King Robert Baratheon’s Warhammer will go on sale tommorow, November 12th, at 12 noon US eastern time. This is a preorder, the item will not ship until Spring 2012. It will not make it in time for Christmas.

Remember on non-damascus editions we do not allow people to pick numbers, so there is no use requesting one. The earliest orders we do try to get lower numbers for (and we try to get the very first dozen or so orders the very lowest numbers, including #1 to the first person), but we do not guarantee any particular number.

Shipping costs worldwide are about $5 more than they were for Ice.

Don’t try this at home. The warhammer will open for preorders this Fall, and should start shipping to customers Spring 2012.

This is pretty sweet. The Big Bang Theory is a very popular comedy on CBS, millions and millions of viewers, one of the top shows on TV. Also critically acclaimed, if you watched Peter Dinklage win his Game of Thrones Emmy for Best Supporting Actor you saw the actor who plays Sheldon in this show win Best Actor (in a Comedy) as well.

Anyways… so we find out today that they’re using Longclaw as a prop in this week’s episode. We didn’t send this sword to them (knowingly) so we just found out today through a fan’s tip. I have no idea if they will mention the sword’s name, or where it is from, or where to buy it, but the exposure alone is amazing. Can you imagine what product placement would typically cost in a show like that? And it looks like they’re going to be spending time on this sword, it isn’t merely a cereal box sitting on the counter. So we’re really excited.

Also, this hasn’t been covered anywhere so I’d mention it here. On last weeks Grey’s Anatomy on ABC they mentioned A Song of Ice and Fire. Specifically one of the doctors was compared to a certain Dothraki princess. This was a bit of a pop culture episode, there was a stampede at a comic convention, so they had other references, such as Lord of the Rings, and Star Wars. That was pretty much it. A Song of Ice and Fire (not, Game of Thrones, they used the book series title). Star Wars, and LOTR. Pretty good company to keep. Westeros is everywhere. Now I’m waiting for Community on NBC to do a themed episode.

Anyways, here are the pictures from the Big Bang Theory:

The auction for # 001/250 of the Damascus Ice limited edition is now up on eBay here. Bid early and often. It is recommended that you also buy the sword through our site, in case you bid and do not win the auction, that way you have on to fall back on. In the case you do win we can just change your order and bill you the difference between the normal price and wherever the auction ends up.

The Damascus version of Ice will go on sale October 1st at 12 Noon Eastern US Time. There tends to be some competition for ordering these products and so we’re announcing the exact date and time in advance.

The first person ordering will get dibs on #2, the second dibs on #3, and so on. You can request a higher number than you’re order slot, but not a lower number. #1 will be auctioned on eBay soon. If you plan on bidding in the auction we still recommend purchasing a sword in this release, if you win the auction you we will then just switch your number to #1. If you do not win the auction you would still have a fall back though.

The order page is up now so you can view pictures and product information. But it isn’t able to be ordered from yet.

We get questions from time to time about sword maintenance. This post will henceforth serve as a location for such information.

Presently we make swords out of three materials, maintenance needs will depend on the material.

Stainless Steel

If your sword is made from stainless steel, such as Longclaw or book Ice it needs almost no maintenance. Stainless steel isn’t fully rust proof, over a very long period of time it can still show some corrosion. You should do your best to keep it out of water and keep fingerprints off it. The acid in a fingerprint can, if left on the blade over a long period (months, years), still mark it. But generally, hanging up, unless someone touches it, you need to do nothing.

High Carbon Steel

If your sword is made from high carbon steel, such as book Needle, show Ice, Robb Sword, or anything in Damascus it needs maintenance. Ambient humidity can cause pitting, as well as actual water and finger prints. The blade should be wiped with a soft cloth after any handling, and you should keep it oiled or waxed regularly. Mineral oil works, as well as any oil sold or labeled for use with knives or guns, do not use a vegetable oil. For a more long term solution a product called Renaissance Wax is available. If the sword becomes pitted or rusted you will need to polish it with a product like Metal Glo or Bar Keeper’s Friend. The Bar Keeper’s Friend powder (get the powder kind) works very well with a scrubbing sponge (such as Scotch Brite) at removing rust or pitting. Just make sure you wipe the blade off thoroughly immediately after you finish and even rinse it with water, as leaving the cleaner on it can cause even more corrosion. Then dry dry dry thoroughly, and coat with oil. High carbon steel swords will ship to you with an oil coating on, but even that is not foolproof, so they should not be stored long term.

Damascus Steel

Damascus steel is a blend of two types of high carbon steel, so all that is true for high carbon steel is true for damascus steel. Except because it is so much more valuable you should be even more vigilant. Also, if your damascus does get blemished, be careful when polishing so that you do not wear off the patina. Test the polish first in a small spot.

Handle Parts

All our handle parts have a protective finish and should not need any maintenance.

We have decided to put LONGCLAW and NEEDLE on sale, ending Saturday the 24th. We wanted to put them on sale for some period before the end of the year, and this is a good slow patch between book/TV show releases, and the busy Christmas season. ICE is not on sale, as it is still a new release. So right now both LONGCLAW and NEEDLE are $20 off.

GRRM has officially approved the Damascus ICE. We will make 250 of them, they will be $700 each. Preorders will open in about two weeks (probably also on the 24th) and it could be in your hand sometime in November. We will announce the exact date and time of the preorder opening in advance.

King Robert’s Warhammer is in the prototyping stage, we’ve had one prototype made and are making a second. Preorders may open before the end of the year, but you wouldn’t likely see it in hand until late Spring 2012.

The Night’s Watch obsidian dagger set is also in the prototyping stage. If we can get it done quickly, it could start to ship before the end of the year. I am hoping it will. But it will be in limited quantities.

Damascus Oathkeeper is currently in the concept art stage. Nothing to show yet.

Here are some looks of our Robert’s Warhammer Prototype.

We’ve found that the head is so heavy we need to reinforce the haft more so we’re going to have another prototype made with a stronger haft before going into production. This will delay the ultimate on-sale date of the item by at least a couple months.

But it is one big bad hammer.

Probably about 90% of the Ice preorders have shipped, we’re working on getting tracking numbers to those who have not yet received them. Others who received them early will start seeing activity. Still, some of you may receive the sword before your tracking number.

Damascus Longclaws will head out by August 9th.