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The Sword Buyers Digest
Halloween Special Edition, Issue 118, October 2017
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Welcome to the Halloween Edition of the Sword Buyers Digest for 2017!
As you may know, it has become something of a Sword Buyers Digest 'Tradition' that the October issue of the Digest is dedicated to all things spooky, scary and swords that go bump in the night (and that is SCARY!) - and this issue is no exception.
So sit back and sip on your favorite witches brew and let's get straight into it shall we?
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Sneak Preview of Our Fantasy Swords Project
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While it is a little behind schedule in some ways, and ahead of schedule in others, behind the scenes the dedicated website for our SBG member designed battle ready fantasy sword project is very close to launching version Beta 1.0.
While it did not quite make the launch in September, it will almost certainly go online within the next couple of weeks, but here are a few previews..
First off, some Halloween appropriate art that we had commissioned - the Sakkala Spider Riding Tribe..!
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While original swords and sorcery style artwork is a massive part of this website (to date we have over 200 fantasy images depicting various scenes from various points of the worlds history) - naturally making battle ready fantasy swords is the focus of the site. To date, we have 11 designs taking shape - and each sword has a detailed step by step 'how it was made' page..
Below you can see an example of the 'from design to something you can hold in your hand' designed by SBG member Croccifixio and brought to life by Chris Palmer at Scorpion Swords..
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And here are some behind the scenes pics of a truly high end piece being made for us by Longship Armory - the stunning 'Northman' sword named "Odin's Oar" made from folded and pattern welded L6 and O1 steel, still hot from the forge..
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So stay tuned folks - right now we are waiting on a third party to boost the sites capability to handle more than a few visitors at a time, give it one final polish and launch into beta..
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'Scary' Turn of Events for Chinese Swords
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Halloween came early for the Chinese Sword market so it would appear..
There have been quite a few rumblings and changes going on at the governmental level concerning the Chinese sword market. But the most notable event is a real horror story for makers of traditional Chinese blades..
Overnight, they pretty much lost access to 90% of their customers when a new policy came into effect prohibiting the domestic shipping of swords, leaving the future of the traditional Chinese sword market in question except at the highest levels (after all, if you are paying tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars for a sword, you will probably have someone inspect it and pick it up for you right?).
To try and help out our smith and his forge who make our Forge Direct Chinese Swords, who is taking the month off until the smoke clears a bit - we are offering a massive 25% discount on our range of Forge Direct Chinese Swords until the 10th of October, at which time we will temporarily close down on taking new orders until the forge is back at work again.
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You can read more details about this
HERE over on the store blog. Otherwise, check out what is on offer in our store below:
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(Scary) Video of the Month
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Produced by the Authors of 'How to Survive a Zombie Apocalypse' from the Academy of Historical Fencing, this 20 minute video discusses the best swords to use against Zombies, why a Katana may not be the best choice, what swords ARE the best (you might be surprised, it is not the Gladius by the way), and much, much more..
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With an average of a 10 month wait time, $500 for a scabbard, sometimes spotty sharpening service, and cut out by a CNC machine - you would think that they might not be anywhere near as popular as they are.. So here is the lowdown to make up your own mind..
Well, it wasn't actually a natural hamon in this post - but here forumites discuss the pros and cons of Fake Hamon, how to make one, and how to enhance a real one..
What kind of swords would you use in the hypothetical situation of facing off against modern ballistic armor. Would it be hard or easy to cut? What armor and what sword would be best? An interesting thought exercise..
With a sword designed by Lancelot Chan and made real by John Lundemo from Longship Armory, was there ever any doubt that it may cut a target with 8 chopsticks inside two targets twice as thick as a mans arm?
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Best (cheap) Swords for Halloween 2017
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If you are trick or treating (unless you are in Texas, where open carry of real swords has recently become legal), looking for some suitable 'sword decor' for a Halloween Party or just dressing up, it is one of those rare occasions where a decorative sword is probably better than a real one..
So here are some top recommendations for decent looking Halloween Swords and Props that you may have otherwise not have considered selected from several of our allied sword sellers.
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Available from Swords of Might, this LARP Masonic Sword a true bargain for just $25 - get two and enjoy some safe sword horseplay. Great for the kids.
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What could be more appropriate than the Skull Sword by Swords of Might for $80? It looks the part, and for a decorative sword, that is all that matters..
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Its not sharp, and its just $20 at Trueswords - get your inner Goth on with this Steampunk style sword cane. Good clean fun and at a price that anyone can afford.
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When it comes to decorative and affordable Fantasy Swords, no-one can beat Kit Rae. Here is one of his newest creations, autographed and will a full color print for $129.
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Something a Bit More High End..
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Marto Julius Caesar Sword
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A bit of a 'blast from the past' (Marto was founded back in 1961) - no decorative 420 Stainless steel swords are as nice or as good quality as what Marto of Toledo, Spain make.
Extremely ornate, at $432 they are a bit pricey, but for the attention to detail and overall style you get with a Marto Sword, worth every cent paid and look fantastic when displayed, making them a great conversation point.
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Hope you enjoyed the Halloween edition of the digest. Don't forget to punish a pumpkin or two when they go on sale after the big day..
Until next time, stay safe and Happy Swordening..
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