The Templar Arming Sword by Balaur Arms is a large late 12th Century sword with proportions reminiscent of the famed Sword of St. Maurice; this is a sword for a professional warrior of the milites who would have trained in its use since from late childhood and would have been right at home in the mail-clad hand of both a secular knight or a knight of the Monastic Orders such as the Templar or Teutonic Knights. The blade is both broad and long and delivers powerfully decisive cutting strokes from atop a warhorse and in skilled hands its reach and striking potential makes it a formidable companion for the warrior on foot as well. This is a sword crafted to optimize reach and sheer cutting potential and intended to be a powerful weapon in the hand of the warrior who knows how to use it to its fearsome potential.
These large medieval arming swords are a difficult type of sword to make without them becoming too heavy or unbalanced on account of the large blade, but with the assistance of famed swordmaker LK Chen we were able to realize a sword of this type that stays surprisingly light and agile for its size without sacrificing the cutting power that is was designed to optimize. A true knightly sword, the balance of the sword lies right at a sweet spot for usability and sheer cleaving power.
Ready for powerful cutting right out of the box, this sword has a keenly sharp blade of well-tempered spring steel with a hardness of 54-55 HRc. The crossguard and pommel are of stainless steel and the hardwood grip is tightly bound in burgundy hue leather. The blade is solidly anchored into the pommel with a hot-peen assembly. The hardwood grip is crafted from two halves of wood which were glued at the seam over the tang and then bound in tight leather. This construction method for the grip ensures that even if the wood were to shrink slightly over time it would not compromise the tightness of the sword hilt. Swords with friction-fit peens can loosen over time if the wooden grip shrinks and then leaves a gap in that friction-fit for the hilt. This alternate method used for this Italian Longsword removes that possibility by keeping the grip fitting separate from the pommel and guard.
The sword is matched with a tough wooden scabbard which is tightly bound in stitched burgundy leather. A protective chape of steel protects the scabbard wood from impacts. The Jerusalem Cross is etched onto the scabbard rainguard on a single side.
Ray Blundell (verified owner) –
Just received my balaur arms knight templar sword today,I purchased a blemished grade.The prommel is done nice and is slightly tapered towards the top.The peen stickes up every so slightly,but is little ruff.The grip lether warp is little ruff at top where it meets the bottom of the prommel.The seam where the lether warp meetes is slighty thicker.The length of the grip is 3&3/8″,also the grip is just little thin but kind of like that.Really like the style of the prommel and the grip,risers and small string markings between the risers.The guard is 8&1/4″ longwith a cross in the middle of it on both sides.There is a small grind mark by one of the crosses.Also like the size and style of the guard.The blade is 34&6/8″ long on mine,Tapers pretty thin down as it gets to the point,so there is a lot of flex.When I cut various sizes of water bottles with it the blade kind of sang as it cut.Really like the crosses on thee blade,only other thing would like to see on the blade is a cross in the center of the prommel.Also really like the steel of the blade.Now ths sharpness of the blade,is is great,it in nice to get a sword sharp with out any secondary belve on and not have to have it sharpened of sharpen it.Moving on the the scabble which is kind of a bonus,the leathes is very nice,although the wood in side is cracked down both sides quite a bit,hope it doesn’t crack any more!The cross in middle of the rain flapes is nice.The only blen I don’t think should be there is the crackes in the wood in the scabble.The gap between the blade and the guard is the best I have seen on any medevil sword I have seen!This is a great sword just to have and for light to medium targets-watter bottles-depending which ones you cut and mats.Maybe 1″ bamboo.The pob is 6&1/4″ from the guard.I really like this templar arming sword and would recommend it if you are loking for a templar sword.Also I have seen some of the flaws I have mentioned above I have found on swords that cost 600.00 to 1200.00 dollars.Kult of athena did a real good job getting this sword out so quickly,and fedx finally did a good job of getting it to me lot faster than the type xIV Knightly arming sword,the Italian long sword,the german long sword and the 13th long sword.Again I think the balaur swords are a great deaL At the prices right now.Rember only cut watter bottles,mats and bamboo,safe cutting Ray Blundell
Ray Blundell (verified owner) –
Up date on mat cutting,cut best of all the arming swords (of the three balaur arms arming swords I have) The sword sang as it cut through the mat Ray Blundell
Richard Grozik (verified owner) –
Great value for the money and rivals swords more than twice its price. The high-quality blade is forged to perfection and properly tempered. The fit and finish is exceptional. The pommel is beautifully shaped, the leather grip is seamless and the blade looks as if it grew out of the quillon, no gaps. The snug-fitting leather-covered wood scabbard is a bonus. The sword sings and dances in the hand and is a cutting machine. This Templar-inspired sword is a tribute to their legacy and has become the favorite in my collection. Buy it before they realize just how under-priced it is.
Jacob LeBlanc (verified owner) –
You can’t beat this sword for the price. It’s an incredible value. The craftsmanship etc is something you’d expect to see on a sword double the price. Came razor sharp with excellent blade geometry. More than happy I ordered it. The only complaint I have, which is not much of one at all is the leather for the handle and scabbard are not at all what is pictured on the website here. I was expecting a darker color like it is pictured on the website but it is actually a bright red.
Knight Dave (verified owner) –
Great sword, it’s light and responds well in the hand, the scabbard was tight but loosened up after use, the pommel has a dent where it was peened and the cross on the guard has a divit between two of the arms which both contribute to making this sword a unique, the red leather is not quite as bright as in the pictures but is still very attractive, lastly the edge in the last 1/4 of the blade towards the tip was not quite as sharp as I’d like but overall I’m very happy with this purchase and look forward to making more.
SmallieAngler (verified owner) –
Wow! I’ve owned several swords over many decades, and none could compare to this one in terms of finish or handling. My friends are very impressed by its appearance and feel. It’s hard to believe that such a large sword could be so light and nimble. And when Balaur Arms says this sword is delivered very sharp, they mean scary sharp! As others have commented the scabbard that came with my sword was initially stubbornly snug. With time it has loosened noticeably. You’ll be drawing this sword a lot as you’ll want to both protect it and admire it. It is a functional piece of art which I’ll display proudly.
My hat is off to anyone who had anything to do with creating this product.