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.
Richard Miller –
Heavy, simple and Thick! I was impressed with the listed C.o.B. of the sword and thought that this would be a decent backyard cutter and trainer. It’s not much of either. The C.o.B. is indeed a bit over two inches as listed, but the blade is too thick and poorly tapered to be a decent cutter. I was able to put a good edge on the blade but the thick hexagonal blade profile is NOT conducive to cutting. The blade produces too much drag to cut cleanly. At well over three pounds for a sword only a bit over three feet overall, its not good for much more than strength and endurance training. However, if you’re expecting a Zombie Apocalypse, this sword would certainly be useful against slow, dead opponents!
Chris M. –
Loose handle Great looking sword, nicely balanced but several important corners have been cut in it’s production. The handle end of the blade tapers greatly into the handle making a very narrow tang. I doubt this sword would survive much of a battle! The handle on my sword was quite loose causing a rattle when swung lightly. My sword was actually quite sharp but the blade was not finished. Felt like it was just ran over a rough griding stone.
Rick M. –
After Really Using This Beast.. (an amended review) I reviewed this sword about three years ago, and I’d like to amend that review quite a bit.
Since that review I have trained a LOT more and also used this beast a lot more as well. Now, after three years of frequent use, this sword has become one of my favorites!
Yes, it still is pretty mush useless as a backyard cutter, but as a combat weapon this sword is awesome. It’s like having a combination bar-mace, sword and hammer all in one awesome package! This is one lethal weapon (or would have been back in the 14th Century!) and would be one of my first choices for going into battle.
Against plate armor or a thick helm, this little giant would be invaluable. The blade is thick and has a lot of mass, so a good shot to the body would feel like a train had just slammed into you. The large pommel slamming into a helm would knock the teeth out of an opponents head and send said an enemy reeling.
For training, this sword will serve one well to build up strength and endurance in a short period of time,and in a melee it would serve as a fabulous “All In One” bad guy dispatcher.
I love this beater!
Newarcher (verified owner) –
Pommal handle and hilt attached to the blade better than any sword I own, the peen on the pommal is finished very nicely, the pommal is centered square onto he handle, the handle is comfortable and fits my hand best of any sword I own, I have large hands, seems there’s always a size problem with the handles but the maker cant please every one.the hilt has almost no gap , better than any sword I’ve seen, the balance is awsome, easy to wield with one hand, while to hands fit perfectly on the handle. Really one of the best swords I own, but one drawback, the blade actually has a slight twist two thirds up the blade, bummer, a munitions grade blade for many people they would send the sword back, however, it will still perform if ever asked and it’s to much trouble to send back, I’m keeping it.
Newarcher (verified owner) –
Adding to my previous review, as stated my blade had a slight twist in it but I said it will still perform, well I had a neighbors huge white pine fall in my yard and I took my hanwei SP hand and a half to aid in the clean up. I used it to shorten some 2 and 3 inch limbs. After a few cuts I saw that this sword was holding up well, so I put some umph in my swing and found the sword still tight as ever and after cleaning the blade off the blade was good as before I abused it. I was very impressed. Of course I used my axe to finish off the thick base of the limb. I did use another sword in 1095 steel as well and the pommal and retaining nut loosened, but my hanwei SP hand and a half showed no signs of even being used, I well pleased. Because of the twist in the blade I’m still rating my sword a 4, even though it was a 5 star performance.
Flip (verified owner) –
Glad I picked this one up. Fit and finish check all the boxes for a sword in this price range. Scabbard fits snugly around the ricasso and keeps it firmly in place. Since I purchased this for display only, I passed on KoA’s sharpening service. Mine came moderately sharp (as the item description states) but I have little doubt that this would make any difference if any soft target is hit cleanly with this thing,lol.
Processing and shipping were super quick, and of course well packaged for travel. Always a sucker for the unique, this caught my eye and I’m a happy camper with zero buyers remorse!
Cheers again KoA!