Saber Forum

My friend is thinking about purchasing the consular and wants to know if it is a good one handed hilt as well as two. I know the hilt is 12", so he is concerned it may be too much hilt for just one hand? Let me know what you think

I find it to be easy to use one handed but I look at Qui-Gon and just think it should really be used two handed. ;D

Anything around 12" will be a pretty good single handed weapon IMO.  Then again, I have fairly big hands so that's gonna affect it as well.

Actually let me repost here when I get home... I tend to duel with one hand and I have a brand new Consular waiting for me there  ;D

I believe it will work as a one handed, but I know that it is also a very nice two handed and when it comes to duels dont most people in the end just go to two hands for more control....

It actually depends.  I think there are quite a few schools of swordsmanship that use two hands (kendo, longsword, etc) but there are others that tend to use a single hand.  My experience is in fencing, so using two hands is actually something I've had to get used to... wielding my saber with one hand is more comfortable for me, and gives me more control.

when i hear "fencing" i think of the rapier looking one handed swords, what fencing are you talking about nero?  and dont forget, the chinese dao is a one handed style. . . oh! and Tai chi swords are one handed. . .  probably closer to saber combat too.. .

Very true, Chinese swords (like the dao and jian) were two of the "other single handed sword styles" I was thinking of.

My fencing experience is actually in competitive fencing, as in the sport.  Foil mostly, although I've dabbled in epee.  I've never actually done any rapier stuff, although I do have a pretty nice side sword that I be I could kick some serious butt with ;)

As to the question, I didn't get to wield the saber a whole lot (busy night), but from what I've seen it's quite balanced for one hand!  I really do like it.  IMO just about any relatively light hilt could be wielded one handed... the Bellicose is like over 13" and it's fantastic to wield with a single hand.

@Kham - I know what you mean.  It sounds crazy, but I feel like I have to get into character with some of these - my Luke ROTJ makes me wanna go Djem So on Vader or something...

RE: dao & straight sword

We have two Initiate V2's that are PERFECT for single hand sword technique.  I upgraded to a 32" blade had Deep cut them to have approx 28" exposed, about the same length as the blades on my dao and straight sword (just started straight sword in class this week, psyched!!!)

Overall- 37"
Hilt- 9"
Blade- 31"
Exposed blade- 28"

Have the UEHG blades, they're great for sparring but they are heavier when combined with the short hilts... fwiw

what is the color of hilt of the Consular? I know it aluminum with a black finish, but is it like a black chrome or flat black? I am interested in powder coating some pieces to match the hilt but do not know which black to go with

Flat black.

There is a shine to it but it's a flat black to me.

I honestly can not determine which black is a better match because I agree with you Kham about the shine but at the same time the chrome looks like a good match

The Consular makes an excellent single or double handed saber. It's light and easy to control.

does it work with the Guardian Pommel cause I saw in the gallery that someone said it doesnt but I know its MHS... so im confused

Things that happen when Nero and I are in the same room together and read such questions as these:

(http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7208/6930493667_03cae95185.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/64689981@N05/6930493667/)

I was the one whom said it didn't fit properly, I was incorrect. I didn't have my battery pack installed correctly and it caused a bit of a binding issue. After correcting it , the Guardian pommel fit snugly in place on the Consular Hilt. I'll need to find a way to amend that post.

No big deal.  If you can find it just PM it to me and I'll fix it for you.

I'd say if you're going to do it one handed, do it without the sheath.

While the sheath doesn't add all that much weight, and while it does seem to add another choke-point, it seems to make the saber slightly more cumbersome with one hand uses.

I have pretty big hands but I have a difficult time wielding the saber one handed, at least effectively in terms of full-on dueling or even light sparing.
Then again, I'm also using a HG-UE blade.

You could also take into consideration using a different pommel to decrease the weight.  The Consular pommel adds so much weight to the hilt, and with a HG blade it makes it incredibly well-balanced.

My reasoning behind all of this has to do with simplicity.  It seems to me the more aesthetically pleasing and detailed sabers tend to be the heavier ones and also seem to look more like two-handed sabers, whereas the simpler ones, like the Initiate, Aeon, or Shock just look more ideal for one-hand use.
Since the Consular has a removable sheath, it gives you that simplicity needed for a one-handed saber.
That's my insight into it, but in the end, opinions of user may vary.