REview of my new Master Cutlery Practical Katana
Mar 23, 2007 2:53:55 GMT
Post by Deleted on Mar 23, 2007 2:53:55 GMT
Hello all,
I posted a post about this sword and my first cutting test with it, but I have not done any sort of review on it. I will attempt to do so now, although I am a rank amateur when it comes to katanas.
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MASTER CUTLERY HANDMADE PRACTICAL KATANA:
Bought at Museum Replicas, Ltd. recently. The receipt simply said, “Handmade Practical Katana”. When asked, the counter clerk said it was made by Master Cutlery out of China, that with Japan outlawing exporting of katanas, etc, that many Japanese sword makers had moved to China.
WEIGHT: Weighed on old bathroom scales, so best I can tell: In lacquered wooden scabbard: about 2 lbs. Alone; abt 1.5 or 2lbs. It is hard to see the lines through the old, scratched, stained up dial “window” on those old bathroom scales. When I step on it, the poor old thing grinds to a halt without going up to my 316lbs.
O.A. LENGTH: In scabbard, from tip to end of pommel; 42“".
BARE SWORD LENGTH: Straight from point of blade to tip of pommel, not following curve: 41 1/4".
BLADE:
Blade is superbly made, very sharp and finely polished and flexes slightly, or in other words is not quite as limber as my Viking swords. No discernable grind or file marks except right near the point. It appears that they ground and buffed from a different angle or direction right there. The blade does not have the type of wavy differential tempering heating waves along edge area that jump out at you and are very visible like some have. But if you turn the blade in the light a certain way you can see definitely waves along the edge or tempering area. Neither are there any discernable ID marks on the blade anywhere or the brass "wrap" near the guard.
LENGTH: Straight from point to guard or tsuba, not following edge or curve; 29".
THICKNESS: The brass “sleeve“ or “wrap“ is 7/16“ thick right at tsuba extends to 1 1/8“ from tsuba. The blade is not quite 5/16” at point where it emerges from brass wrap. There is also a oval brass “plate on either side of the tsuba, between brass wrap and tsuba and between handle and tsuba, with teeth on the edges about 1” in diameter and 1 ½” longwise . Blade is 3/16” thick in middle of blade, and narrowing to a hair over 2/16” at spot where it angles to point (5/8” from point).
WIDTH: 1¼” at guard. 1” at center of blade and not quite 13/16“ before edge turns toward point.
P.O.B.: Abt 4 1/2” from guard or tsuba.
P.O.P. or “SWEET SPOT”: Seems to be about 10 ½” from point. At least it feels best there when I tap the edge on something.
FULLER:
L: Beginning 2” from point disappearing under brass sleeve in front of tsuba.
W: 15/16” wide where it comes out from under brass sleeve in front of tsuba. A hair over 3/16” in middle of blade and about 3/16“ just before it end near point. The bottom edge of fuller is 11/16“ from edge.
HANDLE:
TSUBA: The tsuba is bronze and is a dragon circling around eating itself or passing its head by its tale or something. It is hard to tell. The skin of the dragon is very rough like the ray or sharkskin, or roughly scaled. On the small bronze or copper band right behind the tsuba, on the forward part of the handle or grip is also a dragon coiling in and out of view. The handle is white ray or shark skin (fake?) wrapped in black cord with a bronze or copper pommel, also with a small dragon on it. On the handle there is one copper rivet about 1 1/2" back from the tsuba. There is a small silver dragon on the same side about 3" back from tsuba. There is nothing else on that side but on the other side of the handle is another small silver dragon about 8 1/2" back from the tsuba and about 3" from tip of pommel.
HANDLE LENGTH: Exactly 1' from tsuba to tip of pommel. There are no other markings.
HANDLE THICKNESS: 1" THICK
HANDLE WIDTH: A hair over 1 1/4".
SCABBARD:
Typical wood with nice heavy black lacquered finish with some of that black flat cord tied around it and through an aperture sticking out and into a fancy tie or knot.
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Well that is about all I can come up with as for a review y’all. I hope it is of some help or interest to someone.
Freebooter
I posted a post about this sword and my first cutting test with it, but I have not done any sort of review on it. I will attempt to do so now, although I am a rank amateur when it comes to katanas.
--------------------------
MASTER CUTLERY HANDMADE PRACTICAL KATANA:
Bought at Museum Replicas, Ltd. recently. The receipt simply said, “Handmade Practical Katana”. When asked, the counter clerk said it was made by Master Cutlery out of China, that with Japan outlawing exporting of katanas, etc, that many Japanese sword makers had moved to China.
WEIGHT: Weighed on old bathroom scales, so best I can tell: In lacquered wooden scabbard: about 2 lbs. Alone; abt 1.5 or 2lbs. It is hard to see the lines through the old, scratched, stained up dial “window” on those old bathroom scales. When I step on it, the poor old thing grinds to a halt without going up to my 316lbs.
O.A. LENGTH: In scabbard, from tip to end of pommel; 42“".
BARE SWORD LENGTH: Straight from point of blade to tip of pommel, not following curve: 41 1/4".
BLADE:
Blade is superbly made, very sharp and finely polished and flexes slightly, or in other words is not quite as limber as my Viking swords. No discernable grind or file marks except right near the point. It appears that they ground and buffed from a different angle or direction right there. The blade does not have the type of wavy differential tempering heating waves along edge area that jump out at you and are very visible like some have. But if you turn the blade in the light a certain way you can see definitely waves along the edge or tempering area. Neither are there any discernable ID marks on the blade anywhere or the brass "wrap" near the guard.
LENGTH: Straight from point to guard or tsuba, not following edge or curve; 29".
THICKNESS: The brass “sleeve“ or “wrap“ is 7/16“ thick right at tsuba extends to 1 1/8“ from tsuba. The blade is not quite 5/16” at point where it emerges from brass wrap. There is also a oval brass “plate on either side of the tsuba, between brass wrap and tsuba and between handle and tsuba, with teeth on the edges about 1” in diameter and 1 ½” longwise . Blade is 3/16” thick in middle of blade, and narrowing to a hair over 2/16” at spot where it angles to point (5/8” from point).
WIDTH: 1¼” at guard. 1” at center of blade and not quite 13/16“ before edge turns toward point.
P.O.B.: Abt 4 1/2” from guard or tsuba.
P.O.P. or “SWEET SPOT”: Seems to be about 10 ½” from point. At least it feels best there when I tap the edge on something.
FULLER:
L: Beginning 2” from point disappearing under brass sleeve in front of tsuba.
W: 15/16” wide where it comes out from under brass sleeve in front of tsuba. A hair over 3/16” in middle of blade and about 3/16“ just before it end near point. The bottom edge of fuller is 11/16“ from edge.
HANDLE:
TSUBA: The tsuba is bronze and is a dragon circling around eating itself or passing its head by its tale or something. It is hard to tell. The skin of the dragon is very rough like the ray or sharkskin, or roughly scaled. On the small bronze or copper band right behind the tsuba, on the forward part of the handle or grip is also a dragon coiling in and out of view. The handle is white ray or shark skin (fake?) wrapped in black cord with a bronze or copper pommel, also with a small dragon on it. On the handle there is one copper rivet about 1 1/2" back from the tsuba. There is a small silver dragon on the same side about 3" back from tsuba. There is nothing else on that side but on the other side of the handle is another small silver dragon about 8 1/2" back from the tsuba and about 3" from tip of pommel.
HANDLE LENGTH: Exactly 1' from tsuba to tip of pommel. There are no other markings.
HANDLE THICKNESS: 1" THICK
HANDLE WIDTH: A hair over 1 1/4".
SCABBARD:
Typical wood with nice heavy black lacquered finish with some of that black flat cord tied around it and through an aperture sticking out and into a fancy tie or knot.
--------------------------
Well that is about all I can come up with as for a review y’all. I hope it is of some help or interest to someone.
Freebooter