Before Shots:
Full shot:
Hilt shot:
I bought this sword from a friend on SBG Sword Forums exactly as you see it (although these ‘before’ pics are courtesy of Tom K’s original review of his, it’s the same sword from the same run); it was one of the first generation of swords to come from the collaboration of Sonny at Valiant Armoury, Christian of Christian Fletcher Designs and Angus Trim, no intro needed, dubbed the VA/AT303-SCT (CT added, for 'custom tuned'). The first run of these swords came with a diamond-section profile which was incorrect for the period that these swords were being modeled after (12th/13th C), so this particular sword, among a number of others, were taken back by Gus and custom-tuned by him to get them back into spec, and some honing of the edges. As such, this is one of a small number of swords that were handled by the original designer himself- this means nothing to the average consumer but those of us in the sword world realize what this means- this sword is special! Sean knew it too…which is why he’ll admit to regretting ever having sold it. Heh.
When I first received the sword, one of the aspects that most impressed me was its handling- unlike the current generation (3rd) of swords, this is a dedicated cutter. It weighs roughly a half pound heavier than the current stock and exhibits a noticeable blade presence with emphasis toward the tip. I imagine, from horseback, this sword would perform admirably. One day, I shall test that theory. Moving on!
Specifications
Overall Length: 38.25"
Blade Length: 31.25"
Handle Length: 4.5"
Blade Material: Hand Forged 1060 High Carbon Spring Steel
Blade Width at Guard: 1.75"
Sword Weight: 2lbs, 8oz.
Point of Balance: 5.5"
Sweet Spot: ~17" from the hilt
Scabbard
The scabbard, at the time, was better than you’d expect from this price point- it was an actual wood-cored scabbard wrapped in simple unadorned black leather with a leather reinforced throat and chape…perfectly adequate for its purpose but uninspiring. For such a good sword I figured it deserved some upgrades and so the creative juices started flowing (you can read that as ‘daydreaming began’). Here’s a couple shots of the original scabbard.
Scabbard shot:
Chape shot:
So you get the general idea; this was a sword built solidly for its purpose with no frills whatsoever. This sword is the first customization project I’ve ever undertaken so it will always be somewhat dear to me. Moving along…
I used to frequent SBG when I first got this sword- in fact, it was through the Classifieds section that I was able to acquire it- and for those of you familiar with SBG, you may be aware of Shadowhowler’s famous ‘clearing out the closet’ sales…he always has the best sales! Anyhow, I’d mentioned wanting to do some upgrades for my new sword and started kicking around some ideas with a young forumite by the name of SlayerofDarkness- most of the forumites on SBG are familiar with the aspiring young craftsman and have even gotten some work done by him; they all know he’s quite masterful with leather and makes some of the nicest and sturdiest belts that can be had in the swording world.
Just don’t let his youth fool you- the kid’s a born salesman. He sold me on the idea of having him do the upgrades to the scabbard, including making a suspension rig that would fall into period but with some embellishment. Mind you, he had me going every which way so I finally told him to let the creative bull loose and show me something. And so, ‘Gasteviande’ was born.
‘Gasteviande’ is the name I chose for this sword…it is Norman French for ‘Guzzleguts’ which is a nickname that was purported to have been given to Sir William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke in his youth, during his early days of knighthood. ‘Slugabed’ was another nickname…it would seem that he had a reputation for laziness and gluttony- but history tells us otherwise. I liked the name not only because I’m a Marshal aficionado but also because I truly believe that this sword’s appetite would be insatiable for blood, would I ever let her taste any (other than mine own)!
So, before I get too sidetracked, let me continue with pics of the final result- I should add that this sword’s grip and crossguard have been upgraded as well by yours truly; the grip is a DBK (it was made for another singlehander and I picked this little beauty of a grip up from another SBG forumite) and the cross is an Arms & Armor piece that originally came with the St. Maurice sword – inscribed in Latin with the following: Christus Vincit, Christus Reinat (Christ wins, Christ reigns) on the backside and Christus Imperat (Christ rules) on the front side. A neat touch, no? He also added a Celtic concho to both sides of the pommel to bring it all together- the pommel was entirely too modern looking and threw off the balance initially. The leather he used is thick, feels sturdy without being bulky; smooth and supple in the hands- it is well dyed and rubbed to a smooth, silky finish. As you’ll see, he contrasted the color of the scabbard from the grip and made the belts to match the grip making for a very eye-catching and appealing package! Without further ado, the pics!
Full shot in scabbard:
Belt detail:
Belt stamping up close:
Knotwork detail:
Chape detail:
Ok, now, this next shot shows the only bad part of the commission- and this is more of a testament to the craftsman’s learning curve than a shortcoming- if you look closely, you can see the seam on the backside of the scabbard- the ends do not meet, and it runs for less than 6 inches along the back. When he cut the leather initially, he changed up and decided to add risers as a detail but did not take into account the extra leather needed to cover the addition, hence the separation. It isn’t so glaring because he sprayed it with the same color dye to mask it somewhat, and the fact that it is on the backside of the scabbard, no one’ll ever notice unless it is turned around and pointed out- something I don’t intend on doing much of.
Conclusion
All in all, I’m pleased with the product- everything you’ve read has been on the Pro side, and I have but two things for the Con:
1 – The backside seam could have been done better however, this was his first scabbard wrap project of this magnitude (he’d done some other work, not as complex) and I made some allowances because of that. It’s not a huge deal to me because it’s mostly hidden.
2 – Length of Time; this project took over a year to complete- due to a lot of issues but still, took a lot longer than it should have. As with any custom commission, issues can arise for which one just didn’t plan or foresee…these things happen and can be worked around. Slayer and I have talked about this at length and he understands that when delays do occur, it is best to communicate such to the customer rather than being silent and hoping to get it all squared away before its brought up. Still, Slayer’s a good deal more mature than most of his peers and is more than willing to work with anyone on a project and is quite open to new ideas and innovation. I would recommend him to anyone looking for a custom project that won’t break the bank. My project came to a total of just over $200 (I traded a Hanwei Practical Bastard and cash as payment for services rendered), all I did was send the sword and scabbard to him- he reused the original core and built everything around it. I’m happy with the end result and look forward to your commentary.
William
