James grew up on an Ozarks farm where tools like axes and picks were still used in the daily routine and the blades of stockman's pocketknives served their original functions. Receiving his first pocketknife at age four he got it open by himself nearly a year later and spent his formative years wandering the woods with a succession of ever larger knives, a book of matches and a rifle.
A veteran of Vietnam, James also served in Alaska during a stint in the Army, receiving his first intensive culinary training by setting a record for extra KP at Ft. Richardson.
Settling in the Pacific Northwest after his discharge, James crewed on sailing yachts in local races, backpacked hundreds of miles of mountain trails in search of good trout fishing, and occasionally attended college.
His first serious job as a civilian resulted from answering a Seattle Post Intelligencer want ad requesting someone who could lift 120 pounds repeatedly and wasn't afraid of fire. James apprenticed to John Frazier -- the most knowledgeable traditional foundryman in North America at that time -- for the next six years.
Returning to the Ozarks James made his living by growing ginseng on a hand-terraced wooded hillside and selling handmade wood turnery, furniture, sculpture and architectural carvings. James harvested trees from his own land, processing logs into posts and beams and turnery billets with saws, axes, froes and planes. Since many tools he needed were no longer available, James built his own forge from a barbeque grill, a vacuum cleaner and a 55 gallon steel drum, found a chunk of railroad track for his first anvil, and taught himself blacksmithing -- creating his own knives and tools from scrap steel and sweat.
Changing economic pressures eventually forced James back to the restaurant industry in Branson, Missouri, and later to even more success as a maintenance engineer for one of Branson's largest condominium resorts. Finally escaping to Indiana, James now makes his living telling true stories as a freelance writer.
Chinese Sword Breaker by Cold Steel | Disarming Battle Ready Functional Combat Blade, Two Handed
56 sec read
In the European fighting traditions, the term “sword breaker” referred to a strong parrying dagger with special steel teeth along the blade that caught and twisted the enemy’s blade. Disarming the opponent or simply blocking the strike happening more often than actually breaking an attacking blade. In China, Lynn Thompson of Cold Steel Special Projects discovered a sword breaker of a different kind. Like its ancestor, Thompson’s modern version of this ancient weapon actually does break swords.
Thompson refined what was actually a crude and heavy battlefield weapon and created the Cold Steel Sword Breaker from 1050 high carbon steel. The squared blade of the 38-1/4-inch Sword Breaker extends an impressive 30 inches beyond the fluted rosewood grip and nickel silver blade guard and pommel. The four slightly hollow ground flats of the blade are tapered to a sharp stabbing point but focus impact through the blade’s corners whenever swung against an enemy’s weapon. With a blade thickness of over half an inch, this modern Sword Breaker weighs over 51 ounces and requires considerable strength to use. One blow of the Sword Breaker could bend or break a modern combat quality sword.
Construction outshines the traditional version of the Sword Breaker, which was often forged from one piece of solid iron and about as easy to swing as a fireplace poker. Lynn Thompson designed this version with better materials, better balance, and a beautiful rosewood and nickel silver scabbard.
For a more technical approach to a disarming weapon, see the German Main Gauche Trident.
James grew up on an Ozarks farm where tools like axes and picks were still used in the daily routine and the blades of stockman's pocketknives served their original functions. Receiving his first pocketknife at age four he got it open by himself nearly a year later and spent his formative years wandering the woods with a succession of ever larger knives, a book of matches and a rifle.
A veteran of Vietnam, James also served in Alaska during a stint in the Army, receiving his first intensive culinary training by setting a record for extra KP at Ft. Richardson.
Settling in the Pacific Northwest after his discharge, James crewed on sailing yachts in local races, backpacked hundreds of miles of mountain trails in search of good trout fishing, and occasionally attended college.
His first serious job as a civilian resulted from answering a Seattle Post Intelligencer want ad requesting someone who could lift 120 pounds repeatedly and wasn't afraid of fire. James apprenticed to John Frazier -- the most knowledgeable traditional foundryman in North America at that time -- for the next six years.
Returning to the Ozarks James made his living by growing ginseng on a hand-terraced wooded hillside and selling handmade wood turnery, furniture, sculpture and architectural carvings. James harvested trees from his own land, processing logs into posts and beams and turnery billets with saws, axes, froes and planes. Since many tools he needed were no longer available, James built his own forge from a barbeque grill, a vacuum cleaner and a 55 gallon steel drum, found a chunk of railroad track for his first anvil, and taught himself blacksmithing -- creating his own knives and tools from scrap steel and sweat.
Changing economic pressures eventually forced James back to the restaurant industry in Branson, Missouri, and later to even more success as a maintenance engineer for one of Branson's largest condominium resorts. Finally escaping to Indiana, James now makes his living telling true stories as a freelance writer.
In the European fighting traditions, the term “sword breaker” referred to a strong parrying dagger with special steel teeth along the blade that caught and twisted the enemy’s blade. Disarming the opponent or simply blocking the strike happening more often than actually breaking an attacking blade. In China, Lynn Thompson of Cold Steel Special Projects discovered a sword breaker of a different kind. Like its ancestor, Thompson’s modern version of this ancient weapon actually does break swords.
