Fantastic review. It seems that OTC (Erik Steelcraft from India) has taken my advice of beefing up the thickness of the blade overall to 7-8mm, from the 5.6mm on the one I received back during the 1st generation of Balaur Arms (Kyle got an even earlier batch that has a 6.5 mm thickness to be more rigid) to between 7mm (this one you have) and 8mm (Kyle's is 7.7mm). From what I have seen, all they did is making the central ridge more raised without modifying too much of the edge geometry, so the sword only gained 2 oz (mine weighs 3 lbs vs yours that weighs 3 lbs 2 oz), but the rigidity is vastly improved to stabilize the blade. Good one overall for the price, even with the blemish here and there on the fittings (same kind of sloppiness on the one I received back in 2020), and snake-like central ridge that causes the blade to be asymmetric at the tip. There's some concern still, about the consistency of the QC, and the intellectual property theft (not just copying somebody else's designs even, just stealing the schematic provided by a previous contractee--quite a scummy move by OTC).
Agreed. I had a conversation with Peter Johnson on Kyle's channel about Ip theft and he really changed my mind about it. There are literally thousands of swords to draw inspiration from OTC just blatantly copying others for all their designs is just plain lazy. Granted this is a replica of a specific sword so maybe in this case it's more excusable but it's not just this sword but all of their swords that are 1 to 1 rip offs. I would consider buying this(or other swords they make) second hand but I won't give OTC my hard earned money directly. Cause they suck. Lol I just can't support their business. And frankly I don't think anyone else should either. Even if it is a "steal."
Thank so much for reviewing this lads! This sword has one of the most complicated histories of any production sword on the market and you did a great job explaining it, as well as showing its pros and cons, which remains important despite how charged this particular model may be. Kudos!
Thank you sir! You're right this sword has a very complicated history. We tried to do a decent job giving historical cliff notes so to speak. Kyle did a fantastic job giving an in-depth explanation in his video. So hopefully people get the information they need between the two.
Good to see yours is remarkably good for the price, like mine is. Consistency is one of OTC's biggest issues, so the more reviews and reports we get of these being good, the more confident we can be in recommending them (business practices aside).
Agreed! I really hope our sword isn't an atypical example of their quality. If this is what to expect then the only real issue for people would be their business practices.
if the product is good and they arent screwing the consumer, couldnt care less about business practices haha. apple uses slave labor... so do all the battery companies for lithium
You're welcome! We very much believe that everyone should be able to enjoy this hobby. Not just those who can drop a lot of cash on swords. So we're always on the lookout for good budget options. Thanks for watching!
Thank you gentlemen for another great review! I was lucky enough to have you guys show up in my feed when you were still fairly low in sub #’s, and after watching the video I was happy to hit subscribe, all notifications, and I’m glad I did! I have loved seeing the way you guys and the other great sword reviewers you have collaborated with don’t seem to view each other as competition, But instead as great allies! It show’s it’s not just swords that are awesome, but the people who are into swords! You’re not sword nerds, you’re sword gods! Lol! I just wish you were my neighbors so I could come over to “play” until you or your wife tell me to go home! Lol! Thanks again guys, and my best wishes to you and your family’s. ✌️🇺🇸
Lovely review gentlemen! Always fun to get your take on blades, and this one just looks like a lot of fun for the price. Off topic, what are you usual drinks of choice when going into review time?
It really depends on what we're in the mood for. We're both big fans of whiskey and Old Fashioneds. With beer we both enjoy things like barrel aged stouts. And sometimes we do mead. So it really depends. Thanks for watching!
I used to have the original OTC/Balaur Arms version of this sword. It was beautiful, lively, hollow-ground, and broke in half one day while cutting water bottles. I didn't hit anything solid. The vibration alone caused it to snap. Thank God no one was with me because the distal 8 inches flew across the yard like a javelin. It was probably the fake 5160 steel, and I'm thinking they changed that, but I winced every time you guys showed the test-cutting shots. BE CAREFUL WITH TRUSTING THIS BRAND.
Wow... Fortunately nobody was hurt. We have seen reports of other OTC swords completely breaking from simply being dropped on carpet. Thankfully the heat treat seemed to be good with our example. Our hope is that they have improved. But that lack of quality control is a huge roll of the dice and is very concerning. Which is a shame because if the quality control was in check this would be a great sword for the money. Thanks for watching!
As a general curiosity, when you do the comparison video, let us know if you feel a difference between the hollow grind and the diamond cross-section blade when cutting. Regarding the grip, you say it feels good. It looks quite circular to me. Is that the case, or it’s just the viewing angles? And does the pommel bite into your hand when holding it, or is it well chamfered on your piece? I can see why a loose quality control translates to low prices. But I do wonder if doing the guard their way rather than slanting the faceted surfaces more to avoid a large step with the blade (see 4:58) saves them money, or it’s just a bad initial design that got propagated via copy/paste. If it’s just a design issue with no bearing on production costs (as I suspect in my ignorance), just do a google search, look at pictures of the historical example, improve on the existing design in the process and remove the idea that you just copied Balaur Arms design. Business practice wise… it could be that the low price is their market strategy to get people to try their swords, a way to get their foot in the door, which could mean it won’t last.
It seems that there a number of longswords that fall into that gray area of longsword/bastard sword, in that although primarily for use in both hands can be used to some small extant in one hand when needed, swords like Belaur Arms 15th Century Italian and 15th Century Type Alexandria, the Ansbach from Vision, Darksword 15th Century Hand and a Half, and of course the Honshue Historic Italian longsword just reviewed in your video. Generally speaking, the type ( blades mostly correspond in design to XVIIIb, XVIIIc and XVIa ) have a blade length from 34 to 36 inches, grips 7-8 inches not counting the pommel.
im a new sword buyer and i just ended up ordering the Honshu Historic Forge 14th century double fuller long sword.. it looks a lot like the albion sovereign and as a new sword buyer, its so hard to justify waiting 16-20 months for a product? these swords are in stock, they look almost identical to the more expensive ones. im sure there are fit and finish differences and perhaps steel quality differences but shadiversity gave the honshu swords pretty decent ratings so i figured i would give it a try. do you think these 12-20 month lead times on some of these swords are kind of out of control? i know for a new buyer, it was totally off putting to me. if i was able to straight up buy a sovereign i probably would have but 16-20 months? no thanks. i get they are hand fitted etc but thats a bit much.
You mentioned a few other places that make this type of sword. Could you list them and the tier of their products? I know Albion does as well as Balaur Arms, who else?
Lockwood makes one which is about $1,800. The Albion Brecisa Spadona is about $2,500. From what I've heard the Lockwood is pretty comparable to the Albion. Krieger makes one very similar but with a wheel pommel. I believe they are around $700. So if you're looking for less expensive options the BA and Honshu are the best bets. Thanks for watching!
The intellectual property thing is disappointing. However, I think that might be a chance one takes when one outsources manufacturing to another company. I can't really begrudge people buying this, if this is what their budget allows and they're otherwise happy with it. Especially given that KoA has abandoned / refined this design at least twice, and now charges +$100. A question that I don't remember you asking or answering: IP aside, is it worth saving $100 to get this rather than the current Balaur Arms / LK Chen redesigned redesign?
Fantastic review. It seems that OTC (Erik Steelcraft from India) has taken my advice of beefing up the thickness of the blade overall to 7-8mm, from the 5.6mm on the one I received back during the 1st generation of Balaur Arms (Kyle got an even earlier batch that has a 6.5 mm thickness to be more rigid) to between 7mm (this one you have) and 8mm (Kyle's is 7.7mm). From what I have seen, all they did is making the central ridge more raised without modifying too much of the edge geometry, so the sword only gained 2 oz (mine weighs 3 lbs vs yours that weighs 3 lbs 2 oz), but the rigidity is vastly improved to stabilize the blade. Good one overall for the price, even with the blemish here and there on the fittings (same kind of sloppiness on the one I received back in 2020), and snake-like central ridge that causes the blade to be asymmetric at the tip. There's some concern still, about the consistency of the QC, and the intellectual property theft (not just copying somebody else's designs even, just stealing the schematic provided by a previous contractee--quite a scummy move by OTC).
Agreed. I had a conversation with Peter Johnson on Kyle's channel about Ip theft and he really changed my mind about it. There are literally thousands of swords to draw inspiration from OTC just blatantly copying others for all their designs is just plain lazy. Granted this is a replica of a specific sword so maybe in this case it's more excusable but it's not just this sword but all of their swords that are 1 to 1 rip offs. I would consider buying this(or other swords they make) second hand but I won't give OTC my hard earned money directly. Cause they suck. Lol I just can't support their business. And frankly I don't think anyone else should either. Even if it is a "steal."
Thank so much for reviewing this lads! This sword has one of the most complicated histories of any production sword on the market and you did a great job explaining it, as well as showing its pros and cons, which remains important despite how charged this particular model may be. Kudos!
Thank you sir! You're right this sword has a very complicated history. We tried to do a decent job giving historical cliff notes so to speak. Kyle did a fantastic job giving an in-depth explanation in his video. So hopefully people get the information they need between the two.
Good to see yours is remarkably good for the price, like mine is. Consistency is one of OTC's biggest issues, so the more reviews and reports we get of these being good, the more confident we can be in recommending them (business practices aside).
Agreed! I really hope our sword isn't an atypical example of their quality. If this is what to expect then the only real issue for people would be their business practices.
if the product is good and they arent screwing the consumer, couldnt care less about business practices haha. apple uses slave labor... so do all the battery companies for lithium
Thanks for reviewing an affordable sword! So often the sword in question is hugely over budget
You're welcome! We very much believe that everyone should be able to enjoy this hobby. Not just those who can drop a lot of cash on swords. So we're always on the lookout for good budget options.
Thanks for watching!
Now we need a review on a similarly priced godenak
Hmmmmmm that would be fun, we'll keep a lookout for one.
All I’m gonna say is that you are an amazing team for spewing some high level ideas. Wouldn’t mind having a beer with you guys. Subbed.
Thank you sir! Cheers! 🍻
Thank you gentlemen for another great review! I was lucky enough to have you guys show up in my feed when you were still fairly low in sub #’s, and after watching the video I was happy to hit subscribe, all notifications, and I’m glad I did! I have loved seeing the way you guys and the other great sword reviewers you have collaborated with don’t seem to view each other as competition, But instead as great allies! It show’s it’s not just swords that are awesome, but the people who are into swords! You’re not sword nerds, you’re sword gods! Lol! I just wish you were my neighbors so I could come over to “play” until you or your wife tell me to go home! Lol! Thanks again guys, and my best wishes to you and your family’s. ✌️🇺🇸
I have the lk Chen balaur arms model. It's really good
Lovely review gentlemen! Always fun to get your take on blades, and this one just looks like a lot of fun for the price.
Off topic, what are you usual drinks of choice when going into review time?
It really depends on what we're in the mood for. We're both big fans of whiskey and Old Fashioneds. With beer we both enjoy things like barrel aged stouts. And sometimes we do mead. So it really depends.
Thanks for watching!
All spectacular choices if I do say so myself! Thanks for sharing!@@UnsheathedSwordReviews
Great review guys. Thanks.
Thanks for watching!
I used to have the original OTC/Balaur Arms version of this sword. It was beautiful, lively, hollow-ground, and broke in half one day while cutting water bottles. I didn't hit anything solid. The vibration alone caused it to snap. Thank God no one was with me because the distal 8 inches flew across the yard like a javelin. It was probably the fake 5160 steel, and I'm thinking they changed that, but I winced every time you guys showed the test-cutting shots. BE CAREFUL WITH TRUSTING THIS BRAND.
Wow... Fortunately nobody was hurt. We have seen reports of other OTC swords completely breaking from simply being dropped on carpet. Thankfully the heat treat seemed to be good with our example. Our hope is that they have improved. But that lack of quality control is a huge roll of the dice and is very concerning. Which is a shame because if the quality control was in check this would be a great sword for the money.
Thanks for watching!
As a general curiosity, when you do the comparison video, let us know if you feel a difference between the hollow grind and the diamond cross-section blade when cutting.
Regarding the grip, you say it feels good. It looks quite circular to me. Is that the case, or it’s just the viewing angles? And does the pommel bite into your hand when holding it, or is it well chamfered on your piece?
I can see why a loose quality control translates to low prices. But I do wonder if doing the guard their way rather than slanting the faceted surfaces more to avoid a large step with the blade (see 4:58) saves them money, or it’s just a bad initial design that got propagated via copy/paste. If it’s just a design issue with no bearing on production costs (as I suspect in my ignorance), just do a google search, look at pictures of the historical example, improve on the existing design in the process and remove the idea that you just copied Balaur Arms design. Business practice wise… it could be that the low price is their market strategy to get people to try their swords, a way to get their foot in the door, which could mean it won’t last.
Excellent review. Very lively blade with good specs.
Thanks for watching!
It seems that there a number of longswords that fall into that gray area of longsword/bastard sword, in that although primarily for use in both hands can be used to some small extant in one hand when needed, swords like Belaur Arms 15th Century Italian and 15th Century Type Alexandria, the Ansbach from Vision, Darksword 15th Century Hand and a Half, and of course the Honshue Historic Italian longsword just reviewed in your video.
Generally speaking, the type ( blades mostly correspond in design to XVIIIb, XVIIIc and XVIa ) have a blade length from 34 to 36 inches, grips 7-8 inches not counting the pommel.
im a new sword buyer and i just ended up ordering the Honshu Historic Forge 14th century double fuller long sword.. it looks a lot like the albion sovereign and as a new sword buyer, its so hard to justify waiting 16-20 months for a product? these swords are in stock, they look almost identical to the more expensive ones. im sure there are fit and finish differences and perhaps steel quality differences but shadiversity gave the honshu swords pretty decent ratings so i figured i would give it a try.
do you think these 12-20 month lead times on some of these swords are kind of out of control? i know for a new buyer, it was totally off putting to me. if i was able to straight up buy a sovereign i probably would have but 16-20 months? no thanks. i get they are hand fitted etc but thats a bit much.
You mentioned a few other places that make this type of sword. Could you list them and the tier of their products? I know Albion does as well as Balaur Arms, who else?
Lockwood makes one which is about $1,800. The Albion Brecisa Spadona is about $2,500. From what I've heard the Lockwood is pretty comparable to the Albion. Krieger makes one very similar but with a wheel pommel. I believe they are around $700. So if you're looking for less expensive options the BA and Honshu are the best bets.
Thanks for watching!
@UnsheathedSwordReviews thanks for the reply. Neither budk or trueswords ship outside of the usa so I can't buy this sword unfortunately
The intellectual property thing is disappointing. However, I think that might be a chance one takes when one outsources manufacturing to another company.
I can't really begrudge people buying this, if this is what their budget allows and they're otherwise happy with it.
Especially given that KoA has abandoned / refined this design at least twice, and now charges +$100.
A question that I don't remember you asking or answering: IP aside, is it worth saving $100 to get this rather than the current Balaur Arms / LK Chen redesigned redesign?
(And the IP issue is a deal breaker for me - I'm being hypothetical.)