Flex-testing a sword - good or bad?
Flex-testing a sword is a good way to demonstrate the quality of its blade.
False - The mistake of flex-testing sword blades today (i.e., giving it a slow bend by hand then holding it there) is something that has become quite common as a result of misleading information among reproduction sword manufacturers and their commercial distributors. Sword enthusiasts today frequently fall victim to this misconception that their swords must have a tremendous flex to them that can be repeatedly demonstrated, not realizing that not only is this not a true sign of a well-made fighting sword but that each time they do this they damage the structure of the blade. Each time the test is performed the blade is weakened as bending begins to exceed the steel's stress limits. Over time such damage will eventually cause the blade to fail under stress. Repeated slow flexing will also prevent the blade from returning true. Flex testing is supposedly a way of showing good resilience and blade quality but the action is misleading and all but useless for demonstrating a sword's sturdiness for combat. Slow flexing is a gradual application of force to a blade that it will never really see in actual use. Real swords need to be quite rigid yet still be flexible under stress. This is a matter of having good resilience, not "whippiness" or a "noodly" flexibility. Many modern replica swords cannot be test-flexed at all because they are of inferior temper or poor metallurgical quality and will either snap or stay bent. Ironically, many kinds of actual historical specimens would also not pass such a test either, as their blades were very often exceptionally rigid. (In fact, this is how the sword of a dishonored man or surrendered leader would be broken, by straining it in a bend so that it snapped). Different portions of a blade typically will not have the same degrees of flexibility due to cross-sectional differences. Thus, a slow test bending by hand at one portion of the blade does not equate to a fast flexing under force at other portions as would occur when a sword stabs strongly at a resistant target or is struck forcibly against its flat at the middle or lower near the hilt.
...................Read more at the ARMA webstie under Spotlight
False - The mistake of flex-testing sword blades today (i.e., giving it a slow bend by hand then holding it there) is something that has become quite common as a result of misleading information among reproduction sword manufacturers and their commercial distributors. Sword enthusiasts today frequently fall victim to this misconception that their swords must have a tremendous flex to them that can be repeatedly demonstrated, not realizing that not only is this not a true sign of a well-made fighting sword but that each time they do this they damage the structure of the blade. Each time the test is performed the blade is weakened as bending begins to exceed the steel's stress limits. Over time such damage will eventually cause the blade to fail under stress. Repeated slow flexing will also prevent the blade from returning true. Flex testing is supposedly a way of showing good resilience and blade quality but the action is misleading and all but useless for demonstrating a sword's sturdiness for combat. Slow flexing is a gradual application of force to a blade that it will never really see in actual use. Real swords need to be quite rigid yet still be flexible under stress. This is a matter of having good resilience, not "whippiness" or a "noodly" flexibility. Many modern replica swords cannot be test-flexed at all because they are of inferior temper or poor metallurgical quality and will either snap or stay bent. Ironically, many kinds of actual historical specimens would also not pass such a test either, as their blades were very often exceptionally rigid. (In fact, this is how the sword of a dishonored man or surrendered leader would be broken, by straining it in a bend so that it snapped). Different portions of a blade typically will not have the same degrees of flexibility due to cross-sectional differences. Thus, a slow test bending by hand at one portion of the blade does not equate to a fast flexing under force at other portions as would occur when a sword stabs strongly at a resistant target or is struck forcibly against its flat at the middle or lower near the hilt.
...................Read more at the ARMA webstie under Spotlight
posted by Swordsman | 9:35 AM
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