This Viking Langseax was made in collaboration with Arn Forge and it has a handcrafted blade that was painstakingly forged with traditional Pattern Welding techniques to make a composite blade akin to how Viking smiths made many of their blades. The steel used was 1060 and 15n20 to make the shock-absorbing body of the blade and the twisting of the iron bars used to create the blade are plainly visible in its patterning. A hardened edge of the more resilient 1090 high carbon steel was forge-welded onto the blade to complete it.
The grip is crafted from polished hardwood and is embellished with brass fittings and a brass lanyard ring. Included with the langseax is a sheath formed from durable and thick leather constructed with stitching and copper rivets.
Norse bladesmiths were masters of pattern welding and this forging technique was developed to make the most of the materials and metallurgy of the time. The bloomery steel making process of the time made steel with inconsistent carbon content, but the clever placement of steel in different carbon contents for various parts of the blade could ensure that no precious steel was wasted and when well-crafted it even could give the composite blade excellent properties; softer steels could be used to create a shock-absorbing core that was not brittle and overly hard whilst harder steel edges could be forge-welded onto the body to give it a resilient and durable edge. Skilled bladesmiths learned that twisting the steel and arranging the placement of individual bars of steel could create a final blade that had beautiful and skillfully wrought banded patterning. This was and continues to be a laborious technique, but its mastery is a testament to the skill of the smith and a homage to the bladesmithing traditions of the Norse.
Bill W. –
This is actually a really nice piece. You would be hard pressed to get anything with this complex of a blade structure anywhere close to this price. Well done!
Nathan –
This is very good for the price point. I would prefer a broke back seax blade type and a high carbon mono steel edge. The etching would be better if it was more subtle but that is fixable.
If they did a pattern welded viking sword with high carbon along the edge I would go for it. The 3 Balaur products I own are all very good for the price.
Michael Anderson (verified owner) –
The knife is fantastic. The only problem I had was the wire wrap on the handle was loose and not burned in, so the first time I took it out of the sheath is came unraveled and I had to take it off. The handle looks good without it so I’m fine with it. I would have given it 4 stars for that, however I gave a star back for the sharpening service. I’m sure if you have the skill and tools you could get a sharper edge but if you’re not an expert KOA’s sharpening service puts a very functional edge on it, well worth the $18. Overall very happy with the product!
Michael Anderson (verified owner) –
The knife is fantastic. The only problem I had was the wire wrap on the handle was loose and not burned in, so the first time I took it out of the sheath is came unraveled and I had to take it off. The handle looks good without it so I’m fine with it. I would have given it 4 stars for that, however I gave a star back for the sharpening service. I’m sure if you have the skill and tools you could get a sharper edge but if you’re not an expert KOA’s sharpening service puts a very functional edge on it, well worth the $18. Overall very happy with the product!