Cold SteelHand and a Half Dagger 88HNHD,Black

I am writing this with the dagger and its sheath sitting here in front of me. I bought this for $120 a day before the price went down even more to $110. Long story short - I am amazed that this product can be had at that price, and delivered to your door overnight (God love Prime). I am sure it was manufactured in south or east Asia somewhere, but frankly I would trust their blade-making expertise at least as much as I would our own (Americans', I mean). That said, one of the coolest things about this blade, as opposed to every knife I've owned, is that it has NO MARKINGS of any kind on it, anywhere. Nothing on the scabbard, its fittings, the dagger, pommel, anything. (Well, there might be a marking hidden within the handle I suppose.) But it is completely and utterly pure in terms of aesthetics; in fact it probably lends itself to some sweet custom etching on the flat of the blade or the scabbard fittings, if you were so inclined. I'm certainly tempted.As for the dagger itself. First if you have not ever held a dagger of this size/type, no picture without human context will prepare you for its size. Watch the video for the Hand-and-a-Half Sword (NOT the dagger) on Cold Steel's website if you want to see it in use briefly and get some idea. But I have bought Gil Hibben "daggers" and such in the past, and this is more of a short sword. The base of the BLADE (not the handle) put up to the corner of my elbow, the tip of the blade comes to the middle of my palm. So it's longer than my entire forearm. By inches. And it's probably half a hand wide at the base. The blade itself is absolutely pristine, mirror polish (almost), very sharp (though a little rough, and could definitely take some finishing), and with a tip that while not Italian dagger pointy, would definitely pierce anything you cared to stab at. It is without a doubt a highly - lethal - weapon. I have not tried stabbing the Captain of the Guard for the Hand of the King through the skull, though, so I am not sure if it would be up to that task or not. If you don't get that reference, why are you buying a weapon like this again?Anyway, the rest of the piece - the handle/pommel and scabbard - are equally awesome. The smooth, thin, black leather wrap on the handle and the scabbard are not boiled tough or anything, and I would be afraid of scratching or tearing them under serious conditions. But then, I wouldn't be caring so much about those things if that were the case. For the other, say, 100% of the time, they are beautiful to look at and solidly constructed. If you handle the dagger very often with bare, sweaty hands over time, I am sure the wrap will wear substantially. But you can always replace/upgrade it when/if that time comes. The stitching on the handle is almost perfect. The stitching on the back of the scabbard is not perfect, a little wavy, but it's not noticeable unless you're really looking close, and of course the front is completely smooth. Both pieces are pulled taut and flawless across their whole surface.The handle itself has a wood core, apparently, and feels magnificent in-hand. The small ribbing where you hold the handle between your thumb and forefingers gives a nice positive grip. The size is perfect for one hand, even a large one (though if you have VERY long fingers, it might be a little too small in girth for you), and using the pommel - which seems to work - it can even accomodate two with pretty solid grip, leaving only the flesh of my left palm below my pinky finger hanging off the end. The pommel is a very simple, beautiful little piece, with a sort of 'nub' over the hex nut, I imagine, on the end which would serve well in a 'pummeling' role. Personally I love the aesthetics of this dagger and the companion Hand-and-a-Half Sword; I've looked at tons of competing designs, historically accurate and otherwise, and for whatever reason, this is still the one that I like the look of the best (all functional or build-quality considerations aside). It is 99% 'no-frills', but still has just that PERFECT 1% of ornamental beauty that comes from both very slight design details and a general aesthetic simplicity. I can't say enough about how damned good looking this dagger is.The same can be said for the sheath/scabbard (I'm going to call it a scabbard). I've discussed the leather of the scabbard, but the metal fittings on throat and chape are its real crown jewels. They have a perfect fit, are perfectly polished and free of any visible imperfections, and they also have a design simplicity and elegance that makes the scabbard alone, even without the dagger in it, a work of art (to me anyway). It is extremely solid, with what looks like a bamboo or balsa-wood type of core that might not be the most durable, but is certainly smooth and functional. The core extends almost flush with the opening of the throat, so you never experience any sort of metal-on-metal contact between blade and throat. It draws and re-sheaths smoothly, and best of all it provides EXCELLENT positive retention when sheathed, particularly so in one orientation over the other (which can be remembered using which side of the scabbard the stitching on the dagger hilt is facing when re-sheathing). Obviously this is going to vary from blade-to-blade and scabbard-to-scabbard, but I can definitely turn the whole thing upside-down and shake vigorously without the dagger (which ain't light) even so much as slipping from the scabbard. This retention will probably weaken over time, I know, but at least it's starting from a great fit. My experience is that at this price point many such weapons fit anything but tightly in their supplied sheaths. Needless to say with this tight of a fit, there is no rattle or shake of the blade whatsoever in the scabbard.I have not done much cutting or piercing with this blade, nor used it in a defensive capacity to deflect sword strikes, etc. So PLEASE consider this, at best, an amateur's first impressions out-of-box with respect to aesthetics and fit-and-finish only. I expect the weapon to perform admirably for its type, and to out-perform its price-point. But that's only an expectation. And again, while the blade is definitely lethal sharp, this is still a "mass produced" weapon, and while the finish on the edge is excellent for its price in my opinion, it will still require a custom finishing to acquire the finest edge you can get on it. Not that this is even necessary.So in case you can't tell, I feel like I got a great deal on this blade. As an aside, I can only imagine that whatever imbalance in the world's system of production/supply and demand/consumption that lets people like us order a weapon like this on the internet one afternoon, for $100, and have it waiting at our door the next morning, no matter where we are on this vast continent - isn't going to last forever. So in my humble opinion, if you have ever been curious about owning a weapon like this, strike while the proverbial iron is hot. This is the kind of thing that is only going to become MORE valuable as time goes by, if you treat it well. Along these lines, there are very excellent functional swords that can be had for a song as well. Shop around, do some research, and make your médiéval ancestors green with envy.

Cold Steel's 'Hand and a Half Dagger' is no wall decoration. It's a re-creation of a true fighting dagger. Plain and unadorned, it is workmanlike in it's design: balanced, weighty enough to plunge through a torso or hack off a limb in strong hands.It is packed simply, protected well in its wooden bodied sheath covered in nice black leather. Polished steel throughout from the tip and base of the scabbard reinforcements. The dagger blade is flawless, sharpened plenty to cut your hand if drawn through it. Most factory knives are not this sharp. The grip is covered in black leather and the pommel (end cap) is simply and neatly designed reminiscent of an era gone hundreds of years.As a child, my parents had a Nazi officer's dagger and full length sword with a scabbard for each. They had been taken by an uncle from a dead Nazi officer in WWII. I was too little to understand what the word meant. But I remember mother describing tire rationing and gasoline rationing with coupons. And I knew the look on her face and daddy's when they would make some remark about 'German soldiers' or 'Hitler'. It was serious and conveyed suffering and hardship and sacrifice during a world war.But the Nazi dagger and sword were unlike anything I ever saw as a child, nor saw until adulthood, when I saw a museum display of armor, chain mail, axes, etc. in the Chicago history museum. The Cold Steel 'Hand and a Half Dagger' captures some of the feel of the authentic armor of olden days in modern metallurgy. A dagger is meant for one thing and it is not a sporting item like a crossbow or rifle. Swords and daggers were the semi-automatic rifles and handguns of their period in history.I will never use it, just as it's unlikely I will ever draw a spring assisted 'Hissatsu' tanto style knife in self defense. But some men will understand and want to keep alive the remnants of the past. To feel and admire the ingenuity and metallurgy that swords and daggers represent is enough for us.To me, it's important. Affordable, built very well, elegant in a hard and lifeless way, this dagger is a good choice for a casual aficianado. I will keep mine just for the pleasure of owning a piece of historical heritage. It's made as well as the originals, and of better metals and craftsmanship than available to most actual soldiers in that era.And parents: never allow youngsters to play with a weapon of any sort. A deadly weapon must be explained, kept from, and gradually introduced to young kids as they learn respect for adult items. This dagger is very serious and very dangerous if used carelessly. Robin Hood was a myth, but daggers and swords were not make believe.