My finished new rapier.

I re-used the guard I had made for my epee; altered it slightly, then forged a stainless steel quillon bar and pierced the knuckle bow for it.

When I say forged, I mean hot hammered into shape, yes.

I got one of the new narrow Hanwei 37 inch blunted blades for this.
These are hollow ground for strength, and lighter than their first offerings, with a nice, beefy thick tang to the blade.
Only the last inch and a half or so is threaded rod, and very nicely welded in place.
This tang won't break without extraordinary effort.

The grip is a piece of American cherry left over from a gunstock project done years ago.
No stain, the polyurethane varnish I used darkened the wood just slightly and gave it a pleasing glow.

The pommel is a 13 ounce acorn shape in solid steel.
A bit heavy, but the guard balanced it out surprisingly well- so my decision to go with the heaviest pommel I could get was a sound one.
Its a little pommel heavy, but it handles so FAST in the hand!
Theres a small section of antler for a spacer between the quillon and the guard, so screwing the threaded pommel down does not bend the bars out of place, and provides a space to hook a finger over them for control.
Its a little improvised-but my fencing kit is a work in progress, and pieces are being altered and replaced as I figure out what works, and what I need.
When I have all my needs figured out- I start working on making it all look as good as possible.


This sword has been fought with since I got it finished; the blade has small nicks and marks from use already.
The experienced fighters and marshals have already stopped "going easy on the new guy" and are treating me seriously on the field...
And I'm holding my own with them after only a few weeks.

Means I am getting some bruises- but one of the old timers complimented me by saying that my defense is excellent, and that I'm fun to fight because I'm tricky.

I'll be ready to take the authorization tests very soon.