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Post by Deleted on Jan 4, 2010 20:46:38 GMT
So i'm new to Chinese Swords but I was wondering if there was a good starter sword,"sharp, well built ,easy on the wallet" I have seen them called Gim swords by cold steel. "help!"
Thanks
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Post by Deleted on Jan 4, 2010 23:52:45 GMT
"Gim" is actually just a different word for "jian". Gim is the Cantonese word, jian is the Mandarin, but both simply mean "sword."
(Basically refers to all types of double edged swords, as per the Chinese definition of the term - all single edged swords are considered knives, or dao)
I tend to talk about Chinese swords as jian whereas a friend of mine exclusively calls them gim. It works fine as long as one remembers it means the same thing: a matter of habit and taste, mostly.
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Post by shadowhowler on Jan 5, 2010 0:05:56 GMT
^ What he said...
The Cold steel Gim is decent... I have one... if your training in chiness sword arts then you might find it a bit overbuilt, thats what those so inclined have said, but its sharp and solid.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 5, 2010 0:41:02 GMT
Jin-Shi does customs but they tend to run around the $300 US mark, and are a much better sword than the CS ones from what others have said.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 5, 2010 9:40:41 GMT
The Gim II at Kris Cutlery is on sale right now for $125, and you have your choice of blade length. kriscutlery.com/documents/chinese.htmlThey might have more in the sale section or something, as well. This particular model get a "meh" review, but that was at twice the price. Kris Cutlery has a good reputation for tough, sharp swords. |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 5, 2010 14:11:02 GMT
So is the Gim II worth the money???
I could not find a review.
Its very plane but looks well built.....but is it sharp??
Any help???
Thanks.
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Post by shadowhowler on Jan 5, 2010 16:38:11 GMT
So is the Gim II worth the money??? I could not find a review. Its very plane but looks well built.....but is it sharp?? Any help??? Thanks. I have one... its on my list of swords to review. Its a pretty long list...  Its sharp, the blade is not as wide as the CS Gim. I have not cut with it yet, and the blade is shaped differently then another Kris Cutlery Gim sword I had before. THAT one cut very well, but due to the different blade shape on this one I can't say this one will perform as well as that one did. I'll let you know when I know more... but in the meantime if you have any questions about it, ask, and I'll try to answer. |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 5, 2010 18:30:47 GMT
Actually their Jian III looked to be decent if they would out a better price tag on it.
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Post by shadowhowler on Jan 5, 2010 19:29:22 GMT
Actually their Jian III looked to be decent if they would out a better price tag on it. I'm bummed I missed their 20% sale... there were some swords I wanted to pick up in that...  |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 5, 2010 21:12:03 GMT
That's okay, it looks like I'm going to be missing sword clearance sales for the next year if things don't turn around for me soon. I'm tired of drooling on my keyboard when looking at certain websites.
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Dom T.
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Post by Dom T. on Jan 5, 2010 21:37:08 GMT
Unfortunately I have no experience whatsoever with production jians. Zhi-sword seemingly has a butt-load of choices, and ichiban on our forum says this of them (in this thread- /index.cgi?action=display&board=japaneseswords&thread=13402&page=1 ): "I consider Zhi to be one of the big names though not an own brand sold in shops. Zhi has been supplier of iaitos and shinken to the biggest martial arts company in Northern Europe, Budo Nord, for some years. I have only one sword from them, but it's a good example of a mid range clayed katana. I plan to expand my collection with more of their customs in the future. stores.ebay.com/ZhiSwordPros: -Well made and balanced swords -Fair price for the product -Makes everything on the sword in their factory -Massive choice of fittings on their customs -Makes curved nagakos! -Correct tsukamaki Cons: -Low quality ito" Although he was talking about their katana, obviously, so their jian could possibly be... not as good. They've also a heck lot of info on each of their swords usually. Probably not the best place to get your first jian, but just throwing stuff out here. Might help a bit. Wish I could help more. Oh! wiwingti has some jian here on his site: www.wiwingtiswordsupply.com/chinese.htmlyou could always shoot him a pm about what he thinks about them or something. Good Luck. |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 6, 2010 0:17:55 GMT
Wiwingti carries Hanwei, and while Marc is a great guy with top notch customer service - the Hanwei Blades are just that, and even the manufacturer states that none of their Jian are good for cutting.
As for Zhisword, pics have been posted of the tang of one of their "Intermediate" quality Jian. It was found to be a bit wanting. Now, some of Zhi's higher end Jian might be a bit better, but so far their blades have not really met standard.
Hanwei is supposed to be releasing thier Scott Rodell designed "cutting" Jian soon. Once that happens, I'm certain Marc (Wiwingti) will be carrying them.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 10, 2010 14:11:36 GMT
"Gim" is actually just a different word for "jian". Gim is the Cantonese word, jian is the Mandarin, but both simply mean "sword." (Basically refers to all types of double edged swords, as per the Chinese definition of the term - all single edged swords are considered knives, or dao) I tend to talk about Chinese swords as jian whereas a friend of mine exclusively calls them gim. It works fine as long as one remembers it means the same thing: a matter of habit and taste, mostly. you are right ! as a northern chinese , i think i can say some thing about this . we call a blade with single edge "dao " ,Chinese character is "µ¶" no mater stright or not . with double edges , we call "jian" Chinese character is "½£".  dao  jian or jim dingy |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 17, 2010 15:45:36 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jan 17, 2010 15:58:06 GMT
www.wiwingtiswordsupply.com/SH2429.html Not from KOA and Marc upped his price to $235 but still a great deal. KOA is supposed to have that same sword in stock, but I haven't found in on their site yet to give you a link.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 17, 2010 16:26:21 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jan 17, 2010 16:59:31 GMT
A while back, somebody in this section had posted pics of a Zhisword Tang, and they were found to be a bit wanting. However, I've personally been debating about this model cgi.ebay.com/Hand-Forged-Chi-Xiao-Chinese-Tai-Chi-Jian-Sword_W0QQitemZ120479813722QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item1c0d28105a For $150 it might be worth a shot to check it out. If I remember right I had been told it would be suitable for forms and half mats. If I can get the extra $$ above what I need for my "Must Have" list, I might try it out, but that's not going to be happening anytime to soon. I would mention that the sword I linked to, and the one that had pics posted were considered "Intermediate" Jian by Zhisword, some of their higher end stuff might be good, but the verdict still hasn't come in on them. The CS Gim, Hanwei's new Rodell Jian, and Jin-Shi already have strong reputations, and might be better choices. Personally, after seeing the review pics of the disassembled tang of the new Hanwei that's the sword that gets my vote, unless you want to go the Jin-Shi custom route. |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 17, 2010 17:12:50 GMT
The link to the old Zhisword thread with the pics of the disassembled tang.
/index.cgi?board=chineseswords&action=display&thread=11300&page=1#185649
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Post by Deleted on Jan 17, 2010 17:12:53 GMT
Thank you very much you have been very helpfull. Do you have a link to these.....Hanwei's new Rodell Jian, and Jin-Shi  Thank you:) |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 17, 2010 17:33:31 GMT
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