Sword Canes...

[Badluck Brody]

Ok so I stumbled across these.... they're not great, but I figured folks might find something they like....

There's actually a couple I wouldn't mind having if they were actual canes without the blades!!

http://www.kingofswords.com/Swords/Sword-Cane/sort/2a/page/1.html

cheers

 

[Vintage Betty]

Thanks for showing us these Badluck Brody. Did you want more information on sword canes? Are you thinking of purchasing one of these? Or were you just kind enough to share?

Vintage Betty

 

[kenji]

I'm curious if they were ever anything but a novelty item. I can't think of a time period between the one where one could carry swords openly and the one where, if you were going to carry concealed, a firearm wasn't a more logical choice. Maybe the cane guns made more sense, but even that is just one shot and probably not a very servicable cane.

 

[Mid-fogey]

Seem like...

...an OK idea.

You never know when you're going to be attacked by pirates.

 

[Badluck Brody]

...

This was really just to share with folks that might be interested in such a thing.... Besides, I'm sure there are folks out there who watched The Avengers as a kid... or Clockwork Orange for that matter[huh]

Cheers!

 

[Tomasso]

I can't think of a time period between the one where one could carry swords openly and the one where, if you were going to carry concealed, a firearm wasn't a more logical choice.

Silencers aside, blades offer a much quieter kill than a firearm.

 

[carebear]

Sword canes were a practical discrete alternative from the late 18th to late 19th centuries, when the actual wearing of swords openly was frowned upon but the carrying of weapons for self-protection by citizens was still common. Remember, in large part professional police were few and far between but crime has always been with us.

In America, outside the big cities, large knives (especially in the South) and normal-sized pistols were more common, often in pairs. In Europe and the "civilized East" of the Colonies, especially among the upper classes who still studied the sword in school, sword canes were more common, in addition to the small single shot pistols.

For an example of such a gun, look at the small flintlock pistol carried concealed by Johnny Depp's Ichabod Crane, those small pistols were common as part of a gentleman's attire in both Europe and America, they can still be found in the thousands two Centuries later.

Given the low power, and firepower, of such concealable pistols, having a cane as a bludgeon, or more effectively as a blade, made sense.

As small revolvers became more common, which paralleled the gradual fading of the sword culture, the need for a back-up weapon lessened.

Poor folks carried knives mostly (see Gangs of New York).

Contrary to current thought, there have always been a significant number of normal people who regularly went armed for defense. The difference being that it wasn't demonized then and in fact was taken for granted, not considered something worth mentioning by those who chose to or those who didn't.

Unlike today when that same mindset is viewed as strange or even vaguely threatening by some.

 

[carebear]

.....

 

[scotrace]

A brilliant little Nutshell History, Carebear, thank you.

 

[carebear]

As far as finding such things for sale.

They were manufactured by many notable manufacturers, such as Solingen. obviously not so much anymore.

There does remain a whole village industry throughout Asia making kukri knives, swords (including cane swords) and "trade musket"-type blunderbusses.

Those can actually be quite functional (well the knives anyway) as they usually use ground-down leaf springs and such for the metal.

The skill of some of these guys is amazing. In Pakistan there are whole villages of families who, with hand forges and other human-powered tools, make perfectly functional modern firearms in addition to knives for the tourist market.

Bear in mind that sword canes are usually legal to own, but not to carry, in most states. It's worth checking your state regs to make sure you aren't in one of the few places where they restrict actual ownership/possession.

 

[JEEP]

I would be quite interested to se pictures of the sword canes as well.

Sword canes are quite interesting, though never common, they have appeared, in various forms, in many cultures through time.

Most western sword canes were not full sized swords, rather long daggers or spring operated short blades at the end of the cane.

Another interesting "cane weapon" is the air gun canes (mostly driven by pressurized air). Most of them were actually quite ineffective, but back in the days they had the reputation of being "silent and deadly" - thus being feared by both criminals and public persons at the time.


/Jakob

 

[Alan Eardley]

Sword sticks were fairly common in the UK in the 19th Century when it was normal for an able-bodied man to carry a cane. They were a step-up from a 'loaded' stick. They had something of a resurgence in the 1930s when firearms control regulations were tightened up.

Without giving anything away as a stick hobbyist, they aren't that uncommon in the UK today...

The type that uses the cane as a sheath of a sward length blade is slow and clumsy to draw. You could say that they are a novelty in most situations. The best type for self defence is the type that has a knife-length blade or spike at the tip of the stick, covered by a sliding or collapsing ferrule. I'd back one against a knife attack any time in the right hands. Fairbairn and Sykes's manual of stick fighting indicates how they were used.

Alan

 

[LocktownDog]

Ehhh ... interesting, I guess. I think I would still prefer a flask cane. Probably get more use out of a pint of Bushmills than a blade.

Richard

 

[carebear]

Ehhh ... interesting, I guess. I think I would still prefer a flask cane. Probably get more use out of a pint of Bushmills than a blade.

Richard

Especially as a back-up to a multiple shot pocket flask.

 

[Viola]

I once saw a sword-umbrella that I thought was quite interesting, same basic idea, and for now I'd look more plausible with an umbrella or a parasol than a cane. I can't seem to remember where I saw it, though.

 

[Dinerman]

Oddly enough- I found one yesterday at a consignment store in Laurel. Cast aluminum handle, shaped like a stylized elephants head. Leather wrapped wooden shaft. Unfortunately, the end of the wood part was broken and missing, leaving the blade hanging out for about 2 inches at the bottom. Because of this, the blade was bent, so I left it there.

 

[carebear]

I once saw a sword-umbrella that I thought was quite interesting, same basic idea, and for now I'd look more plausible with an umbrella or a parasol than a cane. I can't seem to remember where I saw it, though.

I'd talk to a lawyer versed in the criminal code before carrying anything with a concealed blade, especially if the blade comes out like a switchblade or gravity knife.

You can just talk to your local DA also, though they often like to say "no" just because they can rather than due to an actual statutory legal basis. They also don't like to admit they don't know the answer. That's also a big reason why police officers are the worst folks to ask whether something is legal or not. They often have no clue on esoteric issues.

 

[Miss Neecerie]

FWIW In cali it is indeed illegal to even possess a cane sword.

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/waisgate?WAISdocID=8816381524+1+0+0&WAISaction=retrieve


12020. (a) Any person in this state who does any of the following
is punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year
or in the state prison:
(1) Manufactures or causes to be manufactured, imports into the
state, keeps for sale, or offers or exposes for sale, or who gives,
lends, or possesses any cane gun or wallet gun, any undetectable
firearm, any firearm which is not immediately recognizable as a
firearm, any camouflaging firearm container, any ammunition which
contains or consists of any flechette dart, any bullet containing or
carrying an explosive agent, any ballistic knife, any multiburst
trigger activator, any nunchaku, any short-barreled shotgun, any
short-barreled rifle, any metal knuckles, any belt buckle knife, any
leaded cane, any zip gun, any shuriken, any unconventional pistol,
any lipstick case knife, any cane sword, any shobi-zue, any air gauge
knife, any writing pen knife, any metal military practice
handgrenade or metal replica handgrenade, or any instrument or weapon
of the kind commonly known as a blackjack, slungshot, billy,
sandclub, sap, or sandbag.

 

[Vintage Betty]

Carebear, thank you for your historical synopsis and your mentioning of sword canes being considered concealed weapons. I was going to mention that point and now don't have to.

--Sorry! Post removed at request of Husband due to Miss Neecerie's post above--

 

[Badluck Brody]

Way too sharp!!

I mean that is a really neat cane!!!!