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.
David R. –
Great, Affordable Spatha As a martial arts enthusiast who writes novels and articles about the fall of Western Rome, I became obsessed with getting a spatha. Unfortunately, spatha are rarer than most replica swords, and the designs of most of the ones available (except the really expensive Albion ones) didn’t speak to me. Then this one came along (sometime in the last few months, I believe). I really like the design, which has the classic look found on most gladius, but is different enough to give it a uniqueness. I also liked the double fuller blade design.
Now that I’ve had the sword for a few days, I can say the weapon is very sturdy. It looks and feels really good. Nothing shakes or rattles. The hilt is well-tooled wood and feels good in the hand (though I am still working on the ideal way to grip it). Most of my previous swords have either been two-handed or lighter single-handed ones (i.e. rapier, gladius, Chinese jian) and so I will say I was surprised by how heavy this sword is. I think that would be an advantage for battle in a shield wall, but it is going to take some practice to get control over and I expect my wrist and forearm are going to have to toughen up. The scabbard is really nice – though I hated the color (which is orangish-brown as it appears in the photos). This color is probably right for the Late Antiquity period (when soldiers wore white instead of scarlet and dark leather, and lighter colors prevailed in art and fashion). I figured that I could probably darken the scabbard with shoe polish if needed, but it is starting to grow on me anyway. One more downside of the sword is that it only comes un-sharpened (though it is heavy and pointy enough to bludgeon most enemies of Rome you may happen to encounter). Over-all, I am very happy with this sword, especially for the money.
Bryan B. (verified owner) –
Picked up this piece due to its apparent sturdy blade and general durability for the price. I don’t do much abusive testing but from the cut tests I have performed I was pleased with the results. With the sharpening service, the edge is quite the performer and the blade can handle a lot of heavy impacts. The look of the sword is also nice and appears to be historically accurate. The scabbard is also a fitting companion to the sword in terms of both its appearance as well as its solid construction.
My biggest issues involve the wood grip. The blade is already tip-heavy and a lack of proper counterweight in the pommel means you’ll have to overcome some imbalance. This issue does seem surmountable through strength building exercises with the spatha it’s worth mentioning if you don’t want to constantly workout your wrist and forearm as you adjust to the sword’s weight.
Another issue I’ve run into is the pommel. As mentioned previously it is an improper counterweight to the blade yet is somehow also too bulky and wide. Just bending my wrist up and down with the sword in a chopping motion causes the pommel to dig into my wrist, which is certainly annoying and to someone with less patience could even be a deal-breaker.
In short, this is a good sword for the price and likely the best Spatha you’ll find short of forking over the thousand dollars for an Albion. However, it requires a good deal of getting used to considering the problems with the grip and pommel. I would recommend possibly sanding down the edge of the pommel to make it more comfortable or, since it’s a nut pommel, simply getting the entire hilt replaced with one of higher quality. That said, I really like the blade and could see this being an excellent addition to anyone’s collection. Just wear some gloves during cut tests!