Research and Discussion Forums

It was wood. Later I got a New Stirling Arms waster (a Davenriche) which I really liked until I got my Albion Meyer blunt steel. The Albion made everything I was trying to do actually work. But $500 is $500 and free is free. The broomstick will help you develop the "muscle memory" that the...

That's what I used in the begining while waiting for my steel blunt. However, I drilled a hole and inserted a threaded rod for a cross to help me with edge alignment and screwed on a solid steel drawer pull as a pommel to pull the CG nearer the cross where it belongs.

You might check the Albion site to get a feel.

Reading, computers, & TV don't cause nearsightedness. They just make it more noticable at an early age. Being quite nearsighted (I could see the big E on the eye chart but couldn't tell what it was without my glasses) I still could easily tell what my opponent was about to do at a typical combat...

We like our Davenriches, but I had to sand down the extra bump on the pommels to make the handle/pommel transition more comfortable. I also flattened the pommels slightly. Easy job with a palm sander.

We like the length and balance of the Davenriche.

Curt Dunham
ARMA-South Florida

Don't overlook a simple staff. It's quicker than a baseball bat, can be used in a thrust, keeps the bad guys' weapons further away, and it's not a "weapon".

I'm in Danville, which is about two hours north of Philly. Scott, Thanks for the reply. I was hoping to combine training with my many family/social obligations and unfortunately they are all to the northeast. So I'm going to try to contact the NJ groups. If you can get down to Philly, though, I'll ...

My wife and I live aboard our 36-ft trawler; and we've been cruising up the coast from our home port in Fort Myers, FL. We're going to be here in Philadelphia until Sept 10. I haven't trained or sparred in about a month since I left my group, ARMA-South Florida, and would love to meet up with someon...

I have the longer Davenriche, and I'm 6' tall, and lately I've been hitting the ground during exercises and drills. Early on I didn't have this trouble during exercises, drills, or sparring. I'm trying to see if I am doing something wrong or whether I need to cut an inch or two off the tip. Otherwis...

I realize it only tells one part of the story on how it handles, but as you say, that's one part that doesn't get told in most sources. I can get data on lengths, weights, and decorations, but POB I have never seen. I just didn't want to assume it was the same as a longsword, in fact I would think ...

Speaking of wood rapiers, what size dowel should be used? I'm assuming oak would be the best wood type. I make mine out of 1/2" x 2" red oak slats found at Lowes rather than a dowel. I select the straightest grain, taper the blade down to one inch, and build up the handle and cross out of...

I only used the car wax on wooden (oak) rappier simulators I made and coated with polyurethane (and the padded swords). It made a significant difference. If you use linseed oil, I think waxing once the linseed oil has soaked into the wood will make the blade steel slippery and will keep the oil from...

To improve slipperiness of wasters for improved feel during winding simply wipe the blade down with car wax. The wax really improves winding with padded swords, too.

Curt Dunham
ARMA-SFL

What is the best way to sharpen a longsword blade? I only have small sharpening stones used for knives, so what will ne needed for a large sword? I sharpen mine with a rubber sanding block and sand paper, starting with 120 grit (or 80 for removing dings) and working up to 300 grit wet/dry paper. Yo...

Try a local machine shop. They should be able to make exactly what you want.