[Pamela Muir]

[Sean Flynt]

Thanks, Pamela! I usually use Rit dye as well but I was kind of lazy with this grip and didn't let the chamois soak long enough. It looked dark enough when wet but, as you can see, dried much lighter. I should note that it takes very little polish to darken the leather. A little goes a long, long way. I don't know about the craft glue, but if it's holding up well then the carpenter's glue I use should be very strong indeed. This stuff is actually stronger than the wood it's on in some cases, but it's also water soluble, so mistakes don't spell doom for a grip. I've stripped and recovered one grip several times because I kept changing my mind about what I wanted. The chamois came off cleanly and in one piece each time, but I had to pull hard. I take that as a good sign of the method's durability.

[G. Scott H.]

Hey, guys. It's been a while. I just wanted to congratulate you, Sean, on your excellent work. I've long admired MRL's Tuck, so I was glad to see your review and rework of the same. In fact, I was so inspired by your rework of the tuck that I got to thinking about it, and I decided not to sell the old Atrim I posted in the classified just a few days ago. I believe I'll rehilt the old girl, yet. Thanks again.

[Sean Flynt]

[G. Scott H.]