New Sword, Review A&A Henry V

[mikejarledge]

I don't think this substantially adds to the excellent review up on myarmoury, but here is another opinion nonetheless.

Stats:

Weight: 2 lbs 12.5 ounces
Overall Length: 32 and 3/4 inches
Grip: 5 and ¾ inches
Blade Length: 27 inches from guard
Point of Balance: approx. 3 inches from guard
Center or Percussion: approx. 18 inches from guard
Distal Taper
At Crossguard -.5 cm
At COP - .35 cm


Initial Impressions:
Good Quality well built historical reproduction, minor cosmetic concerns

Appearance:
I have wanted to get either this sword, or the Arms and Armour Edward III for a long time. I think both are the best reproductions of their respective originals in the production market. The A&A Henry V is a classic Oakeshott Type XVIII cut and thrust sword. Its very different from the other pieces in my collection, which tend towards Type X blades. I like the curve of the blade profile, giving it an almost leaf blade appearance from certain angles. I was actually surprised at how robust it is at the point. Its not either a dedicated cutter or thruster, and that is plain from appearance. There are some minor things that took a while to look past for a sword in this price range. There are a lot of grind marks along the blade which detract from an even blade finish, and the pommel shows some areas where the casting had some remainders. I feel for a sword of this price, these are things you expect to not get through quality control, but they are not too big a deal. All of the fittings are tight, and the leather grip is very good quality.

Handling:
Its fast, its short and its quick. This is like the classic middle linebacker of swords. You can see why a warrior king of Henry’s reputation could very well have used this sword. I can’t wait to get a proper heater shield to use it for sword and shield use, which is what it seems made for. I could keep gushing about its handling, but I think you can get the idea, it is an excellent cut and thrust blade. My one caveat is that it feels like a much bigger sword, and I felt a bit tired after short use compared to my experience using Type X’s. Also, as noted in the myarmoury review, the pommel is big, and could cause some wear and tear on your grip without gloves. I personally was not bugged by it, but someone with bigger hands might be.

What you should expect:
This sword costs $545 plus shipping. I purchased it from kultofathena, but that is the standard A&A price. I think it is good not only because it’s the best replica of this historical sword out there, but because it is a good design. I was a bit frustrated with the cosmetic issues at first, but I don’t know how much that might weigh into buying other A&A pieces in the future. My opinion, if you want a replica of Henry V’s sword, you aren’t going to go wrong. Price is good for the handling and construction alone, cosmetic issues aside. I could easily have paid another $200 and been happy with this sword.

[Glen C.]

Hi Mike,

Thanks for your impressions and highlights. One comment and not meant as a negative is the use of fractional centimeters. I do the conversion in my head but expressing it in millimeters might be easier for some to relate too.

At Crossguard -5 mm
At COP - 3.5 mm

A&A does put a good servicable point on a lot of their swords. I see it as taking the first oops out of the equation. A needly point can certainly have its place on some blades but I feel anything that was/is designed for any rugged use is better benefitted by a sturdy point. This is exhibited on my three A&A blades.

I too am sometimes dissapointed at some of the minor fit and finish issues from A&A but it often somewhat falls into the minor annoyance categories. I'm suprised to hear about the blade finish though, they are usually quite good. the Urbino pommel on my EIII blade has an unfinished look to the recesses and My GBS has some casting pits in its guard and pommel. The GBS and Black Prince I have also show some slightly raggedy fit to the cross and the BP has a slightly off center grip. You know what though? None of the faults show in use and that is the real appreciation I get from them. A friend who is quite into EIV history and the BP sword spent a long time fondling mine over a recent weekend. He spotted the slightly off grip but kept going back to it and was seemingly wanting to deal me out of it. To be honest, I hadn't even thought about the grip anomally since the first days I had it , almost six years ago.

Realistically, they may not be much more bang for the buck than a lot of other offerings but overall performance/quality/aesthetic is still a good package for the dollar spent.

Worth noting also the way prices have risen for many American makers. the Henry V and several other swords were less than $400 in 1999. Oh, to have spent more prudently back then.

Cheers

Hotspur; so, now you have to go whack some stuff up with it

[Ty N.]

It's a clean design, and well executed from the looks of it... Albion's version has a hollow-ground blade, which is also a nice touch...

[mikejarledge]

Originally Posted by Glen C.

Hi Mike,

Thanks for your impressions and highlights. One comment and not meant as a negative is the use of fractional centimeters. I do the conversion in my head but expressing it in millimeters might be easier for some to relate too.

At Crossguard -5 mm
At COP - 3.5 mm

A&A does put a good servicable point on a lot of their swords. I see it as taking the first oops out of the equation. A needly point can certainly have its place on some blades but I feel anything that was/is designed for any rugged use is better benefitted by a sturdy point. This is exhibited on my three A&A blades.

I too am sometimes dissapointed at some of the minor fit and finish issues from A&A but it often somewhat falls into the minor annoyance categories. I'm suprised to hear about the blade finish though, they are usually quite good. the Urbino pommel on my EIII blade has an unfinished look to the recesses and My GBS has some casting pits in its guard and pommel. The GBS and Black Prince I have also show some slightly raggedy fit to the cross and the BP has a slightly off center grip. You know what though? None of the faults show in use and that is the real appreciation I get from them. A friend who is quite into EIV history and the BP sword spent a long time fondling mine over a recent weekend. He spotted the slightly off grip but kept going back to it and was seemingly wanting to deal me out of it. To be honest, I hadn't even thought about the grip anomally since the first days I had it , almost six years ago.

Realistically, they may not be much more bang for the buck than a lot of other offerings but overall performance/quality/aesthetic is still a good package for the dollar spent.

Worth noting also the way prices have risen for many American makers. the Henry V and several other swords were less than $400 in 1999. Oh, to have spent more prudently back then.

Cheers

Hotspur; so, now you have to go whack some stuff up with it

Thanks Glen,

I chose to stick to cm because my calipers don't do mms, and I thought the apporximations would provide more of an approximate feel if given in cm. But yes, I plan on getting something to cut pretty soon.

[mikejarledge]

Originally Posted by Ty N.

It's a clean design, and well executed from the looks of it... Albion's version has a hollow-ground blade, which is also a nice touch...

It is also worth noting that A&A offers a hollow ground version of the Henry V sword, for about $850 if I recall.

The Albion Kingmaker is about $1100 if that is the Albion you are referring to. To get a hollow ground verion of this type XVIII, the price goes up drastically.

[Glen C.]

Originally Posted by mikejarledge

Thanks Glen,

I chose to stick to cm because my calipers don't do mms, and I thought the apporximations would provide more of an approximate feel if given in cm. But yes, I plan on getting something to cut pretty soon.

Nor inches Now I'm just teasing. No big deal, i just shift the decimal over. That is a real advantage to the metric system.

Cheers

Hotspur; it's a bit like we drive on parkways and park on driveways

[mikejarledge]

I will say that after finally cutting with this blade it is not the most forgiving cutter. I can't decide if it is the edge on it or something I am not used to the handling yet, but I have botched more cuts with it that anything I have ever used, and these are soft targets. When I get it right it cuts like a laser, but I have gotten more than I care wrong. That aside, it is a very very fun sword, the more I use it, the more I really like it.

[Jeremi S.]

Originally Posted by mikejarledge

It is also worth noting that A&A offers a hollow ground version of the Henry V sword, for about $850 if I recall.

The Albion Kingmaker is about $1100 if that is the Albion you are referring to. To get a hollow ground verion of this type XVIII, the price goes up drastically.

Actually, that $1100 includes the hollow-ground spine. Albion does not make a non-hollow-ground version of this blade that I know of.

Also, I would caution AGAINST a direct comparison between the two-- while the Henry V sword is the very archetype of Oakeshott's Type XVIII, the Kingmaker is the archetype of Oakeshott's Type XVIIIa, according to The Sword in the Age of Chivalry.

I have handled the Kingmaker, and find it a very handy, precise, and controllable sword, but I have had my eye on A&A's Henry V sword for quite some time. I think the hollow-ground version of this sword will likely be my first late-medieval single-hander.

Thanks for the review, Mike!

[mikejarledge]

I was not trying to claim Albion made a non-hollow ground kingmaker. My claim was that to get a hollow ground XVIII you were going to pay a lot more than $550. But I would be interested in handling the A&A hollow ground Henry V.

[Bill Grandy]

Originally Posted by mikejarledge

I will say that after finally cutting with this blade it is not the most forgiving cutter. I can't decide if it is the edge on it or something I am not used to the handling yet, but I have botched more cuts with it that anything I have ever used, and these are soft targets. When I get it right it cuts like a laser, but I have gotten more than I care wrong. That aside, it is a very very fun sword, the more I use it, the more I really like it.

I think that's because the blade design is a "do it all" type of blade. It's a "compromise" style, where it's a jack of all trades, master of none. I had similar feelings when cutting with mine. (Man, I really regret selling mine!)

[mikejarledge]

That makes me feel better that it is less me and more the compromise style. Thanks Bill! I imagine if I get nuts and ever sell it, I will miss it too. its really more fun that my Type X's.

[Mike Harris]

Mike,

Just to add a third voice, my experience with this sword has been near identical to yours. I botch about 50% of the cuts I try with it. I haven't really spent any time devoted to this little sword. It mostly hangs on the wall and looks pretty. Guess I need to take it outside a bit more often.

Bill makes a great point. It's a sturdy little jack-of-all-trades for close-in fighting, but a great cutter it certainly is not.

Glad to see you got one. I'll bet you never sell it...

[Ken Jay]

Actually, I'm not sure you can lay the cutting issue at the XVIII blade design. While the XVIII is a "compromise" design it still should be a decent cutter. I have an Atrim 1557 (very similar to this A&A in size though a good bit lighter) and it's a very forgiving cutter. It does nearly as well on pool noodles as more traditional cutting styles such as my Atrim "X" (AT1211) and "XVI" (AT1411). The pics shows the XVIII blade profile compared to these others.

[mikejarledge]

I think that makes sense. I expect two things contribute to my issues, first is the size of the pommel, it can easily get your wrist off of alignment enough to not get a clean cut. Second is the sharpening on the blade, it almost has a beveled edge. I imagine a better edge would mitigate much of the results that I am getting. I also wonder if a more "whippy blade" would help it cut better. Of course then it would loose some of its thrusting ability. Its an interesting puzzle.

[Mike Harris]

I agree on the pommel theory. And just in the overall design of the sword and its handling characteristics. Mine has very limited blade "presence" and thus feels much more like a thruster than a cutter. I think you will see an improvement with a sharper edge. Mine almost cuts paper, and thus cuts a bit better than your new one. But I don't think this sword will ever be a "natural cutter" per se. Just a sword that you can cut with once you have put in the practice to learn its particular nuances, and pay particular attention to edge alignment.

Personally, I don't think it has so much to do with it being a Type XVIII. It's just the overall design of the sword (which I still like very much).

[Bill Grandy]

Originally Posted by Ken Jay

Actually, I'm not sure you can lay the cutting issue at the XVIII blade design.

Hi Ken,
I'm not blaming it on the fact that its a Type XVIII. I think the particular sword is something that is a handly, all around blade, but doesn't particularly excel in one specific area.