Masahiro Kill Bill Bride's Katana Review
Apr 26, 2010 13:13:42 GMT
Post by Deleted on Apr 26, 2010 13:13:42 GMT
Overview
Thought I'd try a new project - working on a somewhat accurate replica of the Bride's Katana from Kill Bill. I started scanning through what was available, and was sadly and surprisingly disappointed. There are not a single replica available that looked anything other than remotely like the Brides sword (hereafter called BS:) - makes a lot of good jokes available later:))
Handmade sword has 3 (count 'em) 3 replica available. Masahiro has a replica available. Musashi has a replica available. Munetoshi makes one. There are a few others on eBay available.
Here are some bits about BS that I've learned from freeze-framing Kill Bill (volumes I and II), and some pics from an auction of an original stunt sword:
1. It's actually a pretty nice katana. Looks to me like it was made by a japanese iaito company, the tsuka has that look. The itomaki is very nice.
2. The blade has a nice hamon on it - suguha with a bit of a wave mid-blade. Chu-kissaki, moderate sori.
3. The fuchi and kashira are nice japanese brass, of the 'momoji' or 'kouchu' style. These fittings are expensive, especially with the kojiri. Kashira has gold or brass shitodome. The fuchi has one bright leaf, and a gold band around where it meets the ito. The kashira also has a leaf, but it is not hi-lighted.
4. The tsuba looks custom, although nishijin sells one that's close for about $50 smackers.
5. The BS has the kogai-ana and kozuku-ana holes.
6. The menuki are in the 'kongosho' style, blackened brass. Available from Yamoto, $50 smackers. They are mounted in normal fashion
7. Golden or mustard sageo, distintively tied. Have yet to find a match online.
8. The whole BS has a black/gold theme going on.
9. The saya has a brass kojiri, a reinforced koigouchi (some kind of metal band), a golden ring about 1/3 up from the bottom, and a plain black kurigata (probably black horn). No shitodome in kurigata.
10. The saya has two carvings. One is (i gather) the Hattori mon (a triangle thingy). The second is a the Bride's mon (i think) - a lioness in front of a war spear. Both are gold.
11. Ito is leather, very nicely done. Hishigami are used.
12. Same is white rayskin strips.
13. Plain brass habaki.
14. Plain brass seppa - of the nicer variety, not the 'cog-wheel' variety.
15. The blade has a foo-dog horimono.
16. The saya has a gold stripe on the ha and mune.
Let me say this again - no one has a good replica available (Maybe I'm picky:)). There are some nice swords, but they don't look like this sword.
Reviewing the Replicas
-------------------------------
So, I started looking at the replicas - I'll only talk about three (the rest are way, way off)....
1. Masahiro
This one is probably the closest. The fittings look the closest (although the texture is off). The tsuba is missing the ana. The saya is missing fittings, and has a strange symbol for the Bride's mon. The blades hamon is awful wire-brush. The ito is some kind of pleather. The menuki are brass dragons. The sageo is shoe lace. Cog-wheel seppa. Saya has kurigata.
2. Musashi
Cotton ito. Textrured tsuba. No tsuba ana. Cog-wheel seppa. Spider-god menuki. Saya fittings present, but strange. Fuchi and Kashira are different (kashira looks like the one on Bill's Katana). Black sageo. Saya has kurigata. No gold stripes on saya.
3. Munetoshi
Cotton Ito. Fittings are close, but also very different (even the leaf is a different type). Hamon is very different. No fittings on saya. Tsuba 'prayer-wheel' holes are very angular instead of pointy. No other ana on tsuba. Menuki are not correct (look like friendly neighborhood spider-god again). No gold stripes on saya (as far as i can tell).
Strangely, I think all three of the models are available on handmadesword.
After reviewing the market, I picked up a used Masahiro for $51 smackers. I didn't want to break the bank on this project. Also, the fittings were the closest available (other than the $250 japanese ones, which would be correct).
Finally, the Masahiro Review!
--------------------------------------
Got the sword in in less than a week (even from US to Canada - unheard of!) I hope this bodes well for the rest of this project:)
Specs:
27 inch blade.
11 1/4 inch tsuka.
Haven't weighed the sword yet, but the balance feels fine.
Initial Impressions:
- Felt quite solid.
- Handle was nicely shaped.
- Same was awful - short, rough, and badly done (kinda like my love-making style:))
- Itomaki is awful.
- Pleather is awful.
- Fittings are badly finished. Shitodome in kashira were not well inserted.
- Tsuba suprisingly well shaped, fitted, and finished.
- Saya carvings are somewhat rought (wobbly, if you know what i mean).
- Gold stripes on saya were somewhat understated (dull and small).
- Brass fuchi/kashira! Yay!
- Brass shitodome in kashira/saya! Yay!
- Some kind of very thing seppa inserted to tighen things up.
- Habaki has glue on it.
- Blade has some glue on it.
- Blade is pretty sharp.
- Hamon is wire-brushed, and badly done wire-brush - not evenly done, and not blending with counter-polished kissaki very well on one side.
- Blade is straight.
- Habaki fit is pretty good - need a very slight brass shim to make it properly tight.
- Saya fit to habaki is good. There is a shim glued in the saya to make this so.
Took a few pics, then started taking the sword apart. Found out that:
1. There are bits of thin metal in the fuchi, under the kashira, and used for a seppa.
2. Without these bits, the fuchi/kashira fit are actually pretty good - someone at masahiro was a perfectionist .
3. Fuchi/Kashira/Shitodome are brass. This is good - i can work with this.
4. The fuchi/kashira casts are actually pretty good. A couple of hours with some files, and they're looking not too bad (and the shitodome now fit).
5. The tsuka was cracked in the good way. Glued it back together, and it held fine.
6. The rayskin is very short for the handle. The mekugi-ana holes in the rayskin are not well done.
7. The menuki look to be solid brass, of the Cheness dragon style.
8. There are grooves cut the the raykin on the tsuka.
9. The Foo-dog horimono on the blade is actually recessed into the steel, engraved or embossed, or something. It has depth.
Overall
---------
Overall, I'm happy with my purchase. The materials are good enough so I can work with them. There's a lot of work to do, granted, but I can start fixing everything.
If I had been expecting a usable sword out of the box, I would have been dissapointed. The tsuka was cracked, the ito was awful, glue all over the place, badly fitted kashira, short rayskin. It was not a pretty picture out of the box. But, give me a year, and it'll be a bit nicer.
Thanks for listening to my rambling,
jason
- more pics up at
picasaweb.google.com/jblakey/MasahiroKillBill#
Thought I'd try a new project - working on a somewhat accurate replica of the Bride's Katana from Kill Bill. I started scanning through what was available, and was sadly and surprisingly disappointed. There are not a single replica available that looked anything other than remotely like the Brides sword (hereafter called BS:) - makes a lot of good jokes available later:))
Handmade sword has 3 (count 'em) 3 replica available. Masahiro has a replica available. Musashi has a replica available. Munetoshi makes one. There are a few others on eBay available.
Here are some bits about BS that I've learned from freeze-framing Kill Bill (volumes I and II), and some pics from an auction of an original stunt sword:
1. It's actually a pretty nice katana. Looks to me like it was made by a japanese iaito company, the tsuka has that look. The itomaki is very nice.
2. The blade has a nice hamon on it - suguha with a bit of a wave mid-blade. Chu-kissaki, moderate sori.
3. The fuchi and kashira are nice japanese brass, of the 'momoji' or 'kouchu' style. These fittings are expensive, especially with the kojiri. Kashira has gold or brass shitodome. The fuchi has one bright leaf, and a gold band around where it meets the ito. The kashira also has a leaf, but it is not hi-lighted.
4. The tsuba looks custom, although nishijin sells one that's close for about $50 smackers.
5. The BS has the kogai-ana and kozuku-ana holes.
6. The menuki are in the 'kongosho' style, blackened brass. Available from Yamoto, $50 smackers. They are mounted in normal fashion
7. Golden or mustard sageo, distintively tied. Have yet to find a match online.
8. The whole BS has a black/gold theme going on.
9. The saya has a brass kojiri, a reinforced koigouchi (some kind of metal band), a golden ring about 1/3 up from the bottom, and a plain black kurigata (probably black horn). No shitodome in kurigata.
10. The saya has two carvings. One is (i gather) the Hattori mon (a triangle thingy). The second is a the Bride's mon (i think) - a lioness in front of a war spear. Both are gold.
11. Ito is leather, very nicely done. Hishigami are used.
12. Same is white rayskin strips.
13. Plain brass habaki.
14. Plain brass seppa - of the nicer variety, not the 'cog-wheel' variety.
15. The blade has a foo-dog horimono.
16. The saya has a gold stripe on the ha and mune.
Let me say this again - no one has a good replica available (Maybe I'm picky:)). There are some nice swords, but they don't look like this sword.
Reviewing the Replicas
-------------------------------
So, I started looking at the replicas - I'll only talk about three (the rest are way, way off)....
1. Masahiro
This one is probably the closest. The fittings look the closest (although the texture is off). The tsuba is missing the ana. The saya is missing fittings, and has a strange symbol for the Bride's mon. The blades hamon is awful wire-brush. The ito is some kind of pleather. The menuki are brass dragons. The sageo is shoe lace. Cog-wheel seppa. Saya has kurigata.
2. Musashi
Cotton ito. Textrured tsuba. No tsuba ana. Cog-wheel seppa. Spider-god menuki. Saya fittings present, but strange. Fuchi and Kashira are different (kashira looks like the one on Bill's Katana). Black sageo. Saya has kurigata. No gold stripes on saya.
3. Munetoshi
Cotton Ito. Fittings are close, but also very different (even the leaf is a different type). Hamon is very different. No fittings on saya. Tsuba 'prayer-wheel' holes are very angular instead of pointy. No other ana on tsuba. Menuki are not correct (look like friendly neighborhood spider-god again). No gold stripes on saya (as far as i can tell).
Strangely, I think all three of the models are available on handmadesword.
After reviewing the market, I picked up a used Masahiro for $51 smackers. I didn't want to break the bank on this project. Also, the fittings were the closest available (other than the $250 japanese ones, which would be correct).
Finally, the Masahiro Review!
--------------------------------------
Got the sword in in less than a week (even from US to Canada - unheard of!) I hope this bodes well for the rest of this project:)
Specs:
27 inch blade.
11 1/4 inch tsuka.
Haven't weighed the sword yet, but the balance feels fine.
Initial Impressions:
- Felt quite solid.
- Handle was nicely shaped.
- Same was awful - short, rough, and badly done (kinda like my love-making style:))
- Itomaki is awful.
- Pleather is awful.
- Fittings are badly finished. Shitodome in kashira were not well inserted.
- Tsuba suprisingly well shaped, fitted, and finished.
- Saya carvings are somewhat rought (wobbly, if you know what i mean).
- Gold stripes on saya were somewhat understated (dull and small).
- Brass fuchi/kashira! Yay!
- Brass shitodome in kashira/saya! Yay!
- Some kind of very thing seppa inserted to tighen things up.
- Habaki has glue on it.
- Blade has some glue on it.
- Blade is pretty sharp.
- Hamon is wire-brushed, and badly done wire-brush - not evenly done, and not blending with counter-polished kissaki very well on one side.
- Blade is straight.
- Habaki fit is pretty good - need a very slight brass shim to make it properly tight.
- Saya fit to habaki is good. There is a shim glued in the saya to make this so.
Took a few pics, then started taking the sword apart. Found out that:
1. There are bits of thin metal in the fuchi, under the kashira, and used for a seppa.
2. Without these bits, the fuchi/kashira fit are actually pretty good - someone at masahiro was a perfectionist .
3. Fuchi/Kashira/Shitodome are brass. This is good - i can work with this.
4. The fuchi/kashira casts are actually pretty good. A couple of hours with some files, and they're looking not too bad (and the shitodome now fit).
5. The tsuka was cracked in the good way. Glued it back together, and it held fine.
6. The rayskin is very short for the handle. The mekugi-ana holes in the rayskin are not well done.
7. The menuki look to be solid brass, of the Cheness dragon style.
8. There are grooves cut the the raykin on the tsuka.
9. The Foo-dog horimono on the blade is actually recessed into the steel, engraved or embossed, or something. It has depth.
Overall
---------
Overall, I'm happy with my purchase. The materials are good enough so I can work with them. There's a lot of work to do, granted, but I can start fixing everything.
If I had been expecting a usable sword out of the box, I would have been dissapointed. The tsuka was cracked, the ito was awful, glue all over the place, badly fitted kashira, short rayskin. It was not a pretty picture out of the box. But, give me a year, and it'll be a bit nicer.
Thanks for listening to my rambling,
jason
- more pics up at
picasaweb.google.com/jblakey/MasahiroKillBill#