HAN WEI medieval sword or COLD STEEL medieval sword ,Which?

[YIzhe LIU]

I wannt to buy a long sword or a bastard sword and a madieval arming sword,In the area that I live,only coldsteel and HANWEI sword can be bought.

My Requirements are the appearance,the weight,the balance between blade and hilt,martirial should be as alike as real swords as much as poissible.

Which one i should choose for the longsword or bastard sword
HANWEI ALBERT BASTARD SWORD,Rhinelander Bastard Sword,war sword,bastard sword antique[PC2250 n],TINKER pearce seriours long sword,bastrd sword,great sword or cold steel Italian long sword,bastard sword?

And which arming sword i should choose?

Hanwei Lionheart Sword,Tinker pearce arming sword.Which on I should choose for my requirements?

[Anthony R. Camacho]

Both brands offer well priced intermediate level swords. I use a Cold Steel Hand and a Half Sword for cutting practice. It is an excellent weapon. However, its greatest advantage is that you can also purchase the plastic training version of this sword which is what I use for weekly training and sparring. I also have a Hanwei short sword which I use for cutting practice and it is also a fine weapon. Most Hanwei swords come with a practical version that is the same sword without the edge or the point. These are better for training than the plastic Cold Steel training swords, however, they are far more dangerous. If I have to choose between the two, for cutting practice, I would purchase the Cold Steel swords.

[Andrew F Ulrich]

I hear that the Hanwei Practical Bastard Sword is pretty good- fairly well weighted, tough, etc. It is the blunt version of the Hanwei Bastard Sword (SH2250), so I assume that one's probably ok too if you're looking for a cheap sharp.

Andrew Ulrich
ARMA St. Louis

[John Fares]

Save your pennies and get an Albion Liechtenauer. You won't regret it.

Cold Steel definitely makes some nice weapons, but the trouble is that as often as not, they handle like axes. The balance point on their Italian Longsword is a good 8 inches out from the quillions, where it should be between 2 and 4. Well made, though, so if that's what you like, go for it.

Also, actual medieval weapons were nowhere near that sharp. Go to your kitchen and pull out your everyday-use kitchen knife. Medieval European swords were about that sharp, give or take a bit based on personal preference. Cold Steel seems to be under the impression that medieval weapons were sharp enough to perform eye surgery.