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Post by Deleted on Jan 6, 2011 10:27:17 GMT
Hello all, just wondering what the general consensus was about this material for a katana. Got a couple of these swords, and they seem quite nice, only ever cut one milk just with them, they went clean through...
I dont push my swords very far, never cut tatami before, just one gallon jugs, half gallon cartons, and 2 liter bottles. That's what my household uses, my roommate is a soda junkie, and I drink a gallon of water a day, and purchase those from my work for cheap cheap, and I'm a vegetarian, and Soy milk comes in half gallons if you want to drink it all in 5 days! Maybe I'll get me a stand put together and try some mats out soon though...
Thanks for any input, good bad or indifferent!
Blessed Be
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Post by chopper on Jan 6, 2011 19:27:48 GMT
Do you mean 1045 Carbon Steel?
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Post by Deleted on Jan 8, 2011 6:40:35 GMT
not quite sure what to make of it really...
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TomK
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Post by TomK on Jan 8, 2011 7:30:09 GMT
seems to me they are saying it is some kind of steel with 45 points of carbon. could be 1045, 9245 (is there such a thing?) or some other alloy with 45 points of carbon. or I could be off my rocker.
Assuming they mean 1045, yeah it's ok for a sword. not fantastic but just fine all the same assuming it is made well. the problem I find with 1045/XX45 steel is because it is cheap companies that are looking to make something as cheaply as possible tend to be attracted to it and companies that are placing cheap over quality usually do not make products I enjoy. that doesn't mean you haven't found a well made sword, or that you shouldn't use it. I have been spoiling myself with really good swords lately so there are many swords that I would not enjoy that are still fine swords for cutting. the targets you have been using are very light and will cause very little stress on a sword. a sword that cannot cut those targets safely is not safe to swing. what you have should be fine, just make sure you have given it a good safety inspection and don't do anything dumb with it.
Welcome to the addiction, have fun and stay safe.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 13, 2011 19:07:14 GMT
Yeah, you can google carbon numeric sword rating and it will list what it all means. A carbon rating of 1045 is not ideal but it is usable and cheap by comparison but the trade off of $50 or so isn't worth it. I suggest saving and spending the extra money on a sword that is going to be worthy of it. Not to say that the one you purchased isn't worthy, just there are better qualities of steel out there. I'm probably going to get a Cheness Kaze 9260 next, gorgeous blade and still under $300.  |
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Post by Lukas MG (chenessfan) on Jan 13, 2011 19:21:00 GMT
Just one thing to add, that sword there is REALLY soft, 42Rc doesn't hold an edge to speak of. It might stiIl handle great and cut light targets very well but I agree with withewolf, get a better sword, me personally I've had great experiences with the Cheness 9260 TH line, though many people don't like them. The Kaze should be great if you want a hamon and a harder edge, the hanwei Raptor series would be great as durable beaters. There are a LOT more good kats out there, these are just some that came to my mind right away.
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Post by chrisperoni on Jan 13, 2011 19:21:00 GMT
more than the steel type, you need to be sure of the heat treat and hardness. Whatever steel a sword is made from it's all about how well it was made. As they say 'it's the smith not the steel'
I have three 1045steel katanas that have seen years of cutting and they are doing just fine
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TomK
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Post by TomK on Jan 13, 2011 19:55:14 GMT
I suspect many people (even when they know something about swords) could handle a sword with 42-45 HRC edge and not be able to tell the difference. historically, many swords never got so hard as 42HRC and yet they were good swords and people fought for their lives with them.
I suspect the hardness would have to drop into the 30's for most people to notice. I also suspect the company advertising and or making this sword (whoever wrote that little fact sheet) did not translate something correctly since they have the spine being harder than the edge. also I suspect that the hardness of this sword could be anywhere on the scale. testing hardness is very difficult and unreliable. it also damages the steel just a little so they don't usually do it any where it can be seen or they do it to one sword only and none of the others. I tend to ignore hardness numbers
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Post by Lukas MG (chenessfan) on Jan 13, 2011 20:55:13 GMT
Yes, on light targets you wouldn't notice a difference from a 42 and a 60Rc sword. Nor on one cut on a harder target. Once you go at newspaper rolls, bamboo and branches (don't know about tatami, never cut any) regularly, you notice a serious drop of performance as the soft sword just dulls very quickly. At least that's my experience with a cheapo katana.
About testing hardness, well, it can be very accurate but you have to use a rockwell tester, which is friggin expensive, makes little holes in your sword and takes quite a bit of time. No way to do that for a production sword maker. Custom maker however can do so, I know of at least one who tests every blade multiple times, at the shoulder, then at the CoP in the middle and and the edges. He does the same with blades brought to him for heat treating so I always know up to +-1 exactly how hard my blade is. It's quite possible that I focus too much on hardness (that's my only gripe with ATrims), but I've just had so many good experiences with blades of 58-60Rc compared to other blades that I don't want to go back to the usual 50-54Rc. I never felt a difference between a 53Rc and a 60Rc blade during regular cutting of even branches, etc but once I hit a nail in my cutting stand I knew why I prefered the 60Rc. But then there shouldn't be any nails around swords anyway sooo... I guess I'm overly perfectionistic.
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Post by chrisperoni on Jan 13, 2011 22:02:03 GMT
Does anybody know about the Manufacturer/ Seller Ei Dai En? Makers or resellers? 3y3EcE, if you can post pics of your swords with detail shots of the fittings etc we might be able figure out more about them  |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 15, 2011 13:55:55 GMT
I'm no photographer, at least, not with this digital stuff... but i'm learning...
I hope these help a little... I've replaced the tsubas since these have been taken, these were taken the day I got them, I've also re-sharpened/polished them both since then with TomK's sharpening advice, 400, 800, 1200, 2000, and then for the heck of it 3000 grit wet/dry. I also then stropped the blades with a leather strop my Dad told me to always keep around, but he meant for leathercrafting which he taught to me, but it works for anything with a straight edge to it...
Thank you for all of your thought on this matter everyone...
I don't want to sell an inferior sword, and since black seems more popular than blue, and I like blue being a Piscean, if and when I decide to sell one (or both of them) I will start with selling the black one, which has my favorite tsuba on it. It just seems to go with it so much better than those simplistic tsubas you see in these photos...
Cheers and Slainte all..
Troy
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TomK
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Post by TomK on Jan 15, 2011 17:37:32 GMT
got any pictures of them now instead of before you sharpened/polished them?
the sword pictured looks to be pretty standard stuff for the price range it is in.
actually now that I look again I'd say the habaki fit is unusually good. seems to be no gap at all. looks pretty neat and clean, I've definitely seen worse.
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