There is yet time to reconsider your earlier arrogance. Will you trade me your data on Adaptive Doctrine, or will you risk total destruction at my hands?
Why does everyone keep making that joke??? I still haven't found a video explaining this... I know it has something to do with the pummel (pommel?) Being thrown to finish someone "rightly" but I guess I haven't seen the video :/
look up "the strangest medieval instruction book ive found" its smth like that from skall, its to do with a fencing manual that contains the greatest swordfighting instructions youve ever seen
Honestly, with a good rotary tool(not that $10 harbor freight piece of crap I've got, but one that's 3-5x the price), you'd have all you need to redo the handle and make a pretty good sword out of that, even in a small workshop. I almost feel like I should do up a kit idea for a closet workshop, so Skallagrim(& others) could do this sort of work despite limited space.
+InfernosReaper You could just weld more tang onto it, dude. That would take a LOT less effort. Hell, just use a Grade 8 bolt and you'd be good to go. It would take like two minutes for a shop to weld that on. Then you just need to make a new handle. Done. You could even screw it on if you wanted.
Eh, welding produces a lot of heat so it could easily screw up the tempering & heat treatment of the blade if you're not careful. I've seen it happen a few times and it'd be a shame to ruin a otherwise good blade. Plus, it'd make a pretty sexy 1-handed blade.
Yeah, the tang definitely need to be a lot longer to accommodate the stress between handle & blade. Also it seems the wood for the handle is low quality. Thankfully this is something that could be fix easily. I wonder if you just replace the handle with a 1-1,3 m staff for experimental purpose so it will make the weapon like a swordstaff or a short spear.
Only if you you weld on a much, much longer tang. Otherwise, the short tang would be even more problematic for a swordstaff than it is in its original configuration, due to the higher leverage from the longer handle, leading to higher bending moments in that critical section where the handle and blade meet.
there's actually a way to lengthen the tang you just ad a bar of steel/iron by triangle pining and forge them toone that will take care of the issue of the short tang plust it is very sturdy because the tang is forged as one.
its not really the tang length that's the issue but the pin location. The pin should have been placed at the very end of the tang to distribute torsional forces. Right now the blade is torquing the tang into the wood with the pin as the rotational axis of the lever. This literally encourages the tang to torque out of the handle. If the pin was at the rear end of the tang the blade would have simply transferred the forced directly up along the spine and the end of the tang with the pin would have encouraged force distribution laterally with the cross section of the wood handle. This here in this video is simply a good example of bad engineering and bad knowledge of material and mechanical material sciences that you would learn in the first week of mechanical engineering. I have to add, that of course the wood is poor quality and the tang hole design is bad. but the main reason the wood split is basically due to mechanical torsion pivoting the tang down out of the wood from the pin's rotational axis. It's very clear from the video that the tang ripped out from the bottom of the handle. A longer tang would have simply broken a lower part of the wood handle.
It really just depends on the type of wood used. I'm not sure what this wood is, but on the website it has a rather large grain structure and doesn't seem like it would be too sturdy.
If you go to a blacksmith, then extend the tang and put a new long handle on it. Because if you further up the blade for a one hand handle, then you will lose the use of the scabbard (or sheath ).
Guillaume Lemaigre he's just going to put on a new handle. From what I can understand from the video there will be no reforging. So the blacksmith will just fashion a new handle and pin it on :) Edit: A handle for the purpose of being one handed
I thought you were just going to say that the handle was too round or doesn't let you index it well, then you showed where it was broken and I went "oh shit."
If they were going to be that lazy about it they should have just skipped the tang and made a longer socket with 2 pins. Not the greatest for a striking weapon, but can be somewhat functional.
tstodgell if you have access to one and you want to cut with it, that's probably a really good idea. Usually a failure doesn't cause an injury, but it doesn't hurt to know exactly how what you're using was constructed.
Right. Hidden tangs are alright, but they need to be long enough to be strong. Honestly after this fiasco, I'd like Ron Kosakowski to post x-rays of every sword in his lineup. If he doesn't, somebody else probably will, and it might be embarrassing. This is what we call an opportunity for improvement.
Thank you so much for reviewing this sword. I was trying to choose between the tfw and bci panabas and between your review of the tfw and sbg's review of the bci version i think the choice is clear. I would love to see you review of the bci version as well.
Sebastian Fuglsang Holm when working with metal just adding a weld won't keep it from breaking again... Welds are good to a point, taking it to a blacksmith he can draw out the tang (by taking the material right before the "back knife" portion like skall wanted to) to make it longer, that way there's no weak spots/connections to have break again in the future, whereas a weld would be structurally insecure... Even if done right.
you could, but to ensure a strong weld you should preheat the area, risking in softening the blade, maybe the heat of the welding alone could excessively temper the blade. this said, i would eventually try the welding route, maybe keeping the transition to the blade cool with wet cloth, still risky though
if welded correctly the weld is as strong as the actual steel, just check michaelcthulhu's ''swords'' wich almost all have welded handles and he chops logs with them
I already notified Ron of this (the owner of TFW) some of the circles I run in think very highly of him, so sent him this video. Lets see if he makes it right.
I can say from my experience, the only issue with them ive had has the been wooden sheaths with metal belt clips...my karambit had one attached via 2 short screws, and it wasnt long before it worked itself loose...i started the dropped the knife on concrete, etc. not good. so ill just by the tactical one next time, knife is perfect tho.
I think this is a good example that all sword companies have flukes. DSA gets a lot of flack for some of their sword-breaking horror stories.On the flip side, Master Cutlery's Rhin-don Narnia reproduction is actually fairly good, and quality swords is not something that MC is known for. I'll let a brand-name be a guideline, not a defining factor. We should never forget to do our own research.
Kick Saunders given the pretty dang high price for these things, it's a precarious flaw for me. Like come on. These are literally machetes that you can buy on certain countrysides if you know where to look. I get that it's made by higher quality materials, but this kind of slip up is almost a deal breaker.
I personally go with a three strike system. Once is a happenstance. Twice is a coincidence. Three times is a pattern. I think this was supposed to apply to forensics, but I like to apply it elsewhere. Still, If you don't feel absolutely comfortable with a tool don't use it. Especially one that might poke you. :9
Of all the youtubers Skall has earned donations and what not. The amount of expensive blades he's broken that I've seen is insane. I can't even justify buying a sword that expensive. Can't imagine how pissed I'd be if it broke.
The panabas was employed at the back end of open formations. Veterans were on the front line with shields, projectile weapons, and swords to burst through the enemy line and wound people, followed by a line of regular folks who could further beat down people injured by the veterans, and the panabas was at the back with people who came along to kill the wounded. The little edge on the back of the blade is for throat cutting.
Aaaah such a shame. I was so exited when I first saw it on your channel and I could hardly wait for a review. Such a beautiful blade. I just hope that blacksmith will do a good job of making it a one handed sword
This intro reminds me of the reaver cleaver “shot” reveal. Instant wall hanger. Too bad, because I loved the look and length, pretty much everything about this blade. Glad I didn’t get one. I did get a reaver cleaver, I just didn’t shoot it with a 7.62 bullet, lol.
Average Joe that's exactly what I was thinking. I stopped the video and told my wife to watch. I knew what was coming by how he was holding the glorified wall hanger.
They don't. You can't heat treat a "5160/D2 blend" at the same temperature. Ron shows videos of water quenching... so it's pretty clear the D2 claim is BS. 5160 is perfectly fine, though.
I’ve been laughing about the INSANE claims ron makes about blade steel. I’ve had long conversations with him on Facebook. It’s sooooo stupid. He really expects me to believe that some poor knifemakers in the phillipenes are running a steel foundry, and somehow mixing an oil hardening spring steel, with an air quenching semi stainless tool steel. At first I thought he was just clueless, but after talking to him, I think he just likes lying about it
As I am from Thailand, have handled a variety of South East Asian machetes and some swords (even some have excellent blades), what most have in common were the super short tang construction, only about 1/4 to 1/2 of the handle length and they hold this as tradition, and it's one reason I do not want to collect or make these kinds of blades. What I will make, closest I would at least have the tang length through the handle.
THANK you. I was considering one of these given the amazing cutting ability it has displayed in your previous videos, and its relatively low price. I just got to where I can afford a blade of that value (saving is slow) and I certainly won't be considering this one at present. Hoping TFW may make changes. Good PSA and review.
The spread grip you had that didn't have much combat application is a nice stable one for planing large pieces of wood as well as shaving bark. Push with the hand closest to the blade and maintain resistance with the hand near the base of the handle.
Being married to a Filipina for 40 years, and knowing quite a few Filipinos, and owning a machine and weld shop, I have run into this exact situation on a few occasions. My repair has always been to fit and weld a longer and wider piece of steel and remake the handle.
The Panabas wasn't really designed for chopping hard objects like wood, it's a weed wacker meant for harvesting sugar canes and other crops and may for butchering and decapitation(?). It's name literally means "grass cutter" or "for cutting grass".
If panabas is short form for pang-tabas, where does grass fit in? As far as I know tabas just means to cut right? Also Wikipedia says it was originally more like a battle axe, and images of original panabas (which is incredibly different from the TWF interpretation) look much heavier and hardier. Disclaimer: this is an actual question, I'm not claiming to be right or anything.
Ken Maliwat From how I was raised, "tabas" in my general area means "to cut" within the context of light cutting. I've generally heard and used it with regards to cutting small parts of cloth, hair, or grass. I can agree that this sword seems completely different from its namesake, though.
Matt P Agreed, the word may have different meanings in other languages here so I just stated my personal experience with the word as an answer to Ken Maliwat's question.
That's very much like a Vietnam bringback that I picked up at a pawn shop. Very nice blade, straight, nice distal taper, but a tang no longer than a file, jammed into a wooden handle. I ground away part of the ricasso to make a longer, wider tang and put on a guard and handle.
Yeah, I can see that. As a Filipino myself we tend to have a cheap side too. I feel sorry about the handle. The blade looks nice though and converting it into a single hand would look sick. I hope you'll be able to fix it nicely. Great review!
Well, Skall that reflects part of the old-timey mindset of some weapon/tool smiths a.k.a. "Panday" have anf are still sustained. That mindset being "Basta hait at magunitan or maayo," translates to "As long as its sharp and you can hold on to it."
!!GUYS!! Here's an addendum from the manufacturer's site: Please Note: Due to being crafted in a tropical environment with native woods, it is common for these weapons to develop thin, minor cracks in the wood and the scabbard as the woods adjust to our more temperate environment. Cracks in items sent to you will not be harmful to the structural integrity of the item. Also - The decorative rattan wrapping can be brittle and may crack or break. It is recommended that a light coating of protective oil is used to protect the wood from dryness and cracking. I am affraid the problem is not in the tropical wood being subpar but rather the wood handle experience too much stress it's not supposed to.
Well damn there is no other word for it than a shame its a lovely blade At least its salvageable i look forward to seeing it brought back to life it would have been interesting to see it break but im just glad you weren't hurt you get hurt way too much 😐
most of the high quality forges are usually making reproductions are in the Luzon area. usually they sell modern reproductions and even Hollywood usually hire them. Most of the panabas can last very harsh beating if it is made correctly. ps: try other moro swords or native swords that were used by datus and clans.
Panabas comes from the phrase "pang tabas" or translated roughly from my dialect (a filipino dialect) means "to hack", so this weapon or tool was actually meant to be used like an axe since there were no axes really in my culture with a few exceptions. shame that the handle was shit, wasn't able to use the blade to its full potential or how it was meant to be used because of the shit hanlde
Please record the blacksmithing process of making the handle. By knowing how secure and sturdy the handle, it will give us viewers a whole lot of appreciation for that upcoming "new" weapon. It's like watching "Forged in Fire" show. Also if I may, please do not shorten the blade anymore. You can fix that by making the original short tang longer by welding an extra tang to it. As long as temperature is controlled, it will not affect the existing hardened blade like placing the blade in water exposing only the tang that needs to be welded.
Just weld on an extension to the tang that lengthens and surrounds the tang, then apply handle plates, glue/pin/shape it like a full-tang knife, then you'll have a sweet one hander. If you keep spraying the blade down during welding you should be able to avoid hurting the heat treatment.
I'd get a tang extension welded on, then use the end off of an axe handle to re-assemble with stronger wood. Heat and burn in the tang for a perfect fit. But as you say, not really having a workshop space means you'd have to farm that out to someone.
Source: Kult of Athena sword care tips. Do not attempt to chop down a tree with your sword. Such an activity is guaranteed to damage your sword. Axes and machetes are well designed for this with the weight of the steel concentrated over the point of percussion. When you strike a firmly fixed object like a tree or a thick branch with a sword, a great deal of the blade projects past the object being cut, causing the blade to bend or torque. It should be pointed out that the Japanese, who believe in a great deal of practice with the sword, used thick bamboo. The bamboo was resistant to a cut, but didn't have the rigidity of a tree, and so it would not have damaged a valuable blade. For a Japanese warrior to cut into a tree would have been unthinkable.
I felt the same awkward "too light" sensation with a DSA Wolfsbane I won a while back. Then I found out their tangs were way too skinny, and my heart just dropped into my stomach.
If you look at the wood grain, it also seems to be in the wrong direction (perpendicular to the edge instead of paralell, same as with axes) - that must have contributed to snapping.
The grain direction seems ok but from the look of the fracture i would say pretty weak wood. I have seen lots of breaks like this before but that was in the army where tools were permanently attached to vehicles and had years to degrade until someone finally wanted (needed) to use them. Of course replacing the wood with brittle epoxy did not seem to help this blade either.
@skall please put a review up on Kult of athena too, to warn people of this, just the shot of the short tang with the epoxy handle with some wood around it will save a lot of heartache
Antique Panabas have the handle/tang all metal, the handle is just wrapped with some skin and rattan lashing, and from the heel where the edge near the handle meet, it should be balanced there with a 2-5 inches of forward offset, the blade is not just exclusively moro, whereas the design from the highlands of Luzon have a Golok like blade for the Ibanags where the Ilocanos have a reverse bill like appearance but with a short width.
hey Skallagrim i have an idea for another video. I challenge you to design or draw a sword or melee weapon that is a jack of all trades it does not have to be good at everything but just decent at everything for example (piercing, cutting, hacking, hammering/bludgeoning, hooking ). And as for extra benefits why not make it two handed so that you can choose 1 handed or 2 handed. I would really for you to make a video like this to see your prefered design of a weapon. Thank you
TheUnknown Myth you're talking about a sharp, curved-bladed axe with a counterweight being a hammer, and a long drawn out spear-head-shaped point on top that can also be used to slice... Or in otherwords a regular ol' halbeard with a war hammer counterweight...
Charmle H yes true that is a weapon that is a jack of all trades in one weapon. what if you had the same "Jack of all trade" in one strike maybe something like a heavy(for hammering), spiked(for a piercing\puncturing) blade (for cutting /slashing) and many other factors
He kind of reviewed something like this that one of his subs made, here: ua-cam.com/video/MPz7eH_gu8g/v-deo.html He also "designed" a combo weapon consisting of all the TMNT weapons, which sort of fits that purpose. I also seem to recall him designing something similar to the Armorslayer Sword (from Fire Emblem) as well as an actual video on a recreation of the actual Armorslayer Sword, which could sort of fit that purpose with some changes to the tip points.
Watching y'all cutting the targets while choking WAY DOWN on the handle, knowing how bad the construction is and the single pin... that makes me nervous as hell! ONE FALSE SLICE into the wooden frame or a table and that blade will come flying out and kill your cat! No Way! That thing is Dangerous!
Something I really want them to do is to flip the edge to the other side so that it matches a real antique of this blade silhouette. I also love the shape, but based on what I've inquired from others who've looked into panabases, this may as well be a fantasy weapon.
Hope you notified both the distributor AND the manufacturer of this situation, as I've generally found these sources to have excellent products. Very sad to see this obvious a defect...
Skallagrim, maybe you can salvage the end of you broken grip and re-attach it back. I think it would keep the blade real, cut the potential cost of additional wood, and as you said it feels good so all good points.
I really like the way this weapon looks as well funny I saw skalls executioner blade really cool seen a couple kukri videos thought that shape was cool but this blade shape I am now infatuated with lmao
A nice fix for something like that would be to cut the handle in with like a bandsaw, and weld on more tang, in that case, a rod of 3/8" mild would work when glued back together
Maybe you can have the remnant of the old handle, the part that is not wrapped turned into the new single hand grip. This will keep some of the overall look and feel.
You could always weld an extension on to the tang, clean it up, and just make a new hilt. Shouldn't mess with the tempering of the blade at all. Would be a waste to discard a good blade, when it can be saved.
Looking forward to seeing Panabas 2: Redemption
"This time it's single handed."
No check, no tech Prokhor.
There is yet time to reconsider your earlier arrogance. Will you trade me your data on Adaptive Doctrine, or will you risk total destruction at my hands?
Atleast you can throw the pommel now. Great homemade improvement, Skal!
MMGrubbe
You're a goddamn genius!!
Why does everyone keep making that joke??? I still haven't found a video explaining this... I know it has something to do with the pummel (pommel?) Being thrown to finish someone "rightly" but I guess I haven't seen the video :/
look up "the strangest medieval instruction book ive found" its smth like that from skall, its to do with a fencing manual that contains the greatest swordfighting instructions youve ever seen
Here's the link: ua-cam.com/video/jETLCm7k3sU/v-deo.html
It all started there and spiraled out of control.
Pomel. Pummel is a word for "punching". Shad says "pummel" instead of pomel, but he's weird and wrong.
Full tang is dlc.
The season pass gets you a quality tang and handle. Otherwise you have to buy them seperately.
ea making swords now? Jeez...
To be fair you can unlock it through cutting 100000000000000000 bottles.
You can only find it in the biggest lootbox, i double checked
Aren't you supposed to be with Heimdallr?
Are you sure that it's not just a massive quick release Pommel?
Now it's easier to end them rightly
Lol, pommel gags detected...
Laughing muscles engaged 😂
The bigger the pommel the better to end them rightly
Yey, another pommel pun. Thankfully they'll never get old. Wait, they did 2 days after they started.
There's no use complaining, nobody can end them rightly now.
such a shame, that blade shape is simply gorgeous!
kamatong right iam shocked they have such handle work and a short tang for that blade at least damn that sucks
Honestly, with a good rotary tool(not that $10 harbor freight piece of crap I've got, but one that's 3-5x the price), you'd have all you need to redo the handle and make a pretty good sword out of that, even in a small workshop.
I almost feel like I should do up a kit idea for a closet workshop, so Skallagrim(& others) could do this sort of work despite limited space.
InfernosReaper thats true i use a heavy duty one on my blades on days i cant get to the forge
+InfernosReaper
You could just weld more tang onto it, dude. That would take a LOT less effort. Hell, just use a Grade 8 bolt and you'd be good to go. It would take like two minutes for a shop to weld that on. Then you just need to make a new handle. Done. You could even screw it on if you wanted.
Eh, welding produces a lot of heat so it could easily screw up the tempering & heat treatment of the blade if you're not careful. I've seen it happen a few times and it'd be a shame to ruin a otherwise good blade. Plus, it'd make a pretty sexy 1-handed blade.
I guess you could say the sword wasn't built to HANDLE the stress of cutting.
Yeah, the tang definitely need to be a lot longer to accommodate the stress between handle & blade. Also it seems the wood for the handle is low quality. Thankfully this is something that could be fix easily.
I wonder if you just replace the handle with a 1-1,3 m staff for experimental purpose so it will make the weapon like a swordstaff or a short spear.
is this kind of blade good for a swordstaff? For some reason it looks too fine and thin for that.
Only if you you weld on a much, much longer tang. Otherwise, the short tang would be even more problematic for a swordstaff than it is in its original configuration, due to the higher leverage from the longer handle, leading to higher bending moments in that critical section where the handle and blade meet.
there's actually a way to lengthen the tang you just ad a bar of steel/iron by triangle pining and forge them toone that will take care of the issue of the short tang plust it is very sturdy because the tang is forged as one.
its not really the tang length that's the issue but the pin location. The pin should have been placed at the very end of the tang to distribute torsional forces. Right now the blade is torquing the tang into the wood with the pin as the rotational axis of the lever. This literally encourages the tang to torque out of the handle. If the pin was at the rear end of the tang the blade would have simply transferred the forced directly up along the spine and the end of the tang with the pin would have encouraged force distribution laterally with the cross section of the wood handle. This here in this video is simply a good example of bad engineering and bad knowledge of material and mechanical material sciences that you would learn in the first week of mechanical engineering.
I have to add, that of course the wood is poor quality and the tang hole design is bad. but the main reason the wood split is basically due to mechanical torsion pivoting the tang down out of the wood from the pin's rotational axis. It's very clear from the video that the tang ripped out from the bottom of the handle. A longer tang would have simply broken a lower part of the wood handle.
It really just depends on the type of wood used. I'm not sure what this wood is, but on the website it has a rather large grain structure and doesn't seem like it would be too sturdy.
If you go to a blacksmith, then extend the tang and put a new long handle on it. Because if you further up the blade for a one hand handle, then you will lose the use of the scabbard (or sheath ).
Guillaume Lemaigre he's just going to put on a new handle. From what I can understand from the video there will be no reforging. So the blacksmith will just fashion a new handle and pin it on :)
Edit: A handle for the purpose of being one handed
Guillaume Lemaigre scabbard was right. The difference is a scabbard is hard while a sheath is soft
Btw, if you like the original handle, you can always ask blacksmith to cut it in half and use it to make new grip ;9
good idea.
I thought you were just going to say that the handle was too round or doesn't let you index it well, then you showed where it was broken and I went "oh shit."
Dylan Smith Yeah, if only the thumbnail didn't show it ;)
that tang is trashy, honesty who spends that much time making a blade then says, hey lets make the tang shorter than a toothbrush.
If they were going to be that lazy about it they should have just skipped the tang and made a longer socket with 2 pins.
Not the greatest for a striking weapon, but can be somewhat functional.
It's called: "A crime against humanity".
Makes me want to run a stud finder over my TFW sword and see if it has this problem, too.
tstodgell if you have access to one and you want to cut with it, that's probably a really good idea. Usually a failure doesn't cause an injury, but it doesn't hurt to know exactly how what you're using was constructed.
Right. Hidden tangs are alright, but they need to be long enough to be strong. Honestly after this fiasco, I'd like Ron Kosakowski to post x-rays of every sword in his lineup. If he doesn't, somebody else probably will, and it might be embarrassing. This is what we call an opportunity for improvement.
Soon to be elvish knoife. Epic slayer of room-dwelling Mumakil.
I demand more flint nacking
SEXY POTATO YEET!
Flint knapping*
the tang goes SKRRRRRAA
was searching for exactly that comment :D
Bit of a rat-tail. Website says its battle ready.........now I question everything else marked battle ready on the whole site?
This sparks an idea: Skall should make videos about disassembling swords reviewing, suggesting tweaks, and what not
Thank you so much for reviewing this sword. I was trying to choose between the tfw and bci panabas and between your review of the tfw and sbg's review of the bci version i think the choice is clear. I would love to see you review of the bci version as well.
couldn't you get the blacksmith to weld on a longer tang and making a new handle around that? So it is more like the original panabas
Sebastian Fuglsang Holm when working with metal just adding a weld won't keep it from breaking again... Welds are good to a point, taking it to a blacksmith he can draw out the tang (by taking the material right before the "back knife" portion like skall wanted to) to make it longer, that way there's no weak spots/connections to have break again in the future, whereas a weld would be structurally insecure... Even if done right.
you could, but to ensure a strong weld you should preheat the area, risking in softening the blade, maybe the heat of the welding alone could excessively temper the blade. this said, i would eventually try the welding route, maybe keeping the transition to the blade cool with wet cloth, still risky though
Kayla Gray that kind of construction only works to a point. on short blades it's fine, but this is an even shorter tang than you'd find on a seax.
Yes you could. There are different kinds of welds... Now a laser welding would be very strong and not damage the temper but probably very expensive.
if welded correctly the weld is as strong as the actual steel, just check michaelcthulhu's ''swords'' wich almost all have welded handles and he chops logs with them
A build like that is a crime against humanity.
Can't wait to see the one handed version!!! Beautiful blade shape indeed
They actually already took it down. at least on your link you cant purchase it anymore
They're just out of stock for now. They'll be available for purchase again soon.
Worder if the makers watch Skalls videos and improve their weapons regarding to his issues with them.
Richard Decker at least some do.
Possibly they're saying they're out of stock because they're doing a recall of all the products currently on the "shelves".
I already notified Ron of this (the owner of TFW) some of the circles I run in think very highly of him, so sent him this video. Lets see if he makes it right.
Whoa, first time I saw TFW fail.
No kidding, hot damn
I can say from my experience, the only issue with them ive had has the been wooden sheaths with metal belt clips...my karambit had one attached via 2 short screws, and it wasnt long before it worked itself loose...i started the dropped the knife on concrete, etc. not good. so ill just by the tactical one next time, knife is perfect tho.
I think this is a good example that all sword companies have flukes. DSA gets a lot of flack for some of their sword-breaking horror stories.On the flip side, Master Cutlery's Rhin-don Narnia reproduction is actually fairly good, and quality swords is not something that MC is known for.
I'll let a brand-name be a guideline, not a defining factor. We should never forget to do our own research.
Kick Saunders given the pretty dang high price for these things, it's a precarious flaw for me.
Like come on. These are literally machetes that you can buy on certain countrysides if you know where to look. I get that it's made by higher quality materials, but this kind of slip up is almost a deal breaker.
I personally go with a three strike system.
Once is a happenstance.
Twice is a coincidence.
Three times is a pattern.
I think this was supposed to apply to forensics, but I like to apply it elsewhere. Still, If you don't feel absolutely comfortable with a tool don't use it. Especially one that might poke you. :9
That sort of ponytail suits you very well, Skall.
Of all the youtubers Skall has earned donations and what not. The amount of expensive blades he's broken that I've seen is insane. I can't even justify buying a sword that expensive. Can't imagine how pissed I'd be if it broke.
The panabas was employed at the back end of open formations. Veterans were on the front line with shields, projectile weapons, and swords to burst through the enemy line and wound people, followed by a line of regular folks who could further beat down people injured by the veterans, and the panabas was at the back with people who came along to kill the wounded. The little edge on the back of the blade is for throat cutting.
Aaaah such a shame. I was so exited when I first saw it on your channel and I could hardly wait for a review. Such a beautiful blade. I just hope that blacksmith will do a good job of making it a one handed sword
This intro reminds me of the reaver cleaver “shot” reveal.
Instant wall hanger. Too bad, because I loved the look and length, pretty much everything about this blade. Glad I didn’t get one.
I did get a reaver cleaver, I just didn’t shoot it with a 7.62 bullet, lol.
Average Joe that's exactly what I was thinking. I stopped the video and told my wife to watch. I knew what was coming by how he was holding the glorified wall hanger.
And that reaver clever is legend status . one day , I will have me one.
Love when you review TFW it's a nice change!
Sorry about the breaking of this blade Skall,I know you like this blade very much.
Odd how the steel is so high quality, and the wood and tang are so awful. Why use D2 when your handle can't stand up to it?
sjcodan marketing, perhaps?
They don't. You can't heat treat a "5160/D2 blend" at the same temperature. Ron shows videos of water quenching... so it's pretty clear the D2 claim is BS. 5160 is perfectly fine, though.
I’ve been laughing about the INSANE claims ron makes about blade steel. I’ve had long conversations with him on Facebook. It’s sooooo stupid. He really expects me to believe that some poor knifemakers in the phillipenes are running a steel foundry, and somehow mixing an oil hardening spring steel, with an air quenching semi stainless tool steel. At first I thought he was just clueless, but after talking to him, I think he just likes lying about it
looking forward to see this mounted with a new handle.
As I am from Thailand, have handled a variety of South East Asian machetes and some swords (even some have excellent blades), what most have in common were the super short tang construction, only about 1/4 to 1/2 of the handle length and they hold this as tradition, and it's one reason I do not want to collect or make these kinds of blades. What I will make, closest I would at least have the tang length through the handle.
It’s a shame for such a beautiful blade to be so poorly constructed.
THANK you. I was considering one of these given the amazing cutting ability it has displayed in your previous videos, and its relatively low price. I just got to where I can afford a blade of that value (saving is slow) and I certainly won't be considering this one at present. Hoping TFW may make changes. Good PSA and review.
That feel when Panabas has an excellent blade and catastrophic handle.
The spread grip you had that didn't have much combat application is a nice stable one for planing large pieces of wood as well as shaving bark. Push with the hand closest to the blade and maintain resistance with the hand near the base of the handle.
Being married to a Filipina for 40 years, and knowing quite a few Filipinos, and owning a machine and weld shop, I have run into this exact situation on a few occasions. My repair has always been to fit and weld a longer and wider piece of steel and remake the handle.
The Panabas wasn't really designed for chopping hard objects like wood, it's a weed wacker meant for harvesting sugar canes and other crops and may for butchering and decapitation(?). It's name literally means "grass cutter" or "for cutting grass".
If panabas is short form for pang-tabas, where does grass fit in? As far as I know tabas just means to cut right? Also Wikipedia says it was originally more like a battle axe, and images of original panabas (which is incredibly different from the TWF interpretation) look much heavier and hardier.
Disclaimer: this is an actual question, I'm not claiming to be right or anything.
Ken Maliwat From how I was raised, "tabas" in my general area means "to cut" within the context of light cutting. I've generally heard and used it with regards to cutting small parts of cloth, hair, or grass. I can agree that this sword seems completely different from its namesake, though.
Takto Well wouldn't it depend on which tribal language it is as to what it means? Or is it the same meaning in all Bahasa languages?
Matt P Agreed, the word may have different meanings in other languages here so I just stated my personal experience with the word as an answer to Ken Maliwat's question.
LogicaILy Insane it's a Moro blade not Tagalog and my Moro friend is saying it was used by Datu guards to sever heada
Cant wait to see what you do with that sword.
That one handed version is going to look great. You have to show it to us when you are done
This is the most beautiful bladed weapon I've seen. Hope they release the fixed version. This is the only sword I would buy
To fix the sword. Would it not be possible to just weld an extension onto the tang and replace the handle ?
At first when I saw the video's title and thumbnail, I thought TFW stood for "that feel when".
Handle Go Boom well Skall still has his hand to show off his sexy swords with the metal one's perves.
That's very much like a Vietnam bringback that I picked up at a pawn shop. Very nice blade, straight, nice distal taper, but a tang no longer than a file, jammed into a wooden handle. I ground away part of the ricasso to make a longer, wider tang and put on a guard and handle.
that thing slices like a hot knife through butter though, holy shit. It didn't even slow down when it went through that Tatami mat.
That handle construction was just abysmal wow
Good job on TFW for listening and making this right tho
Yeah, I can see that. As a Filipino myself we tend to have a cheap side too. I feel sorry about the handle. The blade looks nice though and converting it into a single hand would look sick. I hope you'll be able to fix it nicely.
Great review!
The Blade is magnificient !
Catastrophic!!! I have a TFW Panabas...maybe it's time of get a shorter handle. I'm thinking about cut the actual handle...thanks a lot for the video!
That other video notification thingy over Skall's face makes it really difficult to see his beautiful eyes.
A one handed handle with a small cross guard would probably look awesome with that blade and add a unique twist
Speed of sound < speed of light < speed of your arms
Well, Skall that reflects part of the old-timey mindset of some weapon/tool smiths a.k.a. "Panday" have anf are still sustained. That mindset being "Basta hait at magunitan or maayo," translates to "As long as its sharp and you can hold on to it."
!!GUYS!! Here's an addendum from the manufacturer's site:
Please Note: Due to being crafted in a tropical environment with native woods, it is common for these weapons to develop thin, minor cracks in the wood and the scabbard as the woods adjust to our more temperate environment. Cracks in items sent to you will not be harmful to the structural integrity of the item. Also - The decorative rattan wrapping can be brittle and may crack or break.
It is recommended that a light coating of protective oil is used to protect the wood from dryness and cracking.
I am affraid the problem is not in the tropical wood being subpar but rather the wood handle experience too much stress it's not supposed to.
Well damn there is no other word for it than a shame its a lovely blade
At least its salvageable i look forward to seeing it brought back to life it would have been interesting to see it break but im just glad you weren't hurt you get hurt way too much 😐
most of the high quality forges are usually making reproductions are in the Luzon area. usually they sell modern reproductions and even Hollywood usually hire them. Most of the panabas can last very harsh beating if it is made correctly.
ps: try other moro swords or native swords that were used by datus and clans.
Nikko Limua we must see a kampilan
Kampilan would be a great addition to his arsenal. if he buys it at a legitimate maker here in the Philippines, im sure it will be very durable.
5:05 Don't be silly Skall. This ain't a weapon. It's for Ice Hockey obviously.
You should curve the handle inward slightly. Count duku style.
thankfully it sounds like no one got hurt from it breaking. i know you're careful about that stuff, but things do happen.
TFW, That Face When.. an otherwise really good blade shatters at the handle.
Panabas comes from the phrase "pang tabas" or translated roughly from my dialect (a filipino dialect) means "to hack", so this weapon or tool was actually meant to be used like an axe since there were no axes really in my culture with a few exceptions.
shame that the handle was shit, wasn't able to use the blade to its full potential or how it was meant to be used because of the shit hanlde
Please record the blacksmithing process of making the handle.
By knowing how secure and sturdy the handle, it will give us viewers a whole lot of appreciation for that upcoming "new" weapon. It's like watching "Forged in Fire" show.
Also if I may, please do not shorten the blade anymore. You can fix that by making the original short tang longer by welding an extra tang to it. As long as temperature is controlled, it will not affect the existing hardened blade like placing the blade in water exposing only the tang that needs to be welded.
0:02 - whenever skall presents a new weapon with closing his hand on it and you feel something is wrong...
Just weld on an extension to the tang that lengthens and surrounds the tang, then apply handle plates, glue/pin/shape it like a full-tang knife, then you'll have a sweet one hander. If you keep spraying the blade down during welding you should be able to avoid hurting the heat treatment.
I might be dangerously close to using a meme, but this is why I prefer swords with pened pommels. I like to see the tang coming out the other side.
It really is a shame, that blade shape is beautiful no doubt. Always had my doubts about the handle though.
I gotta say, that blade is beautiful. Shiny!
one handed would make it look like an elven blade. DO IT!!!!! i'd love to see your comparison between the original and the new handle!!! :D
I'd get a tang extension welded on, then use the end off of an axe handle to re-assemble with stronger wood. Heat and burn in the tang for a perfect fit. But as you say, not really having a workshop space means you'd have to farm that out to someone.
Source: Kult of Athena sword care tips.
Do not attempt to chop down a tree with your sword.
Such an activity is guaranteed to damage your sword. Axes and machetes are well designed for this with the weight of the steel concentrated over the point of percussion. When you strike a firmly fixed object like a tree or a thick branch with a sword, a great deal of the blade projects past the object being cut, causing the blade to bend or torque. It should be pointed out that the Japanese, who believe in a great deal of practice with the sword, used thick bamboo. The bamboo was resistant to a cut, but didn't have the rigidity of a tree, and so it would not have damaged a valuable blade. For a Japanese warrior to cut into a tree would have been unthinkable.
I felt the same awkward "too light" sensation with a DSA Wolfsbane I won a while back. Then I found out their tangs were way too skinny, and my heart just dropped into my stomach.
If you look at the wood grain, it also seems to be in the wrong direction (perpendicular to the edge instead of paralell, same as with axes) - that must have contributed to snapping.
The grain direction seems ok but from the look of the fracture i would say pretty weak wood.
I have seen lots of breaks like this before but that was in the army where tools were permanently attached to vehicles and had years to degrade until someone finally wanted (needed) to use them.
Of course replacing the wood with brittle epoxy did not seem to help this blade either.
@skall please put a review up on Kult of athena too, to warn people of this, just the shot of the short tang with the epoxy handle with some wood around it will save a lot of heartache
Antique Panabas have the handle/tang all metal, the handle is just wrapped with some skin and rattan lashing, and from the heel where the edge near the handle meet, it should be balanced there with a 2-5 inches of forward offset, the blade is not just exclusively moro, whereas the design from the highlands of Luzon have a Golok like blade for the Ibanags where the Ilocanos have a reverse bill like appearance but with a short width.
put that blade on a stave n make a panabas naginata hybrid!
hey Skallagrim i have an idea for another video. I challenge you to design or draw a sword or melee weapon that is a jack of all trades it does not have to be good at everything but just decent at everything for example (piercing, cutting, hacking, hammering/bludgeoning, hooking ). And as for extra benefits why not make it two handed so that you can choose 1 handed or 2 handed. I would really for you to make a video like this to see your prefered design of a weapon. Thank you
TheUnknown Myth you're talking about a sharp, curved-bladed axe with a counterweight being a hammer, and a long drawn out spear-head-shaped point on top that can also be used to slice... Or in otherwords a regular ol' halbeard with a war hammer counterweight...
Charmle H yes true that is a weapon that is a jack of all trades in one weapon. what if you had the same "Jack of all trade" in one strike maybe something like a heavy(for hammering), spiked(for a piercing\puncturing) blade (for cutting /slashing) and many other factors
Charmle H Thanks for responding by the way never thought this comment will get a reply
He kind of reviewed something like this that one of his subs made, here:
ua-cam.com/video/MPz7eH_gu8g/v-deo.html
He also "designed" a combo weapon consisting of all the TMNT weapons, which sort of fits that purpose. I also seem to recall him designing something similar to the Armorslayer Sword (from Fire Emblem) as well as an actual video on a recreation of the actual Armorslayer Sword, which could sort of fit that purpose with some changes to the tip points.
i hate to sound like a broken recorder, but poleaxes already exist mate.
he also designed a sword/axe hybrid and tested it.
Watching y'all cutting the targets while choking WAY DOWN on the handle, knowing how bad the construction is and the single pin... that makes me nervous as hell!
ONE FALSE SLICE into the wooden frame or a table and that blade will come flying out and kill your cat! No Way! That thing is Dangerous!
Those antique examples look like an oversized and slightly crude kukri with a comically long handle
What a relaxing voice you have
Skall, please show us the custom Panabas when its finished. I would really love to see it!
THAT THING would be so sweet if FULL TANG!!! The very weapon you need for the zombie apocalypse!
Something I really want them to do is to flip the edge to the other side so that it matches a real antique of this blade silhouette. I also love the shape, but based on what I've inquired from others who've looked into panabases, this may as well be a fantasy weapon.
Can't wait for the one handed version lol
Hope you notified both the distributor AND the manufacturer of this situation, as I've generally found these sources to have excellent products. Very sad to see this obvious a defect...
Skallagrim, maybe you can salvage the end of you broken grip and re-attach it back. I think it would keep the blade real, cut the potential cost of additional wood, and as you said it feels good so all good points.
Geez! Imagine the handle breaking while cutting mats full force backhand! The blade could be airborne for 100ft easily.
I really like the way this weapon looks as well funny I saw skalls executioner blade really cool seen a couple kukri videos thought that shape was cool but this blade shape I am now infatuated with lmao
Good idea to have it repaired and redesigned,one handed would seem fine .
Aw man that's disappointing.
A nice fix for something like that would be to cut the handle in with like a bandsaw, and weld on more tang, in that case, a rod of 3/8" mild would work when glued back together
Maybe you can have the remnant of the old handle, the part that is not wrapped turned into the new single hand grip. This will keep some of the overall look and feel.
I believe the long handle is suppose to be a counterbalance to make twists easier on the wrist.
The basic shape (especially in one handed "mode") reminds me a lot of the Hadhafang sword in the Lord of the Rings movies.
When the wood chips like that at a break, as well as how strait the break is, its usually a sign of bad wood for a handle.
I saw the video was uploaded with only 1 view. By the time I click on it, it has 9550 views. Your channel is doing well Skallagrim haha
You could always weld an extension on to the tang, clean it up, and just make a new hilt. Shouldn't mess with the tempering of the blade at all. Would be a waste to discard a good blade, when it can be saved.
I think this will make an beutifull one hander! Just make a new handle and add an Another pin in it more towards the blade :) great review skall !
After extensive research ive learned that the extended handle is to catch the weapon when it comes back after Throwing.