Board Thread:Questions and Answers/@comment-69.169.149.237-20140108093910/@comment-69.204.51.67-20140803020444

They could very easily be 48 " swords with  36" blades and still be drawn from a back scabbard. The trick is to have the back scabbard sit low enough on the back to allow the draw but high enough to reach the grip. The other factor is the design of the scabbard and how much of the blade fits within it. If you look at both of Kirito's swords, only about 2/3s of the blades are sheathed within th scabbard because of the shapes of the blades The scabbards themselves are only about 24" - 26" long and sit low on the back the openings laying at about the base of his shoulderblades. The blades of both swords have ornamental embelishments which do not fit into the scabbards. Thus, he could very easily draw them from back scabbards even at an overall length of 48".