Huawei Kanmuri Otoshi Zukuri
May 1, 2010 21:58:23 GMT
Post by Deleted on May 1, 2010 21:58:23 GMT
Introduction
I wanted to venture into a little higher end katana without breaking the bank. I did want to keep my price point at around $300. I had gotten 3 sub $100 katanas and decided that I was done messing around with the lowest end stuff as I felt a bit let down with what I got, understandably. I searched the net, the usual vendors, but I did not really like what I saw... there was always something about a particular model that turned me off, be it the fittings or the blade steel.
So..... I went looking for something custom. I knew that my only course of action was to get a forge in China to roll one up the way I wanted it. I e-mailed some places... but communication is slow and difficult. In the meantime I searched out some member recommended ebayers..... When I looked at Huawei-swords offerings I found something that jumped out at me.... The Kanmuri Otoshi Zukuri. I must admit that my motivation for buying this sword was the blade style. UNUSUAL.
This sword met all my criteria, blade style, blade steel (t10, 1095) and the ability to select fittings that I actually found attractive, they also offered "battle wrap" ito-maki....this coupled with the ability to use eBay and Paypal also gave me a better sense of security.
Of course it all comes down to the price. $271 shipped.
Historical overview
I won't fake that I knew the history of this blade or really know any more than what I read on the internet about it. My understanding is that the blade style is more seen on tantos and was something you see more often than not from the Yamato school from the Kamakura period.
Evidently there were so few katana length blades out there, that I have not been able to find a pic of an antique blade.... but heres a sketch from token.cz
Initial Impressions
The customer service aspect of buying this blade was pretty impressive seeing that there is a bit of a time and language barrier. But the forge went the extra mile by providing pictures of the sword to me before shipping out. I cant say Ive had any service like that before.
The shipping time was 6 days from Long Quan China to Tyler TX. 1 day ahead of the stated 7-12 days. The packaging was a styrofoam block with a sword shaped cavity. This was completely surrounded with packing tape.
upon opening the package you can see the sword is wrapped in its very....very.... floral sword bag. Standard design with one string.
and heres a first for me... they shrink wrapped the tsuka.
The blade also had a plastic sleeve on it and was coated in a generous amount of light oil.
Statistics
Blade/Nagasa Length: 29" from the tsuba. 27 3/4ths' from the habaki
Handle/Tsuka Length: 11'
Overall Length: 40 3/8ths'
Guard/Tsuba Width: 3 3/16ths" and 1/4th" thick
POB (Point of Balance): 4 3/4ths" from the tsuba
COP (Center of Percussion): I have no idea
Weight: without saya.... 2lbs 4.5 oz..... but the scale im using is a bit dodgy.
Components
This is where the porn comes in right? Most of the pictures I'll be using are from the ones the forge sent me.... Im not much hand at photography... but I have added some close ups of the fittings.
The Blade/Nagasa
This is the part that pretty much defines this sword. typical it is not. This blade has 2 bo-hi's... one large one that terminates half way sown the blade or so and a smaller one that runs almost the full length. Blade came slice paper sharp. The hamon is AWESOME
This pic better shows the larger bo-hi and how it terminates, and then transitions to a "false edge" on the mune.
The Handle/Tsuka
The tsuka is done with a black battle wrap and black same using bamboo leaf menuki. There are 2 mekugi. The wrap is pretty tight... very little shift under force. This ito is chemical.... but has a larger weave than Im used to seeing. I reckon it'll hold up nicely. Oh, yes... the same is not full.... typical panels... but wider than what I am used to seeing on Musashi stuff.
The Guard/Tsuba
Did the wave theme here.... made out of copper/brass/zinc.... ya know... yellow alloy. Some parts are polished where others exhibit evidence of chemical oxidation to give it an antiquated look. While its still a production tsuba.... its one I see less. Which I like...
The Pommel/Fuchi-Kashira
Matching Koshirae... more wave pattern. I liked the kashira because of the scalloped bottom. Just kinda appealed to me.
The Scabbard/Saya
Freakin awesome. This one has a green same applied at the sageo and koiguchi area. There are a couple of large nodes on it that look like little cabuchon stones set in jewelry. (think Navajo jewelry) I got a kick out of that... never seen it before. Buffalo horn kojiri, kurikata (bigger than my other swords) and koiguchi... the shitodome is the little cheap ones like everyone else uses.
THE KOIGUCHI IS NICE. no nasty gouged out... asymetrical... needs a shim... to tight ...cracked or any other unpleasing things... clean. perfect seal..
The sageo is actually larger than the ito... and whipped at the end... so is this the "real" sageo they speak of? Chemical fiber again.
Handling Characteristics
This blade is heavier than my other one (Musashi ss-809). Which is a VERY GOOD THING. now I have a sword that doesnt feel like Im swinging a straightened out paper-clip. I'm no pro... but I can tell you that the blade feels well balanced... in that it does have weight... but its not at the end of the blade... if that makes sense.
I'm 6 foot even and weigh 212
Test Cutting
Oh yeah!!!!
Sorry... not a youtube dude... heres a link to the vid clip file on my server. Im cutting a 1 inch or so diameter stick of bamboo that I cut down a few days earlier... so its not the greenest anymore.
Conclusions
I dont guess theres much I have to gripe about.... Im actually pleasantly surprised. It surpassed my expectations. If there were somthing I would rather... I would have to say that I wished that green ito and sageo were possible, a silk option would have been nice too...... and the shitodome is the cheap stuff.
Everything is solid.... no slop anywhere on this thing. The polish and hamon are killer... and bamboo doesnt scratch the polish...
Pretty choice... for me... what I got seems like more than what I put out.
Pros
Cool blade design that like... nobody has.
Rock solid.
Looks good and cuts good.
You can get everything customized the way you want it.... almost.
Cons
Cheap shitodome
Chemical Fiber ito and Sageo. Color limitations.
Limited to about a dozen Koshirae set options..
After that, you can move on to:
The Bottom Line
Would I recommend it? YES! GO BUY ONE NOW... lol. Thats not very objective is it? This blade is not for everyone... but Huawei does make others... and I feel like I got lucky making my decision with them. for $271 dollars I really feel like I came out way ahead. I wish I could say that I spent around $300 on some other sword to compare it too... but I havent. So I dont feel its right for me to tell people "This and not that". But, I am a happy dude.
and on the negative side;
Shipping cost from China is a #$@&*
Sword price: $228
Shipping: $43
OK... first review down. Hope I covered things ok. For what I havent Im happy to answer questions!
I wanted to venture into a little higher end katana without breaking the bank. I did want to keep my price point at around $300. I had gotten 3 sub $100 katanas and decided that I was done messing around with the lowest end stuff as I felt a bit let down with what I got, understandably. I searched the net, the usual vendors, but I did not really like what I saw... there was always something about a particular model that turned me off, be it the fittings or the blade steel.
So..... I went looking for something custom. I knew that my only course of action was to get a forge in China to roll one up the way I wanted it. I e-mailed some places... but communication is slow and difficult. In the meantime I searched out some member recommended ebayers..... When I looked at Huawei-swords offerings I found something that jumped out at me.... The Kanmuri Otoshi Zukuri. I must admit that my motivation for buying this sword was the blade style. UNUSUAL.
This sword met all my criteria, blade style, blade steel (t10, 1095) and the ability to select fittings that I actually found attractive, they also offered "battle wrap" ito-maki....this coupled with the ability to use eBay and Paypal also gave me a better sense of security.
Of course it all comes down to the price. $271 shipped.
Historical overview
I won't fake that I knew the history of this blade or really know any more than what I read on the internet about it. My understanding is that the blade style is more seen on tantos and was something you see more often than not from the Yamato school from the Kamakura period.
Evidently there were so few katana length blades out there, that I have not been able to find a pic of an antique blade.... but heres a sketch from token.cz
Initial Impressions
The customer service aspect of buying this blade was pretty impressive seeing that there is a bit of a time and language barrier. But the forge went the extra mile by providing pictures of the sword to me before shipping out. I cant say Ive had any service like that before.
The shipping time was 6 days from Long Quan China to Tyler TX. 1 day ahead of the stated 7-12 days. The packaging was a styrofoam block with a sword shaped cavity. This was completely surrounded with packing tape.
upon opening the package you can see the sword is wrapped in its very....very.... floral sword bag. Standard design with one string.
and heres a first for me... they shrink wrapped the tsuka.
The blade also had a plastic sleeve on it and was coated in a generous amount of light oil.
Statistics
Blade/Nagasa Length: 29" from the tsuba. 27 3/4ths' from the habaki
Handle/Tsuka Length: 11'
Overall Length: 40 3/8ths'
Guard/Tsuba Width: 3 3/16ths" and 1/4th" thick
POB (Point of Balance): 4 3/4ths" from the tsuba
COP (Center of Percussion): I have no idea
Weight: without saya.... 2lbs 4.5 oz..... but the scale im using is a bit dodgy.
Components
This is where the porn comes in right? Most of the pictures I'll be using are from the ones the forge sent me.... Im not much hand at photography... but I have added some close ups of the fittings.
The Blade/Nagasa
This is the part that pretty much defines this sword. typical it is not. This blade has 2 bo-hi's... one large one that terminates half way sown the blade or so and a smaller one that runs almost the full length. Blade came slice paper sharp. The hamon is AWESOME
This pic better shows the larger bo-hi and how it terminates, and then transitions to a "false edge" on the mune.
The Handle/Tsuka
The tsuka is done with a black battle wrap and black same using bamboo leaf menuki. There are 2 mekugi. The wrap is pretty tight... very little shift under force. This ito is chemical.... but has a larger weave than Im used to seeing. I reckon it'll hold up nicely. Oh, yes... the same is not full.... typical panels... but wider than what I am used to seeing on Musashi stuff.
The Guard/Tsuba
Did the wave theme here.... made out of copper/brass/zinc.... ya know... yellow alloy. Some parts are polished where others exhibit evidence of chemical oxidation to give it an antiquated look. While its still a production tsuba.... its one I see less. Which I like...
The Pommel/Fuchi-Kashira
Matching Koshirae... more wave pattern. I liked the kashira because of the scalloped bottom. Just kinda appealed to me.
The Scabbard/Saya
Freakin awesome. This one has a green same applied at the sageo and koiguchi area. There are a couple of large nodes on it that look like little cabuchon stones set in jewelry. (think Navajo jewelry) I got a kick out of that... never seen it before. Buffalo horn kojiri, kurikata (bigger than my other swords) and koiguchi... the shitodome is the little cheap ones like everyone else uses.
THE KOIGUCHI IS NICE. no nasty gouged out... asymetrical... needs a shim... to tight ...cracked or any other unpleasing things... clean. perfect seal..
The sageo is actually larger than the ito... and whipped at the end... so is this the "real" sageo they speak of? Chemical fiber again.
Handling Characteristics
This blade is heavier than my other one (Musashi ss-809). Which is a VERY GOOD THING. now I have a sword that doesnt feel like Im swinging a straightened out paper-clip. I'm no pro... but I can tell you that the blade feels well balanced... in that it does have weight... but its not at the end of the blade... if that makes sense.
I'm 6 foot even and weigh 212
Test Cutting
Oh yeah!!!!
Sorry... not a youtube dude... heres a link to the vid clip file on my server. Im cutting a 1 inch or so diameter stick of bamboo that I cut down a few days earlier... so its not the greenest anymore.
Conclusions
I dont guess theres much I have to gripe about.... Im actually pleasantly surprised. It surpassed my expectations. If there were somthing I would rather... I would have to say that I wished that green ito and sageo were possible, a silk option would have been nice too...... and the shitodome is the cheap stuff.
Everything is solid.... no slop anywhere on this thing. The polish and hamon are killer... and bamboo doesnt scratch the polish...
Pretty choice... for me... what I got seems like more than what I put out.
Pros
Cool blade design that like... nobody has.
Rock solid.
Looks good and cuts good.
You can get everything customized the way you want it.... almost.
Cons
Cheap shitodome
Chemical Fiber ito and Sageo. Color limitations.
Limited to about a dozen Koshirae set options..
After that, you can move on to:
The Bottom Line
Would I recommend it? YES! GO BUY ONE NOW... lol. Thats not very objective is it? This blade is not for everyone... but Huawei does make others... and I feel like I got lucky making my decision with them. for $271 dollars I really feel like I came out way ahead. I wish I could say that I spent around $300 on some other sword to compare it too... but I havent. So I dont feel its right for me to tell people "This and not that". But, I am a happy dude.
and on the negative side;
Shipping cost from China is a #$@&*
Sword price: $228
Shipping: $43
OK... first review down. Hope I covered things ok. For what I havent Im happy to answer questions!