Well...I finally bit the bullet and bought a Hanwei Lowlander...brand-spankin' new. I can't say enough. The first thing I say is: 'Damn.this thing is big!'. This sword is insane. The blade, if not more, is at least a full quarter inch thick. It has a nice distal taper, and the tang is VERY beefy. Hanwei has stepped up their game on this one. No rattles or creaks in the hilt, the grip is beautiful, and it came to me as sharp as a razor. It makes my Hanwei Claymore look like a pocket-knife. For a sword of this size, it really isn't bad to handle. I'm not a big guy---hell, the sword is over my head---but I can maneuver it pretty easily. The ricasso and lower portion of the blade let you choke up on it, but wear gloves. The upper part of the blade is sharp as hell. The guard is beautifully done. In closing, I'll just say this---If you want a really big-ass , good looking, functional greatsword---look no further. Hanwei Lowlander. Git ya one. You'll like it just for the 'HOLY CRAP' factor. :eek: :lol: :lol: :lol: .........McM

Congratulations on your new sword. I have not considered this sword due to the bad press.

Well, William.....I think the bad press is now over-rated. This thing is sweet. The tang on mine is quite substantial, and the blade rings like a bell when thumped. There are no bad movements in the grip, and it is all tight as hell. Yes, I'd prefer it to be a peened pommel instead of a threaded, but.....I can live with it. Hell, Will.....You have one or two of everything else....go on ahead and git you some. I just bought mine for the 'Holy Crap' factor. Plus....my wife thinks its sexy when I swing it around in my kilt outside. :lol: :lol: :lol: .......McM

always thought this sword was really affordable for its size. I'm surprised that its got a good distal taper - I've seen the other brief reviews that people have given the sword and over all it seems to have positive reviews.

I haven't jumped on it even though I'm nutty for a two hander and have been for quite a while - if I get better with making changes to swords, I'd defiantly think about picking this one up as a project blade.

Congrats on your new acquisition, Mark!

I've recently bought one of these too, despite the reviews and bad press, because I got the hankering for a massive sword. And this one doesn't disappoint!

If you have some spare cash, and an urge for a sword almost too big to wield, then I'd recommend it. For the price, you get a hell of a lot of sword. It's far to big for me to play with properly, so it spends much of its time on the wall looking imposing!

With regards to construction, mine has a bit of a loose grip (I assume from where the grip wood isn't very well carved to fit the tang), but upon disassembly, I was quite surprised: the tang, although narrow, is actually of a decent thickness. I'm tempted to do something to it as a project blade, as to get a higher end sword of a similar size would probably cost an arm and a leg!

Over the last few years a number of these swords have passed through my hands. Early on the tangs were thin and looked weak, however the only problem I had with any of them was one on which the threads on the tang were cross-threaded and the pommel cap could not be secured. Sent it back without a problem.

Recently the tangs have appeared to be uniformly thicker and show no signs or welds or weak places (as if I can magnaflux one with my naked eye). The blades seemed to be pretty well made and the balance is not that bad for such a large sword, although at 6lbs.,14 oz, the sword is a bit on the heavy side. I don't do any cutting with these swords so cannot make any judgments on how they would do for that but most folks seem to like to display them only. They are impressive and I especially like the "antiqued" version which covers up the fact that the cross and pommel are stainless. Early on Hanwei did not antique the blades but over the last few years they have begun to do so, as illustrated in their catalog and I think the effect is much nicer.

The grips are fitted better now and I have not encountered any of the looseness that Ant mentioned. In fact, you can put one on the tang backwards if you are not careful but it won't go all the way down to the grip.

Over all they are impressive and not that expensive for what they are. I am glad you like your purchase and hope you will continue to enjoy it. Just remember that once you swing it the mass will try to keep it moving and it will not stop as quickly as a smaller blade. In other words, be careful!

Well...as I've already said... I bought this sword purely for the 'Holy Crap' factor. It's one big SOB. As I also stated, H/PC has apparently upped their game. I can't say what YOU will get....but mine is built like a tank. I would not hesitate to cut heavy targets with this sword. As a matter of fact, there are some soda bottles with my name on them....die, bottles....DIE!...McM