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.
Ian –
GDFB Milanese Arms Overall I am happy with these arms and will be using them for harness sparring. Things to note are; they are pretty heavy and will absolutely need to be point tied to an arming garment to be wearable and given that they are designed to be one size fits most they are wide at the forearms. These also will not fit over an XL GDFB gambeson as it is way too puffy despite the forearm width so I’d suggest a lighter weight garment or a smaller size might work too. I had these looked over by an armorer who trains with us and he confirmed for me that they should be safe for sparring and hold up well enough so these are a good buy provided you have an arming jacket or gambeson which they can be point tied to (or you are willing to modify one) and you are able to bear a pretty noticeable weight. One issue I have had is that the blacking on the back of these has flaked off nearly completely just after the first cleaning upon getting them. Overall I am pleased with the Milanese arms considering the price point.
Anthony –
Great for the price I bought these around the beginning of the year, and they are certainly the best arms I’ve seen for the price without resorting to DIY leather, plastic, or splint armor etc.
They are heavy, and wide at the forearms (padding solves that), and I’ve found that they should be tied fairly high up on my gambeson, but are well articulated and crafted for the most part.
The ones I received have iffy buckles (not horrible, but a little loose), the vambraces are askew when closed (nothing that a little hammer work can’t fix), and the right elbow’s articulation is a little loose (I might see if I can replace that huge reinforced elbow cop on the right arm).
Overall, a great buy if you don’t mind bulk and possibly a little modification. 4/5
Mychal Roxburgh (verified owner) –
I needed new arms for my harness and I bought these for the price point and the fact that I have bought armor from GDFB in the past with no issues that could not be quickly and easily worked out with a little know-how, the right tools and some elbow grease. All off-the-rack armor has issues and these are no different. Again, nothing I can’t work out after attaching them to the rest of the harness and seeing how they ride and move when I am fighting.
The only negative – FedEx shipping. I live in a rural area. Not the Arctic Circle or anywhere you need special transportation to reach. I watched the progress of the package and it crossed the Phoenix/Metro area four times once it made it in-state. Imagine all the time, effort and gasoline FedEx might have saved if they just used a road map or GPS and realized that I live seventy-five minutes north of Phoenix and it was a straight shot from where the parcel first arrived. . . KoA, you might want to go with a different carrier. Otherwise, no worries.