Valiant Armoury Nagai Handoru Nodachi
Nov 19, 2008 1:33:06 GMT
Post by Deleted on Nov 19, 2008 1:33:06 GMT
Valiant Armoury Nagai Handoru Nodachi – By: Keith “Fatecaller” R. (Manitoba, Canada)
Being the friendly neighbourhood giant sword go to guy, I was called upon yet again to review another larger than life sword. A short while ago, Paul sent a rumour down the pipeline that there was yet again another giant sword coming to the market and thought I might want to be one of the first to know. After a few quick chats, the sword was ordered and sent on its way. After looking at a few of the sneak peak pictures let slip by VA, I couldn’t wait to see this thing in action.
After a few weeks, I came home and saw the box standing in my entrance. It always comes as a bit of a shock when u see the box leaning up against the wall and it’s not much shorter then you are, and as most of you know already I’m no shorty. The packaged was double boxed with packing foam to keep the sword centrally located in the box. As I pulled out the sword bag from the box, it never seemed to end. After handling a few standard kat’s, you kind of get an idea of how long they should be and this thing just kept on going. Once fully out of the box I removed the sword bag to see the biggest freakin handle of all time. Yup, it definitely deserves the title of “big sword” though it seemed incredibly light for a sword of these dimensions.
Dry handling
The next day I took it out during daylight to see just how it would handle given its stature. I can honestly say it almost felt lighter than your standard kat. Kind of a brain process misconception due to its size and being so light it felt almost awkward. Normally one would expect a big sword to pack some weight but this one did not. The handle being so long took nearly all the weight off the blade making it easy to swing, but at the same time it was so long that it got in the way at times. Many standard cuts felt awkward as the handle scraped against my stomach, very long indeed. It will take some practice to get used to this thing.
Here are the stats on this giant
Blade length – 3ft ½ in
Tsuka length – 21in
Overall Length – 58in
Tsuba width – 3 ½ in
POB – 3 ½ in
Weight – listed @ 3lbs. 1oz.
This should put things in perspective
Top to Bottem
Tenchi - O-Kat - Nodachi
Blade
The blade on this sword is certainly something to gawk at. It is polished to a mirror shine. A half length bo-hi complements the blade well running into a false back edge. The hamon (not sure if its natural or acid etched) stands out like a Ferrari in used car lot. It is absolutely stunning, probably one of the biggest selling points on this sword. The blade is very sharp out of the box, not requiring any aftermarket sharpening jobs. Blade material is listed as differentially tempered 1095. The tip is also not standard on this one, coming with a leaf tip blade. With all that said there are also a lot of drawbacks to the blade as well. The false edge on the blade removes an awful lot of stock bringing the blade weight down tremendously which normally is a good thing but in this case I feel that it is not for the good. The sword is very whippy which is completely foreign to katanas as far as I know. It is so light that it almost feels like it could break on a bad cut. I’m not saying that it won’t stand up to hard targets, but I personally don’t feel comfortable using it on such. I have always believed that a big sword is designed to do a big job and this one lacks that quality. It is a big sword, don’t get me wrong but it doesn’t feel like one. I don’t want to rant about it but I feel the need to get the point across. Even my friend, who knows much more about kats then I do agreed with me on that point. Nodachi’s were used to take men off of horses or cut the horses legs off, but I wouldn’t try neither with this sword.
Tsuba
The tusba is beautifully simplistic on this piece. It looks to be a blued zinc alloy but I cannot confirm this for sure. The swirl design and matte black finish really go well with the overall look.
Furniture
One of the first things I noticed when playing with the sword for the first time was that the Kashira was very loose. The ito must have loosened off causing it to hang loosely. Hopefully some epoxy will fix that problem. Aside from that, the fittings go rather well with theme of the sword. Not too fancy but beautiful in there simplicity. The fittings ( fuchi and kashira) are blackened (alloy?), but are faded somewhat. It’s hard to determine if this is done on purpose. Is it custom faded? Bernie Mac says it is, but since it’s your first car he wouldn’t expect you to understand.
Saya
The saya was definitely something new to me. The entire saya had a matte black pebbled finish, kind of like a rhino lining you would find in the box of pickup trucks, very utilitarian. Another thing I noticed was the end of the saya. It tapered off to fit the shape of the blade tip, unlike your standard flat ended saya. The sword fit tightly in the saya with no rattles, a big plus.
Tsuka & Ito
Long freaking tsuka, what else can you say. There is almost as much handle as blade on this pig, 18 inches of tang and 21 inches of triple pegged handle. There is no messing around here. I found it hard to believe that this sword has a longer handle then my Scottish Lowlander. This contributes greatly to the awkwardness of swinging it around. All cutting techniques need to be thought through and carried out differently than with a standard kat, not quite as graceful. The ito is black cord wrapped with real ray skin underlay. Very impressive.
Testing
As mentioned before, this thing was very sharp straight outta the box. I didn’t actually realize this until I got a little more comfortable cutting with it. The first few cuts I made didn’t seem all that spectacular, but I was trying to be somewhat careful as it is a very whippy blade and I didn’t want to botch any cuts. The next time I took it out, I felt more comfortable using it and noticed right away the difference it made. Thought I didn’t cut a whole lot of test targets, it managed quite well to cleave milk jugs, pop bottles, and even an ice tea tin. Overall I was fairly impressed, thought it’s still a little awkward with the long handle. I will say again though that I would not care to try my luck on hard targets with this sword. I don’t feel that there is enough meat in the blade to risk it, so I will let it go at that.
Conclusion and SBG rating
In conclusion i would say that overall i am a bit disappointed in this sword. It is big for sure but as mentioned previously, it just lacks that big sword quality. If your going to make a big sword...make it a big sword. If it is intended for small people to use, then the boat has been missed altogether. It is a very aesthetically pleasing looking sword with some very nice features minus the loose kashira. The saya was a new direction that i thought was done well but caught me off guard none the less. If someone smaller is looking for a useable oversized sword, this one is hit or miss, it’s light but has a ginormous handle making it awkward for even long arm freaks like me. I personally would not put my “Big Sword” stamp of approval on it but again that is just my opinion. It was a good effort on VA’s part and they did turn out a beautiful sword but I’m just not sold on the cutting part.
This sword is listed at M.S.R.P. 329.99 on the VA website.
Historical Accuracy: 3/5
Fit and Finish: 4/5
Handling: 3/5
Structural Integrity: 4/5
Value for Money: 4/5
Overall 3.5/5
Video Coming Soon
Being the friendly neighbourhood giant sword go to guy, I was called upon yet again to review another larger than life sword. A short while ago, Paul sent a rumour down the pipeline that there was yet again another giant sword coming to the market and thought I might want to be one of the first to know. After a few quick chats, the sword was ordered and sent on its way. After looking at a few of the sneak peak pictures let slip by VA, I couldn’t wait to see this thing in action.
After a few weeks, I came home and saw the box standing in my entrance. It always comes as a bit of a shock when u see the box leaning up against the wall and it’s not much shorter then you are, and as most of you know already I’m no shorty. The packaged was double boxed with packing foam to keep the sword centrally located in the box. As I pulled out the sword bag from the box, it never seemed to end. After handling a few standard kat’s, you kind of get an idea of how long they should be and this thing just kept on going. Once fully out of the box I removed the sword bag to see the biggest freakin handle of all time. Yup, it definitely deserves the title of “big sword” though it seemed incredibly light for a sword of these dimensions.
Dry handling
The next day I took it out during daylight to see just how it would handle given its stature. I can honestly say it almost felt lighter than your standard kat. Kind of a brain process misconception due to its size and being so light it felt almost awkward. Normally one would expect a big sword to pack some weight but this one did not. The handle being so long took nearly all the weight off the blade making it easy to swing, but at the same time it was so long that it got in the way at times. Many standard cuts felt awkward as the handle scraped against my stomach, very long indeed. It will take some practice to get used to this thing.
Here are the stats on this giant
Blade length – 3ft ½ in
Tsuka length – 21in
Overall Length – 58in
Tsuba width – 3 ½ in
POB – 3 ½ in
Weight – listed @ 3lbs. 1oz.
This should put things in perspective
Top to Bottem
Tenchi - O-Kat - Nodachi
Blade
The blade on this sword is certainly something to gawk at. It is polished to a mirror shine. A half length bo-hi complements the blade well running into a false back edge. The hamon (not sure if its natural or acid etched) stands out like a Ferrari in used car lot. It is absolutely stunning, probably one of the biggest selling points on this sword. The blade is very sharp out of the box, not requiring any aftermarket sharpening jobs. Blade material is listed as differentially tempered 1095. The tip is also not standard on this one, coming with a leaf tip blade. With all that said there are also a lot of drawbacks to the blade as well. The false edge on the blade removes an awful lot of stock bringing the blade weight down tremendously which normally is a good thing but in this case I feel that it is not for the good. The sword is very whippy which is completely foreign to katanas as far as I know. It is so light that it almost feels like it could break on a bad cut. I’m not saying that it won’t stand up to hard targets, but I personally don’t feel comfortable using it on such. I have always believed that a big sword is designed to do a big job and this one lacks that quality. It is a big sword, don’t get me wrong but it doesn’t feel like one. I don’t want to rant about it but I feel the need to get the point across. Even my friend, who knows much more about kats then I do agreed with me on that point. Nodachi’s were used to take men off of horses or cut the horses legs off, but I wouldn’t try neither with this sword.
Tsuba
The tusba is beautifully simplistic on this piece. It looks to be a blued zinc alloy but I cannot confirm this for sure. The swirl design and matte black finish really go well with the overall look.
Furniture
One of the first things I noticed when playing with the sword for the first time was that the Kashira was very loose. The ito must have loosened off causing it to hang loosely. Hopefully some epoxy will fix that problem. Aside from that, the fittings go rather well with theme of the sword. Not too fancy but beautiful in there simplicity. The fittings ( fuchi and kashira) are blackened (alloy?), but are faded somewhat. It’s hard to determine if this is done on purpose. Is it custom faded? Bernie Mac says it is, but since it’s your first car he wouldn’t expect you to understand.
Saya
The saya was definitely something new to me. The entire saya had a matte black pebbled finish, kind of like a rhino lining you would find in the box of pickup trucks, very utilitarian. Another thing I noticed was the end of the saya. It tapered off to fit the shape of the blade tip, unlike your standard flat ended saya. The sword fit tightly in the saya with no rattles, a big plus.
Tsuka & Ito
Long freaking tsuka, what else can you say. There is almost as much handle as blade on this pig, 18 inches of tang and 21 inches of triple pegged handle. There is no messing around here. I found it hard to believe that this sword has a longer handle then my Scottish Lowlander. This contributes greatly to the awkwardness of swinging it around. All cutting techniques need to be thought through and carried out differently than with a standard kat, not quite as graceful. The ito is black cord wrapped with real ray skin underlay. Very impressive.
Testing
As mentioned before, this thing was very sharp straight outta the box. I didn’t actually realize this until I got a little more comfortable cutting with it. The first few cuts I made didn’t seem all that spectacular, but I was trying to be somewhat careful as it is a very whippy blade and I didn’t want to botch any cuts. The next time I took it out, I felt more comfortable using it and noticed right away the difference it made. Thought I didn’t cut a whole lot of test targets, it managed quite well to cleave milk jugs, pop bottles, and even an ice tea tin. Overall I was fairly impressed, thought it’s still a little awkward with the long handle. I will say again though that I would not care to try my luck on hard targets with this sword. I don’t feel that there is enough meat in the blade to risk it, so I will let it go at that.
Conclusion and SBG rating
In conclusion i would say that overall i am a bit disappointed in this sword. It is big for sure but as mentioned previously, it just lacks that big sword quality. If your going to make a big sword...make it a big sword. If it is intended for small people to use, then the boat has been missed altogether. It is a very aesthetically pleasing looking sword with some very nice features minus the loose kashira. The saya was a new direction that i thought was done well but caught me off guard none the less. If someone smaller is looking for a useable oversized sword, this one is hit or miss, it’s light but has a ginormous handle making it awkward for even long arm freaks like me. I personally would not put my “Big Sword” stamp of approval on it but again that is just my opinion. It was a good effort on VA’s part and they did turn out a beautiful sword but I’m just not sold on the cutting part.
This sword is listed at M.S.R.P. 329.99 on the VA website.
Historical Accuracy: 3/5
Fit and Finish: 4/5
Handling: 3/5
Structural Integrity: 4/5
Value for Money: 4/5
Overall 3.5/5
Video Coming Soon