Overview
Our sharpening service will provide a good serviceable edge on the blade. The result is typically “very sharp” with a small secondary bevel and a bit of an “apple seed” profile. The resulting edge is somewhat dependent on the particular blade. Some blades will take and hold sharper edges than others and the thickness of the blade will determine how wide the bevel will need to be. We adjust the angle of the edge to suit the specific blade and attempt to get as close to a bevel-less edge as possible without marring the surface of the blade.
The Sharpening Process
The sharpening service is done with a belt sander. The process involves many passes with sanding belts of various grits. The blades are rested between passes to prevent them from becoming hot and damaging their temper. By default we will sharpen as much of the blade as possible including any false edges if appropriate. If you have a different preference, feel free to make that request in the special instructions at check out. We can sharpen only the last half or third of an edge, for example. Our sword sharpening expert has personally sharpened several thousand swords at this point, so will provide you with a professional service.
What the Service is Not
The resulting edge will be “sword sharp” not razor sharp. Our goal is to provide you with a usable edge for cutting practice that will hold up to some use and not require constant re-sharpening. In other words, we intend to provide you with a serviceable weapon, not a personal grooming implement. The service will not provide a completely bevel-less edge. To create that type of edge will necessarily scratch up the blade surface and we lack the machinery and time to provide a full re-polishing of a blade’s surface. A service of that nature would be significantly more expensive as a great deal more time would be required. We do not offer this type of service at this time.
Disclaimer
We make no guarantee that the resulting edge will meet with your expectations. Every blade is different and some will take and hold a sharper edge than others, due to the blade material, heat treatment or geometry. Some customers can also have incorrect assumptions about sword sharpness and improper expectations as a result. All we can say for sure is that the resulting edge will be sharper than the default edge, in most cases, significantly so. We can not provide any refunds for the service once it has been completed, so consider it to be provided “as is”. That being said, if you are unhappy with the product for any reason, we do still allow you to return the item for a full refund, including the sharpening costs under our normal return policy. This does not apply to special sharpening requests, for example if we sharpen something specially for you that does not normally list that option on our site. The vast majority of our customers are happy with the results of the service, so as long as you keep the above mentioned in mind, we are confident you will be pleased with the results as well.
Mct –
Good Very light and rather well made. Very attractive weapon and scabbard. No glaring qc issues. Sharpening was a very neat secondary bevel which was just about paper cutting sharp.
Some minor nitpicks: secondary bevels of sharpening job were rather wide (approx 45°) and not narrow as requested.
Scabbard is quite loose, and crossguard has a large gap around the blade.
Cihan –
Beautiful Just got mine today. Arrived rather quickly for also having the sharpening service. Everything feels very well put together. Really lightweight. The crossguard and pommel are really tight. The leather and stitching on the grip and scabbard are tight. The only bad thing I noticed is the scabbard is loose. If you tip it upside down, it will come out. Not a big deal for me though. The point of balance is right at the crossguard so it gives good control for thrusting. Also, as I requested, the blade tapers to a slightly more fine point, which is great. Overall, and especially in this price range, simply beautiful. This is my first piece from Darksword Armory, but I’d definitely love to get another one sometime soon. Thank you Darksword for a wonderful addition to my growing collection.
Wes Cobb –
Pretty good dagger. I picked this up from KoA of their used page for $99. I was wanting the DS Medieval Knight or Black Prince dagger, but for 90 bucks less I can live with this one!
It’s very well made, as far as I can tell. The peen is tight and neat, as is the handguard. I could probably drive a nail with this thing and not damage it beyond scratching up the pommel.
However, I don’t know if I’d pay full price for one like this. It’s a solid piece, and the sheath is cool (but will require some modification– the way the belt loops are positioned dumps the dagger, and the blade rattles around inside the wood core), but I still think the list price of 189 is a little steep.
That being said, 5 stars as always for KoA’s customer service. I would never have noticed the other, minor imperfections if they hadn’t been listed on the page. Also, from ordering online to receiving it at my home took about 3 days– which is awesome.