Overview
Our sharpening service will provide a good serviceable edge on the blade. The result is typically “very sharp” with a small secondary bevel and a bit of an “apple seed” profile. The resulting edge is somewhat dependent on the particular blade. Some blades will take and hold sharper edges than others and the thickness of the blade will determine how wide the bevel will need to be. We adjust the angle of the edge to suit the specific blade and attempt to get as close to a bevel-less edge as possible without marring the surface of the blade.
The Sharpening Process
The sharpening service is done with a belt sander. The process involves many passes with sanding belts of various grits. The blades are rested between passes to prevent them from becoming hot and damaging their temper. By default we will sharpen as much of the blade as possible including any false edges if appropriate. If you have a different preference, feel free to make that request in the special instructions at check out. We can sharpen only the last half or third of an edge, for example. Our sword sharpening expert has personally sharpened several thousand swords at this point, so will provide you with a professional service.
What the Service is Not
The resulting edge will be “sword sharp” not razor sharp. Our goal is to provide you with a usable edge for cutting practice that will hold up to some use and not require constant re-sharpening. In other words, we intend to provide you with a serviceable weapon, not a personal grooming implement. The service will not provide a completely bevel-less edge. To create that type of edge will necessarily scratch up the blade surface and we lack the machinery and time to provide a full re-polishing of a blade’s surface. A service of that nature would be significantly more expensive as a great deal more time would be required. We do not offer this type of service at this time.
Disclaimer
We make no guarantee that the resulting edge will meet with your expectations. Every blade is different and some will take and hold a sharper edge than others, due to the blade material, heat treatment or geometry. Some customers can also have incorrect assumptions about sword sharpness and improper expectations as a result. All we can say for sure is that the resulting edge will be sharper than the default edge, in most cases, significantly so. We can not provide any refunds for the service once it has been completed, so consider it to be provided “as is”. That being said, if you are unhappy with the product for any reason, we do still allow you to return the item for a full refund, including the sharpening costs under our normal return policy. This does not apply to special sharpening requests, for example if we sharpen something specially for you that does not normally list that option on our site. The vast majority of our customers are happy with the results of the service, so as long as you keep the above mentioned in mind, we are confident you will be pleased with the results as well.
XY –
Talhoffer Very well balanced, excellent finish, exactly what a sword ought to be. Don’t buy a sword until you’ve tried an Albion!
Jarrod F. –
Amazing, beautiful sword. I picked up one of these mid 2017, and have been thoroughly enjoying it. It’s very nimble for its weight and is a great thrusting sword, but can also cut fairly well with the lower part of the upper third of the blade. It’s very rigid, starting out at 8.6mm and tapering down to a relatively thick 4.3mm, so it never gets too thin, making the point quite durable yet fine enough to easily penetrate pretty much anything except plate. Mine came decently sharp, straight from Albion. I don’t think I could make it much better myself without screwing with their beautiful workmanship. There’s barely any secondary bevel at all, and the lines are super crisp. The center ridge of the blade is perfectly straight and defined, with the satin finish setting it off nicely.
I can’t recommend Albion enough. They’re great swords, they’re worth the wait and every penny.
Kevin K. –
Thank you Kult of Athena I was Incredibly lucky to find this Albion Talhoffer in stock.I am so great full for not having to wait over a year to receive this Awesome sword.Mine came with the light brown “Campaign worn handle” witch looks more like brown and black not necessarily campaign worn but fantastic looking nonetheless!
Torchy (verified owner) –
Had always wanted an Albion given their almost universal acclaim for quality and handling. Previously I had been reticent because of the long waiting time and mixed success stories of importing to Europe. Particularly keen on a classic hand and a half sword, I was lucky to find this one from my shortlist in stock at KOA. Shipping to UK was extremely expensive, adding almost 50% to price, so this is the only reason for my 4* rating. The very high cost is probably prohibitive to me using KOA for anything but purchases I can’t get anywhere else. However there was no hassle with the UPS shipping, VAT and any duties sorted at checkout, the box arriving completely unscathed in about a week. As for the product itself, it’s early days but everything about it shouts quality, it feels good in the hands, love it. Now I just need to decide if I’m going to spend another £750 with Tod’s Workshop to get a scabbard befitting my new Talhoffer.