Wobbly guards on Jians and Daos

Philip · 11th August 2010, 06:52 AM

Gavin is right, shrinkage of the grip material is the number one cause of loose guards. You see this in other kinds of swords, too -- I've lost count of the ivory- and MOP-hilted Euro. smallswords with loose hilts that I've been asked to fix over the years.

In general, the downmarket-quality jian and dao have less precise fitting of guards to blade tangs, as might be expected. Cheaper weapons were often assembled from blades and other parts obtained from different sources and of course there was no standardization. A fine sword would be put together by a master craftsman who made sure the guard was the right size, and filed the aperture to fit snugly.

Various approaches were used to ensure tight guard fit. During the late Qing, some sabers had brass guards peened tightly in place -- corners of the tang were raised with a chisel and a drift-punch was used to drive the little "horns" tight against the rear of the guard. Some early Qing saber fittings featured a tongue-and-groove interlock between the front of the ferrule and the rear face of the guard.

Occasionally I face the opposite problem -- hilts that are so tight all around that they can't be removed from the blade. This is almost exclusively a problem with jian using one-piece hardwood or horn grips. The things fit so tightly to begin with that when the tang starts to rust inside, the iron swells up and the hilt is on there for good.

11th August 2010, 06:52 AM	#3
Philip Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: California Posts: 1,036	rattletraps Gavin is right, shrinkage of the grip material is the number one cause of loose guards. You see this in other kinds of swords, too -- I've lost count of the ivory- and MOP-hilted Euro. smallswords with loose hilts that I've been asked to fix over the years. In general, the downmarket-quality jian and dao have less precise fitting of guards to blade tangs, as might be expected. Cheaper weapons were often assembled from blades and other parts obtained from different sources and of course there was no standardization. A fine sword would be put together by a master craftsman who made sure the guard was the right size, and filed the aperture to fit snugly. Various approaches were used to ensure tight guard fit. During the late Qing, some sabers had brass guards peened tightly in place -- corners of the tang were raised with a chisel and a drift-punch was used to drive the little "horns" tight against the rear of the guard. Some early Qing saber fittings featured a tongue-and-groove interlock between the front of the ferrule and the rear face of the guard. Occasionally I face the opposite problem -- hilts that are so tight all around that they can't be removed from the blade. This is almost exclusively a problem with jian using one-piece hardwood or horn grips. The things fit so tightly to begin with that when the tang starts to rust inside, the iron swells up and the hilt is on there for good.