Helmet

[jvrjenivs]

Some of the top of the line swords are made by Del Tin or Albion, KOA sells several of their swords which range from $380-700+ They are considered to be some of the most accurate swords as far as design, size, and weight. Weight is a big factor for all other swords $140 and below which in my experience tend to be rather heavy (much heavier than the real thing), for some reason the majority of sword makers feel that they need to have a super thick sword to avoid having a sharp edge (the majority of replica swords do not come sharpened, and many shouldn't be sharpened because they are not high enough quality steel to properly hold an edge).

Some of the few swords which are affordable, but accurate, if you can overlook their sometimes heaviness, are Deepeeka's Mainz and Pompeii Gladius, (which Matt Amt's site says are some of the few "off the shelf" good swords), as well as Soul of the Warrior's Pompeii Magnus Gladius, SOTW also sells an $85 regular Pompeii gladius, which I understand is not bad.

However if you are going for a AD9 Impression, you most likely want a Mainz gladius (I don't recall when the Pompeii Gladius was introduced). Perhaps someone else can chime in?

AD9 is a bit early for a pompeii type of sword, so I would prefer to go with a Mainz, Fulham or Gladius hispaniensis type of sword. If it's just for show, Deepeeka has a acceptable hispaniensis based on finds from Delos. Their mainz is on the big side, but the newly Mainz swords made by other vendors and sold by Armamentaria are wonderful and good quality for their price. Again, when you want something better, ask Mark Morrow or again, Matt Lukes. I think in the US/Canada those two people are the way to go for Roman swords, and probably Matts work is the best choose as he can also do you the scabbard to go with the blade.

I never handled a Del Tin blade, but the comments I hear about them are not always as good, as suggested earlier in this topic. Albion swords are well-made, but come without a scabbard and are, in my opinion, expensive for what you get. For the same amount of money you can source something nicer