Hand-Forged Fantasy Gladius Sword, Disc Pommel Hilt

No, and we would rather be straight with you about that. The blade follows a Roman gladius profile, but the hilt is high-medieval European — an arched crossguard with ball terminals and a flat disc pommel, a style that appears on European swords from roughly the 12th century onward. Those two elements are separated by about a thousand years and never appeared together on a real sword. This is an original fantasy design, deliberately built that way. If you want historical consistency, buy our Roman gladius instead.

The blades are close; the hilts are not. Our Roman gladius is a Fulham pattern with a period-correct hilt — a ribbed wooden grip, a steel collar at the guard, and a turned globular pommel, paired with a plain brown leather scabbard. This fantasy gladius carries a medieval assembly instead: arched crossguard with spherical terminals, leather-wrapped rosewood grip, flat disc pommel, and a banded red and black scabbard. In the hand the disc pommel pulls the balance noticeably further back, so this one feels quicker at the hilt and less blade-forward. Buy the Roman version for reenactment or historical collecting; buy this one if you want the gladius shape with knightly fittings and a bolder look.

Yes. It is hand-forged from 5160 high-carbon spring steel, full tang, oil-tempered, and sharpened to a true cutting edge before it ships. The fittings are solid steel, not cast alloy, and the tang is peened through the pommel rather than glued or threaded. It is built to be handled and cut with.

The blade is forged from 5160 high-carbon spring steel, the same alloy used in heavy-duty truck leaf springs, prized for toughness and edge retention. It is oil-tempered for a hard cutting edge backed by a flexible, shock-absorbent spine. On a short broad blade like this, toughness matters more than extreme edge retention, which is why we favour 5160.

Yes. The tang runs the full length of the hilt and is peened over through the disc pommel, so the crossguard, grip and pommel are mechanically captured on the tang itself. There is no rat-tail, no weld, and no glued-in stub to fail.

It is a counterweight, not a decoration. A pommel — the word comes from the Old French for "little apple" — sits behind the hand and pulls the balance point of the sword back toward the grip. Without it a blade this broad would feel dead and blade-heavy; with it the sword recovers faster between cuts and takes less effort to hold on guard. A flat disc is one of the most effective shapes for the job because it puts its mass out at the rim rather than close to the tang. It is also the structural anchor for the whole hilt: the tang is peened over it, so it holds the assembly together under load.

Yes, sharpened as standard and finished by hand. If you need it blunt for larp, stage use, display, or to satisfy import rules where you live, choose the display-blunt option or tell us in your order notes. There is no extra charge either way.

The grip is a rosewood core under a corded black leather wrap, which gives a secure hold and a little texture under the fingers. The crossguard and disc pommel are polished steel — solid, not cast alloy or plated pot metal. Brown, oxblood and plain unwrapped rosewood grips are available on request. Because rosewood and leather are natural materials, grain and colour vary between pieces.

A banded red and black leather scabbard, wrapped in alternating strips over a fitted core, with a riveted throat. It is the most distinctive thing about this sword and the fastest way to tell it apart from our historical Roman patterns at a glance. It is cut by hand to the blade size you order, so a custom blade length gets a custom scabbard to match.

Yes. Blade length, blade width and pommel style are all adjustable to order — wheel, scent-stopper and globular pommels are all within reach, and each changes the balance differently. Send us what you want and we will tell you honestly how it will handle before we forge it. Use Custom Forge to start that conversation.

Yes, within reason. It handles tatami mats, water bottles, and light green targets well, and the broad stiff blade rewards a committed cut. Do not use it on bone, metal, seasoned hardwood, or anything you would not put a good knife through. Check the peen at the pommel after every session — on a sword with a heavy pommel, the peen is what holds the whole hilt tight.

Yes. We ship worldwide from Nepal by DHL or FedEx in 7 to 14 business days with tracking. In-stock specs dispatch within 2 to 3 business days; fully custom builds take roughly 4 to 6 weeks to forge first. Import and blade laws vary by country, so please check your local rules before ordering.