swords

[ydoaPs]

do you need a license to carry a sword in the USA?

[Mokele]

Depends on your state, and even the local law enforencement. I know that in FL, for instance, you need a license for concealed weapons for anything bigger than 3 inches blade length. However, they're apparently real dicks about enforcing it. Simply put, if they want to take you in, they will, unless you have a concealed permit. Basically, they claim that if it's in a scabbard, it's 'concealed', and if it's not it's 'being brandished'.

 

Generally, I'd advise against carrying a sword, as they're a) mostly useless in the modern day b) highly visible and difficult to conceal even remotely well c) liable to make people think you're crazy and therefore mkae them more likely to start shit, be they thugs or cops (who will think you are "menace to society" type crazy).

 

If you want an old-style weapon you can use, carry, coneal in plain sight and not get into shit for, go for a staff or short-staff. After all, it's just a walking stick (until you beat the piss out of someone with it).

 

Mokele

[ydoaPs]

crazy is a good thing.

[Mag]

heck, it looks freaky when you see a 5 inch sheath or so on someones belt!

 

but it would be cool to see someone walking with a sword which the sheath is on their back!

[ydoaPs]

i have some cool swords and am planning to get more.

 

edit: i know shiruken are illegal here.

[Phi for All]

I collected museum replica swords for years. I have thousands of dollars worth invested. They are cool but highly impractical. All my swords are "working quality steel", none of the usual crap that looks good but creases if you bend it more than 10 degrees out of line. I even have a beautiful katana that has been differentially tempered, where the edge of the blade is harder than the spine so the blade is more flexible. It's not folded steel though, those run into the thousands of dollars just by themselves.

 

I stopped collecting when I realized you can only display so many of them. I also wouldn't trust myself in a fight with anything longer than my 15th century Italian short sword. Unless you have professional training and practise for a few hours every day for years, you're more likely to hurt yourself than anyone else.

 

Mokele's right, in most places in the US it's legal to "bear arms" in public, but scabbards and holsters, even if worn on the hip in plain sight, are considered concealment. And just try walking around with a bare bodkin in public and see how fast your right to bear arms evaporates. As Mokele said, a staff is much more practical and there are lots of stories where the greatest swordsmen are laid low by a simple farmer with a quarterstaff. Swords get all the attention because they're flashy but it was simple weapons like staves and spears that did most of the work on the battlefield.

[ydoaPs]

i found out that i am one of only two people in the area that even have one sword. i asked, because the cheap, yet awesome looking for display, swords are sold at the fair and i don't have a car. the fair in all the way accross town. actually, it isn't even technically in town. i have to walk a long way with one if i am to buy it.

[ydoaPs]

i've been searching all over for weeks, and can't find a yes or no answer. the indiana state site doesn't have anything about it.

[Phi for All]

Fairs can be pretty overpriced or have a lot of junk steel. But you should call the local police and ask them how you can transport the sword home from the fair on foot. I'm sure it's legal if you're just taking it home.

 

Swords are all over the internet if you got a credit card, from cheap to grand, and they'll deliver. I recommend Museum Replicas down in Atlana if you want something authentic that could actually work. Stay away from the really flashy looking stuff that offers to take 10 easy payments, it's crap and overpriced for suburban warriors who have cash to burn.

 

Stainless steel is nice-looking and maintenance free, but high-carbon steel is much better and more authentic, but you will need to either oil it occasionally or use a clear coat product to avoid rust (is the Indy/Shelbyville area very humid?).

 

I always think it's best to buy one really nice $200 sword as opposed to ten $20 ones. I figure even if it's for display why put crap on your walls? Quality is better than quantity when it comes to something that's a point of pride for you.

 

What kind of sword are you looking for, historic or fantasy type?

[ecoli]

If your buying online, you should check out ebay...there always dealers there selling in bulk, at fraction of the price at a store or even other website. I saw the same sword selling from 2 different dealers at ebay for two very different prices.

[rakuenso]

my wee wee is bigger than 3 inches and is concealed, is that considered a weapon as well?

[Phi for All]

my wee wee is bigger than 3 inches and is concealed, is that considered a weapon as well?

Take it through airport security. If they don't confiscate it, it's not considered dangerous enough to be a weapon.

[ydoaPs]

i am looking for either funtion or form. as far as fantasy swords go, i have a really cool dragon daggar. at flea markets, i see many fantasy swords of the same style. i am not really looking for anything in perticular. if i like it, i might buy it.

[ydoaPs]

Take it through airport security. If they don't confiscate it, it's not considered dangerous enough to be a weapon.

 

"please remove any metallic objects that you may have...", then the ass kicking ensues.

[ydoaPs]

i call this one PowerPoint

[Phi for All]

Iirc, you're a big guy and PowerPoint looks to be pretty big. A bastard sword (also called hand-and-a-half swords) or a full two-hander (like the early Claymore Mel uses in Braveheart) would be a good historic blade for you. I have a big bastard with a wide blade (and 3 fullers) that's only about 4 lbs. Very sweet.

 

I'm not very familiar with the fantasy stuff. They tend to be full of cool-looking details that just add weight to the blade. Authorized versions from fantasy movies (like LOTR) tend to have a heavy markup due to licensing costs and are usually made by United Cutlery out of 420 J2 stainless steel, which would hold up in a fight for about 3 minutes. They sure look good though. And the heft feels nice if all you're doing is taking them down and fantasizing every once in a while. That kind of weight would tire you pretty quickly in a real duel.

[Dak]

In my experience, the fancy bits on fantacy swords (spikes, protrusions, decor etc) pretty much ruin the function. they catch on things, ruin the weight balance, throw the blade wildly about if you use it to block, and would jam the blade if you ever used it against someone (ie, sword would go in but not come out; sword would snag whilst cutting etc).

 

if you want an interesting sword, the chinese hook/eagle/claw swords can look pretty cool and wierd and also actually work.

 

 

 

 

although personally, nothing is as orgasm-indusing as a simple katana-style blade (or a bokken for that matter -- im getting a mahogany one soon )

[YT2095]

I`ll see your Sword, and raise you a .357 Magnum

[rakuenso]

I'll see your .357 magnum and raise you a tablet of anthrax

[YT2095]

YT adjusts his seat (this pocket Nuke really digs in!) takes a breath mint, What Anthrax?

 

anyway, back to topic, if the weapon is enclosed in a suitable case(s) and not left unattended (in yer car back seat on display) and you can provide a reasonable explaination as to WHY your carrying such a weapon, you`ll be just fine

[Phi for All]

although personally, nothing is as orgasm-indusing as a simple katana-style blade

Ah, a man after my own heart. No sword is more awe-inspiring than the simplicity and cleanness of form inherent in the Japanese katana. It is the height of the swordmaker's art.

 

yourdadonapogos, I would seriously call your local police and tell them you are considering the purchase of a sword for display at the local fair and are concerned about legally transporting it home on foot. Get the name of the person who tells you what to do so you can cite them if stopped.

 

I'll bet they tell you to wrap it in something that covers it and don't take it out of the wrappings the whole way home.

[ydoaPs]

or, if i get stopped, i can get it out and do some anime stuff. you know, ricochet bullets, cut the gun into pieces, and such.

[Kornkid]

Do you have such sword-handling talent? Or will you end up cutting your own hand off?

[Dak]

although personally, nothing is as orgasm-indusing as a simple katana-style blade

Ah' date=' a man after my own heart. No sword is more awe-inspiring than the simplicity and cleanness of form inherent in the Japanese katana. It is the height of the swordmaker's art.[/quote']although, i think i prefer the ninja-to to the katana: they're shorter, and so easyer to maneuver around a katana; and they were made cheap, which meant that you could give it more of a battering and then just make a new one, so that you could use it to its absolute maximum potential (eg, without having to worry about blunting it by blocking with the blade)...

 

although having said that, i am currently trying to learn to use the katana with the blade pointing downward and toward my body, which i think is overtaking my love for the ninja-to, and would also preserve the expensive katana blade by making it easyer to block with the blunt-side of the katana (whilst retaining the good traits of the ninja-to: an ability to outmaneuver most katana, as the wield lends itself well to parrying and attacking quickly from unexpected directions and returning immediately to a defensive position, and also it is a one-handed wield leaving my off-hand free to grab hilts/testicles etc, and a whole assortment of other such cheeky-buggeresk behaviour facilitated by the down-and-in wielding techinique).

 

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm, katana. I wish i had one.

[Phi for All]

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm, katana. I wish i had one.

Mine is Paul Chen's Golden Oriole (first series) made by Hanwei. It was my last sword purchase.