My latest....

A friend picked this up for me at Combat Con in Vegas early this month. So... score an Albion Regent with a blue grip (exactly what I wanted) with no wait!

Fit and finish on this sword is magnificent. The blade is perfectly straight, as is the central ridge. The hollow grinds are masterfully executed, the point is symmetrical and stout. The hilt furniture is perfect.... no blemishes and the peen is nearly invisible. The grip is wonderfully done and the seam is well executed and nearly invisible.

I had worried a couple years ago when Albion had a couple blips, but they are clearly back on top of their game.

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Albion Regent

In saving on higher price toys and taking care of business, I treated myself to an old warhorse that will keep me from too many "gimmes". I often watch the older swords of less value, or needing some love but it is time to wind things down a bit and concentrate on (perceived) upgraded value. I need to let go of younger things to accommodate older history.

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Other swords and knives of 2018 have been waiting for such as this. Amongst that shorter bladed horde is a Jim Hrisoulas aka Salamander Armoury dagger that appeared on the KOA previously owned page. A minor grind asymmetry of the tip posted it at dinner pricing.

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Cheers
GC

My last sword is Albion Solingen. I got it couple years back but only today I took some decent picture of it.
It has one of the most beautiful blade profiles I know of. The gracefully forward swept guard is exactly what I prefer on swords and the pommel is also great - with this sword type W pommels became one of my favorites. I like how this sword handles however I don't have any experience with swordplay. It feels light, the grip is comfortable and the pommel does not get in the way of my hand. The sword has the special quality that it is "hard to put down". I am always drawn to take it and play with it. Over the years I found that the fittings like to stain and potentially rust easily so it is necessary to keep them oiled.
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The book is The Sword - Form and Thought which features the original. I highly recommend it!

Grabbed a nid 18th century "Angelo" Baskethilt from Balefire. still waiting for it to be forged and shipped.

Proto type:

https://cateransociety.wordpress.com/#jp-carousel-862

Received a new Albion Regent with a scabbard from Christian Fletcher today. This gave me the opportunity to compare it to my first Regent from 2005, which I still have.

My first impressions, side by side, show that they are definitely two different swords. The differences are mostly in the blade, as the grips feel pretty much the same (though the hilt/pommel of the newer sword is a little longer, making the overall sword just that longer). The '05 is stiffer, but that is not to say the '19 is floppy compared to other swords. It is rather the older Regent is remarkably stiffer to many swords in general. One factor may be that it feels like the '19 may be slightly thinner in cross-section, and the newer sword is an ounce lighter despite it including a wire wrap the older sword lacks. The tip profiles are different, of course, with the '19 staying broader and actually thickens slightly at the tip for durability while the '05 is a veritable needle.

But it's not just the tip profile, the blade profiles overall are different. The '19 has a more acute taper running the length of the blade, while the '05 stays comparatively broader for much its length before sharply converging to that awl point. I'm glad I ordered a scabbard for the new one, because it's no longer an option for me to swap things around.

That analysis is very helpful. Thank you for the detailed description and impressions. Would you mind posting some photos to help illustrate the differences?

I put up a quick, quiet video pass of the two swords on Youtube which I hope point out the differences in the profile tapers. https://youtu.be/NDApKY0lCrU

In the early years of this century, I think around 2004, Gus Trim designed 3 leaf blade swords for SFI’s Museum Store, MS2103 (bastard), MS2104 (short single hand), and the MS2105 (longsword). A few years later I was able to acquire the MS2104, but, to my regret, I couldn’t get my hands on a 2103. It was the kind of sword that people hung on to: You almost never see it to this day, in the classifieds.
Luckily for me, after many requests, Gus decided to make a few new AT2103r’s in partnership with Longship Armory, with modifications and improvements on the old design. I ordered one, and it just came in.

Specs – in inches (mm) –

Overall Length – 40
Blade Length – 20.5
Grip Length – 7.75

Blade Width –
At Guard – 2.0
At Waist – 1.375
At Widest Part of Leaf – 1.75

Blade Thickness (these are Gus’s measurements)
At Guard - .235 (6mm)
At Waist - .160 (4mm)’
At Widest part of Leaf - .145 (3,68mm)
Close to Tip - ,080 (2mm)
Quote from Gus Trim – “Character of distal taper, a bit of convexity from the tip to the widest spot on the leaf. From there to the narrowest part of the waist, linear. The last part can be broken down into smaller segments, as it goes more concave.”

Weight - 2 lbs. 9 oz.
COG – 4.0
COP – not good at figuring this out, but I bet it is at the wide part of the leaf.

I’m curious about the narrow triangular plateau (ricasso?) at the guard. Does it play a role in the sword’s functionality?
The sword is a true bastard in that it can be used quite well with just one hand. It feels lighter that its 2.5 lbs. weight, and is very, very fast. I haven’t cut anything with it, but I bet it performs that function quite well. Overall, a beautiful piece of work in its visual appeal and in its performance. I'll add that this is one of those swords that, every time you pick it up, something inside you goes "wow."

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It looks like it is time to wake this thread up from a long slumber!

I had a few of my swords out for oiling and thought that I would get a picture of the three, okay two, that I received this year.

Sorry for the quality of most of the pictures, the solo of the XIIa.4 is from Gus, as it is gloomy here with spotty precipitation and my photographic skills are non-existent!

Here are pictures of the XIIa.4 that I received directly from Gus earlier this week. I have also posted a picture of it next to my AT 1423 blade that was cutlered by Christian Fletcher.

The other two are by Iron Wolf Forge in Southeastern Wisconsin. Ken was a member here in the early years. The XIIIa is mine and the little XI/XIV is my wives first sword.

If you have any questions please ask, I am not a good writer like Roger or J.D. are when it comes to new swords, sorry.

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Received my Maximilian last week!

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Arms and Armor "one-off"....at least I assume its a one-off. Its basically a larger version of their French medieval sword and of bastard sword proportions.

They did a really great job on this piece and the edge is super sharp.

[ Linked Image ]2019-12-11_04-07-57 by warspite15, on Flickr

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WOW - that thing is much more impressive in-hand than on the website! You'll have to give a more detailed report of its performance when you are able.

...On that note, if you study swordsmanship, what disciplines do you study? I ask as I am not keen on wheel pommels - they tend to bite into the hand too much in my experience.

J.D. thank you very much for the compliment.

Bryan, nice grab. I saw it on A&A's site and was impressed with it's looks and size. I am also interested in hearing more thoughts on it.

Thanks guys. It handles really well, I would describe it as a true bastard sword obviously, very comfortable in single hand and of course with two hands you can really cleave I would imagine. I have not done any cutting with it but it certainly feels like you would be able to go through heavy targets. It has a 2 and 1/2 in wide blade that is 32 1/2 in Long so it's not going to outreach a true two-hander but the shorter blade fits into that category of multi-purpose sword. But overall with the approximately 7 inch grip the overall size feels pretty large while maybe not very long.
The edge geometry is excellent, no secondary bevel and very very sharp. Overall it feels very quick and nimble. The wheel pommel looks great with the sword but does have a slight bite into the palm when swinging fast. The grip is just big enough to get both of my hands fully on the grip but basically no space between, so to get better control I do need to at least two finger the pommel. The edges of the pommel are actually a bit sharp but could easily be rounded off a bit with some sandpaper which I will probably do.

Overall I am extremely happy with the sword. I really like the looks of it and the handling is excellent. The fit and finish is very very good, everything is perfectly lined up. The guard gap is small and the guard is well done. The pommel has some pits most likely from the casting process which some people would potentially not like but it doesn't bother me in the least. It gives the sword some really nice handmade characteristics. My biggest pet peeve is crooked or out of aligned parts and this has none of that. Worth every penny and a bonus that it was on sale for Black Friday.

My "last sword" of 2019 was actually a whole collection of SEVENTY swords and sort of became my "Christmas present to myself". On 20 December I went to the Nashville Flea Market, (which I try to visit every month), and it was pretty unremarkable without anything of great interest. Then, in the last building at one of the last booths before the exit was a massive collection of about 70 replica (and a few original) swords ranging from ancient Greek, Roman and Chinese ones up to a few up through the 19th century, but predominately from the Medieval period. I have always loved historical swords, and already have a sizable collection, and there were so many good ones, and at such great prices that I was really torn on which ones I wanted to buy since I didn't bring a lot of money - never expecting to run into something like this. The dealer had bought these at an estate sale and only took them because they were part of a larger lot with watches and knives which were what he normally dealt in. He said this was the first time he brought the swords to a flea market, and with many of them razor sharp, he didn't want to mess with them, and seeing how excited I was about them, he offered them ALL to me for $2500. -- which amounted to about $37.00 each which was a bargain I couldn't refuse! I told him I didn't have near enough money with me to buy them all, so he said he would hold them until I went to the bank to get the rest. needless to say, I made it to the bank and back and was able to buy them. There were a few I already had, and there were others that really don't fit into my collection that I will probably sell or trade, but all in all it is a really great collection and I will be able to expand my displays and programs with many of them. Ironically, there were even a few that I actually had designed for the Deepeeka company in India, where I went for many years when I lived in Germany, to help them develop their swords and armor! There are eight Albions, one Arms and Armor hand and a half, about a dozen Del Tins, quite a few Windlass, some of their best, I think, a few Hanwei, Deepeeka, some cheaper ones I can/t identify and a few original pieces but none that seemed particularly rare.I've attached an images of nearly all of them below.

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