# Communities > Modern-era Swords and Collecting Community > Modern Production Katanas >  Production blades with a "real yokote"? What is a yokote?

## Angelo Silva

I've been thinking, which exactly are the katana that have a plane shift at the yokote, and this, in turn, is properly placed?

I thought the higher end Dynasty Forge katana had it, but that might not necessarily be the case, and I've been looking at Hanwei katana and I although I have the impression that most, if not all models, have a "real yokote", I can't actually confirm it. So, I'm making this thread to attempt and make a list of sorts, of which katana have an actual yokote that isn't just counter polished into the tip.

So far I've come up with:

Citadel Yoshi
...

Actually that is the only one I can think of for sure. Would you guys like to add some more to the list? I'm sure there are many of you with sizable collections that can name a few.

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## J. Bouthner

I'm pretty sure Bugei swords have real yokote.

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## Travis Nicko

I've got a pc bushido with a geometry change at the yokote...I believe the higher-end and some of the mid-line (not elite or xl) models have this as well. My pc ppk does not.

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## Hong Yeung

I think the Paul Chen Forged series and higher should all have real yokote's, while practical lines dont.

Though my tsuru stainless steel iaito does, haha

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## Timo Qvintus

I have real yokote on KC Bingo Mihara and "Masahiro Bamboo", not 100% sure about my Oni Tonbo and ZhiSword, I'll have to check

My PC Orchid does NOT have real yokote, nor do my PC Practicals.

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## Mats Gustavsson

No physical change in geometry in my PPK

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## michael wilson

My PC Musashi has a real yokote  - a very well defined one as well
as you can feel the change in geometry .

also my PC Bushido also has a well defined geometric yokote 

Now my KC Shingen has a definite change in geometry at the yokote but its not as sharp or well defined as the PC blades I mentioned, its definitely not just counter polished to reveal a cosmetic yokote .


Mick

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## Tommy C.

My PC Wind & Thunder has a very visable real yokote

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## Remy B

My bugei does,
my Thaitsuki doesnt

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## Angelo Silva

> My bugei does,
> my Thaitsuki doesnt


Ah Remy...  :Big Grin:  Your thaitsuki thread gave some good laughs. Don't worry, if there is any justice in this world you'll find a great bargain one day. 
Thanks for the input guys. Keep'em coming

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## Timo Qvintus

Oni Tonbo has real yokote, ZhiSword doesn't (it's an iaito, so not really a surprise there).

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## Remy B

> Ah Remy...  Your thaitsuki thread gave some good laughs. Don't worry, if there is any justice in this world you'll find a great bargain one day. 
> Thanks for the input guys. Keep'em coming


HEHE! well at least it found a use if it made you laugh!  :Hyuk!:

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## Mat Rous

> My PC Wind & Thunder has a very visable real yokote


That's strange, mine has none - it's cosmetic.

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## Tommy C.

> That's strange, mine has none - it's cosmetic.


Well I am relatively new to katana style swords, but there is a definate line running perpendicular to the ha, and the surface of the blade flares out to the line and then flares back toward the point; that is yokote right? This sword was bought from Shadow of Leaves and has different fittings and a blue silk ito, but it is a W&T blade.

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## Jerry G.

> This sword was bought from Shadow of Leaves and has different fittings and a blue silk ito, but it is a W&T blade.


So THAT'S where the o-kissaki customized 4-lobe kat ended up.  I was considering buying that very same blade during the "Tax Rebate" sale at SoL but *somebody* beat me to the punch.  Hell of a deal on that one ya got there with the upgraded f/k, tsuba, menuki, ito, etc.   :Embarrassment:

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## Mat Rous

> Well I am relatively new to katana style swords, but there is a definate line running perpendicular to the ha, and the surface of the blade flares out to the line and then flares back toward the point; that is yokote right? This sword was bought from Shadow of Leaves and has different fittings and a blue silk ito, but it is a W&T blade.


The yokote on mine is very faint and ground in. It's part of the reason that the W&T used to be called a shobu with a yokote (which it isnt).

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## Timo Qvintus

Maybe it's a generation-thing with the PC's?

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## nathanarcher

I really wish someone did a definitive and in depth overview of all the PC generation in each line. Be quite a job but valuable.

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## andy jones

Hi All,
       Timo I think you maybe onto something there, Ive handled two shinto, one had a very well defined yakote, my own shinto has a very shallow one, and the two swords seem to be finnished slightly differently. The tiger classic has a very defined yakote, more so than any other sword I have handled(nihonto included).
Regards andy

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## Jerry G.

> The tiger classic has a very defined yakote, more so than any other sword I have handled(nihonto included).
> Regards andy


That is largely because the Tiger Classic has a ko-kissaki and substantial kasane; with a longer point and thinner blade, the yokote would be far less dramatic.  Here's a pic of my Tiger Classic's kissaki area-

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## andy jones

That looks really nice Jerry, wish I still had my old tiger, but my chiburi wasn't so good back then, so I sold it for the wrong reasons, I should have worked harder on my skills :Embarrassment:

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## nathanarcher

Andy, out of the 2 Shinto's I dont suppose you know which one was the older one.

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## andy jones

yes I do, my one was one of the first I saw in england with bo hi,about 3+years ago the other was purchased about 6months ago(this had a better everything not just yokote), would indicate PC are committed to improving their products.

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## Travis Nicko

I've got a pc tsunami on the way...anyone know if this one has the "real" thing? Sure hope so... :Confused:

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## Tsugio Kawakami

I don't believe the tsunami does...but don't take my word as gospel. It's been a while since I handled one.

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## Christopher H

Going by the images on this site: http://www.samurai-sword-shop.com/pa...ami-katana.htm it appears to me that it has a geometric change.

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## Travis Nicko

:Thanks, guys! Those pics at the previous link are probably the best I've seen of this sword. But, before I get too off topic ( :Big Grin: ), a couple more for the list: both my last legend tsunami and DF daimyo have a cosmetic line. There is definately some geometric change there but its certainly not defined at the yokote.

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## K Jenq

Out of curiosity, does anybody have a ballpark guess of how much it might cost to make an actual yokote on a production sword? I would imagine a lot if most all the makers are using essentially cosmetic yokote. Additionally, why do makers skimp out on this department and other quirks in regards to blade geometry (Such as shobu-zukuri)?

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## Timo Qvintus

> Out of curiosity, does anybody have a ballpark guess of how much it might cost to make an actual yokote on a production sword? I would imagine a lot if most all the makers are using essentially cosmetic yokote. Additionally, why do makers skimp out on this department and other quirks in regards to blade geometry (Such as shobu-zukuri)?


Unless the blade has significant amount of niku on it (and almost none of the production swords do) it is not even possible to make a geometric yokote.

IMO makers "skimp out" on things for two reasons: 
1) cost 
2) lack of knowledge  :Hyuk!: 

and in that order, too.  :Ninja Master:

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## Chris Osborne

I understand this issue can be viewed as one of semantics, but never the less this "real yokote" topic seems to crop up every few months or so on SFI and it's easy to see from browsing the replies in these threads that the language used is definitely causing confusion to people.

Any blade that has a visual line, geometric or no, separating the ji from the kissaki, has a REAL YOKOTE.

The common logic I'm seeing in these threads is that a geometric change at the yokote line equals a "real" yokote, therefore the insinuation here is that the absence of this geometric change equals what? Well, if by real we mean a geometric change, then everything else must have a fake yokote and therefore be inferior.

This line of logic MIGHT ring true for the production swords you guys are discussing, but the problem comes in when people think the same logic will apply to all Japanese style blades including fine modern or antique Nihonto or customs. Well it doesn't. 

If all things were equal, it might be easier in some instances to not grind in a geometric change at the yokote, and no doubt cheaper production blades leave it out for this reason, it's just simply easier to deal with this area all the way through the process if there isn't a geometry change there. That said, this is not the case when dealing with fine blades. O-kissaki blades for instance typically don't have a geometric change at the yokote, and even if they do it's only very slight, it just isn't possible on some blades for varying reasons, none of which indicate an inferior blade. As I said in an earlier thread on this subject, about a year ago I had both an Enomoto Sadahito and and Enomoto Sadayoshi in my shop, both worth around $10,000, and neither had any geometric change whatsoever at the yokote. According to the consensus often seen here, neither had a "real" yokote. 

The bottom line here is that if this is something of import to people and is discussed, terms of either geometric or non-geometric would be better and far more accurate. I'm really not sure if "cosmetic" is even a relevant term in relation to the yokote to be honest, but the word "real" here is not only confusing but completely out of place and improper, as there is definitely no such thing as a yokote that is not real, it's either there or it isn't.

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## Gary S

> I understand this issue can be viewed as one of semantics, but never the less this "real yokote" topic seems to crop up every few months or so on SFI and it's easy to see from browsing the replies in these threads that the language used is definitely causing confusion to people.
> 
> Any blade that has a visual line, geometric or no, separating the ji from the kissaki, has a REAL YOKOTE.
> 
> The common logic I'm seeing in these threads is that a geometric change at the yokote line equals a "real" yokote, therefore the insinuation here is that the absence of this geometric change equals what? Well, if by real we mean a geometric change, then everything else must have a fake yokote and therefore be inferior.
> 
> This line of logic MIGHT ring true for the production swords you guys are discussing, but the problem comes in when people think the same logic will apply to all Japanese style blades including fine modern or antique Nihonto or customs. Well it doesn't. 
> 
> If all things were equal, it might be easier in some instances to not grind in a geometric change at the yakote, and no doubt cheaper production blades leave it out for this reason, it's just simply easier to deal with this area all the way through the process if there isn't a geometry change there. That said, this is not the case when dealing with fine blades. O-kissaki blades for instance typically don't have a geometric change at the yokote, and even if they do it's only very slight, it just isn't possible on some blades for varying reasons, none of which indicate an inferior blade. As I said in an earlier thread on this subject, about a year ago I had both an Enomoto Sadahito and and Enomoto Sadayoshi in my shop, both worth around $10,000, and neither had any geometric change whatsoever at the yokote. According to the consensus often seen here, neither had a "real" yokote. 
> ...


THANK YOU...I never saw what the big deal was... As I stated earlier, my Emura (which, now that you mention it, has an o-kissaki)...has no change at all, except a polish difference.

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## Mats Gustavsson

> I understand this issue can be viewed as one of semantics, but never the less this "real yokote" topic seems to crop up every few months or so on SFI and it's easy to see from browsing the replies in these threads that the language used is definitely causing confusion to people.
> 
> Any blade that has a visual line, geometric or no, separating the ji from the kissaki, has a REAL YOKOTE.
> 
> The common logic I'm seeing in these threads is that a geometric change at the yokote line equals a "real" yokote, therefore the insinuation here is that the absence of this geometric change equals what? Well, if by real we mean a geometric change, then everything else must have a fake yokote and therefore be inferior.
> 
> This line of logic MIGHT ring true for the production swords you guys are discussing, but the problem comes in when people think the same logic will apply to all Japanese style blades including fine modern or antique Nihonto or customs. Well it doesn't. 
> 
> If all things were equal, it might be easier in some instances to not grind in a geometric change at the yakote, and no doubt cheaper production blades leave it out for this reason, it's just simply easier to deal with this area all the way through the process if there isn't a geometry change there. That said, this is not the case when dealing with fine blades. O-kissaki blades for instance typically don't have a geometric change at the yokote, and even if they do it's only very slight, it just isn't possible on some blades for varying reasons, none of which indicate an inferior blade. As I said in an earlier thread on this subject, about a year ago I had both an Enomoto Sadahito and and Enomoto Sadayoshi in my shop, both worth around $10,000, and neither had any geometric change whatsoever at the yokote. According to the consensus often seen here, neither had a "real" yokote. 
> ...


I thank you too Chris, I have been nagging about this for years.

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## Timo Qvintus

Thanks for clearing this up, Chris! I just tend to use the word "real" instead of "geometric" because "real" is faster to write..  :Hyuk!:

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## Travis Nicko

We should come up with a term that us forumites can use to describe this feature...how 'bout "gc@y" :Big Grin:

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## Hong Yeung

hmmm, i originally had the idea of geo change cause it seeme dthats what most people thought, DAMN YOU other people!

Teaching me the wrong stuff lol

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## Chris Osborne

Well the latest round of yokote woes has led me to do some more research on the matter. When this topic came up a while back I was somewhat unsure, so I asked a mentor of mine who is a traditionally trained polisher. His answer was that whether physical or cosmetic, the line itself is still the yokote.

It would seem as though the yokote can be a bit paradoxical. At least one scholar has defined it as a "ridge", but this can be somewhat misleading taken out of context. It indeed can be and usually is a ridge, but is also more than just a ridge. It can be said that a healthy, well forged, shinogi-zukuri blade with a kissaki within moderate length should posses a physical geometry change at the yokote. Now, here's the issue; what do you call the line between the kissaki and ji on a blade that doesn't have a physical change? As far as I know there's only one descriptive Japanese word for this feature, whether geometric or cosmetic, and that is the yokote.

So after examining the arguments of those who say the yokote is  a geometric change and those who say it's cosmetic, I'm forced to say it appears to be both. The yokote seems as though it can be accurately defined as either the bevel ground in by the smith or polisher, the cosmetic line placed by the polisher as the visual boundary between kissaki and ji, or both. I hope that rambling makes some sense. :Big Grin:

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## michael wilson

Yokote  - 

for me its the demarkation line between the main body of the blade and the kissaki , even without a geometric change the yokote line needs to be correctly placed in relation to the transition of the shinogi into ko-shinogi ,  slap dash placement will make the kissaki area appear unbalanced and ill formed .

I wouldnt set too much store by production blades with a faceted 
yokote  - Ive seen zhi swords in the $500 + range with a geometric 
yokote but it had many open kizu in the layers of the folding along with pitting all over the mune .

it doesnt always mean its  a better sword  :Smilie:

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## Gary S

Interestingly enough, my _$200_ Zhi sword has a geometric change, while my $500 Hanwei does not...

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## Benjamin P.

chris or someone else knowledgeable, could you please explain which kind or style of shinogi-zukuri sugata blades should feature a geometric change at the yokote?

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## Keith Larman

You are asking the wrong questions.

The bigger question is *why* a physical yokote is present or absent on any particular production blade. With most production blades the location, presence, style and/or lack of a physical yokote simply reflects the lack of knowledge in the subtle details of shaping a Japanese sword. The yokote is one small aspect of a very complex overall shape. And with everything else done somewhat coarsely the discussion of placement, style and/or location of the yokote is pretty much silly given the bigger picture. The geometry on most production swords is usually more or less a caricature of traditional shaping hence whether the yokote was done as a physical line or a cosmetic application is really irrelevant. It's like arguing about some tiny detail of Speed Racer's Mach V car... It ain't real so you just can't have an intelligent discussion about cars in general if that's your point of reference. 

You won't learn much of anything about such a subtle detail of Japanese swords by looking at a reproduction. 

And I'd hesitate a bit to draw many conclusions from WWII era swords either. I *like* the WWII guys like Emura, Nagamitsu, etc. as entry level pieces and I think they are worthy of more respect than they generally get, but the polishes put on many of those blades of that era were done by less than well trained togishi often working assembly line. 

But... All that said... Some do, some don't. And understanding why is a really big area that involves a lot of factors. I'm not writing it out again since I seem to remember a long discussion on yokote fairly recently here where I typed out a ton of information. And since I'm both getting tired of retyping things and tired of some of the silly things I see I'd suggest using the search feature... Guido Schiller posted in the same thread I'm thinking of as well. Use the Search...

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## Remy B

Both of my shinogi zukuri nihontos have a subtle geometry change at the yokote, not abrupt, subtle.  :Smilie: 

As M Larman said, my production swords are a mascarade of the real deal.

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## Gary S

> And I'd hesitate a bit to draw many conclusions from WWII era swords either. I *like* the WWII guys like Emura, Nagamitsu, etc. as entry level pieces and I think they are worthy of more respect than they generally get, but the polishes put on many of those blades of that era were done by less than well trained togishi often working assembly line.


 I kind of wondered about that myself, although the polish on mine is better than most WWII polishes I've seen, it even has a burnished shinogi. One of these days, I'll cough up the money and have it repolished. 

    My main beef with this thread and a lot of the threads here in general are exactly what you suggested: you can't draw conclusions about Japanese swords from production swords, nor should you expect the same things.
   When I first started collecting Nihonto in the early eighties, you could go to any gun or militaria show and handle between 30 to maybe a few hundred different swords. So while my own collection is quite modest, I've handled quite a few swords in my time. However, I've just started to venture into the production arena. A good share of the beefs I've heard from people about production swords also apply to a lot of Nihonto. I won't go into detail here since I just finished ranting in another thread.
  I think Keith is correct in stating that most errors in production swords are due to ignorance on the part of the manufacturer on the fine details. However, let's face it...manufacturers produce what people buy. Some of the problem here is that alot of the consumers buying the swords are also guilty of the same offense...

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## Chris Osborne

Found the thread and read it, some great points made there. My biggest concern with the issue is that I can see perceptions being made about Japanese swords based on observations of production blades. I see the word "real" used in describing the yokote even in books, and I understand why it's used, but at the same time the people using it understand what they're talking about and aren't confused or making inaccurate assumptions. However, I could easily see someone after several of these discussions being at a show and looking at nicely made blade with maybe a very large o-kissaki and wondering why if it's supposed to be so nice that it doesn't even have a real yokote.

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## Gary S

> Found the thread and read it, some great points made there. My biggest concern with the issue is that I can see perceptions being made about Japanese swords based on observations of production blades. I see the word "real" used in describing the yokote even in books, and I understand why it's used, but at the same time the people using it understand what they're talking about and aren't confused or making inaccurate assumptions. However, I could easily see someone after several of these discussions being at a show and looking at nicely made blade with maybe a very large o-kissaki and wondering why if it's supposed to be so nice that it doesn't even have a real yokote.


I'm not sure if one of them is THE thread referred to, but I found two concerning the yokote that Keith posted in that were very informative...and I have a bunch more yet to read...

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## Alex S

PC ninja = real

PC shinto = cosmetic

PC shinto shirasaya = cosmetic 

PC tsunami (as far as my memory serves, parted with it some time ago) = cosmetic

PC bushido (see above) = cosmetic

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## Timo Qvintus

Guys, please post a link to the other thread(s) for future cross-reference.

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## Travis Nicko

Guys, just got in a pc tsunami kat from Kult of Athena (cheapest around, good transaction by the way) and WE HAVE GC@Y!!! :Big Grin:  I really like the sword, too...thought the fittings would look cheesy, but I'm surprised at how nice it looks. Nice and stout and not to long (28")

Oh, Alex...my pc bushido DOES have a defined change as well. I really been lovin' these last hanweis I've picked up. Cheapest prices I could find and still excellent quallity imho.

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## Glen C.

> Guys, please post a link to the other thread(s) for future cross-reference.


Not to sound like an old fuddy duddy (even if I am) but if you go to the advanced search and use yokote as a search term, then add a user name. Say, maybe, what do you think? Kieth Larman might be a good one to link with yokote. Yes, there is a page of threads that come up. Or maybe Guido Schiller.

Run the search as all forums, entire posts and display threads only.

Cheers

Hotspur; _or, just read the last 500 Keith Larman posts_

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## Timo Qvintus

> Hotspur; _or, just read the last 500 Keith Larman posts_


I have, on more than one occasion. Everyone interested in Japanese-style swords should, too. But providing a straight link still beats the crap out of having to search for a thread, no matter how obvious it may be.

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## KevinT

> I have, on more than one occasion. Everyone interested in Japanese-style swords should, too. But providing a straight link still beats the crap out of having to search for a thread, no matter how obvious it may be.



Heehee but then the guy suggesting the read has to search for the link.

My take is opposite of Chris- who is saying all are real ( I think) because there is a line.

I would say, none are "real" because they do not have the expert hand defining all surfaces to their _if you will allow_ their proper placement.

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## Glen C.

> I have, on more than one occasion. Everyone interested in Japanese-style swords should, too. But providing a straight link still beats the crap out of having to search for a thread, no matter how obvious it may be.


One that went much the same direction as this one was the Last Legend thread in the search results for the search I have suggested. Why limit it to one thread though? One could search just the term itself and limit to threads only, then further segregate by subforum. Not to forget that the modern production katana room only goes back a couple of years.

I know you are a proponent of the quick and easy answer and I am on the opposite end of the scale. The thing is that any willing to could spend the time reading and compiling a list of references for themselves, or others. I'm not a huge fan of sticky threads but I am going to pin this one to the top as well. if someone were so inclined to weed through search results and provide links to some other yokote relevant threads, well, go for it. It is not unusual for a topic to be revisited/rethought, so maybe making this a sticky is really the best I (as jafo) can offer.

Cheers

Hotspur; _yokote, the demarcation that seperates the pointy end from the rest of a katanaesque blade (something like that, right?)_

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## Alex S

> Oh, Alex...my pc bushido DOES have a defined change as well. I really been lovin' these last hanweis I've picked up. Cheapest prices I could find and still excellent quallity imho.


Hmm.  I'm pretty sure my bushido (bought in 2004) had a cosmetic yokote.  Either my memory serves me poorly, or they may have 'upgraded' it in subsequent generation(s).

Side-note: Yokote or no yokote, I regret parting with that sword.  Damn the newly-fangled UK laws.  Damn them.

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## Travis Nicko

Probably an upgrade, you're right :Smilie: . A couple of people have told me that their old tsunamis had merely a cosmetic line as well. I think hanwei has improved by leaps and strides over the past 5 or so years...I've been nothing but satisfied with them, which is more than I can say for some other production companies.

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## Timo Qvintus

Just curious, do Orchids have "generations", or has their model remained the same over time?

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## Nathan Bolhuis

Hmmm, this may be my first real post, but I had to put my 2 cents in, and possibly gain some knowledge in the process.

I currently have a replica yet fully functional katana known in the jap-anime Bleach as Tensa Zangetsu (supposed translation: "divine chain cutting moon" though I personally am not sure of that but if anyone IS knowledgeable enough in japanese to translate it for me it would be greatly appreciated) 

Point being, this blade (manufacturer unknown) has no yokote, it does have a mildy definitive hamon (as I have yet to finish sharpening and polishing to get rid of the paint that was on the blade when I got it), but it is a modern high carbon steel, muji as far as i can tell so far, and the boshi is yakizume.

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## Mats Gustavsson

Hi Nathan
Welcome to the forum.
First we have to straight out some things. A yokote can be a physical change in the geometry in a kissaki. 
A yokote can also be just a marking put there buy the polisher. 
Two different things but both are a yokote.

In production Japanese sword the yokote is almost always the latter, just a marking. (in a production sword it’s often just scratch on)

In a real Nihonto the physical change in geometry is put there by the smith or the polisher when the sword is born .
When it gets older and has been polished several times this physical change is eventually polished off and the yokote is left to be just a marking.

There are several threads on this forum about this, try to search on “yokoteline”

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## Nathan Bolhuis

> Hi Nathan
> Welcome to the forum.
> First we have to straight out some things. A yokote can be a physical change in the geometry in a kissaki. 
> A yokote can also be just a marking put there buy the polisher. 
> Two different things but both are a yokote.
> 
> In production Japanese sword the yokote is almost always the latter, just a marking. (in a production sword it’s often just scratch on)
> 
> In a real Nihonto the physical change in geometry is put there by the smith or the polisher when the sword is born .
> ...


Thanks very much for the enlightenment, now i really feel like a fool, but no less a little more educated fool.  Yes my blade has a real yokote in the sense that it has the definite change in geometry, but it does not however have a defined yokote, it's rounded and smooth... which seems to go against traditional style for a new sword, but now that I know a little more of proper sharpening and polishing technique since you've pointed this out to me, I plan on doing as much as I can to get the yokote on my blade properly.  The only difficult part of this is going to be that the shinogi and the kissaki don't line up quite right to get the yokote right without removing quite a bit of metal from the base of the kissaki... so I guess just wish me luck on putting this blade into respectable condition with a proper yokote.  Any and all pointers and constructive criticism on this is absolutely welcome!  

Thanks again very much!

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## J-M. Watier

Hi does anyone know if the PC Oni has a real Yokote?
Thank you

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## M.K. Ridgeway

I haven't seen it first hand , but I think yes... even the shinto and W&T have geometric yokote

Check Femal Sensei's sight for good pictures

nihonzashi.com

but for the best prices deal with this guy...

http://www.wiwingtiswordsupply.com/

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## J-M. Watier

I own one but the Yokote does not stand out very strong is that normal?

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## M.K. Ridgeway

Normal is relative

I have a custom blade ... it doen't stand out big time on that either

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## J-M. Watier

Oh Ok cool,  I think the polishing on it doesn't help either.  But it's still a very nice blade, though the Hamon is very hard to see, you have to really look at the blade to see it.  I don't think they did any enhancing on the blade.

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## M.K. Ridgeway

> Oh Ok cool,  I think the polishing on it doesn't help either.  But it's still a very nice blade, though the Hamon is very hard to see, you have to really look at the blade to see it.  I don't think they did any enhancing on the blade.



L6 is hard to get a flashy hamon...

Hey, it'd be nice if you'd post some nice high res pics...I've yet to see any


and maybe just a teeny little review?  

I'm very interested... my favorite Hanwei mount ever

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## J-M. Watier

I will do my best to get some nice pictures, i'll post some tomorrow.

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## J-M. Watier

Alright, I will do my best to give you the best info about the Blade.  Also please forgive me for the Photo if they ar not real good quality it is pretty much my first time sending pictures.

Tsuka is about 15 inches
blade is 30 inches
thickness is about 1/4 inch
the width is almost 1 1/2
it's a Chu Kissaki, the tip kind of goes up a little
the Sori is pretty shallow
the Habaki is actually brass, not silver
the tsuba is a little smaller for the size of the sword but it is thick
the wrapping is suprizingly nice and tight
Fushi and Kashira have a very nice Oni motife
the Nakago goes all the way to the end of the tsuka
the Saya has a rattan look to it but it is only the wood that is carved that way
the balacing point is around where the Habaki is
the Hamon gets more faint towards the Kissaki, but I belive it is because of the polishing, they could of done a better job.
Besides the it's a very nice sword and suprizingly light.

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## J-M. Watier

Sorry I have to take the pictures with another camera because the files are too big with the ones I took.

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## J-M. Watier

Here's some pictures.

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## J-M. Watier

More.

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## M.K. Ridgeway

Thanks for the photos...

It really is a nice sword , isn't it?

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## J-M. Watier

Sorry for the delay, but yes it is.  The bad thing about it is the Sageo, it is so cheap it shreded in no time.

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## Aaron W

Does anyone know if the new bamboo mat from Hanwei has a geometric yokote? I apologize for asking, I'm not well versed enough in the art of the japanese sword to be able to tell on my own  :Frown: .

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