sword preferences?

hello all... i was curious as to everyones sword of choice and why? is it the sword of choice for your system? personal reasons? more than one sword? does it just feel right? my own personal favorite for the moment is the long pinuti-it can do almost eveything i need, slash/hack/chop/and my favorite-thrust... no eskrima system is complete w/o one... any other takers on this topic?

 

Here's a diffrent question but inside of the same topic, anyone know the origin, location and usage of the kerambit in the Philipines?

 

zansibar and the barong here. doens't matter whether one or two swords.

 

Another question, in Robert Cato's Moro Swords he gives a few historical acounts of kampilans being used for powerfull hacking, slashing blows. In one instance cleaving a man in two, in another removing a horses legs to unseat the rider. In the same line Wiley in his martial culture book states they were used for beheading(uh, okay). Now my kampilan, which when we got it was so old the hilt had rotted off, could NOT be used to that effect. Not be cause its old, but its just not designed to deliver that kind of impact, unfortunetly. I think my blade would give before a horse would. Its more of a slicing/cutting weapon. Now, for the sword experts out there, anyone who has a kampilan, has welded one, cut, chopped with one, practiced or fought with one-what are your thoughts on the matter? Do you think its a diffrence of regional design, or maybe someone using the same name for a diffrent weapon? I have yet to see a kampilan I thought capable of cleaving a man in two, or even chopping through bone, but I havn't been a kampilan man, so havn't gone out of my way to look for them.

 

sssssssssssss! your giving away the good ones.

 

Another thought on the same topic, anybody had a Philipine blade break on them? In what instance and circumstance? Were you swinging and it came loose from the hilt, in a match or playing and it broke under somebody else's pressure, cut testing and it snapped on the material? Please include the type of blade and a description of the break. I'm not trying to give anyone the impression that this is something that happens with Philipine blades, but I just want to check out over people's experiances with some things I heard about certain types of blades from the P.I.

 

My system, Pekiti-Tirsia Kali, uses Ginunting. It is also used by the Philippine Marines and Force Recon Marines. It is a battle tested sword in the jungles of mindanao. There are stories about bladed encounters by our marine friends, but I'm afraid my lips are sealed about that. Just imagine, Ginunting sword of the marines vs. the Kris sword of the terrorist muslim.

I'm very proud to own a standard issue of the Ginunting.

 

never had a problem with my bolo. it's made from Bicol and I have been chopping, I mean whacking wood with it for a while.

 

mine would have to be an itak (pls correct me if i'm wrong...i guess it's the same as the bolo, only the name differs), it is the common household sword in the philippines, made from truck leaf springs...really tough and sharp!!!! very ideal sword...from cutting grass to slashing your opponent!!!

 

definitely.... i second that completely...

 

crucible... one thing that many do not understand about the historical reference to the "kampilan" is that in some areas "kampilan" is a general term for almost any sword... there are quite a few books in print available, that use the term kampilan but in reality are actually talking about any blade ranging from a common itak to a large saber. yet another thing to take into consideration is that there are a few variations of the kampilan sword that exist from the large cutlass-like sword used by the iranun/maranao/maguindanao to the smaller klewang types used by the bagobo/lumad/tboli... i hope that helps... oh... one other thing to take into account concerning blades...*murderous rage*, your typical matulis bolo can used to quite an effective degree(i've seen proven on a goat) given on a really good day...

 

mahabang tabac, baby barong, and the kalis. the batangas jungle bolo (half leaf)

 

another question for those that replied w/ barungs and kalis... are the ones that you use antiques or modern reproductions? if modern, were they commercially available or custom made from the source? thank you for your replies everyone...

 

old style traditional. from source. one of my brothers has a kris taken off the body of a dead m.i.l.f. rebel.

 

great replies guys, my thanks to you all... another question if you don't mind... for those that responded w/ bolos, what type of bolo do you use?, perhaps a description or maybe even a picture? bolo names and designs are plentiful, i just wanted a feel for the variety that others use...thanks!

 

in terms of the design my bolo is simple in shape. It looks like a half leaf. It's quite heavy ideal for training and chopping grass plus wood. If you're going for the ones that are for combat use then maybe you'd want something lighter... It all depends on how good the blacksmith is...

 

I used to prefer the Kampilan as I tended to like heavy bladed weapons but as I get older I now prefer the Espada (Sabre type) used in some Cebu based styles, because it is lighter than some of the swords like the Kampilan, Kris and Pinute which enables me to manouver it with greater speed but still has the ability to cut and thrust much like the Pinuti and Kris etc. But that is just my personal preferance.

 

Pat, what do you think of the Doce Pares swords and trainers?

 

Can you describe the kampilan you use, I want to compare your description to my own, also regarding your kampilan, kriss and pinuti, do you prefer modern reproductions or antiques?

 

Silentblade, is the ginunting used doble as well, or solely solo ginunting? How common is it for a Pekiti pratitioner to use a talibong? It seems like the ginunting is the pekiti weapon of choice.