[Regia-NA] Swords

Thu, 13 Nov 2003 15:22:44 -0000

Yes. Nothing like having your blade snap at the hilt when you're facing =
down
the Saxon Army's champion in front of 8,000 spectators :(

Gu=F0rum

-----Original Message-----
From: Kathy [mailto:kth62@yahoo.com]
Sent: 13 November 2003 15:19
To: list-regia-na@lig.net
Subject: RE: [Regia-NA] Swords

Wow.. sounds great..   :)
Kathy=20

"Nicholson, Andrew" <andrew.nicholson@dumgal.gov.uk> wrote:
Yes, very much so. Same goes for axes and spears.

Unchoreographed live steel - nothing to beat it :)

Gu=F0rum

-----Original Message-----
From: Kathy [mailto:kth62@yahoo.com]
Sent: 13 November 2003 14:55
To: list-regia-na@lig.net
Subject: Re: [Regia-NA] Swords

I take it from this discussion that the blades used  be Regia  are live
steel as opposed to the  rattan and duct tape constructions used in SCA
tourneys?
kathy=20

Steve Etheridge <seibhyrt@hotmail.com> wrote:
>From: "Martin Field"=20

>Someone has asked me about Paul Chen swords - does anyone have the =
scoop on

>these.
>Are they suitable for Regia combat ?

If they are the swords that I think that they are, then they are not. =
The=20
blades are of poor quality - I have heard of one snapping for no reason =
- so

don't waste your money.

As a general rule, you should be able to bend a decent sword blade and =
have=20
it spring back into shape. I do it by resting a point on a hard =
surface,=20
holding the pommel in my hand and leaning down on it. You should feel =
the=20
blade bending progressively, and as you release the weight, you should =
feel=20
the spring throughout the whole blade. This ensures that the blade will =
not=20
shatter or stay bent when struck.

You can test a blade's toughness by striking it with a blad e of known=20
quality and examining the burr on the blade. All blades will bur, but =
it is=20
important that the burrs are not too deep. Ask yourself if you would =
like=20
to be struck by a blade with that sort of burr on it.

You should do at least the first test (for spring) before you by a =
blade.=20
Ask the vendor first, of course. If he will not let you do it, then =
walk=20
away from the sword - even if it comes from a reputable manufacturer.

To illustrate the point - A friend of mine brought a blade off of one =
of=20
the most well known blacksmiths. It hadn't been tempered properly, and =
on=20
it's first time out we had to do a showfight for the BBC. I turned it =
into=20
something resembling a rip-saw. The smith, being a reputable guy, =
replaced=20
it for free with no hard feelings.

Hope this helps.

Steve

BTW, Martin, I'll send you some photos of your shield when I can dig =
out a=20
digital camera

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