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.
Alexander (verified owner) –
Fine sword.
Exactly as pictured, solid feel, quality fit and finish, very clean etching job on the blade.
The scabbard fittings are all symmetrical and tight.
Jonathan Reynolds (verified owner) –
Scabbard is nicely fitted, the hilt furniture is nicely fitted, and overall it’s just a beauty.
The scabbard is hard to get the sword into or out of for the last 10 inches or so. Not a quick draw.
Blade is LOOOOOOONNNNNNNGGGGG. User needs to be ready for how much longer this blade is compared to other single handed swords.
Ray –
The folks at KOA performed fantastically with customer service and were gracious, thank you Nikkie and everyone. I’m grateful.
I purchased a blem. Aside from tiny little imperfections on the scabbard, and maybe slightly uneven grind on the fore of the blade that only me could see, the sword overall is an excellent piece of costume wear for whatever purposes others may require.
As a sword practice/play piece, the distal taper is far from ideal. USS clearly built a tough tank for people to perform reenactment and maybe some combat simulations. I wish they separated that idea from battle ready, ie cutting, practice, into stage combat. As a showy piece, this one will perform amicably. As a sword pratice/ grown up play toy/cutter, it’s not very fun. Not to mention without proper equipment, it’s extremely difficult to reform the distal taper. I bought this fully intended to give it an overhaul, but without a belt set up, I haven’t been able to reform it well. Being fairly strong, I can press it into arm muscle service but that’s about it.
Highly recommended for a costume set. Not recommended for sword playing and or backyard cutting.