Armory Sponsor
Posted: 8/27/2008 9:07:33 PM EDT
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Anyone have any experience with any of them? I have lost most of my interest in blades, but would like to have 1 high quality, FUNCTIONAL piece in my collection. I am considering either the Grosse Messer or the Dragonfly Katana. |
Cold Steel swords are in general good quality. My experience is only with their Japanese styled swords. They are through-hardened, not differentially hardened, so they are not exactly "traditional" but more than adequate for training and cutting. There is no hamon on the blade (that cloudy edge you see on many Japanese blades) which is caused by the differential hardening process... or someone scratching the pattern on the blade....  I am not particularly impressed with the fit and finish of their handle wrappings, fittings (fuchi/kashira - end caps on the handle), etc. but not terrible. All of the Cold Steel katana I have handled are from their regular line (not the Imperial line) so that could explain the difference in fittings quality. The Dragonfly is in the better line. The Cold Steel swords seem a bit heavy to me, but sturdy. If you are looking for something that is functional and well put together, they are a good choice. I rewrapped my CS Chisa katana with paracord since it wasn't really traditional anyway, and I figured that I might as well take it to a different extreme.... |
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Here is a review that shows what kind of abuse the Grosse Messer can take and the damage it can dish out: SBG review |
"Historical accuracy: bah, its a Cold Steel 2.5 of 5" HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAA..... But true enough. 
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I don't have the Grosse Messer ..but a Cold Steel Bastard sword. It impressively solid and very, very sharp. I'm not a expert on swords [or anything else] But I got my monies worth. Most of the negative stuff about CS swords are they're not period accurate...which is true. Also they are very heavy compared to the "real swords" they are copies of. But for the money you can't beat them...
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