Even wootz blades can break

tom hyle · 10th April 2005, 09:59 PM

I may not follow you, but many swords, especially some of the finest European swords, are designed to break in certain places, if they break, as the distal taper to a thin tip and a thick soft base; the tip takes up much stress in its easy flex, though it cutting it can be vibratory, and I find slashing or drawing the cut helps, while the (sometimes) soft thick base and soft usually thick tang are greatly absorbant of all other shock/stress. Also, some were desinged with a breaking point in the tang, above (behind, pommelward of) a rivet, so if the tang does break, it's still attached. The geometry, simple or crystaline of this I do not understand, BTW, as I am not the best heavy pommel balancer, neither, but I've read of it, and seen its results, many times.
Broken and damaged pieces are so educational to us, even if we don't repair them. Anyone got a snapped or chipped wootz blade to help us, maybe? Any modern smiths do toughness tests and find conditions/alloys/whatever where the steel is brittle?
Everything is harder and more brittle when cold. I have seen hard steel axes hammers and files chip or snap way "too" easily when very cold. They were all, AFAIK, modern steel, though say early to mid 20th. Folklore of Europe is "the Vikings" the North-Germans, and specifically the Swedes invented the sword that could take the cold by pattern-welding; note we just got an Eastern version of this lore, too(?): However, also, this seems to be the "viking spatha/swert" known to history and archaeology as mostly Frankish(? or Burgundian?) in numbers manufactured, if not in origin/design (hmmmmm; like navajas......)

10th April 2005, 09:59 PM	#9
tom hyle Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Houston, TX, USA Posts: 1,254	I may not follow you, but many swords, especially some of the finest European swords, are designed to break in certain places, if they break, as the distal taper to a thin tip and a thick soft base; the tip takes up much stress in its easy flex, though it cutting it can be vibratory, and I find slashing or drawing the cut helps, while the (sometimes) soft thick base and soft usually thick tang are greatly absorbant of all other shock/stress. Also, some were desinged with a breaking point in the tang, above (behind, pommelward of) a rivet, so if the tang does break, it's still attached. The geometry, simple or crystaline of this I do not understand, BTW, as I am not the best heavy pommel balancer, neither, but I've read of it, and seen its results, many times. Broken and damaged pieces are so educational to us, even if we don't repair them. Anyone got a snapped or chipped wootz blade to help us, maybe? Any modern smiths do toughness tests and find conditions/alloys/whatever where the steel is brittle? Everything is harder and more brittle when cold. I have seen hard steel axes hammers and files chip or snap way "too" easily when very cold. They were all, AFAIK, modern steel, though say early to mid 20th. Folklore of Europe is "the Vikings" the North-Germans, and specifically the Swedes invented the sword that could take the cold by pattern-welding; note we just got an Eastern version of this lore, too(?): However, also, this seems to be the "viking spatha/swert" known to history and archaeology as mostly Frankish(? or Burgundian?) in numbers manufactured, if not in origin/design (hmmmmm; like navajas......)