Dynasty Forge Musha 1060 29" Katana with Bo-Hi Review
May 12, 2023 20:54:58 GMT
Post by vegah on May 12, 2023 20:54:58 GMT
After weeks of reading various sites and forums researching the world of production katanas, I settled on a Dynasty Forge Musha 1060 29" katana, with bo-hi, for my first sword. After some issues with the tsukas in their earlier batches, their forge and blades had a solid reputation, and the prices on their website were too good to pass up. I reached out via email, and purchased through PayPal.
Historical overview
From their site... "A classic samurai sword". That description is quite accurate. DF blades (Fred Chen swords) look like what you think of when you think of "a samurai sword". The Musha is DF's low level katana.
Full Disclosure
This is my first non-decorative, actually sharp katana. All due respect to the wall hangers mom got me back in the day, but all thoughts and opinions forward should be taken with the appropriate sized grain of salt for someone getting their first sword.
Initial Impressions
The sword arrived in a cardboard box that would be opened to reveal large-bubble wrap, wrapped around another cardboard box. Opening that box revealed small-bubble wrap, wrapped around a navy blue cotton (poly blend?) sword bag. Inside that bag, was the Musha 1060. I work in IT, and I've received servers shipped less securely. Off to a good start. First reaction is that it looks SHARP.
Stats from their site...
Blade length (in/cm): 29/73.66
Overall length (in/cm): 44.75/113.67
Weight (lbs/kg): 2.25/1.02
Steel: 1060 Spring Steel
Polish: Machine
Temper: Mono-tempered
Bo-hi: Yes
The Blade/Nagasa
Still no rattle as it's out of the saya. I wiped any shipping gunk off to reveal a really nice blade. It just looks... Sharp. Like a giant razor blade. The bo-hi terminates nicely with the shape of the kissaki. Looking into it is like looking at a fun-house mirror. I can see my face all distorted in the bo-hi's mirror polish.
Unfortunately upon closer inspection, under the right light, at the right angle, there were some scratches. Saya rub maybe? I've read the phrase, but never actually seen pictures. You can see them on the left of the blade on this pic, but the camera doesn't catch the fact that it runs the length of the blade.
The Handle/Tsuka
It has a slight taper to it before flaring back out a bit. The shape of it looks a little off at first, but it feels good to hold. The ito is very tight. Nothing budges, at all. The menuki is a yajiri, which I wasn't thrilled with, but has grown on me. One of the mekugi pegs is perfectly flush; the other is pretty close to flush. There is something sticking out from the braid near the bottom mekugi. I can't get a grip on it with tweezers. I'm hoping it's hishigami, but would be surprised to find that as a default on their entry level sword. I'll have to ask them about that. Considering my experience level, and that everything's so tight, I'm not going to attempt to remove the tsuka or otherwise disassemble the sword.
Since originally writing this, I've confirmed with DF that all of their swords have hishigami in the ito wrap.
The Guard/Tsuba
The kojiri, kashira, and tsuba are iron, and in the classic Mushashi style. That tsuba style was one of the reasons I chose to purchase this sword; both for the simplicity of style, and as a nod to the master.
The Scabbard/Saya
The saya is glossy black, and has no scratches or marks on it. There is no saya rattle. At most, a slight shimmy sound, but not a rattle. The puffs at the ends of the sageo are a nice touch. The sword starts to fall out of the saya a half a second after it's upside down, which seems right. There's good, not too much, resistance drawing and sheathing the blade.
Handling Characteristics
This sword feels great. The taper on the tsuka feels so natural, and I'd assume it helps the mechanics of the swing. The bo-hi creates a nice tachikaze.
Test Cutting
I did a paper test which confirmed that this sword is razor sharp. The paper was blue accounting office paper (slightly thicker than loose leaf), but you would've thought it was butter the way the sword went through it.
Conclusions
This sword's great on it's own, but is amazing for the price. Especially as it's coming form a known, reputable forge. While I was disappointed with the marks on it, I've since learned that just about every production katana has flaws, and this particular type of flaw is quite common. Plus, at this price point, it wouldn't be wise to expect perfection.
Pros
- direct from DF means factory direct pricing
- customer service was aces, typically very quick email responses
- tsuka feels amazing, has tight ito, with hishigami!
Cons
- marks on the sword (can only be seen in certain light, certain angles)
The Bottom Line
If you're looking for a good entry level katana, I cannot recommend the Dynasty Forge Musha 1060 enough. Again, this is my first functional katana, so take everything with a grain of salt, but this is a great sword, from a good forge, backed up with great customer service.
Historical overview
From their site... "A classic samurai sword". That description is quite accurate. DF blades (Fred Chen swords) look like what you think of when you think of "a samurai sword". The Musha is DF's low level katana.
Full Disclosure
This is my first non-decorative, actually sharp katana. All due respect to the wall hangers mom got me back in the day, but all thoughts and opinions forward should be taken with the appropriate sized grain of salt for someone getting their first sword.
Initial Impressions
The sword arrived in a cardboard box that would be opened to reveal large-bubble wrap, wrapped around another cardboard box. Opening that box revealed small-bubble wrap, wrapped around a navy blue cotton (poly blend?) sword bag. Inside that bag, was the Musha 1060. I work in IT, and I've received servers shipped less securely. Off to a good start. First reaction is that it looks SHARP.
Stats from their site...
Blade length (in/cm): 29/73.66
Overall length (in/cm): 44.75/113.67
Weight (lbs/kg): 2.25/1.02
Steel: 1060 Spring Steel
Polish: Machine
Temper: Mono-tempered
Bo-hi: Yes
The Blade/Nagasa
Still no rattle as it's out of the saya. I wiped any shipping gunk off to reveal a really nice blade. It just looks... Sharp. Like a giant razor blade. The bo-hi terminates nicely with the shape of the kissaki. Looking into it is like looking at a fun-house mirror. I can see my face all distorted in the bo-hi's mirror polish.
Unfortunately upon closer inspection, under the right light, at the right angle, there were some scratches. Saya rub maybe? I've read the phrase, but never actually seen pictures. You can see them on the left of the blade on this pic, but the camera doesn't catch the fact that it runs the length of the blade.
On the other side of the blade, there was a section that, again, in the right light, at the right angle, looked like marks from a tong or whatever was used to hold the blade. Maybe polishing wasn't 100% on this one? I was not able to get a good picture of this.
The Handle/Tsuka
It has a slight taper to it before flaring back out a bit. The shape of it looks a little off at first, but it feels good to hold. The ito is very tight. Nothing budges, at all. The menuki is a yajiri, which I wasn't thrilled with, but has grown on me. One of the mekugi pegs is perfectly flush; the other is pretty close to flush. There is something sticking out from the braid near the bottom mekugi. I can't get a grip on it with tweezers. I'm hoping it's hishigami, but would be surprised to find that as a default on their entry level sword. I'll have to ask them about that. Considering my experience level, and that everything's so tight, I'm not going to attempt to remove the tsuka or otherwise disassemble the sword.
Since originally writing this, I've confirmed with DF that all of their swords have hishigami in the ito wrap.
The Guard/Tsuba
The kojiri, kashira, and tsuba are iron, and in the classic Mushashi style. That tsuba style was one of the reasons I chose to purchase this sword; both for the simplicity of style, and as a nod to the master.
The Scabbard/Saya
The saya is glossy black, and has no scratches or marks on it. There is no saya rattle. At most, a slight shimmy sound, but not a rattle. The puffs at the ends of the sageo are a nice touch. The sword starts to fall out of the saya a half a second after it's upside down, which seems right. There's good, not too much, resistance drawing and sheathing the blade.
Handling Characteristics
This sword feels great. The taper on the tsuka feels so natural, and I'd assume it helps the mechanics of the swing. The bo-hi creates a nice tachikaze.
Test Cutting
I did a paper test which confirmed that this sword is razor sharp. The paper was blue accounting office paper (slightly thicker than loose leaf), but you would've thought it was butter the way the sword went through it.
Conclusions
This sword's great on it's own, but is amazing for the price. Especially as it's coming form a known, reputable forge. While I was disappointed with the marks on it, I've since learned that just about every production katana has flaws, and this particular type of flaw is quite common. Plus, at this price point, it wouldn't be wise to expect perfection.
Pros
- direct from DF means factory direct pricing
- customer service was aces, typically very quick email responses
- tsuka feels amazing, has tight ito, with hishigami!
Cons
- marks on the sword (can only be seen in certain light, certain angles)
The Bottom Line
If you're looking for a good entry level katana, I cannot recommend the Dynasty Forge Musha 1060 enough. Again, this is my first functional katana, so take everything with a grain of salt, but this is a great sword, from a good forge, backed up with great customer service.