Buying Swords

[Britney-Thornton]

I've recently been looking between MRL and Albion for a sword, preferably sharp. I'm kind of short, so I'm really looking for a shorter sword, probably more like a bastard sword. I've picked out an MRL (the Italian bastard sword), and an Albion (the Mercenary). Both are my size and weight, but I'm still not completely sure about them. Has anyone had any experience with either of these? <img src="/forum/images/icons/confused.gif" alt="" />

Britney

Va Beach, ARMA-Youth

[Craig Peters]

Britney,

I own the Squire Line 15th Century Bastard sword which is the "twin brother" of Albion's Mercenary. I think it that it (and by extension the Mercenary) is an excellent sword for people of smaller stature. Type XVa swords are extremely agile weapons well suited to thrusting, and it has been my experience that women tend to prefer swords with agility over raw cutting power. It's shorter length will be well suited to someone your size, and all Albions have very sturdy hilt construction. Just remember however that since the Mercenary is a sharp sword, it will not be suitable for sparring, though it is good for solo routines and test cutting.

I would not recommend buying the MRL Italian bastard sword. While I do not own any MRL swords personally, I have heard bad things about their longer swords, which tend to suffer from excessive whippiness. I'd say that you're better of paying a bit more on your initial investment and having a sword that will handle much better because of it.

By the way, if you are looking for a sword that is good for sparring, I would recommend Albion's Maestro Line: http://www.albion-swords.com/swords/albion/swords-albion-mark-maestro.htm

[Britney-Thornton]

Thanks for replying.

Yeah. My dad has a Mercenary, and I've handled it some. I've also measured the real thing. But I wasn't really sure about the MRL. <img src="/forum/images/icons/laugh.gif" alt="" />

Britney

Va Beach, ARMA-Youth [color="green"] [/color]

[Will Adamson]

I have an MRL sword that may be ok for you in the hilt department, but it may be a bit long for you, and it isn't sharpened. Matt handled it after y'all left last Saturday and seemed surprised by it considering it's a Windlass from MRL. I think it is a discontinued product called the Late Renaissance Longsword. (Don't you just love those really specific descriptions!)

I'm not sure if they have any more, but I can bring it if I come over there to train with y'all again in the next few weeks.

[Allen Johnson]

There is really no comparison between MRL and Albion. Albion is far better than MRL in all aspects. You get what you pay for in swords. If you go with MRL the only benefit will be cost...but even then the Albion will last far longer than the MRL.

[JeanryChandler]

What are some of the other good higher end sword replicas

I know MRL and Hanwei / Paul Chen on the lower end and Gus Trim, Armor.com and Albion on the higher end.

I also own a pretty decent heimrick blunt which isn't bad though rather heavy.

I've also seen Lutel and Del Tin, both of which seem to have been too heavy in examples I handled.

Cold Steel makes a few replicas which seem really sharp but also generally a bit heavy and perhaps not quite as precisely historical.

I've heard of valentine armories, darkwood and a few others but never seen their stuff.

Who else is out there? I'm thinking of getting my first sharp pretty soon.

Jearny

[Craig Peters]

Well Jeanry, you can always go custom with a sword by Peter Johnsson or Patrick Barta, for example. <img src="/forum/images/icons/cool.gif" alt="" />

[JeanryChandler]

Yeah, how much is that like $3-5000? Hard to justify to my better half.

[Shane Smith]

I have a budget to work with too and for that reason, I tend to buy up all of the used Albions I can find.Their fit and finish exceeds any Atrim I've seen/owned and they handle superbly. Atrims are decent handlers too but the pommel screws and assymetrical edge grinds just don't do it for me. They are capable tools however as long as you don't hit armour or another blades cross. His XIIIA heavy in particular is one sword I can recommend to anyone wanting a stout and manly chopper.

I bought an Albion Sempach for my wife Cathy. It has a nimble point and balances well in her smaller hands. It's a thing of beauty besides.I like Albion.

MRL is crummy unless you get the Arbedo in my experience.Even then, the Arbedo has issues of it's own, but all five I have handled were servicable weapons with minimal creak and quirks.Every big MRL I've handled has creaky hilts and whippy blades.

Deltins tend to be on the heavy end of the historical scale but they can be nice if you get the right models. I have a custom DT that is an excellent heavy cutter(it's a XIIIA) but it's not the nimblest handler in the world. Deltins tend to be well finished of blade but many have minor casting pits in the furniture. I like Deltin for the price if you buy the right model.

[JeanryChandler]

Whats better the Albion Sempach or the Tallhoffer? Which one handles better / quicker, which one cuts better?

J

[Brian Hunt]

I love Albion swords and if I could afford them, I would be buying them. What about A&amp;A? They have some really nice looking pieces as well, anyone here have any experience with them?

thanks.

Brian Hunt
GFS

[Stacy Clifford]

I think Lutels in general are a little bit heavy in terms of total weight, but not badly so, and the one I own and the ones I've handled have all had a good balance. However, they are made to be blunts. When I'm ready to buy a high quality sharp (well, I was ready at heart a long time ago, but...), I'm going with Albion.

[JeanryChandler]

I saw two A&amp;A swords at a sword -cutting event in Louisiana. One was a really huge greatsword which was too flexible and too heavy and didn't cut well. There was also an A&amp;A arming sword which seemed pretty good and handled nice. The most impressive weapons there IMO by far though were the Albion weapons, particularly the little Constable which was an amazing cutter, and the infamous Brescia Spadona. The only replicas I ever saw which seemed to be better were some in the Czech Republic made by an independent blacksmith from Slovenia.

I've never handled an Angus Trim.

JR

[David Kite]

For a high-end sharp, Albion is definitely the way to go. I understand Raven in the UK also makes very high quality weapons (though I've only ever seen one, and that was JC's and was a few years ago), though they have a very long waiting period as well.

As for blunts, Lutel makes awesome weapons, IMO, though for Britney, they may be a little too big and too heavy. Albion will be releasin blunts soon, and I understand they will be very high quality as well.

I own an Arms &amp; Armor Duerer Bastard Sword and an Albion Museum Line Solingen. Both swords hold up very well under historical usage. They both have been struck forcibly against the flat of other blades, a steel buckler (which for purposes of the test also doubled as a piece of plate armor), as well as maille. Both swords suffered some damage, naturally, but nothing unexpected. The A&amp;A held up just a little better, but that simply could have been due to the cross section.

I have loved every Albion I have gotten my hands on. I do also really like my A&amp;A Duerer, and is my favorite A&amp;A. Most of the A&amp;A pieces have been very nice, but even on those, something wasn't quite right yet, much like Jeanry said. I don't think their level of finish nor their hilt construction is as good as Albion either. A couple of months after I received my Duerer, I had to send it back to get the hilt replaced (the cross was loose, and the grip was quite loose and potentially dangerous). A&amp;A did replace the hilt free of charge and with no questions asked (I did pay for shipping it back to them). The cross is still loose, which is really annoying for a $650 sword, but the grip so far is still in good shape. That said, it may not be too much longer before the grip needs replaced again anyway, so I'll just wait until then to have them fix the cross.

Anyway, IMO if you want a sharp, just save your money and buy a high quality one first, and don't worry about buying lower end swords (like MRL). Same advice with a blunt, though I think you'd do okay with a Lutel or Del Tin, also.

hope that helps <img src="/forum/images/icons/cool.gif" alt="" />
David Kite
GFS, ARMA in IN

[Craig Peters]

Jeanry, you of all people should know by now that there's no such thing as "better" in the world of swords. <img src="/forum/images/icons/wink.gif" alt="" />

I haven't handled the Talhoffer, but from what I've heard and based upon my experience with my Squire Line bastard sword, it will probably be the more agile of the two swords. Type XVa seem to be one of the most agile types out there. The Sempach feels like it has more mass (which it does, but it also feels like it too), probably due to the fact that it is specialized to face plate. I prefer the Sempach for thrusting a bit more, but I suspect the Talhoffer might be a bit better at cutting. Both weapons are very nice for Blossfechten, although depending on your preferences, the Talhoffer might be a bit nicer. However, if you want a sword that's particularly good for harnischfechten and works well for Blossfechten, I'd go with the Sempach.