Welcome to one of my favorites. The Long Handled Knife, or Tai Dao, is one of the more popular weapons in kung fu. Even when people don't train it they still stop and look at it with lust in their eyes. The above is actually a chopper used in a slaughter horse to draw and quarter cattle. It was at a flea market and I had to have it.
The techniques of the Tai Dao tend to have a lot of power. Being mostly a horseman's weapon, alot of the movements require a strong upper body. Also being used to fight off other horsemen the forms tend to have a lot of footwork and high attacks. There are some techniques that involve stabbing to earth or dragging the blade so as to finish the opponent off.
The Kwan Dao, named after the general who used it, is considered the ultimate weapon. It was one of the more successful "ultimate" weapons to have been created. It uses the whole body in every movement. It requires precision, power, focus, and the awareness of range. It uses the qualities of every other weapon and requires the skills developed by every other weapon. There is a basic Tai Dao which is basically an unadorned Kwan Dao. Many generals had their own variations also. The Shang Dao is named after General Shang and a few styles use that one instead of the Kwan Dao. There is also the Golden Coin Tai Dao, Elephant Head Tai Dao, Nine Ring Tai Dao and many other variations that can be traced to specific styles and time periods. The Kwan Dao is supposed to work every skill, mental and physical, that Kung Fu develops. It tends to be the last one mastered. Go figure.