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Thank you. I have the 7, the 9, the 18 (harpoon), 19 (Nesmuk), and 40 (folding), but needed a good breakdown on what you get with the other under six inch blades (mainly 2 Campanion or 10 Crew).

Cold Steel 4034 is WAY better than 420..... 4034 gets so razor sharp so easily that it's amazing. I would also say confidentialy that CS 4034 holds an edge better than most other knife companies 14c28n steels. True story....

Hi I have that sort coming from Amazon and I just ran across this video it will be here sometime this week what would you rate that sword 10 being the best and one is a No-No. Please let me know thank you very much and thanks for putting this up I just subscribed. 🙏🏼😔🙏🏼

What’s the best modern alternative Mr. Rizzo?

First of all this nerd will never get any real use out of any of this stuff. People own swords and hardly train at all unfortunately due to being fat and lazy.

You can't beat Moras for cheap durable fixed-blade beaters. They're like the Opinels of fixies: affordable beaters that don't look like gas station knives.

I have the bushcraft stainless in hi-vis orange. I love the handle. Blade is prolly thicker than I need for my uses.

Scandivanian knives are my favorite: reliable, not expensive, not fancy steels and with long tradition that never fails. I like Morakniv, these days I am using the Eldris. Others that I like are the JP Peltonen Knives from Finland, they make the knife for the Finnish Army.

If there is one thing to watch out for when going with low cost Mora knockoffs is that they may have blades with short tangs. The grips may fail under hard use. That said, you can find great alternatives on sale for around $10.😅

A Finn here. The sheath coming fairly high on the handle is a very common feature of a traditioinal Finnish "puukko", though traditionally the sheath of course is made of leather or sometimes wowen strips of birch bark. It makes the sheath very secure against the knife falling out as in the woods, especially in the winter, it would be extremely hard to find it if dropped. The blade shape is close, though traditionally the blade is usually more narrow and the back often curves upwards at the tip (while Moras usually have a slight drop point) though there are models with a straight back or a drop point. The shape of the handles is not very traditional, most old style "puukkos" don't have a finger guard or "pommel" though many modern ones do. I guess it's a matter of liability, without a guard there's a risk of the hand sliding to the blade if used incorrectly, hand injuries from stabbing a knife at something hard like wood without putting the thumb over the end of the handle have happened from time to time. The folding one is definitely not traditionally Finnish, large folders are historically nonexistent, and even today still rare, here, though smaller pen knives and Swiss Army Knives etc. are common. "Puukko" is first and foremost a tool, though it of course was often used as a weapon too, and it's primary function, as the name implies ("puu" means "wood" so "puukko" is "a wood carving knife") is woodworking and general everyday use so the attachment of the blade to the handle needs to be very sturdy which a folder usually is not. Also "puukko" was very often used for dressing fish and game and for general food preparation so it needed to be easily cleaned and maintained.

42 years ago, at 14, I purchased a Western Bowie and carried it in the Army, including the first Gulf War. The hilt also loosened over time, but a brass shim took care of it. I had the 15 1/2" model and its point also went through the side. I had a saddle maker make a better sheath and never had another problem. I camped with that knife through my teen years on horses and while canoeing rivers. It was a great companion.

I live in Finland, the eastern neighbour of Sweden, and Moras have been ubiquitous here for decades, so much that in some areas "mora" has become practically synonymous with a knife in spoken language. My first own knife as a child (I think I was 6 or 7) back in the 70's was a Mora, they had wooden handles then, and I still have a couple of them though unfortunately I have lost the first one at some time. Moras are close enough to the traditional Finnish "puukko" that they feel very familiar to us as we share a long history with Sweden and have a lot of the same culture. But I have not been really conscious about these "fancier" (though still quite inexpensive) models as to me, and, I believe, most Finns, Mora is mostly known as a very cheap, (the cheapest models are 6 euros, about the same in dollars, here) but great for the price as they are durable and very sharp from the factory and keep their edge well, mundane everyday tool used for all kinds of work where one would not want to use something more expensive. They are popular with construction workers and such who use them as universal tools to cut and scrape all kinds of things, pry open paint cans etc. and they serve them well though when they get dull they often discard them and buy new ones instead of bothering to sharpen them. Or they may use something like an angle grinder to quickly put a usable, though rough, edge on them. I work as a mechanic and we have Moras at work and they live a rough life, often abused a lot, used for things like scraping old gaskets from parts etc. I tend to use a belt grinder for a quick sharpening when I need a knife that's sturdier than a box cutter and the nearest Mora is dull. Unfortunately there's also a darker side to Moras here, because they are so common, almost everyone has one or more, they are often used as tools of violence and homicide, called with darkly humorous names like "ruotsalainen äänenvaimennin" or "the Swedish silencer".

Question on Pathfinder answered at in the video thank you very much

Cool video. An interesting look at a very common knife. Looking forward to how the "big-un" does. :D

Great video will you be showcasing the Pathfinder as well? As far as Marshall use I believe that finland's military uses the same style knife about an inch longer and maybe a little thicker stock the Ranger puco.

Thank You for sharing!

There is a art form of Usheathing your weapon just as much as sheathing your weapon especially in Japanese Katanas

The first sword is the one I was eyeing so its good to see a good review

大変良く出来たまがい物です。断言致します。

Thanks for the good review Michael! I ordered one 👍🏻 Shiver Me Timbers!

I appreciate your review. I love the aesthetic of this sword but I'm gonna stick with the standard double ring. Cheaper and better balanced.

I have this knife #1277, year of production 2008. In short, it's a beauty. Designed to be used on the battlefield (the same concept as in the Nagant revolver - easy maintenance, dirt-resistant, it's where backlocks would suck) its matte finish is one of the best on the market. Just compare it with TOPS' or some of Cold Steel's or Fox's. Out there it is always better to deal with a bit of drag than to be spotted by a sharp shooter. With little filework I added the Emerson's Wave feature and in place of a regular sword-knot I attached two Luger's Parabellum-like round rubber knobs for sure extraction from the pocket to arm the blade with its wave feature. If not a fixed blade than this is the one.

Thanks

I have a sword my grandfather brought back from the war. It is signed and in 1960 he sent a rubbing of the inscription to the Japanese Artistic Sword Preservation Association. They replied that the signature read the sword was made by Ippei Yasuyo. After doing some research online, apparently it is very unlikely that the sword was actually made by Yasuyo, who is considered a famous Juyo ranked swordsmith of some importance and given special honors by the Tokugawa of his time (Shinto period.) The sword itself has an ornamental bird's head handle. I've read that these may have been Showa swords which were not intended as forgeries but rather given in ceremonies to certain figures for their services at various points throughout the 1900s. Do you know anything about these types of swords and what methods may have been used to make them?

Thank for an honest review. The premium is very appealing visually but seeing I already own an older Talwar XL (5.5” blade) in XHP would be looking at the Espada XL which just saved a boat load of cash if I decide to go that direction. Again thanks.

What is the awesome tomahawk you've got at the end of the video? I've been looking for one just like that with the spike and the thicker blade profile and am considering 1 of the CRKT models but the one you have looks just perfect

Ha, we got you beat in canada for once! Here you can carry any length of fixed blade. Not for protection mind you but you can have it on you for work for example. But yes, every other law you got it better 😂

Hello! Happy new year. Very good review. You are so used to poor repro the good ones feel like cheating.

Thanks for sharing new swords with no reviews! Very noble of you!

Its a deepeeka assame kukri. Mass produced in the western Himalaya. They are cheap and pretty strong. Made from either train or truck springs if the one you have is carbon steel. They do make stainless ones but you rarely see them. Hope this helps. Its not made in Nepal.

Got one of these a couple of months ago. It was "sharpened" which meant someone took a few quick sweeps with a carbide type sharpener. The edges from about 15 centimeters in front of the guard up to where they start curving to the point were reasonably sharp but quite coarse. The first part of the blade was "butterknife sharp" and I left it at that for the time being as it's not used for cutting anyway. The point was completely dull, like half a millimeter wide flats where the edges should be. I used a small wet grinding wheel to shape the pointy into, well, a point and did some sharpening on the edges. Now it's kind of ok but I have ordered a belt grinder and I'm certainly going to do more sharpening on it when I get it. The wire wrap on mine started to loosen quite soon, I believe the dry inside air caused the handle to shrink, so I disassembled the sword (quite easy, the pommel unscrewed by hand and the rest of the parts just pulled off) and impregnated the wrap with epoxy which stabilized it just fine. I'm thinking of maybe using some gun blue on the guard and the pommel at some time, I have seen some pictures of actual antique ones with a blued/blackened furniture and they look quite good. Also, I may try turning a lighter pommel as someone said it makes the sword lighter and better to handle. Not sure though as it would also move the point of balance further down the blade. Anyway I already got the threading tap for the thread used on the tip of the tang (which by the way is not a bolt welded on but actually a forged part of the actual blade which is reassuring) so trying it will only cost me the time it takes to turn one on my little tabletop lathe. The scabbard is what it is, it's plain but quite serviceable and looks ok. I'll be making a leather frog to wear the sword on a belt. Tge sword is heavy, especially after playing with the "smallsword" I made by putting a 3D-printed smallsword hilt (I'm planning on making a real hilt out of wood and metal but I printed this to get the feel of the blade and to see if the dimensions are right) on a fencing epee blade which weighs next to nothing but I don't think it's too heavy with practice.

They made it affordable with the crap belt and hanger thing . Yeah screw it cut it off that's what I'm going to do

Great review, and it seems like it might be an option for me. I've had good experiences with Japanese style Hanwei swords in the past. As someone who grew up in standard European style fencing, I am currently looking for the best "combat ready" versions of the foil, epee, and sabre. Sabre was my blade of choice, and I did pick up a Cold Steel sabre, but I was pretty disappointed with it. What are your recommendations for fencing sword equivalents; especially sabre and epee?

So, I bought the all black version (black coated blade). No matter how hard I flick it open, the liner lock never gets stuck in the gutter. I ordered a standard Luzon Large like the one you tested, and the liner lock gets stuck on every hard opening. But, here's the problem. While I love this knife for defensive purposes, carrying it is no longer an option. The blade retention when closed is entirely too loose. This giant folder has now cut me badly 4 times, because it opened on its own inside a front jeans pocket. On liner lock blades, I believe it's the friction from the liner lock that keeps the blade closed. Perhaps with the black coating, it's just too slippery. I can no longer carry this blade out of fear it will cut me. I tightened the screws and it made no difference. I contacted GSM Outdoors, and they basically told me it's not their problem, and they won't replace it. Until GSM Outdoors honors their warranty, I'm not buying anymore Cold Steel blades.

This video for me is 27 of 70 in your "Japanese Style Swords" playlist, Mr. Rizzo, and while I have enjoyed them all, this video is so far the one I have appreciated the most. Thank you!

why don't they come up with an intermediate hand and a half design half way in between this 1 and the traditional 1?

later period Jian swords were likely to be European influenced designs probably using blades purchased from the west manufactured in central Europe

Looks like that sword is worth… one million dollars!

Definitely does look like a decent jian... believe it or not, such quillons and similar could be found on Chinese swords during both the Ming and Qing periods. The modern prejudice that a sword typology has one and only one form in every single piece is as false as possible. I've seen jian with a perfectly medieval European looking hilt here and there. In fact, if you replace the wheel pommel on Mike's sword here with a pear shape, it'd match a jian I saw in person back in the 90s, save for the copper wire wrap that one had.

I have the XL Clip Point. I want the XL Drop Point, but there are a lot of reviews saying the grinds are uneven on the XL Drop Point.

It's an interesting design. The lightness comes from the proper distal taper and the extreme narrowness of the blade. It's quite curious as 13th century Scottish swords are often depicted as being reasonable in the width. In any case I'm glad the handling works out quite well for you. Is the pommel hollow?

Like you, i have a struggle with deciding between the historical aesthetic and the modern look, but what i think is pulling me towards this modern design is additional functionality for woods use.

Have any updates on how the tang and sheath are holding up?

Wow that sword looks much skinnier than I expected

As always, great review. Thank you!

Swords such as that one are really good candidates for a project. The base is good, it just needs refinement & finishing. One could easily & fairly affordably turn that into a $600+ piece.

Looks like an interesting sword for sure. Its a lot lighter and thinner than the old MRL Lowlander single hander. About a pound and five ounces worth of lighter. The MRL version is very much a broadsword, but really well balanced. Great content! Looking forward to the next one.

These Scottish hilts, or atleast the cross guards, have always been interesting to me. The hard angles produce an aesthetic that I find very pleasing. I love older artists renditions of Elric of Melniboné, where he sports a Scottish two handed sword or “claymore”. A term I know is problematic. But maybe that’s why I like these so much.

I've been eyeballing that one.

Encouraged by your review and others I ordered this one. I'm also very fond of cut-and-thrust swords. I currently own a Windlass Munich sword and I like it but I wanted an actual cutting capable rapier. I'm thinking of chemically darkening the nickel plating on the hilt with acid and maybe running a Scotchbrite pad along the blade as it looks too shiny and "cheap" to my eye but I'll se how it looks in real life. Here the threaded tang is great, the sword is easy to take apart for modifications and repairs. The wire wrap on my Munich started loosening almos at once (probably because of the very dry inside air here in the winter that caused the wooden handle to shrink, I have had similar problems with wood shrinking with musical instruments) and I had to impregnate it with epoxy, a task made easy by the ability to screw off the pommel and take off the handle. I have also considered gun bluing the hilt parts but haven't gotten to it yet.