Is LK Chen's Yan Ling Dao Worth the Investment? Chinese Sword Tested and Reviewed.

#sword #review #china
My review of the LK Chen Yan Ling Dao.
LK Chen's listing: lkchensword.com/shop-1/ols/pr...
Kult of Athena's listing: www.kultofathena.com/product/...
Sword measurements photo gallery: photos.app.goo.gl/8EDa3rQFLjw...
00:00 Intro
01:40 Scabbard
03:29 Hilt
09:06 Blade
13:53 Cutting
16:59 Handling
24:58 Potential Improvements
26:42 Bottom Line
30:04 Outro
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[@dlatrexswords]

Great overview Kyle! Glad both you and the wife found things to enjoy about this (personal fav) dao from LK. A shame to hear about the furniture coming loose in several examples. So far mine is still tight, so I'll keep knocking on wood.
The ferrule you were asking about on a dao is called a Dāo bǎ shù (刀把束) (literally handle loop), and the pommel cap would be Dāo bǎ dǐngshù (刀把頂束). These aren't super common loanwords yet, but maybe Chinese terminology will eventually become like Japanese sword jargon. The tunkou (吞口) or throat collar on the blade, approximately like a habaki.
Great cutting! You'll be doing daofa in no time.

[@alientude]

Thank you for the terminology! I'll keep them in mind for future reviews.

[@jamesm1]

absolutely beastly looking

[@ELVendedor5000]

6:20 I agree that ray skin really makes a difference when keeping the cord wrap tight! I remember years ago when Huanuo made a batch of Chinese dao that had really loose cord wrap and it would always slide up and down! 🤦

[@porkcutlet3920]

You should probably include it's a review of a second-hand item in the title. Some people might skip the intro and not find out.

[@notsans9995]

Cool little sword, I've always overlooked their Dao in favor of the Jian but this is a really nice blade. Kinda wondering how the dynamics might change if it was stripped and put in Falchion fittings...