# Communities > Modern-era Swords and Collecting Community > Modern Production Katanas >  practicl plus tang

## Ed Woj

i was looking at maybe buyin a hanwei practical plus katana the older one not the one from the performance series... but a long time back i remember seeing pictures of a disassembled one and the tang made me shudder at the thought of using it... now it was supposedly an older generation of the practical plus i was wondering if they ever fixed that issue does anyone have a "newer" practical plus from the classic line taht could tell me

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## Andrew W. Priestley

What was the problem you saw?

I have a PPK from before the Performance Series, and there isn't anything shocking to me about its nakago.

It's two generations old (counting the Performance Series and the series prior. I had the tsuka shortened a bit and it now suits me pretty well and cuts effectively, though not effortlessly as the Performance Series swords do. The blade is more substantial than the generation immediately after it as well.

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## Ed Woj

well the picutre i had seen the nakago just seemed way too thin, i had a cheap one off ebay that had a larger nakago and the holes just seemed very off... the nakago itself didnt seem to follow the curve of the blade as it should to the point one of the holes for the mekugi was nearly on the edge of the nakago in fact it looked liek the hole might have worn through the material on the edge

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## Jennifer Yabut

Are you talking about the PPK I disassembled a few years ago?  I took apart a cheapo wallhanger katana and posted pics on this thread, along with pictures of my disassembled PPK as a point of comparison: http://forums.swordforum.com/showpos...37&postcount=5

For what it's worth, the PPK I own is pretty sturdy.

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## Ed Woj

no i had seen other pics and the nakago on that practical plus looks leaps and bounds above the one i saw... i dunno if it was a factory second or an older generation but thanks for the help guys gave me exactly what i needed to know

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## Andrew W. Priestley

Mine looks very much the same as Jennifer's.  They are straight and do not follow the curve of the sword well, but they are sturdy, and balance the blade pretty well. 

Handling of my PPK improved dramatically when I shortened the tsuka to more classical dimensions.  This did not require any alteration in the nakago itself, only the tsuka. 

The newer PPK's in the performance series are chunkier by a fair bit.

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## Ed Woj

im pretty much sold on the older ppk for a live blade it seems to have precisely what im looking for with some later customization of course... i was wondering if anyone had info on the elite version... 

i was wondering if it was worht the extra money for that one instead.... the blade seems to be more robust ot me but it could just be the pictures i havent had a chnce to handle one yet

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## Andrew W. Priestley

The Elite version has a more robust tang matched to a somewhat broader blade with pronounced distal taper.  The Elite model seems to be in the middle ground between the wide mat cutting XL and XL Light and the older classic model blade shape.  Very good cutter, but not specialized for competition cutting.  The tsuka is also shorter, more appropriate for most classical styles of swordsmanship. I consider it a better choice than the old PPKs.

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## Ed Woj

well i plan on using it primarily for forms and maybe light cutting so i was looking for something wihtou a bohi that was more light and better suited for forms rather than constant cutting which the performance series seem to be made for im not a fan of all those robust types of blades simply because i dont do much cutting

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## Ed Woj

i just thought of something else, how is the tsuka on these models... I'm going to be having a full same wrap done to it and wrapped in silk.  But i was wondering if i might be better having a new core carved for it, i'll also be shortening it, if the core is good enough to last.

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## michael wilson

If you can , pick up an older PPK  - I recieved a PPK yesterday and its about 5 years old  - not the thin,narrow PPK thats out now  - this one is a beefy blade , nice and stout .

Just like the gen 4 PK was a thicker more robust blade than the last gen 5 PK line  - I dont see making the blades thinner as progress at all.

its also had its tsuka shortened and balances out a bit more towards the tip than a standard PPK does - I never can understand why hanwei give shorter bladed katana like the PPK a long tsuka of 12.25" ? Bugei influence maybe ?

The PPK elite is a very wide blade with a dramatic amount of distal taper going from 7 MM to 4mm  - its very thin over the last 1/3rd of the blade so its a demon mat cutter but not very robust at the monouchi  - I almost bought one last month but a mint condition PC Bushido popped up on the classifieds so I went with that .

One thing I do like about the practical elite range is that the finish on the blade looks a few steps higher than the old classic line  - the PK elite I handled had a very nice level of polish more like a mid range sword like my musashi than a PK .

Thanks

Mick

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