The Gun Counter

The short sword thread reminded me of my lack of longer pointy sharp things. I do have a POS machete, and a standard ditch brush blade. But the machete is a ....POS, and the ditch blade is a specialized tool for brush and limbs.

The thread got me to thinking about an all around blade/sword for general outdoor use, and defense in a pinch. I know about the various kukris, but I really didn't want one of those. Most short swords are for display or pure self defense, and have more decorative handles and sheaths.
Then I found this.



What do ya'll think?

Termite wrote:What do ya'll think?

Taki waki.
Slashy hacky.
Me likey.

Looks nice, decent price, I'd want to do some more checking on the grade of steel being used (5160 high-carbon spring steel), but for that price ($95), you can't really complain too much.

SeekHer could give you a much better idea of how good a value you're looking at for that price.

The 5160 high-carbon spring steel blade is plasma coated...

What the heck does plasma coated mean?

In the same price range, you could get a Woodsman's Pal.

Catbird wrote:

The 5160 high-carbon spring steel blade is plasma coated...

What the heck does plasma coated mean?

It's what's left on the blade after you withdraw it from a goblin and then remove the red blood cells.

Catbird wrote:

The 5160 high-carbon spring steel blade is plasma coated...

What the heck does plasma coated mean?

In the same price range, you could get a Woodsman's Pal.

Never heard of it before but I found this LINK

randy wrote:

Catbird wrote:

The 5160 high-carbon spring steel blade is plasma coated...

What the heck does plasma coated mean?

It's what's left on the blade after you withdraw it from a goblin and then remove the red blood cells.

Tempering in the warm blood of your enemies. Who says the old ways weren't better...

20" blade - good
5160 - good, it's a very forgiving steel during the manufacturing/heat treat process
full tang - good, sturdy at a low cost
I like it.
I assume "plasma coating" is plasma based nitriding, which will wear off at the heavily used spots and the 5160 will darken, so that should be expected on a user.

I love my chopper, it's the Browning Crowell Barker Competition knife, at about the same price. I think it's only a 12" blade.

Do you plan on hiking in the woods? Seems something that long could really get in the way.

I can see where it might make the work of using a machete a little more fun, but you're not going to chop down a small tree with it ... see Woodsman's Pal.

What is the blade thickness? And what is the grind?

Any laws in your jurisdiction about blade length? What would be the attitude of local cops and rangers?

I haven't schlepped the woods in a while, but it strikes me as cumbersome. But I might buy it just for the fun of it.

Never heard of it before but I found this LINK

Yeah, I suppose they could be referring to a plasma spray. Isn't that basically an alternative to electroplating? I know that wouldn't be legal to tromp around with in my area. The law gets funny about big blades. When I found that out, I had to get a lot more careful about how I transported some of my toys...