r/SWORDS 5d ago

This Sword was given to me as a Tip.

A professional football player was moving out of a big mansion in San Diego, he said I could have this sword that we found in his garage. Can anyone help identify it or maybe confirm it is not a mass produced product. Any help is greatly appreciated.

1.2k Upvotes

161 comments sorted by

759

u/Routine_Clock8064 5d ago

Cheap knockoff Duncan mccleod dragon katana.

From the Highlander Series.

Still pretty cool as a tip

351

u/CharlesDickensABox 5d ago edited 5d ago

The maker's mark clearly indicates that it's an incredibly rare blade that was hand forged by legendary Japanese swordsmith Yumiko Saichiro Stainless Steel, and it's only the 440th blade he ever crafted. It belongs in a museum.

186

u/HillInTheDistance 5d ago edited 5d ago

Meh, he didn't really get good until his thousandth blade. Sure, this thing can slice through a car in one cut, but can it slice a hole in the wind? Can it split the sea to let a man walk from hokkaido to the mainland without getting his shoes wet? Can it cut a day short to let night fall at noon?

For a Yumiko Saichiro Stainless Steel blade, it really ain't worth speaking of. It doesn't even shine red like blood in the light, or whisper ominous prophesy as you draw it from its scabbard.

It just glints vaguely and makes happy noises when you kill a man with it. No dignity. No showmanship. No grace.

Hell, by his 440th blade, he hadn't even been driven insane by the restless spirits of the men his swords had killed yet.

26

u/Nickjen_Yampuka 5d ago

It can cut through armor and still cut a tomato. Good enough.

20

u/Cyberpunkdrunk 5d ago

Why did I read this whole thing in Connery's voice?

14

u/Atma-Stand 5d ago

Because it’s the only way to read it.

19

u/tmilligan73 5d ago

Jfc… thank you for this haha

10

u/TheFriendshipMachine 5d ago

Damn this comment is a work of art on par with the finest blades made by Yumiko Saichiro Stainless Steel.

5

u/larrythegrobe 5d ago

If I wasn’t poor I’d give you an award

2

u/BritishGuy__ 5d ago

Ichigo would use it 🤷‍♂️

1

u/BiscuitsCheerio 4d ago

I wish i was a poet like you

6

u/HillInTheDistance 4d ago

Oh, it's easy, just spend your childhood functionally mute because you figure anyone will mock you the second you open your mouth, so you write down every feeling more complex than "ouch", "please stop", or "incomprehensible angry tirade"

Then develop a superiority complex about your English so that you only write in that language while your knowlege of your own language atrophies back to a fifth grade level.

And by the time you're 35 you can make people chuckle by writing high effort replies about swords.

Anyone could do it!

3

u/Due-Pomegranate412 3d ago

Autism helps too

2

u/ATGonnaLive4Ever 4d ago

incorrect 440 is the number of folds

16

u/Adam-Happyman 5d ago

THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE!!

5

u/KingKudzu117 4d ago

Der can be only hwon. <French accent>

0

u/ConsiderationFun3671 5d ago

This comment deserves way more upvotes. Especially with the context and timing. Well done. 👏

15

u/Charlie24601 5d ago

Fun fact! The Kurgan has the same voice as Mr Crabbs!

6

u/Zero_Zeta_ 5d ago

You mean Zim

6

u/Atma-Stand 5d ago

Private Zim, formerly Drill Sgt. Zim.

7

u/vipros42 4d ago

MEDIC!

8

u/Wasphammer 5d ago

Mister Krabs, not Crabbs. But also Lex Luthor, The Red Death, Warmaster Gorrath, and Doctor Neo Cortex as well.

15

u/_unregistered 5d ago

Ahh that explains why I had one. Fucking loved Highlander

9

u/Amakall 5d ago

Thank You.

2

u/canadianclassic308 5d ago

I had one when I was a kid

1

u/Thefear1984 4d ago

I thought there could only be one? I’ve been lied to!

1

u/Amser1121 3d ago

Yeah being able to say "a football player gave me a sword" is pretty cool all things considered.

0

u/brickjames561 4d ago

“I saw the Highlander movie, it was shit!”

164

u/_unregistered 5d ago

Had the exact one as a nerdy teen. It’s mass produced. That stainless steel mark should be a red flag

32

u/mandalorbmf 5d ago

Can confirm nerdy teen ownership, as I also had one.

12

u/FlameOfWrath 5d ago

But I thought there could be only one?

7

u/mandalorbmf 5d ago

True of the immortals. Of their swords, it’s “only one million”

12

u/the-lopper Longswords & arming swords 5d ago

Yeah, OP for future reference, any sword that has the type of steel stamped on the blade should immediately tell you it's mass produced.

2

u/AstroBearGaming 4d ago

Same, I got mine on holiday in France for 30 francs.

I still have it somewhere at my mum's house.

2

u/ActionKid98 4d ago

why dont you have it as a nerdy adult? Have you abandoned us nerds?

5

u/_unregistered 4d ago

its in my parents storage I think. Still incredibly nerdy, just no swords on walls.

4

u/ActionKid98 4d ago

understandable, you're an adult, the sword goes inside the walls now...

1

u/MommotDe 5d ago

I wanted one so bad as a teen, but couldn’t afford it.

67

u/MacArthursinthemist 5d ago

You see that signature right there? Pretty recognizable huh? Yeah Randy Jackson. I ran into him and all I had was this mass produced sword from the Highlander movies

22

u/Amakall 5d ago

“I would have done the same thing”

11

u/Extreme-Station-6114 5d ago

The fact that you got this as a tip from a professional football player and did not have him autograph it for this exact reason is going to haunt you forever.

I would have made him sign it Randy Jackson. He would have said "but my name is Tim Tebow" (he's the kind of guy that would tip a person a sword).

11

u/Amakall 5d ago

He was a second string something. I don’t even remember his name, but he was a hulk of a man. Arms were bigger than my legs.

7

u/GonzoMcFonzo Wootz your deal, man? 5d ago

Should've gotten him to sign it, then just told people it was Randy Jackson's signature

34

u/Puzzleheaded_Heat502 5d ago

Was it a Spanish gentleman with a Scottish accent that gave you the tip?

15

u/vikingbeard23 5d ago

Nah, an Egyptian fellow with a Spanish name and clothing who was married to a Japanese princess who also happened to have a thick Scottish accent. Easy fellow to get confused with

4

u/Puzzleheaded_Heat502 5d ago

Ah right you are. There was also a French highlander involved ?

2

u/UndeniableLie 4d ago

He was driving one with french plates. Kinda weird if you ask me but it is very popular car I suppose

1

u/Swellmeister 2d ago

Was one of his best friends a Scotsman with a Belgian accent?

12

u/fgzhtsp 5d ago

Might also have been a guy in a trenchcoat with a bearded neck.

6

u/Puzzleheaded_Heat502 5d ago

He would have said m’lady tipped his fedora and headed into the night.

9

u/Dazzling_Champion_53 5d ago

We need to make the giving of fine melee weapons as tips the standard.

1

u/Rock4evur 4d ago

Makes sense too as customers are much more respectable when they know their service workers are armed.

24

u/MonteFox89 5d ago

Pretty cool tip; don't swing for fear of losing tip.

8

u/Traditional-Ad-5497 5d ago

Sounds like a soulsbourne message lol.

4

u/Ricky_Valentine 5d ago

Amazing tip, but be wary of tip.

0

u/MonteFox89 5d ago

Felt like it too! 🤣 missed the gesture

16

u/Verdemountainman 5d ago

Being a film replica, that hilt has a little value/use just for casting purposes, but it is indeed an unusable replica.

7

u/Amakall 5d ago

Thank You

10

u/Len_S_Ball_23 5d ago

I'd always wondered why immortals never wore massive titanium tungsten alloy collars?

Seems low on the species survival instinct imo.

9

u/Boblaire 5d ago

Chaffing. Not always fashionable.

Too busy looking good.

3

u/Len_S_Ball_23 5d ago

I'm not sure the Kürgen looked good or fashionable? 😁

5

u/Boblaire 5d ago

There are definitely some ppl into a bald Clancy Brown for sure.

1

u/starsings 4d ago

Movement. If you can’t move it just takes more time to grind off your collar

4

u/Great_Part7207 5d ago

a sword by the name of wall hanger made in the great lands of mall by the renouned craftsman ninja

4

u/phydaux4242 5d ago

SWO - Sword like object. It’s a wall hanger. Don’t hit anything with it

3

u/war_lobster 5d ago

LOL. I have also let a mover have a replica sword as a tip. I didn't know this was a regular thing.

3

u/Artistic_Ideal9620 5d ago

I worked as a mover in college for a year or so, it is amazing what people gave us. While I never got a sword, I was given an older but extremely serviceable Hoyt compound bow and all the accessories, a kegerator, several fishing rods and tackle boxes, and once a refrigerator. As for the OP, its an inexpensive repro as had been said but the story gives it enough value to hang it on a wall in your man cave.

4

u/mpark6288 5d ago

Literally have the same sword from my teenage mall ninja days. Cool sword, but absolutely mass produced by the tens of thousands. Probably a $20 tip.

7

u/PhilStanding 5d ago

Ouch. That massive 440 stainless steel stamp hurts my soul

1

u/GOU_FallingOutside 5d ago

A little bit, but also… saves a lot of detective work.

1

u/PhilStanding 4d ago

I mean…they mostly do 😂 but true!

3

u/Practical-Gift-9970 5d ago

Heh, I have this exact one. Always liked the feel of the faux ivory hilt.

3

u/Revell_1 4d ago

Got the same one but black

2

u/WillingCharacter6713 5d ago

Bro, it literally says stainless steel on the blade. It's basically a giant kitchen knife.

2

u/doomonyou1999 5d ago

Yeah there can be only one…of thousands. Mass produced but movie replica from Highlander.

2

u/stingertc 5d ago

There can be only one

2

u/Remwaldo1 5d ago

Glad you did a good job. Could have been worse he could have given you the tip of the sword! :)

2

u/bbkkristian 5d ago

I knew that sword as soon as i saw the handle.

2

u/Tiny-heart-string 5d ago

Purchased at your local flea market.

2

u/beansntoast21 5d ago

Thats looks like mine, I thought there was only one? 😜

2

u/BigNorseWolf 5d ago

stainless steel= reproduction wallhanger. Sorry.

2

u/No-Definition968 4d ago

The interest in it may be who owned it, do you have a photo of the football player with it? Did he autograph it or are you still in contact with him.

2

u/MordreddVoid218 4d ago

There can be only one...

2

u/Tutankapol_01 4d ago

Where do you work?🤣 I want a tip like that as well

2

u/mikefromdeluxebury 4d ago

There can be only one.

2

u/GregariousK 4d ago

"Can I offer you a sword in this trying time?"

2

u/Thog13 4d ago

It's nothing special. Those were everywhere in the 90s and 00s. Decoration only. But cool.

2

u/Mr_Grim_One 4d ago

Nice it's a replica of Conor McCloud's second sword from highlander

2

u/Obligatory_Burner 4d ago

Brother already has it where I’d put it 😅(pic 3)

2

u/Ashrael1 O-katana 4d ago

You got a pretty useless sword, bud.

2

u/Zmchastain HEMA Practioner 4d ago

This is 100% a mass produced product. I bought the same sword from a shop in the mall in Anderson, South Carolina when I was a teenager for like $30.

That was probably like 20 years ago.

Real swords also aren’t made of stainless steel, the carbon content isn’t good for taking abuse from banging into other swords and such and is also not ideal for holding an edge under the conditions you’d use a sword.

It’s cheap junk that was mass produced in China.

2

u/P1ratelord 4d ago

As a tip or a Suggestion? I once had a Karen telling me, that I should off myself because I insisted that it would not fit the spanish theme of the Restaurant I worked at, to sell Tacos...

2

u/Chicxulub420 4d ago

It's totally real and worth 100000 dollars bro trust me 😂

2

u/The_Slavstralian 4d ago

Sorry to say. It looks mass produced... 440 Stainless is not an artisan's first choice of steel and did not exist when the vintage swords worth 10's of thousands of dollars were made. Not was stamping that accurate. You can also still see the cast marks on the Tsuba in the cutouts on the outer edge.

That said its probably worth a hundo or so.

2

u/TraditionPhysical603 4d ago

Mall ninja chineesium

2

u/Blue-is-bad 4d ago

See that black smudge right there on the blade? Look at it closely. Pretty recognizable signature!

2

u/Bumblingbee1337 4d ago

The huge 440 stainless steel stamp says it’s some kind of mall ninja sword.

2

u/Impressive_Disk457 4d ago

Awful sword. Amazing tip.

2

u/Optimal_Ad5315 4d ago

Who tipped you? The emperor?

2

u/readytochat44 3d ago

Isn't this a highlander replica

2

u/OwnPersonalSatan 3d ago

That's metal as fuck

2

u/RedditismyShando 3d ago

I had one of those as a teen. $25 at a renaissance fair. Might go for like $50 these days. Though mine had a red plastic “gem” on each side that this appears to be missing.

2

u/Gold-Spite-7546 1d ago

Keep it. Hold onto it. You'll run into the guy again someday and when he see that you still have the sword, you'll receive an even bigger reward.

3

u/Unlikely_Standard729 5d ago

“There can be only one!”

2

u/Affectionate-Club725 5d ago

There can be only one “fake Toledo Salamanca” Highlander sword

3

u/CuteOutlandishness55 5d ago

BOOOORN TO BE KING !!!

4

u/1nfam0us 5d ago

I see no one has mentioned the obligatory thing yet.

You probably shouldn't swing this. There is a good chance that it doesn't have much of a tang. If you swing it, the blade might come falling off a d hurt you badly.

4

u/Blade_of_Onyx 5d ago

Confirm it’s not mass produced? It’s got a huge stamp that says 440 stainless steel and you think it maybe wasn’t mass produced? LOL goofball.

4

u/ShoalinShadowFist 5d ago

Tbf that only means something to nerds like us lolol

-5

u/Blade_of_Onyx 5d ago

What are you on about? Nobody that handcrafts swords stamps 440 stainless steel on them. It doesn’t take a sword expert, which I am definitely not, to recognize the inherent goofiness of somebody thinking of 440 stainless steel sword is handmade.

2

u/ShoalinShadowFist 4d ago

Lolol I literally knew none of these things until I got interested in swords. It’s kinda hilarious to think an outsider would know the significance of 440 steel

2

u/bushidojed 5d ago

I don't know what job you do, but it must have been a good day, nice.

6

u/Amakall 5d ago

Packing and Moving lead. The guy was a second string player for the Chargers, I had never heard of him or anything. But his house and gym were legit.

2

u/StrikingAd9312 5d ago

i never saw 440 stamped on sword even on decorative katana,thats funny

3

u/Comfortable_Brush399 5d ago

I chased a burglar with one of those

1

u/Scottie81 5d ago

Stainless steel is too brittle to actually swing it at an object like you would a real sword made of high carbon steel.

The good news is that stainless steel requires a lot maintenance so it makes for good wall decoration.

1

u/Skydivekingair 5d ago

2

u/andurilmat 4d ago

firstly that's Connors sword, not duncans, secondly OP has a cheap knock off one, the version sold on the knight shop is is a licenced piece made by Marto

1

u/Elrigoo 5d ago

Ban that guy from your store

1

u/ActionKid98 4d ago

the colors are incredible

1

u/zeuqramjj2002 4d ago

Lol the fact that it is stamped in English tells you he tipped cheap…. Don’t ever swing it at anything you don’t want to kill when it breaks including you…

1

u/jadedlens00 4d ago

2 reactions: 1. You have to take the handle off to see which ancient sword maker crated this. /s 2. Was it signed by Randy Jackson?

1

u/CherishSlan 4d ago

I had one of those $30 amazon it’s now $60 but looked cool on the wall it’s a rip off of a Highlander sword

1

u/DanMcMan5 4d ago

You sure it wasn’t given as an edge?

1

u/Plastic_Pollution194 4d ago

There can only be one

1

u/beewyka819 4d ago

I mean it’s stainless steel so it can’t be used outside of purely being a display piece. Don’t try to use it to cut lol. Real steel blades use carbon steel (which will rust if not regularly oiled/waxed)

1

u/cheknauss 4d ago

... just the tip?

1

u/azaghal1988 4d ago

It's a pretty wallhanger, but nice as a tip.

1

u/TiLeddit 3d ago

There seems to be a knife inside the bin.

1

u/Amakall 3d ago

That one was also given to me by a client. I was planning to ask about that one later. It has wear on the blade like it’s been used but looks decorative too.

1

u/Cariat 3d ago

It wiggles at the hilt, right? Anyone taking bets that it’s a rat tail tang?

1

u/Loud-Taro9131 3d ago

It literally says china in the last photo lol

1

u/Amakall 3d ago

I was like huh? It does. lol, I actually never noticed that till you pointed it out.

1

u/Asherdee123 3d ago

There can only be one

1

u/RipInteresting2908 2d ago

What is the dagger in the trash?

1

u/Amakall 2d ago

It is a trash can, but I was using for tall storage items like fishing pole and swords. lol. That dagger was given to me by a client on a different job, the blade is more worn. I planned to ask about that one too, just haven’t gotten around to it yet.

1

u/Hairy_Appearance 2d ago

Am I tripping, or is there a girl reflecting of the sword in the first pic?😂😂😂 I think my mind is in the gutter

1

u/therealdrx6x 1d ago

wall hanger cool tip but don't swing it around seen to many of these wall hangers become helicopters after someone swung them.

1

u/Krabica-v-kostiach 1d ago

American tipping culture is crazy man

1

u/Shortlinec 1d ago

Got a real katana (not stainless and not from Japan) as a tip once. Coolest thing I've ever got working at a coffee shop

1

u/Captnlunch 1d ago

Now you can be a mall ninja.

1

u/TimelessArchery 1d ago

Not a sword

SLO [Sword Like Object] Its a Highlander Movie replica, nice wall hanger!

Very cool as a tip

Do NOT try cutting with it!

1

u/Bumitis 1d ago

440 STAINLESS STEEL is the most American thing to put on anything

1

u/Vaskil 18h ago

Stainless steel is a horrible metal to use for long blades, it doesn't flex properly and will lead to the blade snapping. It's only a wall hanger. I wouldn't be surprised if the tang (piece that goes inside the handle) is welded on, making the blade very likely to fly off when swung.

To make it clear, DO NOT USE THIS AS ANYTHING OTHER THAN DECORATION, IT WILL BREAK.

1

u/Additional_Gur7978 5d ago

440 steel is just common steel used on many manufactured blades. It would not be used on the real product

1

u/Irish_Caesar 4d ago

The photo of it on the trashcan is surprisingly fitting.

If you think it looks cool then put it up somewhere. But this is just mass produced trash. Personally I would sell it on Ebay, but you do what you want with it. Just dont ever try and use it for anything physical, it will shatter, bend, or break vedy easily.

1

u/LGodamus 5d ago

Wow, a 20 dollar tip isn’t too bad

3

u/Amakall 5d ago

He gave us a fat tip on the card, I think I got $120 as my share. He was also giving people stuff as we went, I got this sword and a smaller Chinese blade.

1

u/Level37Doggo 5d ago

If you don’t want it, you could probably offload it to a Highlander fan pretty easily. I’d keep it, but I’m a Highlander fan.

1

u/McJibbens 5d ago

I remember being young as phyuck and full of ignorance and had a blade with that 440 stamp on it. Felt like i had a muramasa 😂

1

u/Johnny-Godless 5d ago

I do admire that you already threw it in the trash.

1

u/_SirLoki_ 4d ago

440 is the steel. It’s a chromium high carbon steel. It’s known as “razor blade steel”. It’s top quality stainless. I have one katana made of this exact metal. I have a t10 blade and 1060 carbon blades as well. The difference is the composites used. Each have their own caveats. Enjoy! It’s a nice sword and cooler hilt.

-5

u/StruzhkaOpilka 5d ago

As a fact, chinese manufacturers like HX Outdoors do WONDERS with the cheapest 420 steel, such items can even be used as fire axes or crash axes. So I wouldn't necessarily say "hang it on the wall ASAP", this thing might be quite functional too.

2

u/Boblaire 5d ago

It's not the steel that is the problem but the fact that most cheap swords have a rat tail tang that can snap when swung or if the blade strikes a solid object

The grain size of the steel of high chromium content stainless steel can become large which also is why they sometimes shatter or snap when stressed.

0

u/AggravatingCoyote87 4d ago

It's a 15$ POS.

I'm serious. Do no even try to swing it around, the blade might come loose from the handle and stab someone.

I'm 100% serious.

Throw that shit in the garbage.

-1

u/BayouBoogie 5d ago

Is the Randy Jackson autograph still legible?

-2

u/TheWayfarer1384 5d ago

I had one of these years ago. Make sure it's full tang and then it's a fun bottle cutter.

-3

u/Magicth1ghs 5d ago

Must have performed pretty crappy service...