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.
Valiant Armory Norman Sword | European Replica Weaponry | Forged High Carbon Steel
54 sec read
Dating to the 11th century in Europe, the simple fullered sword Valiant Armoury recreates as the Norman Sword was one of the first European battle swords to feature a cross-guard. Complex hilts built to both deflect an opponent’s blade and protect the hand would come later. In the Norman design, a nearly straight cross bar of steel separated the grip from the cutting edge. Valiant’s Norman Sword places a macassar ebony handgrip between the cross-guard and the solid steel pommel.
The full length of over 36 inches includes 30 inches of high carbon hand-forged steel cutting edge. This old design was made for slashing rather than piercing, and the result is lighter than the heavy diamond cross-section longswords that evolved to counter plate armour. The Norman Sword’s 3-pound, 4-ounce weight made it a fast one-handed weapon and a favorite choice of horsemen.
Based on genuine museum pieces and manufactured with a combination of hand processes and modern materials, the swords of Valiant Armoury were intended to be battle ready as well as to be striking armaments for display. Designers Christian Fletcher and Angus Trim spent many years learning old methods by trial and error as well as by research. Production swords of the Valiant Standard line are not rated combat ready, but the build is solid and stronger than would be expected in a display weapon. Without the flash and decoration of a noble’s blade, the Norman Sword still shows its own type of class — the clean lines of a sword made for real work.
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.
Dating to the 11th century in Europe, the simple fullered sword Valiant Armoury recreates as the Norman Sword was one of the first European battle swords to feature a cross-guard. Complex hilts built to both deflect an opponent’s blade and protect the hand would come later. In the Norman design, a nearly straight cross bar of steel separated the grip from the cutting edge. Valiant’s Norman Sword places a macassar ebony handgrip between the cross-guard and the solid steel pommel.
