Country of origin
Handmade in the Czech Republic, imported, inspected, engraved and shipped by us from Memphis.
Where these are made
Every knife, axe, sword, shield and piece of armour we sell is handmade in the Czech Republic. Ransack Viking is a United States company. We import the pieces, check them over when they land, and ship them from our warehouse in Memphis, Tennessee.
We put this on its own page because a lot of shops in this trade stay vague about origin, and vagueness is a choice. What you are buying is hand work from Czech workshops that still make blades the old way, at the anvil and the grinder, rather than on an automated line. We do not run a forge ourselves and we do not pretend to.
What happens where
| Stage | Where | Who |
|---|---|---|
| Forging, grinding, heat treat | Czech Republic | The workshops we buy from |
| Handle fitting and finishing | Czech Republic | The same hands |
| Import and inspection | Memphis, Tennessee | Ransack Viking |
| Engraving and rune customisation | United States | Ransack Viking |
| Stock holding, packing, dispatch | 3733 Lamar Ave, Memphis, TN | Ransack Viking |
Every piece passes through Memphis before it reaches you. Nothing is drop shipped to a customer unseen.
What handmade actually means here
No two come out the same
Each blade is shaped and ground by hand. Weight, profile and finish move a little from one piece to the next. That is the nature of hand work and it is not a fault.
The wood and horn vary
Grain, colour and figure differ in every handle, because every handle comes from a different piece of material. The one you receive will not match the photo exactly.
Damascus patterns are one off
The pattern comes out of the way the two steels are forge welded together, so no blade carries the same lines as another.
The steel
Plain blades
1095 high carbon steel, hardened to 54 to 58 HRC. It takes a keen edge and comes back easily on a stone. High carbon steel will darken with use and it will rust if you leave it wet, so dry it after use and keep a light film of oil on it.
Damascus blades
1095 and 15N20 forge welded together, hardened to 58 to 60 HRC. The two steels take the etch differently, and that is where the pattern comes from. It runs through the metal rather than sitting on the surface.
Both steels, what the HRC numbers mean, and what we will not claim about them are set out in full on the steel and hardness page.
Engraving and rune work
Engraving and rune customisation is done in the United States. The piece is made in the Czech Republic, arrives at our Memphis warehouse, and only then goes to engraving, before your order is packed and sent. Engraving costs $19. A family crest costs $49.
What you will and will not see us say
We do say
Handmade in the Czech Republic. Imported and inspected by us. Engraved in the United States. Ships from Memphis. Free standard US shipping, with no import duty and no customs delay on US orders. Every one of those is true and checkable.
We do not say
We do not claim the pieces are made or forged in the United States, and we do not use any phrase shaped like that. In this country such a claim is regulated and carries a legal meaning, and it is not ours to make.
Getting it to you, and what happens after
Standard shipping inside the United States is free, and because the stock is already inspected and held in Memphis, US orders pay no import duty and wait for no customs clearance. Orders take 1 to 2 weeks to process, because pieces are inspected and any engraving is done before they leave. After that, US delivery runs 3 to 7 business days on standard and 2 to 4 on priority. International orders take 10 to 25 business days.
You can return an order within 7 days, and the return postage is yours to cover. If you change your mind quickly, an order can be cancelled within 12 hours of placing it.
Every piece carries a lifetime warranty against defects in the forging, the grind, the heat treat and the fittings. There is no end date on it and you do not need to keep a receipt.
Ask us anything about it
If you want to know more about how a particular piece was made, email and ask. We will answer straight.
If you are ordering from outside the United States, here is the full list of destinations and how the duty is handled.