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Looking for the best medieval practice swords, I'm new to this.

by Stephen
(Fullerton, CA, USA)

I want two swords exactly the same for me and friends to begin practicing in HEMA type style of fighting. However my budget is 150$ and below, so I don't expect to be able to buy any real steel blunted practice beaters.

I know the synthetics are what seems to be all the rage, but some reviews say they are just not cut out to be realistic enough?

I have been wanting wooden swords as my own preference (BUT I am willing to listen to ALL advice on wooden/synthetic/steel beaters) just because I have played with them at a couple renaissance fairs before and that was really fun.

I have been staring at the longsword page of purpleheart armoury wooden wasters. They have great reviews on the site itself, but i just want to know what would be the best fi , my budget for the two swords together is 150$, and I want something that will be the funnest safest experience considering we don't have much protective gear beside wearing a couple extra layers of clothes/jackets. What do you recommend? wooden? synthetic? Thank you for answering when you can I'll be watching this like a hawk for when the answer comes, haha. Appreciate it..

Comments for Looking for the best medieval practice swords, I'm new to this.

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Some options and ideas..
by: Paul

Honestly I think the synthetic wasters are the best choice and are a happy medium between wooden wasters and steel..

Wooden wasters cannot really be used at high speed as they can quite easily break bones or - worst case scenario - break and impale someone, while synthetic wasters are flexible and subject to less wear and tear if paired together.

Weight and balance is close to a real sword and about the same as a wooden waster and they slide against each other well, which is good for practicing some techniques but can be a problem for others.

But I think that because they are safer than wooden swords you can train with them much more realistically than with wooden swords - and this makes for considerably more robust and enjoyable sparring sessions as you do not need to hold back quite as much.

A lot of it comes down to personal preference though, but this is my recommendation.

Hope this helps!

- Paul

Paul is right
by: Jonathan Graifer

Paul is righ. Wooden can often be too heavy, and break more easily than synthetic. I mostly have hickory wasters, mainly Hollow Earth and one Raven Studios, but both are better for solo form, and can be expensive. Synthetic is good, but you need to find one you like. A few years ago, I'd have suggested cold steels polypropylene trainers, but hose are simply too heavy, since they are still built like wooden trainers. I've handled a few of the knightshop/rawlings nylon wasters and like them very much, and they have a better variety of European styles.
Hope that helps.

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