We call Hanwei's practical broadsword the
High-Carbon Steel Kung Fu Broadsword with black scabbard (Sharpened) (I know, I know, that's a mouthful, but I didn't make up that name). It's a very nice piece - something with which you could do some real damage. For a traditional practice, it's a tad on the light side for many - a lot of traditionalists prefer to work with overweight weapons as part of their training. The guard is a light steel and the pommel is hollow light steel, which should make this top heavy, but the blade, despite being real tempered steel, is light too. It's a great misconception that fighting swords were unwieldy. Training swords might be, but it just doesn't make sense for something you're going to use in battle.
Another nice Hanwei piece for traditionalists - the one I'd recommend for training actually - is the
Dao (Kung Fu) sword. It's beefier with a solid brass guard and fatter blade. It also has a nicer scabbard (the practical broadsword has this really odd non-traditional slitted scabbard that I can't stand).
I should warn you - both of these swords are *high carbon* steel. That means one thing: MAINTENANCE. You'll have to oil these after every use or they'll rust up on you. That can be a real pain in the keyster if you use it a lot. We do sell
Hanwei oil, which is good stuff, but the spray applicators have a tendency to break, so I personally use different stuff, unless I'm doing a deep cleaning. Given that, you might consider our
Single Broadsword Combat Steel which is also steel, but not as high carbon. High carbon steel will rust if you look at it too long - I think it's the moisture from your eyes. Ok, just kidding there, but invariably, the spine of a high carbon
dao will rust from contact from the left hand or being cradled in the elbow crook at the beginning and ending of forms. I love high carbon steel for cutting, but for forms practice, the maintenance can be a significant factor.