Hanwei Tinker Line Bastard Sword Review

Hanwei Tinker Line Bastard Sword With Fuller

Steel	5160 Spring Steel
Weight	2lbs 6oz
Point of Balance	4.0"
Price Range	US$164 to $329

Statistics

Overall: 42 1/2 inches
Blade: 33 1/2 inches
Fuller Length:11 3/4 inches
Grip: 7 inches
Cross Guard Length: 8 inches
Weight: 2lbs 6oz
POB: 4 inches
COP: 20 inches

Introduction:

A while back when the Hanwei Tinker line Longsword came out there was a lot of excitement about it until we met them and saw their dirty secret: a bad secondary bevel. then more swords came out in the Tinker line and slowly word started getting out that the edges were better. but some still said they weren't right or were dull or were badly beveled. it didn't seem like a straight answer was available. Then in order to try and clear things Mr. Tinker himself made an appearence here on our forum and addressed the issue. yet still there were doubts and neigh-sayers. then I had a little extra money and I bought a replacement blade to do a custom mounting job on since I wanted to do that anyway. I started conversations and threads and did videos and even after seeing them the stubborn doubts clung on. so I decided that I would offer a free sharpening job for anyone who bought a Hanwei/Tinker model sword I hadn't seen. I only got one taker, Forumite Kokoro who bought and sent to me for sharpening one Hanwei Tinker Fullered Bastard Sword.

Unwrapping and First Impressions:

the box was a little banged up but the sword inside was unharmed.

the sword looked nice, it was long and skinny and and slender and thin and fast. I noticed that there were a few issues right away the worst of which actually made me chuckle:

also I noticed pretty quickly that the leather grip wrap looked a little cheesy and the scabbard and its associated fitting and furniture just felt wrong more on that later. none of this was bad enough that I was really worried I was just annoyed that this sword's little issues were readily noticeable.

Historical Overview:

this sword fits nicely into an Oakeshott type XVIIIa: "The Type XVIIIa is basically identical in usage and period as the Type XVIII. It is set apart by its more slender blade and, often, a grip configured for hand and a half use." while I am not aware that this sword is modeled after any particular sword from history it does fit the type very well and if it were time-machined back to the middle ages when it was used there would be very little about this sword that would stand out to a knight of the day. certainly the hex-nut construction would raise eyebrows. I'm sure there would be other things that would turn up under closer review. but on the whole I think this is a good representative of the type XVIIIa bastard sword.

The Blade:

Among the first issues I noticed was the dull looking secondary bevel on the blade and on closer look I noticed that the central ridge wasn't perfectly straight and the fuller was uneven in depth. none of these things were really bad or would make the sword not a good sword but they did make it seem just a little sloppy if I really loked close at it. I'm sure there are people out there who would never notice many of these small imperfections, I'm just not one of them. the deeper I looked the more little inconsistancies I found. the edges weren't straight and when I went to sharpen it I found areas that gave under the belt faster than others making me thing the Heat Treat wasn't even. not that any of the blade was soft, no this sucker had the legendary Hanwei/Tinker hardness but in some areas it was more like a normal sword. I won't speculate on RC hardness numbers as that may not even be the issue not to mention I am in no way qualified or equiped to comment on that. I know I'm listing a LOT of nit-picks but even with all these picks I really do like the blade. enough so that I'm tempted to buy one for myself. they are little things. Devil in the details and all that I guess. moving on:

The Point

as this is a thrusting sword as much as a cutting sword (and argueably more so) let's give the point a little love all to itself.

it's POINTY!

this is a sword point designed for thrusting. it is more awl-shaped than the rest of the sword blade but the transition from cutting geometry to thrusting shape is very subtle. I was expecting more of a thick, re-inforced point than it has but there is a definite geometry shift that starts about an inch and a half behind the point. it seems to be strong but I wasn't going to push it. up on extremely close inspection I noticed that the point of the sword deviates a little to one side. I don't have calipers or any such high-precision measuring tools so I stacked playing cards as a sort of impromptu feeler guage. the point leans about two playing cards to one side of center line. I almost didn't notice it. if not for the fact I was intrigued by the subtle geometry shift and closely examining that I doubt I would have seen it.

Hilt/Parts and pieces

The grip is long and slender and wrapped with thin leather, glued on with a butted seam. it's done pretty well, I had a hard time getting a photo of the leather seam. here's what I got:

this was taken after cutting, handling, and sharpening, right before I boxed it up to ship out. it shows about one day of common use compared to this one taken before I had done anything with it when it had spent less that an hour in my presence:

another nit pick: the pommel doesn't line up with the cross guard.

it's not too bad though and I didn't see it right away either. I could happily own a sword with a pommel fit like this. might bug some folks though

The hilt came apart pretty easily and underneath I saw nothing but healthy sword parts. a very nice thing to see on any production sword. I have no worries about this sword's hilt and construction being solid and as safe as can be expected.

The Scabbard

the scabbard at first looks like your normal productiona model affair. plain black semi-shiny leather (probably chome tanned) with steel throat and chape. the above video demonstrates the poor fit of the throat that causes it to rub the blade. this also dulls the blade as I later found out. if not for this one issue (which is my biggest issue with the whole sword) I would actually like the scabard quite a lot. it is solid and evenly done. the chape and throat are nice looking and not too cheesy.

Here's what the throat looks like now that I have opened it up a bit with a dremel. you can see on either end that the opening in the steel part is now wider than the opening of the scabbard core. now the sword will ride on the scabbard core instead of the steel throat. much better for the blade I think.

Handling and Cutting:

Finally, the fun stuff!

this sword is one of the fastest, lightest feeling and easily turnable bits of steel I have ever touched. the moment you hold this sword all the little issues are forgotten. this is where this sword excells. ok video time:

First, out of the box.

next after I sharpened it.

the original video got canned by youtube because of the music I used so here is a replacement video of the same thing with no music.

Muuuuuch better!

Conclusions:

Pro's: , , ,

Cons: , , , , .

PROS

• Handling, Handling, did I mention the handling?

• It's nice to look at

• A classic design acurately reproduced

• Even when dull it cut ok, once sharpened it cut superbly

CONS

• Dull secondary beveled edges on this one (although it probably would have been ok if not for the scabard throat dulling it)

• Lots of little inconsitancies and wobbles

• Scabbard rubs the blade dulling it

• Feels a little sloppy kinda like a Windlass I tend to expect better details from a sword of this price tag

• The finish is really rough but at least it's even

BOTTOM LINE

Despite the poor detailing and the damn annoying throat on the scabbard I really like this sword and can recommend it to people who want a real bastard sword and not a sword that is a longsword that is light enough for one handed use occasionally. I will reccomend it with the provision that a little simple work will need to be done (sharpening and modifying the throat). I will reccomend it because this sword is F-U-N!

lastly there is a lot of inevitable comparison that is going to be made betwen this sword and the Valiant Armory At304s (which can be argued to be a bastard sword too, even though it probably isn't) I think both swords are really good and have their own reasons to be the right sword for certain people. This sword, to me is much more like a true bastard sword while the 304 is a longsword that is almost a bastard sword. Here's some side-by-side pictures of the two:

WHERE TO BUY

The price of these swords has come down a lot in the last year or so, from around $280 to as low as $164.99 here at Kult of Athena - which makes them an EXCELLENT choice for a bastard sword enthusiast on a budget.

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I hope this comparative review of the Hanwei Tinker Pearce Bastard Sword was helpful. Click here to return to Affordable Replicas of Medieval Swords from Hanwei Tinker Line Bastard Sword Review