Best Gladius for the money

[Latinitas]

I will post photos once I figure out how to put up a picture!!!

When you write your post, you see on the left part Attachments between Message and Subscribe. On the right of Attachments you see Add File. Click on this button and search for the image you want to add. Dubble click on the picture and you have attached the image to your post .

[Sextus Saturninus]

Thanks for the info on the pictures, I might get a photo of myself at out next event and post it on the Roman impressions photos.

[deepeeka]

Hi guys

Long time since I posted here. A very interesting conversation seems to be developing here.

Guys, if we can identify an economy model together, we would love to develop it for the RAT members. Send me some plans/ drawings etc of type of blade, desired weight etc etc, and lets see what we can do.

I have not worked on Roman swords for a long long time, and this would be a great addition to our line.

Gagan

[Sextus Saturninus]

The current AH4211E economy model can be improved, instead of creating a new version. The blade is a full tang, but it has a V-shaped Ricasso that kills it for reenactment. The scabbard is good, and does not necessarily have to be modified. The blade is a little heavy, that almost every reproduction sword has and it has a steel guard plate put right on top of the wood, instead of a proper inset brass plate. An easy way to solve the problem would be to mess with one of the AH4211N Pompeii swords and make it fit into the economy scabbard. Then there would be a nice economy model. Also, you can make the scabbard pieces removable, so buyers can make their own scabbard plates and engrave them, then put them in the sword. That would be nice, and I know that some other Roman swords ( not Deepeekas ) have the scabbard parts be removable so you can customize it for your own tastes.

[M.VAL.BRUTUS]

Jason,

Given your budget and ambition to acquire both a galdius and pugio, I would recommend going with the economy gladius from SOTW.

http://legvi.tripod.com/armamentarium/id444.html

Is it perfect? No, but given that you are very new to reenactment, and very young, it's probably a good upgrade. I would go with the all hardwood handle, and given that the brass lockette plates are un-decorated, you can pretty much do whatever design you desire, either embossing or punch work. And given the price, you can put some of your funds towards something else you might need.

Other improvements can also be made down the road, grinding down the blade, improving the scabbard, but these will all be good projects to learn on, and will give you a basic introduction to some basic metal working.

So, that's my opinion, you can of course with whichever sword you want, they can all be improved over time. But the Evocati Gladius in a mainz pattern and would have been much less common during the 2nd century.

[Sextus Saturninus]

That sword is a good one Brutus, but the problem is that my current sword is the deepeeka version of the SOTW economy gladius and I would like something a little different , so the SDK 1171 fits the spot perfectly. The SDK is very nice because it has no panels on the chape or the throat so inserting customized plates are easily done, making a good gladius

[M.VAL.BRUTUS]

If the blade of the sword is passable, why just look at modifying and improving the existing scabbard? You can change the leather, and decorate the brass work, and add to it if you desire.

My issues with the SDK is that I've held them, and they are crap. The scabbards aren't well made, the pommel, grip, and guard are put together poorly, and they feel very fragile. My concern is that you might be spending your money on something that isn't going to last, purchased from a company that doesn't have good customer service.

At least if you buy from SouloftheWarrior, you do so knowing that company is owned and operated by fellow reenactors, and Rusty will stand by his products. I''ve known rusty for a long time now, and I've ordered from him many times in the past.

[Sextus Saturninus]

Brutus,

If the sword is garbage, what is a better alternative that is not the Milites or Tiro gladius? For me to get a different sword and to trash the idea of getting the SDK ( I kind of thought that it might be a bad sword when I saw it but it was inexpensive ), it MUST qualify with all of these qualifications listed below.

Qualifications:

Must be nice

Must have full tang

Must go nice with the Oberaden pugio

Must have nice workmanship

Must be good for second century

Hopefully not a sword that almost everyone else has

Must be under $150

Must not fall apart easily

Must be awesome!

Must be completely authentic!

If you can find a nice one ( hopefully a US based company so it comes fast ) that meets all of the above, I WILL BUY IT. And on the Evocati gladius, since my impression is a Auxiliary, isn't the Mainz acceptable? Weren't the Auxiliaries handed down older Legionary equipment? That would make it acceptable for an Auxiliary for a time period slightly after the Mainz pattern was replaced with the legions. Also, the Mainz just looks beautiful and if I buy a more expensive sword, I would like one that I really like :-)

[Sextus Saturninus]

My opinion on the SDK 1171 gladius has officially changed. Thank you everyone for helping me decide to get a better sword instead of the SDK. I think I will be much happier with a Magnus, Tessararius, Evocati, or Optio than with a sword that has many problems

[M.VAL.BRUTUS]

The thing about any gear is that you have to compromise on something. If you want really high quality gear, your going to have to spend the money, if you're on a limited budget, your going to have sacrifice some of the bling or make improvements yourself.

Looking at you requirements below, I'll just give a response to each of them individually. But you're going to have to make a sacrifice on some of these.

Qualifications:

Must be nice- Okay you can get a decent looking gladius for what you're looking to spend.

Must have full tang- Most gladii from reputable dealers have this now, but as a rule, if you don't know for sure, don't buy it.

Must go nice with the Oberaden pugio- It's okay to have things match, but not entirely necessary. In fact the pugio you listed is dated from a long time before the 2nd century. Just don't feel like you need to be all matchy, chances are that a soldier would have not had all matching gear anyways.

Must have nice workmanship- You can get something in your budget that is decent, but if you want really great craftsmanship, you need to buy from a craftsman, and not a mass produced product.

Must be good for second century- Any pompeii pattern will do.

Hopefully not a sword that almost everyone else has- again, when you are buying off the shelf, it's hard to get something unique, but you can always make changes later if you want it be more unique.

Must be under $150- This isn't a huge budget, but you can certainly get a decent Indian made sword for this price, but it's not going to be perfect.

Must not fall apart easily- Again most of the reputable dealers are safe to buy from. Shops that are owned and run by reenactors usually don't sell things that are going to fall apart on a customer that is a fellow reenactor, that would ruin their reputation.

Must be awesome!- Kind of subjective there...

Must be completely authentic!- You wont find a sword that is completely authentic for $150, you can find a decent looking reproduction, but it's just not going to be 100% authentic. You have to make compromises, we like to say you can have it cheap, you can have it fast, or you can have it right, pick two.

I think the best option for you will be one of the SOTW gladii, One of the pompeii patterns rather than a mainz pattern, and don't worry about it matching anything. The reality is that this likely will not be the last sword you buy, and in a few years you will be shopping around again for something new and exciting anyways.

[Sextus Saturninus]

Thank you Brutus for the answers. I think I will go with the Optio or the Tessararius, as these are new and improved models from SOTW. More money came in today, so budget is higher though both the swords are only $125 each. I myself am leaning towards the Optio, as I can always put a plate in the chape, as long as the chape can come off. I will be much happier with one of these swords rather than the SDK.

[Flavivs Aetivs]

It should be easy to modify the scabbard chape. Matt Amt was helping one of his guys do it once when I was up at Rich's.

[Sextus Saturninus]

Optio gladius from SOTW bought! It was more than 2.5x the price of the SDK 1171 but after looking at all the photos, it had a good appeal for buying. The shipping estimate said three weeks but I doubt that it should take that long to get from SC to CA. I will be waiting for it eagerly!

[Flavivs Aetivs]

Shipping varies depending on what Rusty has in stock. He probably has these in stock so it shouldn't take long, but Rusty has had a lot of problems with shipping in the past. If it doesn't show up in 3 Weeks, email Rusty persistently and he'll keep on it for you.

This is the problem with most people who had issues with their orders, they didn't email Rusty to tell him there was a problem, so he didn't check with the shipping company before the tracking service automatically expired because he didn't know to.

So yeah, if you have a problem, make sure you email Rusty and he will fix it. Do it persistently cause he can be a bit slow replying at times.

[Sextus Saturninus]

Magister,

I guess that I should have just listened to your advice from the start...It would have led me to the same exact place! I bet that it will be here very soon and I will use it a ton!