Hanwei Golden Oriole Review
Apr 11, 2009 17:08:47 GMT
Post by septofclansinclair on Apr 11, 2009 17:08:47 GMT
Hanwei Golden Oriole Review - my first + $300 sword!
Introduction
For a little while, I’ve been doing more and more Japanese sword reviews. I’ve enjoyed this, as it’s given me an excuse to collect some decent katanas. Since starting with my beat-up old Masahiro Sakura, I added Cheness, a pair of $200 Mushashi presentational katanas and my SBG Custom to the mix. I also handled and assisted with my friend’s reviewing more Cheness and VA katanas – but I knew that I wasn’t learning as much about them as I hoped. The SBG Custom and the Tenchi sure seemed like good katanas to me – but unless I compared them to higher quality katanas, how was I to know for sure?
So, I embarked on a several month long mission – to get my hands on a katana that could teach me more about what a “really good” katana would look like. I basically wanted a production katana that could show me what was possible when more money was involved, something that I could look at and say, “Ah, that’s what it’s supposed to look like…” Bottom line: I wanted to know what set apart a higher-quality katana from the ones I had typically seen.
Since my budget was extremely limited, this was not an easy task.
HOWEVER – I managed to locate a Hanwei Golden Oriole for an excellent price, and after doing some more research I concluded that this would be a good way to experience some of the better offerings in the katana market… so after placing the order and emptying my sword fund, I sat back to nervously await the arrival of the best quality sword I’ve seen in person…
Historical overview
I don’t think the history of the katana needs to be discussed any further here… I did do some digging, and found out that the oriole (besides being a baseball team) is also a bird that is traditionally seen as “exotic” by the Japanese. The overall theme of this sword is the cricket being stalked by the mantis, who in turn is being stalked by the Golden Oriole. One of those “circle of life” things, I suppose.
Initial Impressions
I picked up the sword at the post office and was driving by fellow forum member Fatecaller’s house, when I noticed that he hadn’t left for the day yet. I immediately pulled in and proceeded to make him very, very late for wherever it was that he was going. We unwrapped the sword together in his house (cutting through layers of tape and carboard) until I finally pulled it from the burgundy sword bag.
The phrase “hot damn” came to mind at first. I immediately noticed the fine details that set it apart – the tightness of the ito-maki, the fittings in general, heck it even smelled different. Fatecaller’s comment was, “And that’s the difference between a 300 and a 600 dollar sword.” What he was referring to – and all the things that I notice – is what follows in this review.
Statistics
Nagasa Length: 27.5”
Tsuka Length: 13.5”
Overall Length: 42.5”
Tsuba Width: about 3.5”
POB (Point of Balance): 3”
Weight: 2lbs 3oz
Components
The Blade/Nagasa
The blade is what’s truly stunning on this piece. As soon as I saw it, I was amazed at the quality. The real hamon had been acid-enhanced, so it popped right out and grabbed your attention. There was no question that it was a very high-quality blade,and the pictures simply do not do it justice. I have not ever seen polish like that in person before, and I admit it made me a little giddy at first.
I’ve never understood what people have against counter-polished kissaki. Ever katana I have has a non-geometric yokote, and I honestly don’t mind them. But when I saw this one, I actually said out loud, “Oh, so that’s what the big deal is…” Simply put, there are light years of difference between the counter polish versions and a real kissaki. I wouldn’t have expected to be this amazed by it – but I have to admit, this was one extremely attractive feature. I can understand why people are “real kissaki freaks” after this… (somewhere, randomnobody is gloating, I can hear it…) Even though I still don’t mind my other katanas with their counter-polish, I can definitely see whay this is such a huge selling point. The boshi was very prominent, too, which I still get a big kick out of (and I think it is the Omaru style? Help me out, someone…).
The blade has both distal and profile taper, which keeps the weight down a great deal – but because of that and the fact that it is differentially hardened, I am very hesitant to cut with it. It would be a most unforgiving blade for a flubbed cut, I am sure, so keep that in mind should you get one.
The Tsuka
It’s funny; after I mentioned to a few people who (I can admit) were much more knowledgeable than me in this are that I picked this sword up, the responses were pretty consistent – that it would blow me away and I would never be the same again. Well, that’s partly true – but I was surprised to find that there were some things that I didn’t like on this sword; namely, the tsuka.
I’ve heard about Hanwie “axe handle” tsukas before, but this was my first experience with one. And I have to admit, I find it very uncomfortable. I have smaller hands, so when I handle my SBG Custom or even my Tenchi, both of which have pretty slim grips, I feel quite at home. This tsuka was much bigger around, so much so that I found it difficult to hold and swing. If the balance hadn’t been so ridiculously good (more on that later) I would find it almost too large to be of any use. A heavier Hanwei with this handle would not suit me at all. The extra length was pretty neat, though.
The ito, though, was superb. It didn’t match the blue of the saya as well as it does in the pictures, but it was still very attractive. Soft, too – this was very good quality cotton. And seeing the alternating wrap made me happy, too – I felt like I was already learning a great deal from this sword. There was some wood visible around the same (which had the biggest nodules I’d ever seen on same before), but not very much.
The Tsuba
The simple iron tsuba depicts the cricket/mantis/Golde Oriole theme – I feel for that poor cricket, too, he has no idea what he’s in for… The eyes of each, though, are painted gold or bronze, which is a very nice tough. Obviously, it is tight and not going anywhere. The dark iron contrasts very well with the overall design, and I quite like it. Major difference between this and sub-300 tsubas? The level of detail and the fact that there were no “cast marks” – this was the genuine article.
The Fuchi-Kashira
The cricket and the mantis get featured prominently here, and are of the same dark iron with the golden eyes. A very nice touch, here, and I saw a big difference in quality between these and the alloy fittings on most of the rest of my katanas. They didn’t knock me out of the park, but I could certainly see the difference in quality.
The Saya
As I mentioned before, the blue of the saya and the blue of the ito are pretty different in person. It’s an aesthetic choice that I personally would have done differently, but it certainly doesn’t detract from the overall look.
My pictures of the saya didn’t turn out as well as I’d hoped, and were quite fuzzy and indistinct – so I didn’t include them here. But I actually discovered a minor flaw – the kurikata had the lacquer scuffed off (unlike the rest of the saya, the kurikata, koiguchi and kojiri were lacquered with black instead of blue. The kurikata was showing white beneath, which led me to believe that it had been properly finished and then scraped against something afterwards. Not the end of the world, but interesting to note that sometimes even at this level the QC can break down a bit.
The biggest difference I saw in the saya at this price was just that it felt a bit more heavy duty than the others I have – though the sageo was very similar in feel to the sageo on my SBG Custom and Musashi katanas.
Handling Characteristics
This is where the biggest difference between my sub-300 swords and the Golden Oriole is. The blade of the Oriole is, as I’ve said, much thinner than a normal katana – it tapers in its profile, and also has distal taper. That combined with an extra long handle puts the point of balance at 3” and pretty much makes this sword effortless to use and swing. The tip control is superb, and I feel confident that I could put this sword exactly here I wanted to with a cut. The balance was so amazing it made me feel like I was going crazy, and the only thing holding me back was the size of the tsuka – because it was so big around, I still struggled to feel “comfortable” holding it. It balances out in the end, and Fatecaller (who has much bigger hands than I) didn’t mind it one bit. So it is partly a preference thing for me, but having read other Hanwei reviews I’m glad to know it isn’t just in my head.
I also know that not all mid/upper range katanas will handle like this – the Oriole is designed this way for that purpose. A katana with less taper would likely have a POB an inch or two higher like my SBG Custom, and would feel more tip heavy – which translates into cutting power, I know. Still, I have to admit it blew me away with how it felt in hand. It really has to be felt to be believed.
Test Cutting (if applicable)
As I said before, this blade is especially thin and would be pretty unforgiving on a flubbed cut, so at this time I will not be cutting with it. Plus, it’s still kinda chilly out there – I’m waiting until the snow is gone before I try anything.
Conclusions
So what was the answer to my question – what set apart a higher-quality katana from the ones I had seen before?
In a word: the details.
Everything on this katana from top to bottom just looked like it had so much more attention to detail. The polish on the blade, the tightness of the ito wrap, the high quality same and iron fittings – it all just looked that much more like the “real thing.” Even now after pulling it out and playing with it some more I am noticing so many more layers of detail and care taken with its construction. It seems to me well worth the price, and if it is the most expensive katana I own I think I’d be very happy with it. I can tell it is going to help me learn more about the katana for a long while to come. Even though it still isn’t my “favourite” katana – my SBG Custom still holds that distinction, and of the katanas I own is the only one that approaches the Oriole in quality – it certainly holds a place of honour in my collection.
Pros
- exquisite finish on blade & fittings
- amazing handling
- real yokote which looks great
- overall extremely well put together katana
Cons
- Hanwei “axe-handle” tsuka
- slight scuffing on saya
- thin & tapered blade would make it unforgiving towards a bad cut
The Bottom Line
I’d recommend this to anyone who loves the way it looks or wants to see what a higher-end katana can be like, but as a cutter I’d only recommend it to experienced practitioners of JSA.
Introduction
For a little while, I’ve been doing more and more Japanese sword reviews. I’ve enjoyed this, as it’s given me an excuse to collect some decent katanas. Since starting with my beat-up old Masahiro Sakura, I added Cheness, a pair of $200 Mushashi presentational katanas and my SBG Custom to the mix. I also handled and assisted with my friend’s reviewing more Cheness and VA katanas – but I knew that I wasn’t learning as much about them as I hoped. The SBG Custom and the Tenchi sure seemed like good katanas to me – but unless I compared them to higher quality katanas, how was I to know for sure?
So, I embarked on a several month long mission – to get my hands on a katana that could teach me more about what a “really good” katana would look like. I basically wanted a production katana that could show me what was possible when more money was involved, something that I could look at and say, “Ah, that’s what it’s supposed to look like…” Bottom line: I wanted to know what set apart a higher-quality katana from the ones I had typically seen.
Since my budget was extremely limited, this was not an easy task.
HOWEVER – I managed to locate a Hanwei Golden Oriole for an excellent price, and after doing some more research I concluded that this would be a good way to experience some of the better offerings in the katana market… so after placing the order and emptying my sword fund, I sat back to nervously await the arrival of the best quality sword I’ve seen in person…
Historical overview
I don’t think the history of the katana needs to be discussed any further here… I did do some digging, and found out that the oriole (besides being a baseball team) is also a bird that is traditionally seen as “exotic” by the Japanese. The overall theme of this sword is the cricket being stalked by the mantis, who in turn is being stalked by the Golden Oriole. One of those “circle of life” things, I suppose.
Initial Impressions
I picked up the sword at the post office and was driving by fellow forum member Fatecaller’s house, when I noticed that he hadn’t left for the day yet. I immediately pulled in and proceeded to make him very, very late for wherever it was that he was going. We unwrapped the sword together in his house (cutting through layers of tape and carboard) until I finally pulled it from the burgundy sword bag.
The phrase “hot damn” came to mind at first. I immediately noticed the fine details that set it apart – the tightness of the ito-maki, the fittings in general, heck it even smelled different. Fatecaller’s comment was, “And that’s the difference between a 300 and a 600 dollar sword.” What he was referring to – and all the things that I notice – is what follows in this review.
Statistics
Nagasa Length: 27.5”
Tsuka Length: 13.5”
Overall Length: 42.5”
Tsuba Width: about 3.5”
POB (Point of Balance): 3”
Weight: 2lbs 3oz
Components
The Blade/Nagasa
The blade is what’s truly stunning on this piece. As soon as I saw it, I was amazed at the quality. The real hamon had been acid-enhanced, so it popped right out and grabbed your attention. There was no question that it was a very high-quality blade,and the pictures simply do not do it justice. I have not ever seen polish like that in person before, and I admit it made me a little giddy at first.
I’ve never understood what people have against counter-polished kissaki. Ever katana I have has a non-geometric yokote, and I honestly don’t mind them. But when I saw this one, I actually said out loud, “Oh, so that’s what the big deal is…” Simply put, there are light years of difference between the counter polish versions and a real kissaki. I wouldn’t have expected to be this amazed by it – but I have to admit, this was one extremely attractive feature. I can understand why people are “real kissaki freaks” after this… (somewhere, randomnobody is gloating, I can hear it…) Even though I still don’t mind my other katanas with their counter-polish, I can definitely see whay this is such a huge selling point. The boshi was very prominent, too, which I still get a big kick out of (and I think it is the Omaru style? Help me out, someone…).
The blade has both distal and profile taper, which keeps the weight down a great deal – but because of that and the fact that it is differentially hardened, I am very hesitant to cut with it. It would be a most unforgiving blade for a flubbed cut, I am sure, so keep that in mind should you get one.
The Tsuka
It’s funny; after I mentioned to a few people who (I can admit) were much more knowledgeable than me in this are that I picked this sword up, the responses were pretty consistent – that it would blow me away and I would never be the same again. Well, that’s partly true – but I was surprised to find that there were some things that I didn’t like on this sword; namely, the tsuka.
I’ve heard about Hanwie “axe handle” tsukas before, but this was my first experience with one. And I have to admit, I find it very uncomfortable. I have smaller hands, so when I handle my SBG Custom or even my Tenchi, both of which have pretty slim grips, I feel quite at home. This tsuka was much bigger around, so much so that I found it difficult to hold and swing. If the balance hadn’t been so ridiculously good (more on that later) I would find it almost too large to be of any use. A heavier Hanwei with this handle would not suit me at all. The extra length was pretty neat, though.
The ito, though, was superb. It didn’t match the blue of the saya as well as it does in the pictures, but it was still very attractive. Soft, too – this was very good quality cotton. And seeing the alternating wrap made me happy, too – I felt like I was already learning a great deal from this sword. There was some wood visible around the same (which had the biggest nodules I’d ever seen on same before), but not very much.
The Tsuba
The simple iron tsuba depicts the cricket/mantis/Golde Oriole theme – I feel for that poor cricket, too, he has no idea what he’s in for… The eyes of each, though, are painted gold or bronze, which is a very nice tough. Obviously, it is tight and not going anywhere. The dark iron contrasts very well with the overall design, and I quite like it. Major difference between this and sub-300 tsubas? The level of detail and the fact that there were no “cast marks” – this was the genuine article.
The Fuchi-Kashira
The cricket and the mantis get featured prominently here, and are of the same dark iron with the golden eyes. A very nice touch, here, and I saw a big difference in quality between these and the alloy fittings on most of the rest of my katanas. They didn’t knock me out of the park, but I could certainly see the difference in quality.
The Saya
As I mentioned before, the blue of the saya and the blue of the ito are pretty different in person. It’s an aesthetic choice that I personally would have done differently, but it certainly doesn’t detract from the overall look.
My pictures of the saya didn’t turn out as well as I’d hoped, and were quite fuzzy and indistinct – so I didn’t include them here. But I actually discovered a minor flaw – the kurikata had the lacquer scuffed off (unlike the rest of the saya, the kurikata, koiguchi and kojiri were lacquered with black instead of blue. The kurikata was showing white beneath, which led me to believe that it had been properly finished and then scraped against something afterwards. Not the end of the world, but interesting to note that sometimes even at this level the QC can break down a bit.
The biggest difference I saw in the saya at this price was just that it felt a bit more heavy duty than the others I have – though the sageo was very similar in feel to the sageo on my SBG Custom and Musashi katanas.
Handling Characteristics
This is where the biggest difference between my sub-300 swords and the Golden Oriole is. The blade of the Oriole is, as I’ve said, much thinner than a normal katana – it tapers in its profile, and also has distal taper. That combined with an extra long handle puts the point of balance at 3” and pretty much makes this sword effortless to use and swing. The tip control is superb, and I feel confident that I could put this sword exactly here I wanted to with a cut. The balance was so amazing it made me feel like I was going crazy, and the only thing holding me back was the size of the tsuka – because it was so big around, I still struggled to feel “comfortable” holding it. It balances out in the end, and Fatecaller (who has much bigger hands than I) didn’t mind it one bit. So it is partly a preference thing for me, but having read other Hanwei reviews I’m glad to know it isn’t just in my head.
I also know that not all mid/upper range katanas will handle like this – the Oriole is designed this way for that purpose. A katana with less taper would likely have a POB an inch or two higher like my SBG Custom, and would feel more tip heavy – which translates into cutting power, I know. Still, I have to admit it blew me away with how it felt in hand. It really has to be felt to be believed.
Test Cutting (if applicable)
As I said before, this blade is especially thin and would be pretty unforgiving on a flubbed cut, so at this time I will not be cutting with it. Plus, it’s still kinda chilly out there – I’m waiting until the snow is gone before I try anything.
Conclusions
So what was the answer to my question – what set apart a higher-quality katana from the ones I had seen before?
In a word: the details.
Everything on this katana from top to bottom just looked like it had so much more attention to detail. The polish on the blade, the tightness of the ito wrap, the high quality same and iron fittings – it all just looked that much more like the “real thing.” Even now after pulling it out and playing with it some more I am noticing so many more layers of detail and care taken with its construction. It seems to me well worth the price, and if it is the most expensive katana I own I think I’d be very happy with it. I can tell it is going to help me learn more about the katana for a long while to come. Even though it still isn’t my “favourite” katana – my SBG Custom still holds that distinction, and of the katanas I own is the only one that approaches the Oriole in quality – it certainly holds a place of honour in my collection.
Pros
- exquisite finish on blade & fittings
- amazing handling
- real yokote which looks great
- overall extremely well put together katana
Cons
- Hanwei “axe-handle” tsuka
- slight scuffing on saya
- thin & tapered blade would make it unforgiving towards a bad cut
The Bottom Line
I’d recommend this to anyone who loves the way it looks or wants to see what a higher-end katana can be like, but as a cutter I’d only recommend it to experienced practitioners of JSA.