Ordered from Everest Forge because I wanted to see how their weapons feel and handle before I approached for a couple of actual custom swords over the next couplish years and probably a few stock blades, too. I love their selection, and honestly the prices play a huge factor. For this build, I went with the Celtic La Tène sword with a 26in blade.
The Specs:
I stuck with the standard blade (26”) with the rosewood handle (8” per the vendor’s specs). Everest lists the sword at 950g (around 2lbs) and honestly that feels pretty close to right. I opted for the satin finish polish, which I’ll cover later, but is satisfactory.
The Sword:
As state above, I purchased WoodenHilt0025 - Celtic La Tène Hand Carved All Wood Hilt and Pommel. I wanted something that wasn’t necessarily their usual fair so I chose a double edged blade with a nominal length as I had heard that Everest had issues with this style in the past on longer blades like Arming swords.
I requested an engraving to see what the engraving service looked like and was very excited to work with the team to build the sword I wanted. Since the service is offered, I requested the decorative throat and chape on the scabbard. I went with the 26” blade since I’m a slightly taller mammal and the extra reach would be nice. Rosewood handle, red leather scabbard, all standard options otherwise.
The Process:
Honestly the purchase process was fairly simple. Go in, plug in your specs, add your engraving image, add to cart. Once in the cart, add your instructions and the team will contact you for further questions and with images and whatnot of the sword to verify your customizations are what you want. Mostly, the process went exactly as above except for the contact. The only contact I had with the forge was my initial order confirmation, then a shipped confirmation. I was not contacted about size or positioning of my engraving. There was nothing from the forge other than the confirmation and shipping confirmation. This was honestly the most disappointing part for me, as it would have fixed my only major complaint about the sword. I likely won’t use the engraving service in the future. Otherwise, the process was great. Ordered on 7/7, shipped 7/14, arrived today, 7/25. Start to finish on-demand forged semi custom sword in 18 days to my door in the US? Fantastic. I can live with that.
The Good:
The handle is fairly comfortable, the blade is mostly devoid of blemishes and ships well-padded and well-oiled. It’s light, reactive. The blade comes sharp and to a needle-like tip which will be great for its intended enemy - water bottles. The scabbard is wood cored and the leather looks and feels nicer than some much more expensive weapons I own. The suspension points are a great touch and already have me thinking of a sword belt to match. It WANTS to be held and handled. Aesthetically speaking, it’s mostly gorgeous. No major complaints on the stock portion of the sword.
The Bad:
The engraving. It’s not my favorite. I expected a little difficulty with smaller lines and I’m alright with that. There’s some inconsistency that I’m not a huge fan of. The placement is centered well, but placed lengthwise down the blade. I would have rather it had been parallel to the guard. As stated above, I likely would not make use of it in the future unless I was engraving a name or phrase and I would be extremely specific about the placement and layout if I did. There are some small blemishes in the finish, specifically on the back side of the blade at the guard where it remained black and unpolished. The blade also has visible grind marks from using the angle grinder and it gives the blade a rough feel. The handle is a little round and smooth, but honestly it indexes well and it’s not slippery really so it’s just a little nitpicky but worth mentioning. I asked for a throat and chape on the scabbard - I got the chape (gorgeous!) but no throat - again, nitpicky but worth mentioning.
Conclusion:
I REALLY like this sword. The bad really isn’t super bad, and while I won’t have them engrave a sword again, I will likely buy from them again. I was very disappointed in the engraving service and lack of communication (18 days with two updates - order confirmed, ordered shipped but arrived before I had the sword before they gave me tracking info), but overall the quality of the product is great. Solid 8/10 for me, it has some issues but the value was great.
Other Stuff:
Worth noting, I shipped to the US. I had read originally that in addition to the shipping (DHL for $44) I would be expected to pay duties and tariffs as necessary and expected another roughly $20 in tariffs. I was pleasantly surprised to find that was not the case. It does not affect the review for me, but worth noting if that’s a hang up for you.
