Would you recco. this CAS Iberia sword? (picture included)

by Ryan Hardwikk
(Cleveland, OH)

QUESTION: I was surfing the web for affordable functional swords, and I found this. It is a CAS Iberia Side Ring Sword. It's made of high carbon spring steel, and says in the description that it "has an authentic look and feel" and "great for the reenactor". The sword looks nice, but do you think it can be used for cutting?

Another question while I'm here: What are the significant differences between HIGH Carbon Steel and TEMPERED Carbon Steel?

ANSWER: Hi Ryan,

Generally speaking, I like Hanwei swords. But their iberia line are not that great - overly heavy and imperfectly tempered (they are actually made at a completely different forge in the Philippines rather than in China where most of their other swords are made).

Now with regards to your other question, a sword can be both high carbon AND tempered. To get a better understanding of what this all means and how it all fits together, I recommend our article What to look for in a REAL battle ready sword

Enjoy the journey, a man could spend a lifetime studying about swords and still just be scratching the surface, but don't let that put you off - it means that you'll never run out of new and exciting things to learn about the sharp and pointies. ^_^

Best,

- Paul