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Podao - Chinese Infantry Glaive

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List price: $113.42
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The Podao (or Pudao) is a single-edged polearm originating in China, with corollary designs in Korea and Japan. Essentially the shorter cousin of the guandao, the podao is the field ready equivalent. Where the tall and unwieldy guandao would be used to identify officers, the more measured and functional podao would be used by infantry (and sometimes horse riders) as a deadly chopping weapon. It features quite a heavy blade with a rather long handle, enabling very strong strikes while still allowing the wielder to retain a measure of control. To this end, the podao was often referred to as the "horse cutter", due to its effectiveness at striking the legs of horses as a means to dismount and kill an enemy rider.

This Podao is created to emulate one that would have been around in history. Whilst it has a high carbon steel blade, during the oxidising process the blade was roughened, giving it a rustic look. The handle has not been sanded, instead singed lightly to give the wood a deep, rich texture. The pole is also wrapped in three places with cord to assist with handling. The Podao also comes with a black faux leather sheath to protect the edge when not in use.

While the edge is sharp, it may require further sharpening before use in cutting tests.

Dimensions

Total Length: 1350 mm
Pole Length:  720 mm
Total Blade Length: 630 mm

Primary Back Curve Length: 300 mm
Secondary Back Curve Length:  145 mm

Total Width: 125 mm
Pole Diameter:  40 mm
Largest Blade Width:  100 mm
Edge: ~0.2 - 0.3 mm

Total Weight -  2.25 kg

Blade Material: Steel - High Carbon
Handle Material: Wood



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Warnervale Store
4/1 Burnet Road
10am - 3pm, 7 Days
1300 768068
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Anonymous
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What you see is what you get.

The blade is cast, not forged, but seems much more sturdy than I would have expected and has a pleasing texture that makes it eye-catching when on display. The edge is a lot sharper than I thought it would be, too. I'd honestly say it was sharp enough to use straight out of the box. Not quite shaving sharp, but it could hack some brush or ruin a hard foam target. Definitely NOT for use in sparring unless you want to grind the blade blunt yourself.

The blade on mine was crooked when it arrived. It looks like it might have been set into the handle at a bit of an angle.

The haft is a little disappointing. While the wraps are really nice looking, the actual wood feels a bit on the cheap side. Not exactly splintery, but not the most pleasant thing to handle. It does feel like it would fail under stress, like hacking at hard targets or dense wood if I wanted to test it properly.

On the other hand, there's so much exposed wood that it would be easy to burn or carve a design into it, and actually finishing the wood properly with some sandpaper and stain or varnish wouldn't take very long. It's practically begging to be personalised.