August 8, 20178 yr So before I started actually forging I was making wall hanger swords and daggers and stuff. Fast forward years and I learned so much. Thank you all. Here is one that came back for rust issues from fingers touching it. Where I was and what I learned are way apart now. one of my favorites tho before learning more, thought I'd share the delusion of pre knowledge sword smithing. Yeah, it's mild steel One day I'll make a real deal.
August 8, 20178 yr Author paint scale at work read 2235g so just under 5lbs. Bit heavy for a sword but not too bad for a wall hanger.
August 8, 20178 yr 1 hour ago, ThomasPowers said: What's the weight? Worried about the wall? An attractive wall hanger fantasy sword Das, it shows good hand skills. It's not a user but it doesn't pretend to be. I call it a darned good first. Frosty The Lucky.
August 8, 20178 yr Author It actually wasn't my first but was my best. Made it around 2007. It was a gift for a good friend. After this I started to get my kit together to start forging. And then it happened. I learned that it takes a Lot more then some pounding of steel to made a real sword. I'm still researching and slowly absorbing info and above all working on forging technique. One day I'll make a real one. For now I'm happy doing what I'm doing.
August 8, 20178 yr One of the best delineators between a "real" sword and a wall hanger is weight. Real swords were surprisingly light as heavy is slow and slow is dead on the battlefield. Swords made by blacksmiths have the advantage of things like distal tapers and fullers that reduce weight without sacrificing strength. Swords made by machinists often lack the "everything tapers" and so tend to be heavy and then misleading people even further as to real weights. Remember that scene in 13th warrior where AB can't lift a sword that in reality would have been under 3 pounds? And then proceeds to grind off the hardened edges leaving the soft core? Epic Fail in so many ways...
August 8, 20178 yr Author I do remember that. I see more and more in movies the more I learn. Some of those points I did not know before and that's why I want to learn a lot more before I jump in and spend the time on something like a real sword. I'm just starting to get into real knives. Tho even that is a here and there thing since I learned of all the other things I can make.
August 8, 20178 yr I've never seen "The 13th Warrior", so I looked it up online. The Wikipedia article contains the following howler: "It stars Antonio Banderas as Ahmad ibn Fadlan, Diane Venora, and Omar Sharif." I know that Antonio Banderas was a talented actor, but three roles (one in drag) in one film?!
August 8, 20178 yr I was perusing craigslist over lunch and saw an ad for a welding extension cord that said "It was used on a elder"....made me wonder if it was missing an N or a W 13th warrior was a mix of Beowulf and ibn Fadlan with the most accurate part probably being the funeral which is pretty much as ibn Fadlan described it...
August 11, 20178 yr Author It's back with its proud owner now. I'll get a picture once she hangs it up on the plaque hanger I made for it. I'd like one for myself. I'll wait till I can make a real one.
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