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"Dang Tangs" - Hidden Weak Spots in
Replica Swords
Because there is a lot of marketing jargon passed around by websites and
businesses, it's sometimes difficult to identify how good a sword really
is. A company may boast of having a larger tang than its competitors.
However, a sword is only as strong as its weakest link. Usually the link
is caused by a poor quality welding of the tang and its "rat-tail".
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The area of the blade beneath the handle can be divided into two portions. The first portion is the tang. Hopefully, there is a healthy length of tang for impact absorption and control of the blade. The second portion is what's known as a "rat-tail". This generally is a welded-on thin soft bar of steel that has a threaded screw-like end, generally for the purpose of passing through a hollow handle - which, in turn, is fastened on by a screw-on pommel. This brings is to two potential areas of weaknesses:
Improper welds - the areas circled in red represent weakspots in the design of swords that use rat-tails. The second example shows, really, no tang at all. Such a sword is purely decorative and cannot withstand the stresses of battle. The third example, however, can be satisfactory and can perform well, but the point where the rat-tail and the tang meet can be a weak spot if the welding is done improperly! In contrast to welding on a threaded rat-tail, good custom swordmakers will forge the tang out and thread it, all in one piece, without the use of a rat tail. In some cases, a threaded stub may be welded onto a full-length tang. The longer tang allows for better shock absorption and reduced blade stresses. Thus, as good as some manufacturers boast on the quality of their blades, a good blade smith does not necessarily equate to a good welder! The danger is to have the blade flying out of the handle when its swung. A sharp 2 lb. missile is not something to laugh at. One sword maker shared one example he had witnessed while in the Philippines. Someone proudly presented to him a familiar claymore. He held the sword and tested its balance. When he tipped the blade forward, the blade slipped out of the handle and came crashing onto the ground! This, however, is an extreme example. Some stainless steel swords made in Spain use the rat-tail approach, even for Japanese-style swords. Some swords broke within their handles just by swining them around. At other times, some broke while impacting thin tree branches. It is important to note that manufacturing companies of replica or museum-reproduction pieces in such countries may not know the difference between a good weld and a bad weld. In the case of cost contianment and delivering volume, this is often one major overlooked area. For those manufacturers who boast forged blades for their swords, it's equally important to be able to boast about forged full tangs!
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European-style replica swords generally have an achilles heel that are
seldom spotted, infrequently identified, and mostly concealed. In fact,
when your museum-like merchandise - whether made in Spain, India, or the
Philippines - arrives, you'll probably never spot it even with close
examination. The reason is that this area of weakness is within the
handle itself, pertaining the portion of the blade beneath, known as the
"tang".