well , the dha arrived today, it's better than i expected. brown stains on blade were grease which cleaned off.
scabbard is very well made, better and lighter/thinner than my other dha's, the brass bands are all decorated with pointillé designs.
the wooden grip, is covered at either end in what appears to be silver. the centre section is a brass covered section with further pointillé designs, chief of which is a bird surmounted by what appears to be a burmese inscription. the silver section nearest the blade is also engraved with a burmese inscription.
the blade is 25" long, 1" at the hilt, 1.25" at it's widest near the point, 3/8" thick at the hilt, distally tapering to the point. the 1st third of the spine is rounded, the latter 2/3 of the spine is square, there are two narrow fullers that run to within a couple inches of the point, and a fine groove cut above it for about the 1st 1/3 from the hilt. the blade is not inlaid with silver scrolls & brass spine inlays as is my other dha, but appears to be more buisness-like.
a magnet was used to discover tha tang extends thru the first silver section and the brass section as well, but not into the pommel section. it is drilled near the blade end for a dowel or rivet, which hole is currently filled with a steel nail. the nail appears to be fairly old and is worn by use. the visible wooden part of the grip where the tang is inserted appears to have a wooden wedge either side of the blade hammered in to keep the assembly tight.
pictures: if anyone has any idea what the inscriptions are, i'd be grateful for a translation.
