$90 flea market find
Oct 10, 2007 20:45:25 GMT
Post by Deleted on Oct 10, 2007 20:45:25 GMT
“Masahiro” katana found at flea market reviewed by Anthony Aldridge of Weirton, WV, USA.
First of all, this sword is available online for about the same price, but as I didn’t order from anywhere online, I can’t recommend any particular site. The company that makes them is apparently called Masahiro. I found them for sale through Google, so you can get them, and they’re not hard to find.
I’ve wanted a katana for a long time now, and this was just the most readily available. I had selected the Musashi Wind, but I needed my dad to order it for me, and he either didn’t trust the site (even though it was Trueswords) or didn’t want to spend the money. So, I took him to the flea market, and we got this. I inspected it, and found that it was definitely NOT a wall hanger. They had them with sheaths and ito of several colors. I would have gotten the blue, but the black felt more solid.
It came presented much like a Musashi sword. It seems to be some kind of off brand. Package includes: red display box w/gold lining, black cotton sword bag w/white lining, reference manual, cleaning kit, and info tag tied to tsuba.
Now, I did a bit of Googling and found scant info on this “Masahiro” brand. I found them available from a few sites, but not much info. This is apparently part of a “historical figures” series, which explains the tag. It has a bio for Tokugawa Ieyasu, which features His name in kanji, birth and death dates, a painting that I would assume to be of him (you never know with cheap stuff), his family crest and signature. I can post the whole thing upon request.
Blade length: 28.5"
Hilt length: 11.5"
Overall: 40" without saya
POB (point of balance): 6.25" from base of guard
Weight: have not weighed it; probably will not get the chance. It is heavier than my SLO’s; however, this is definitely not a problem as it is a cinch to wield.
DESIGN, FIT & FINISH
The Blade
The blade came with a decent polish. I didn’t find any scratches, but the were a few rust spots that were pretty bad. I’ve still been unable to remove them. Luckily, they’re on the spine of the blade and on the side, near the base of the kissaki. Essentially, no real harm or detriment. There is no hamon, which I prefer, rather than the glaringly obvious fake hamon on most swords. Has bo-hi. The blade is thicker near the habaki, and tapers as it goes up, but gets thicker right at the base of the kissaki. I would suppose this is to strengthen the tip for thrusting.
The rust spots:
I haven’t disassembled the blade as I haven’t had good occasion to and don’t want to risk loosening the fittings.
The Grip
The ito is tight, but through use I see that it could be tighter. It’s made of cotton, and has fake same panels. The biggest difference that I see between this tsuka and the SLO’s is that it is much smaller, thinner. It feels amazing in comparison. It has two different menuki. One is of a samurai sitting with a poleax, which also appears on the fuchi.
The Pommel
The pommel features a fan and what seems to be a teapot (?)
Sadly, this seems to be the only good picture I was able to take. I’m not good with the camera.
The Guard
On the front of the tsuba is a samurai with golden trim.
On the back, is some kanji symbol. I don’t recognize it.
The Scabbard
The scabbard is plain black, very shiny, and has a golden ring in the fixture-thingy.
I’ve read that some people think that the sageo is too short to form a good knot, and I’ll admit that it is not too tight, but it’s no problem to me. As for how the saya holds the sword, the habaki is nice and tight—tight enough to keep the blade from falling out when held upside down, and even so when shaken in said position. Unfortunately, it catches the blade somewhere farther down when sheathing, and causes the need to twist just a bit to fit it in.
TESTING
The first thing I ever cut with this sword was a 1/2-gallon milk jug. In fact it’s the first thing I ever cut with a sword. I also cut water/pop bottles and a pumpkin. I then proceeded to cut the bushes on the edge of the woods. I tried cutting a limb off a sapling, but the blade stopped about a half inch through. I tried paper, but it’s just not that sharp. I also attempted to cut a cardboard box, but it was more like working with a sharpened stick than with a sword. That probably happened because of the way I’d set up. No on recommends cardboard much anyway. I’ve thrusted through milk and water/pop bottles. The blade flies through milk jugs like nothing I’ve ever experienced. It’s like it’s not even there. Most of the time, unless I screw up, the blade gives a nice clean cut.
I’ve been cutting about twice a week since I got it, and the blade seems undulled. It’s very tough. I’ve ripped right through bottle lips without any effect beside some deeper scratches. I finally rolled the tip—just a bit. I’m not even sure how it happened. It doesn’t seem to be much of a problem, but it’s a shame: the tip was really pointy.
I also noticed how after even the very first cutting session, the blade was becoming pitted and blemished. It could be because the session lasted well over an hour, but I don’t really know how quick these things can rust. It seems to get worse after every session, so I imagine pretty quickly.
Oh, and this happens beforeI can oil it.
CONCLUSION and SBG Ratings:
For $90 US? This sword is awesome. (for my purposes at least) Could be better, but for anything under $100, it’s more than I’d expect.
Fit and Finish: 3/5
Handling: 4/5 (feels good to me)
Structural Integrity: 4/5
Value for Money: 5/5
OVERALL: 4/5
First of all, this sword is available online for about the same price, but as I didn’t order from anywhere online, I can’t recommend any particular site. The company that makes them is apparently called Masahiro. I found them for sale through Google, so you can get them, and they’re not hard to find.
I’ve wanted a katana for a long time now, and this was just the most readily available. I had selected the Musashi Wind, but I needed my dad to order it for me, and he either didn’t trust the site (even though it was Trueswords) or didn’t want to spend the money. So, I took him to the flea market, and we got this. I inspected it, and found that it was definitely NOT a wall hanger. They had them with sheaths and ito of several colors. I would have gotten the blue, but the black felt more solid.
It came presented much like a Musashi sword. It seems to be some kind of off brand. Package includes: red display box w/gold lining, black cotton sword bag w/white lining, reference manual, cleaning kit, and info tag tied to tsuba.
Now, I did a bit of Googling and found scant info on this “Masahiro” brand. I found them available from a few sites, but not much info. This is apparently part of a “historical figures” series, which explains the tag. It has a bio for Tokugawa Ieyasu, which features His name in kanji, birth and death dates, a painting that I would assume to be of him (you never know with cheap stuff), his family crest and signature. I can post the whole thing upon request.
Blade length: 28.5"
Hilt length: 11.5"
Overall: 40" without saya
POB (point of balance): 6.25" from base of guard
Weight: have not weighed it; probably will not get the chance. It is heavier than my SLO’s; however, this is definitely not a problem as it is a cinch to wield.
DESIGN, FIT & FINISH
The Blade
The blade came with a decent polish. I didn’t find any scratches, but the were a few rust spots that were pretty bad. I’ve still been unable to remove them. Luckily, they’re on the spine of the blade and on the side, near the base of the kissaki. Essentially, no real harm or detriment. There is no hamon, which I prefer, rather than the glaringly obvious fake hamon on most swords. Has bo-hi. The blade is thicker near the habaki, and tapers as it goes up, but gets thicker right at the base of the kissaki. I would suppose this is to strengthen the tip for thrusting.
The rust spots:
I haven’t disassembled the blade as I haven’t had good occasion to and don’t want to risk loosening the fittings.
The Grip
The ito is tight, but through use I see that it could be tighter. It’s made of cotton, and has fake same panels. The biggest difference that I see between this tsuka and the SLO’s is that it is much smaller, thinner. It feels amazing in comparison. It has two different menuki. One is of a samurai sitting with a poleax, which also appears on the fuchi.
The Pommel
The pommel features a fan and what seems to be a teapot (?)
Sadly, this seems to be the only good picture I was able to take. I’m not good with the camera.
The Guard
On the front of the tsuba is a samurai with golden trim.
On the back, is some kanji symbol. I don’t recognize it.
The Scabbard
The scabbard is plain black, very shiny, and has a golden ring in the fixture-thingy.
I’ve read that some people think that the sageo is too short to form a good knot, and I’ll admit that it is not too tight, but it’s no problem to me. As for how the saya holds the sword, the habaki is nice and tight—tight enough to keep the blade from falling out when held upside down, and even so when shaken in said position. Unfortunately, it catches the blade somewhere farther down when sheathing, and causes the need to twist just a bit to fit it in.
TESTING
The first thing I ever cut with this sword was a 1/2-gallon milk jug. In fact it’s the first thing I ever cut with a sword. I also cut water/pop bottles and a pumpkin. I then proceeded to cut the bushes on the edge of the woods. I tried cutting a limb off a sapling, but the blade stopped about a half inch through. I tried paper, but it’s just not that sharp. I also attempted to cut a cardboard box, but it was more like working with a sharpened stick than with a sword. That probably happened because of the way I’d set up. No on recommends cardboard much anyway. I’ve thrusted through milk and water/pop bottles. The blade flies through milk jugs like nothing I’ve ever experienced. It’s like it’s not even there. Most of the time, unless I screw up, the blade gives a nice clean cut.
I’ve been cutting about twice a week since I got it, and the blade seems undulled. It’s very tough. I’ve ripped right through bottle lips without any effect beside some deeper scratches. I finally rolled the tip—just a bit. I’m not even sure how it happened. It doesn’t seem to be much of a problem, but it’s a shame: the tip was really pointy.
I also noticed how after even the very first cutting session, the blade was becoming pitted and blemished. It could be because the session lasted well over an hour, but I don’t really know how quick these things can rust. It seems to get worse after every session, so I imagine pretty quickly.
Oh, and this happens beforeI can oil it.
CONCLUSION and SBG Ratings:
For $90 US? This sword is awesome. (for my purposes at least) Could be better, but for anything under $100, it’s more than I’d expect.
Fit and Finish: 3/5
Handling: 4/5 (feels good to me)
Structural Integrity: 4/5
Value for Money: 5/5
OVERALL: 4/5