[G.L. Williamson]

Greetings, all...I hope I've gotten an appropriate enough forum for all this.

First of all, I'm new in these parts, and thought I'd say hello to everyone. Thanks go to all of you, too, for providing and maintaining such a wonderful resource for all things swords. The articles and forum comments make this quite the place to camp for a bit on the 'net.

Now, for Arms and Armor questions:

I am soon to purchase one of a couple of their rapiers, and am wondering whether anyone can shed a little light on something for me. My primary favorites are the German Rapier, Milanese and the Gustav Vasa. I see from other posts, and the reviews posted on this site, that they're regarded as being quite fine examples, but have not found in a search the final bit that will help make my decision on which to go with first. Because it will likely be a wee while before I can play with more than one of their swords, it's (I hope...heheh) understandably a hard choice.

I realize the blade shapes and sizes are somewhat different, but which would any of you (those who have handled and/or own more than one of the three mentioned above) say really stands out in the group--for any reason? I will likely only use it for getting more used to performing exercises on my own, in preparation for getting more serious about rapier fencing. That, and to cuddle when the femalien isn't looking...heheh I know I'm not making it very easy for anyone to understand what might qualify any of these swords in my mind as "best," but any information you can impart will certainly help in my decision.

Depending on how soon my Albion Mark Spatha (Early Pattern type, purchased from Albion about 5 years ago and never used for anything) sells, I *may* be able to swing a scabbard and parrying dagger to match whichever of the above-mentioned rapiers I get. Because I have it listed on eBay currently, as far as I understand I should not post a link to that auction on this site, but can anyone offer any advice on a good place to get a little more attention for that sale? I would guess that not many searches happen on eBay for such items, and would love it to go to a good home soon, so that I may get more of the above goodies. Any advice is appreciated.

Thanks!

[Joe Fults]

Of the three, and its been a while since I held them all, I liked the Milan the most. Telling you why I liked it the best of the three would be a real challenge though. I remember I liked it better, but not really why.

[Bill Grandy]

Hi there,
First and foremost, let me commend you on your excellent taste. Those are three of my favorite production rapiers.

I own a Milanese, and have handled the other two. The Gustav Vasa was at least a year ago, so I don't remember exactly, but from what I recall it was the most cut oriented of the three swords. The German rapier is definately the most thrust oriented, and the Milanese in between. I'm quite fond of the handling of all three, though it should be noted that the Gustav Vasa and Milanese rapier sometimes surprise people with their weight and heft because they expect rapiers to be super light weight. The swords handle wonderfully, but if you're not accustomed to that, they might catch you off guard at first. The German rapier, though, is lightweight and much more in line with what people associate with rapiers. My personal favorite in terms of handling is the Milanese, though aesthetically I love the Gustav Vasa (and own a different version than the one they currently sell). But, man, do I really want the German rapier.

Hope that helps at least a little.

[Patrick Kelly]

Like Bill, I used to own the Milanese and it was one of my favorite rapiers as I'm partial to the earlier cut & thrust styles of rapier play. It's a very fine example of the type and I often regret having to part with it. Of A&A's current offerings the Lombardy is my favorite.

[G.L. Williamson]

I sincerely appreciate the replies. They certainly help. Joe, I understand not quite being able to pin down a reason for liking one item over another. This is part of my problem here...heheh Bill, I like both the cut and thrust sort of swordplay as well as the later thrust-centric style. This is also part of my problem in deciding which sword to get first. Patrick, while I like the Lombardy, and appreciate the design, it just doesn't call to me like the others. The Milanese, however, haunts me.

I love everything about the German Rapier--so much that it virtually sang to me the first time I saw it--but know that I want one or both of the others I mentioned at some point, anyway. Plus, they actually have the others in stock currently. If all else fails I can just get the Milanese for now (as it's in stock) and get the German later, or suffer a bit longer and have the guys up there make me a German and get the Milanese later. The Gustav Vasa, realistically, will be the third in the order of purchase. I've dropped A&A an email to ask how long I might be looking at on getting a German Rapier made (again, with the matching parrying dagger), and if it isn't too long a wait I'll likely go that route first. If it's more like a month or three, the Milanese will probably be the one for now. Man, soooo many beautiful swords, so little time (and femalien patience...lol). Hopefully, the A&A guys see my email soon and give me good news on a timeframe for the German Rapier.

[Chad Arnow]

[Russ Ellis]

[Chad Arnow]

[G.L. Williamson]

Ah, excellent! Thanks, Chad.

Russ, your scabbards (as I'm sure you're told daily...heheh) are beautiful works in their own right, and truly make the swords resting in them complete. I'd been to your website before, looking for the obvious, and caught the pic of the German Rapier and dagger set you posted here. While I'm not sure how soon I can get away with it, I do plan to order such a scabbard set from you for whichever of the A&A swords I get. It's looking more and more like the German Rapier/Dagger, though.

I've heard back from Craig at A&A regarding the timeframe, and it's not bad. That Milanese will still call to me enough to pick one up at some point, but for now I think I'll go with waiting a bit for a German to be made. Once the Albion sells, I'll hopefully stop getting the strange looks from the femalien everytime I talk about swords and "needing" a few more--okay, probably not.

[Russ Ellis]

[Bob Burns]

Hi G. I.,

Welcome aboard, I myself am rather partial to this website and to Arms & Armor. I myself have the Italian Three Ring Rapier and the reason that I chose this specific rapier was that while it has a long reach, it is light and has a long stiff narrow blade and is light in weight, although it is more specific for the thrust and less so for the cut. By the way I am in the early remedial learning stages and not in any position to be giving any advice, so I am just stating why I chose the specific rapier that I did.
I know the Milanese is a very popular rapier and I believe Christopher Poor owns one, if I remember correctly at the last weekend of the Bristol Renaissance Fair this summer when I finally had the opportunity to meet Chris.

Most importantly I wanted to just say welcome to a terrific website!

Bob

[G.L. Williamson]

Thanks, Bob! I've decided on getting the German Rapier first, then the Milanese as soon afterward as I can. I know I like both styles (cut/thrust versus more purely thrust), so this should cover both my bases. The Italian Three ring you mention is another I'd been eyeballing, but until I find a way to just buy one of everything A&A offer I have to at least *try* to be a good little boy and only get a couple...heheh Now to just stay sane until the new goodies arrive.

[Bob Burns]

I know exactly what you mean about staying sane until they arrive. Although I spent over a year deciding on my first sword from Arms & Armor, when I finally did, my anxiety was so nuts that on the first 2 or 3 swords I was so crazy that I paid for overnight shipping!

Bob