Doombreed's Collection Of Pointy Bits Of Metal

Mrs Doombreed has made many comments about my collection of knives sitting around and doing nothing, so I mounted some of them on the bedroom wall, where they look rather spiffing, if I do say so myself.

Doombreed's Collection Of Pointy Bits Of Metal

I'm not sure whether this is supposed to be an ornate dagger or a miniature sword. It is entirely metal, 17" long with a 10 1/4" double-edged blade. The blade features a Celtic design in black with what appears to be some sort of Earth or forest deity emblem in blue.

Definitely a fantasy movie style blade.

Doombreed's Collection Of Pointy Bits Of Metal

This is a pretty simple lock knife, 8" long with a 3 1/4" blade. The handle is - according to the guy I bought it from - antler, but it feels like plastic to me. It is carved with three skeletons wearing medieval armour, surrounded by bats, and the front panel is a winged skull. The blade is etched with stylised skulls.

Clearly intended for display rather than use.

Doombreed's Collection Of Pointy Bits Of Metal

People often make much of the difference in weapon laws between England and America but, as far as blades go, the two are broadly similar, at least in Kentucky.

Kentucky law allows me to own all the blades in my collection; so does England. Kentucky law allows me to display them in my home; so does England. Kentucky law prohibits me from carrying them in public; so does England.

Well, with two exceptions. Kentucky state law makes it a crime to carry a knife in public unless it is (a) "an ordinary pocketknife" (like a Swiss Army knife or similar) or (b) a hunting knife.

That (above) is a hunting knife. It is 13" long with a 7" single-edged blade. The top of the blade features a false edge. The Bear's head ornamental crosspiece and pommel are brass, which make the knife fairly weighty. The handle, disappointingly, is plastic, but could easily be replaced with something more hard-wearing by a bladesmith.

Kentucky law does not define exactly what a hunting knife is, but by the generally accepted definitions, this qualifies.

So it's legal to carry.

Err.. maybe..

Whatever the law, any police officer who found you carrying this could be forgiven for asking just why the hell you have it, unless you were actually engaged in a hunting trip.

Doombreed's Collection Of Pointy Bits Of Metal

This is another very workmanlike sword.

It's a double-edged short sword, 27 1/2" long with a very plain 22 1/2" blade. The wooden handle has an inset filigree design, and the pommel and crosspiece are brass. The crosspiece appears to have been replaced by a former owner, because it is lopsided and the craftsmanship doesn't match the rest of the sword. Tidying it up might be a future project for me.

Doombreed's Collection Of Pointy Bits Of Metal

This is a very nice utilitarian backsword. It is 25 1/2" long with a 19 1/2" blade which is free from any decoration. The handle is plain wood with a brass crosspiece and pommel.

I don't know anything about the origins or history of this blade, but it does have a certain military look to it. The curve and length of the blade, and the angling of the handle suggests a cavalry sword, but I don't know for sure.

Doombreed's Collection Of Pointy Bits Of Metal

And now to the pride of my collection, a very nice display piece, this is an ornamental katana.

I am going to use the real terms, so forgive me, sword enthusiasts, if I err.

The sword is 37 1/2" long with a 26 1/2" blade, which makes it a daito, or long sword. Both the tsuka (handle) and the saya (scabbard) are decorated with various metal menuki (ornaments), the most impressive of which are the tsuba (hand guard), which is shaped like a pair of wings, and the koiguchi (scabbard mouth), which has an oriental wingless dragon curled around it. When the sword is sheathed, these two combine to make the winged dragon seen in the bottom picture (above). The kabuto-gane (pommel) is a stylised representation of a helmeted Samurai's head. The saya is decorated with a flame pattern, both halfway along its length and at the sayajiri (scabbard tip). The tsuka has a menuki on each side depicting the dragon biting its own tail, twisted to form the infinity symbol, which looks nice but would make the sword impractical for use.

And that's me done with the mangling of the language.

Doombreed's Collection Of Pointy Bits Of Metal

Knife number 3 is definitely a display item.

11" overall, and with a dangerously sharp 6 1/2" blade, this would made a nasty little weapon, but for the fact that the handle and sheath are plastic. Both look okay, despite the "we're not copying The Lord Of The Rings, honest" wizard-and-Elf motif on both and the amazingly bad faux plastic gemstone that adorns both sides of the sheath. The butt is metal, but the bolster is plastic, and whilst it does have a full length tang, it's so narrow it would make a pen look seriously overweight.

Oddly, the knife is very nicely balanced and would probably make for very accurate throwing, provided one could be confident that the handle would survive the impact.

Doombreed's Collection Of Pointy Bits of Metal

This is the second knife in my collection, and was a birthday present from Mrs Doombreed's parents.

It is 13 1/2" long with an 8 1/4" double-edged blade. It has the word "Lifeknife" and a curious lighthouse motif on the blade. The metal handle has two three-masted ships embossed on each side and the pommel is a crest surrounded by what appears to be Russian characters. The blade is extremely sharp and has a serrated upper third.

A nice decorative piece.

Doombreed's Collection Of Pointy Bits Of Metal

I thought I'd start posting pics of my varied, and growing, collection of stabbing implements.

The first is the one that started my collection here. It's 15 1/2" long, with an 8 3/4" hook-ended, single-edged (apart from the inside curve of the hook, which is also edged) blade. The blade etching is a kind of Greek motif, the handle is metal with a wood-effect covering. It's nice and heavy, but not especially sharp.

Sharp enough to do damage, mind.

The Raven Armoury

Searching through my "favorites" folder the other night, I uncovered an old and dusty link to the Raven Armoury.

The Raven Armoury, as well as being responsible for the Golden Demon Slayer Sword awarded to the winner of each year's Golden Demon UK championship, have an oustanding array of sharp pointy things made using traditional methods and materials. So exacting is their craftmanship that they currently have a waiting list over three years long on most commissions, and their stuff can run into thousands of pounds.

But find something you like, such as the various versions of Snaga the Sender - The Axe Of The Deathwalker, and suddenly it all seems worth it...

Excuse me whilst I go wipe the drool from my chin.