Straight Sabre VS Curved Sabre? 

I was studying, but this was clearly more important.

Ah yes, SABRE! Lloyd got the point through.

Somebody somewhere is already thinking about mounting the blade on the sabre so that it curves forward.

Matt says, "If you're trying to penetrate someone, if you're trying to get underneath their clothing and get deep into them". Interesting phrasing in which the context is is very important.

It bears mentioning that sabres aren't curved in the same ways. Some curves are continuous (katanas), some are curved and yet have their point in-line with wrist because the grip is angled (some shashkas), some have their curves start at only about halfway to two thirds up the blade (most early to high medieval Magyar sabres, several post-medieval Hungarian sabres) and so on. Things that are true of the two sabres seen in videos may or may not apply.

I have never touched a sword in my life. But I enjoy learning about them

See that Superdry spokesman there, he's got curved sabers. Curved. Sabers.

You didn't mention whether the curved blade offered any noticeable increase to ease of edge alignment while cutting … which I would have thought would be among it's chief advantages. Have you not noticed any difference in this regard? I may have to significantly adjust my priors!

I've heard that a slight upwards curve really helps with penetration.

It seems like heavy cavalry sabres are often straight and light cavalry sabres are often curved. Is this observation accurate? If so, I wonder why.

Wait, did I miss where you said your preference? You gave lots of data about the differences, but you didn't say which one you prefer. Or did I miss it entirely and I'm just embarrassing myself here?

I just have to say I think this is one of the most important videos you've put out. It cuts to the quick of one of the most fundamental aspects of sword design in a way that really focuses down on just this one element, as I think most times folks discuss sword blades in the straight vs curved debate, entirely different models if sword are discussed. Longsword vs katana, saber vs rapier, etc. This dispenses with all the distractions and focuses on pure geometry. I learned a lot from this video; I wasn't aware of several of the quirks inherent to curved blades that you mentioned here and it really helped develop my understanding of them given that most if my own experience is with straight blades, even down to my own sabre. Thank you for putting this out.

wow, three in one go and he didn't even threaten a smile; this man has become an innuendo master before our very eyes

“If you’re trying to get under their clothes and deep into them…“ BOOM! Phrasing. 😀

5:29 - 5:35 - Context is everything. Matt has done it again.

".....if you're trying to penetrate someone, if you're trying to get underneath their clothing and get deep into them, then the straight blade is better for that than a curved blade....." I wasn't given a choice.

I was expecting really curve would look more like a Polish sabre

The physics of the parry may be helped by the majority of the blade being aft of the hand. So an impact will create a bending moment that wants to put the front edge on line. Also, I love the sneaky thrust over the arm.

I'm interested to know. If the curved sword occupies more space does that aid in intercepting the opponents thrusts, or would the curved blade at least widen the tolerances for accuracy a little bit?

Real sabres have curves!

Interestingly these conclusions seem to suggest that in most modern hema bouts a straight blade would give a slight advantage as cutting more or hitting harder aren't actually useful in that context

I do prefer a straight sabre personally, slightly curved like 1845 is fine.

"...if you're trying to get underneath their clothing and deep into them..." so, he's just committed to the double entendres now.

The main advantage of both the straight and curved sword is it provides HEMA people with the equivalent to the Superman vs Batman argument for comic book fans;). If all you do is argue the point you're not likely to win a fight with either one of them;).

Huh I never thought about how a curved blade could or would hit harder. But basically the angular acceleration of a curved blade increases further towards the tip, because the angle of acceleratiom increases from the pivot point, in addition to the tangential acceleration. So the centripetal acceleration of a blade increases towards the tip by two variable rates instead of a variable rate and a constant rate. That is if the sword were only rotating from a fixed point. I have no idea how that would compound the actual acceleration of it's displacement through actual space (meaning total distanced traveled through the swing) generated by swinging with wrist, elbow, shoulders, etc. But uhhh... I have a headache now.

Funny. Your very curved is slightly curved for me.

Straight saber, side sword, and broadsword, I wonder how much difference there is between them.

I had a maestro tell me that he would prefer a straight blade for dueling and a curved blade for combat and for dueling while mounted. Speaking of which, how common were mounted duels, does anyone know? Thank you for yet another excellent video, your hard work is much appreciated. Peace

Long time subscriber, first time commenter. I love what you do and how unbiased, or...worldly you are in your studies. That makes you truly great. Please continue to share with us.

Completely random, but is that a new two handed sword directly behind you? The one with the red grip

I was waiting for you to say which one is your favorite... Still waiting....

Oh this got me thinking about a design for a curved rapier with a rapier system based on weird angle thrusts with opposition.

Matt, something interesting I noticed, maybe only to me. My son and I, along with some other friends play some fantasy TTRPG's. I have noticed in the past that arming a player character that has wings on their back is a bit tricky. Most polearms present no challenge, the same with most non-double bitted axes, but HEMA type longswords and of course greatswords in their methods of execution look to be dangerious to one's own wings. The same to a lesser extent with the HEMA type use of the langmesser. Now watching you perform the molineux with both the straight and curved sabers I noted that the straight saber presented the same danger to our fantasy players wings as the afore mentioned swords, but when you were demonstrating this with the curved, particularly the Persian shamshir, that the body was presented with some danger due to the closeness of the blade, but to the wings might be less so. I realize that I am dealing in fantasy, and in situations where "magic" could preempt physics, but it is one of those things that has occupied my mind through the years. Interesting video, thanks.

I am a side-sword/cup-hilt rapier guy, with that being said, your Saber design is really nice...Congratulations to getting your goal for your ideal Saber being produced!!!

Eager to hear which you personally prefer as stated early in the video. If I had to guess id say you would opt for not then straight nor the curved but then slightly curved...i base that on the marginalized advantages and disadvantages: not so much less reach, unique thrust angles, fortey-er forte, slightly heavier slash. A context fencer, considering not simply tournament points but the martial experience, I think would opt for the balance of strengths and weaknesses. That's where I find myself anyway as a roworth/Taylor focused practitioner who uses a very 1796 light cav style curve and a half basket straight backsword in practice. Either way I'd love all three varietes of the cat easton mk3 haha

Thay are all a pain in the neck for any Zombie.

One hesitates to ask about the "slightly curved" sabre you showed but didn't use in your explanations. Might one inquire about the "slightly curved" sabre's advantages and weaknesses as weapons?

I tried to order an Easton mk3 they said they would be available in May of 2025

What i like with a curved blade is that when you block in the upper part of the body, it protects head, shoulder and torso. With a straight blade you have go farther to protect your shoulder and it exposes your head more or vice versa.

Have you seen the warrior from England He have a straight sabre Straight sabre

I am bias, I prefer curved.

love the subtle sex jokes. too many ppl make it a big deal but its perfect here

If possible you should do a close up, slow motion video that shows the parties using a straight blade and a curved blade. I'm not sure the visuals will tell us anything but my guess is that in seeing the impact in slow motion it might help reveal why a curved blade takes the hit better.

I wonder if the parries on the curved blade are stronger because you have to be closer to your opponent. So your parries are closer to your hand, thus on a stronger part of the blade. Just a thought.

Would the culture that the swordsman has grown up in, make the choice of sword? Just wondering. Very interesting, thanks

But which do you prefer?

Matt, can you consider recording the audio in (or converting it to) mono? When you move, the audio moves from side to side, which is slightly distracting. It's not a huge deal, but it's also not a huge cost. Cheers!

I would assume that the easier parry with the curved blade isn't because it works like a curved bridge. I assume that it's more stable because the point of contact is slightly behind the hilt centerline. When something is pushing on the blade, it will try to push the blade away as far as possible. This effect will try to rotate the blade in your hand so that the curve is facing away from the attacking force, which is exactly the position you want. With a straight blade (assuming the blade centerline is identical to the hilt certerline), the point of contact in slightly in front of the centerline (due to the blade width), so you'd have to keep the blade from turning itself flat (which is a more stable, but unwanted position).

I like the handgaurds on the cutlass for an off hand better than a round shield, although I might try dodging first or deflecting the two handed or Danish axes in that case. And I liked my idea of retreating with a main hand flail, or it being a great weapon of retreat around stone. Although the person with a bow might not want a big off hand cutlass. The curved blade could still be more suited towards cutting, with possibly scoring more than one hit on a few of a thousand opponents, maybe after a good opening parry or handgaurd punch deflection, and less prone to injuring yourself with off hand awkwardness, though at slight disadvantage comparing opening thrusts with the straight bladed cutlass. Which it looks like most people use in the main hand fencing style. Or rather than a rapier, very good for thrusting, depending on length against a sabre. With a main hand sabre rather than an off hand.

I understand why you glossed over it, but could you talk more about why you think curved swords hit harder? That sounds like a really interesting video topic! Also, I've heard it said that backwards curving blades can help with edge alignment. Could you talk about that too? Finally, how do you think forward curving and recurve blades fit into this? I've curious by recurve blades weren't favoured more, on paper they always seemed great to me

If I see one more person try to correct Matt Easton about nomenclature as if he was some babe lost in the woods discussing these things with an "AHKTUCALLY IT'S A ..." I'm going to lose my mind.

Yeah.. of course... With the impact thing... Of course a curved blade would be better for taking strikes

I had this on in the background until he said “if your trying to get under someone’s cloths and get deep inside of them” 😂😂😂😂😂😂

The first time I did a mulinette, I hit myself with a straight blade LOL. (On the shoulder)

Thank God you made this video 😂 I wanted the mark 3 but I was torn about curved or straight and thankfully you have this covered! lol

what about curved vs straight picks? ANd bladed picks like the zaghnal have all sorts of curved blades, are they functional? Additionally, doesn't the lenght depend on how you measure it? For example a 34 inches curved blade needs you to be closer to your target than a 34 inches straight blade, but what if the curved blade is, like 35.36 inches? Depending on the curvature such blade could have the same reach as the straight one, but have more mass (or a longer blade and the same mass). Also such a blade could have the center of mass in the same position of the straight blade (in the X axis, while the Y position axis is moved upwards)

U point out some of the reasons.. why y I kinda always wanted a sword.. if I ever am lucky enough to have one... I want one that is straight... An also curved... Lol.. sorta like a leaf style... A Long leaf style... I just can't figure out how

Straight blade is for infantry. Curved blade is for cavalry.

Okay, it was worth digging into the youtube swamp again...

Hrmmm....but is a straight blade really a saber? or is it just a sword? ..one could argue that to be a saber a blade MUST be curved.

5:28 Can we all appreciate the fact that he said all that with a straight face?

You failed to say that curved blade is superior. You are there for banned from Ukraine and Poland! Im sure the paprika people will show up shortly to condemn you for your heresy! Great video by the way!

I think your microphone is producing a reversed stereo signal. When you speak to screen left it gets louder in my right ear and vice versa. I bet you can twist your lav mic around to fix the issue and you might want to if you usually speak towards the camera--the current effect throws my attention each time it happens. You could also just use a more standard omnidirectional lav mic that doesn't produce a stereo signal. Very nice lecture otherwise.

He has curved swords.... CURVED SWORDS!!!

Missed the finally "what I prefer" ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-UxQo0dyCKMQ.html

With a curved blade the point dances around fast, with my 1 semester of fencing expertise.

My mind was so juvenile during this video. Phrasing? Are we still doing phrasing?

So in other words, bigger tubes of space equals less focus on penetration. Matts words ladies, not mine.

No curved sword thumbnail?! You're doing it wrong Matt.

You covered dismounted but a sabre is a mounted weapon. How do they react differently while in the charge or the Mele when you have to worry about cutting the ears off your horse.

1 year guarantee? From a guy who spends his other half of videos with 200 year old swords.

Some of us are a straightforward type of person that would most definitely be you and some of us have a little bit of curve to us it's texture it's character it's just who we are call up my beer belly but I would rather have a saber over a Rapier any day of the week

So, in short. straight for thrusting, curved for chopping! Who would have thought ?

If yea want make it simple straight give you better thrusting attacks making it good for deflecting and quick trusting attacks but curved give you a better cutting edge because of the way a curved blades force edge of slashes be drawn out and give more edge to cut making better in close up brutal meelee

The straight saber looks an awful lot like an early rapier. Any connection?

You didn't answer the question of which one wins in a fight... I feel gypped!

Occupy bigger tube of space = more rotational inertia I think

Always thought sabres were curved and rapiers were straight.

For straight swords there are not straighter ones and the straightest ones, unless some are bent or repeatedly bent. Straight swords take up less space in transit and as part of the costume. There are hook swords which are half-way between the 2. Curved blade may hit harder. But when can it hit the target?

WOOTZ IS BACK !! :D Will we have a cleaning up video ?

A one year guarantee on a sword? Historically, helmets were sold with a lifetime guarantee...

Matt sums up all the reasons why I prefer straight blades.

The straight blade is much better at handling another's sword. Loose a little from the cut but worth it.

Totally random question Matt - what is your fitness regime? Is it purely swordplay or do you supplement with extra cardio etc.? And 5:34 Jedi-level ‘Carry-on’ baiting 🤣🤣🤣🤣

DID YOU SEE THOSE WARRIORS FROM HAMMERFELL? THEY'VE GOT CURVED SWORDS! CURRRRRRVED SWORRRRRRRDS!!

language geek moment: can't a landsman find a non-Naval metaphor? lol by and large indeed.

i came across this channel first time , i really liked the topic, but i would have liked it in action not theory

And personal preference. People like what they like.

So… is a straight saber considered a back sword, or is it just a straight bladed Sabre?

How about a link to wherever you can look at/purchase one of those practice sabers?

Overall, I get the impression that the straight one is more nimble with a better thrust, while the curved one is stronger with a better cut.

5:28 "if youre trying to penetrate someone you try to get underneath their clothing and get deep into them" -Matt Eastern 2021

5:40 Ummm, Matt, are we still talking about swords?

I would think that the curve would make the space the blade occupies a bit more complicated as well. And I would expect that to be both good and bad, as you have noted.

Learning to use the sabre atm. One observation I have is that a curved blade helps to teach you about edge alignment in the cut.

Matt, what about swords with a reverse curve? Upside down saber

9:35 I see you have to turn the blade. The curved blade has comparatively more angular momentum. I think that might be the difference you felt.

You didn't tell us which one you prefer! >:(

Is there any thrusts tests done with straight vs curved blades? We see numerous cutting tests but rarely thrusts tests. And what targets will be good analogues for medieval thrusting targets?

I'm guessing the answer has something to do with context?