PROOF! drawing a SWORD from your BACK and why you would want to

a massive thank you to my patrons who support me through patreon and who have brought this episode of Shanna versity to you if you would like to support University and help me make these videos to the best level that I can even a $1 donation per video is a tremendous help there is a link to my patreon page in the description below and thank you for watching some people say that you cannot draw a sword from a sheath on your back well I beg to differ and putting it back that easy [Music] greetings I'm shad and as you've probably guessed I'll be exploring the classic trope of wearing a sword on your back and I'll be exploring the plausibility of it can you actually do it effectively and also why you would want to now many people in this sword community here on YouTube have explored this thing wearing a sword on your back is it possible is it effective is it even possible and stuff like that and the larger consensus tends to say that Nouriel has never done historically why would you want to and these are all the problems with it but ever since I did a video exploring a plausibility of wearing an axe on your back which is like a year ago the same way kratos doesn't god of war I actually said in that video that you know I think there's some things about wearing a sore on your back that actually might make it a bit more logical so I've been wanting to do this video for a good while and I'm perfectly aware that a good friend to this channel Scholar Graham has actually made a video looking at this same subject and what I found really interesting that a lot of his thoughts married by Owen that when you look would you actually look at this from a fair kind of perspective it isn't nearly as implausible as many people have supposed and in actual fact Metatron our good friend at Metatron as well has certain ways in which you can draw a sword from your back as well so there are ways to do this I really suggest you go watch these videos because I might reference a couple of things from here there but in this video I'm gonna be adding a lot more to the discussion because whenever I've looked at this you know carrying a sword on your back and how implausible it is most people who say that this is impossible is doing with a regular sheath but I've always thought in my mind well I mean if you really wanted to do this you could make an irregular sheath that's specifically made to enable pulling it out and putting it back while it's actually on your back and that's exactly what I've done right here I've made a custom sheath that's rough around the edges alright so you know ignore the the rough edges here but made specifically to hang on you back and redraw I'm gonna show you exactly how it can be done because my goodness it's really easy and the advantage about this is that you can pull the sword out and put it back with one hand this is significant even putting a sword away you generally need to at least hold the sheath you know so you can line up the tip and then slot it in oh this one one hand now there are a few different designs that other people have person even made themselves to make carrying a sword on your back more plausible there is a half sheath which is the same kind of one that Scala Grimm proposed in this video and for myself I'm not much of a fan of this design because I just feel that too much of the blade is exposed these weapons are very sharp and if someone exhaling brushes up against the blade they could actually cut themselves inadvertently there's a really interesting design for a back scabbard in the video game shadow of Mordor and I really like that the game developers actually thought about this problem and tried to address it the middle part of the top 2/3 of the scabbard is actually exposed and because of the swords profile when you pull it out a little bit the rest of the sword will actually fit through that opening and you can draw it from your back I even considered making this design but as I studied it further and tried to assess the practicality of it though I feel you'd be out of draw the sword quite effectively with this design and the edges are covered and protected putting the sword away would be extremely difficult and fiddly and this is also another problem I see with the half kind of sheaths or scabbards that other people have made instead I thought of a different design that you see me using in this video and I'll explain the functionality and mechanics of this scabbard a little bit later in the video so the back drawing methods that scholar drum and the Metatron show in their videos are perfectly valid I think they're very interesting but the floor with them is that they are either not full long swords like what we see here and they're not full sheaths because a sheath or a scabbard this is technically a scabbard because it's made out of wood I meant to protect the blade there as to waterproofing to an extent unless the sword has an actual rain guard that covers the top water still can seep down as well and the scabbard on my back is not 100% waterproof because if you'll see by the design there is an opening on one side so even though this isn't fully waterproof you could wear a cloak over top which covers it completely because in reality even if you were to have a regular sheath you would still want to avoid it getting caught in the rain anyway because you need to remember that the sheath or scabbit is not necessarily there to just protect the blade from water you can protect the blade perfectly well by keeping it properly oiled one of the primary reasons the sheath is there is to protect you from the blade when you're not using it it's a very sharp implement and you don't want to cut yourself inadvertently when handling moving it around or when you're wearing it and as I mentioned before that's why I don't like any types of sheaths or scabbards that leave parts of the blade exposed now in regards to the scabbard actually filling up with water if you really get caught in the rain well it's easy enough just to drill a small hole at the very bottom to let the water drain out and because this sheath has an internal lining you could soak that lining in oil which will the blade every time it's put in and drawn out and offer some very good protection against moisture and rain so how does this scabbard work well I'll draw it in slow motion so you can see from behind so see me grab I pull and there we go see that side opening there the scabbard actually has an opening on one side but that's not all you'll see that it's a bit unbalanced okay there's a flatter wider portion right here that is actually to help me put it away so I put the sword there and then I try and guide it into that opening and once it's there I just push it down and it's in I've even lined the inside of this scabbard with wool to help cushion it and hold it in so this isn't going out I can swing around and it's not going anywhere I can test it more fully but even if I swing this way alright to try and get the sword to fall out on the open side it's not because if I move closer to the camera do you see the top of the sword I've actually made provision in the scabbard for the point that sits in the middle of a cross guard to lock it in even better and a lot of historical swords actually had a tuck type of point coming down the cross gap and my goodness just look how easy this is guys this is really really cool now sometimes it is a bit difficult to get the sword back in and you need to fiddle around but other times it's really really easy and the thing that makes a difference is practice as soon as you you know get the memory of where it's going in because I tell you what I wasn't this easy to get this sword in the scabbard when I first started trying this is a bit of fiddling around but after a couple of attempts it gets easy and easier but that's not to say there aren't the odd times out where I miss I likes like so and sorry that ever happens it's an easy matter to fix the thing just by guiding it in and putting it back but as you have seen me do multiple times is actually very easy to put one-handed without needing to guide or anything like in you know using your other hand it's just a backup if you miss the mark and it gets a bit fiddly so this scabbard design works and it works really well and if you're wondering how I made it well I've actually recorded the whole process there's an entire build video on how to make a back drawing scabbard that I have posted on this channel just before posting this video so dude you go check it out and then you'll be out and make your own very easy to do all you need is plywood a jigsaw and some glue really and you're good to go and because this is so cool let's just do it a couple more times so we can appreciate it look at that and then we just want to put it back in and if we if we miss the mark we can just help guide it in like so but still this is very very cool and you can kind of feel when you don't get it in that first time sorry if I'm determined to get it one-handed there we go so with the right purposefully built scabbard you absolutely can draw a sword from your back and sheath it just as easily is there historical precedent for this and would you actually want to do it in real life this is another reason why I find scalloped drums video really instructive on the topic because he actually shows a historical reference that I wasn't even aware of of where the kilts actually might have done this in some circumstances nor all of them but some of them and there are other certain historical precedents in which we can look at where carrying a sword on your back was done as well there are some references of Scottish Highlanders carrying their larger claymores on their back and there are also some depictions in Asian art work specifically Japanese artwork of sword being carried on your back as well now of course for the most part easily the larger majority swords were hung on the side instead of on your back throughout history there are just some examples some exceptions to the rule where swords may have actually been carried on the back and as I've proven here as well it can be done very effectively very easily and can be drawn and do whatever yet what are those circumstances in which you might want to have a sword on your back as opposed to on your side well some interesting things that might cause this and one of the biggest differences is what you're actually doing at the time if you need to go about just doing casual everyday things a sword carried on your side is the easily the most efficient thing you don't need to make a custom build scow and everything like that that's going to happen yet we don't often see swords in that those circumstances depicted in say movies and pop culture in actual fact in movies and pop culture there's a completely new non historical mostly non historical realm in which swords are carried and used and that is the classic adventuring from fantasy now if you're doing adventuring you're traveling a lot you're travelling through difficult environments and stuff and as soon as you need to do some difficult things having a sword securely on your back and my goodness guys this is really secure like I can swing this around and it's not going anywhere okay and so having this on your back will be really useful for a couple of things for instance running have you ever sprinted with a sword hanging on your side that thing swings around heaps but because this scabbard is so securely fixed to my back it is so much better to run with this thing but that's not all what if you need to crawl and not make a lot of noise as soon as you get low enough and you have a sword hanging on your side the scabbard is going to be scraping along the ground okay and so if you want it secure it in place have it on your back would be preferable and then you could just crawl wherever you need to go and look the sword isn't coming out and so I'm all good to go the other situation which having a sore on your back is purple is say you need to climb again using hands and feet and the sword might swing and clatter but there's an even greater situation which you really want your sword on your back and on your side and that's if you need to wade through some what deep waters if it even comes up to your hip or something like that having it on your back keeps the sword out of the water you can even bend over to make sure the tip doesn't get in and cross fine and if you're doing this a lot say if you're fighting in marshland and historically the Irish actually had to fight a decent amount in marshland so much so that they didn't even wear shoes so that again is a situation where having a sword on your back more preferable the other situation is what if you actually didn't have enough room on your bill that you hung a whole heap of other useful things like pouches now as an adventurer they have pouches galore because they have so many useful adventuring things and stuff I yeah and what if you actually wanted to hang more pouches in the section where you'd hang your sword and this one is a little anecdotal because honestly I think you could probably get away with it maybe have the sword hanging underneath it or coming through in between the pouches and stuff like that but still if you just didn't want to have to deal with the hassle all the patches around your belt and sore on your back problem solved and then by having a sword on you back you have this belt Baldrick where you could hang more pouches again that reason is a little bit err because you just wear a baldric without a sword and still get the advantages but still more reasons well the sword is a lot more difficult to be stolen or grabbed out of the scabbard than whether it's a hip if someone is walking around their hands are already very close to where your sword would be if it's hanging on your side and just grab pull it out but with on the back well it's a bit different because there's a trick they might not know the trick on how to actually get it out because you need to pull it up and then go on the side to get it out and sorry if you pull it forward or any other way it's not gonna be coming out so it's not impossible for a thief to grab the sword while it's on your back but it's just one of those times in which it's more difficult so you might want to have it on your back because of that reason another interesting reason is comfort in all honestly guys having this hung on my over my shoulder is a lot more comfortable than having it hung on your side a sword does have a certain amount of weight to it okay and just having it hung on the side of the boat it can really pull down sometimes and if it's not secured properly there are more secure ways it can flip around especially long swords because long swords need to be hung on the side so the back end we usually hit things now it's not to say that this isn't awkward I just think it's less awkward than having it on your side because this can knock things as you walk you through it but you just kind of have to angle it up and walk your ass through make sure you don't hit anything but this is a much easier method of carry if I'm carrying a weapon for a very long period of time of course you can wear swords on your side for a very long period of time I'm not saying you can't it's just that this isn't more comfortable in all honesty over the shoulder is more comfortable than on your side especially this way and it's very secure you know another thing that I really should acknowledge about carrying a sword on your back is how awesome it it just makes you look boss I mean it just looks cool and then if you can make it work even cooler right so cool and then just let it slide in so that is a big bonus in which you might want to carry it on your back what about other things like sitting well if you need to sit on the ground I actually feel on your back is a lot better yes go down sit and yeah it kind of hits there but that's fine but if a sword is hung on your side I just have to angle it down maybe rested on your legs or something like that and there's far more sword and knocking on the ground then if it's on your back it grabs my bum ba-bum that was pretty easy okay what about sitting in a chair I have a chair sorry sitting down on chair alright so hard to lean back actually no fine actually this is pretty easy let's see what's happening behind here that was actually far more comfortable than I was expecting so if I just go back like that I can lean back not a problem this is pretty easy so it's not more awkward than it was on my hip because of course if a sword is on your hip you have to angle it up and then you know you sit and it's there but there's a chance it could trip someone overall hitter in the way that way having said all that I think there's another situation in which having a sword on your back might not be too preferable and as if you needed to draw the sword while inside with people around just to say you walk into an inn or tavern and you're into the entry room and say no weapons allowed take your weapons off here ok no worries and you draw your sword and click you accidentally hit someone on the side you see if a sword is actually hanging from your side you can draw it far more safely because you can see all the blade coming out and no one's getting hit you're all good okay there we go take the sword and especially putting it away there's a bit of fiddling around and so what is like what if someone's sitting behind you and you go to put away oh sorry you could be a bit more careful like am i hitting anyone I hope not does anyone hit okay good good we're all safe and it sort of shaved yet still I was worried to pull this sort it out when I was in my lounge room or hallway just because close quarters didn't want to hit anything and you because you actually have to go on the slide a bit to pull it out so yeah if I was inside or what I probably want thus working on my certainly just to be safe but if I was out in the world adventuring well then having the sword on the back yeah actually I think would be more preferable than on your hip so in adventuring if someone if a division is going around with I properly made scabbard it's actually made for back a drawing and stuff like that or power - yeah go ahead I think it's perfectly reasonable that a sword on your back if it's in its storica setting like if they're doing a movie based on historical period you're probably safer to do it on your hip okay in all honesty so I'm not criticizing those people who criticize historical movies that depict people carrying swords on the back because unless there's an actual reason yeah go ahead I mean Lindsey bade rip him apart mate back stop it especially the scabbard isn't made right I love this thing it's so cool and then I just put the sword yeah line it up and she's you know this could actually be a kind of cool setting element for a fantasy a way in which people are able to identify adventurers if they wear their weapons on their back or not look there are be adventurous but how do you know they're adventurers they are wearing their weapons on their backs on with all the running climbing jumping and crawling they have to do is far more convenient so there we go guys we are making back scabbards great again I hope you've enjoyed and if you want to know how to make your own back drawing scattered please do go check out my other video I hope to see you there and until that time farewell and out like so there and then we want to put it away and you just line it in and [Music] [Music] you [Music]

Channel: Shadiversity

Views: 3,423,395

Rating: 4.8548131 out of 5

Keywords: sword, swords, longsword, greatsword, hema, historical european martial arts, scabbard, sheath, back, back scabbard, draw, medieval, middle ages, fantasy, dungeons and dragons, dnd, d&d, history, historical, knight, knights, adventurer, game of thrones, lord of the rings, skyrim, anime, samirai, katana, top ten, top 10, weapon, weapons, belt, knight's, warrior

Id: 0EWi2DnDoaI

Length: 18min 26sec (1106 seconds)

Published: Fri Oct 19 2018

Reddit Comments

[u/TheThiefMaster]

Very cool!

What's the advantages to back-wearing a sword though?

[u/mrbadxampl]

he's really proud of that scabbard... as well he should be

[u/setpol]

That channel is great for dming.