Review : Ronin Katana
Jan 6, 2012 16:24:33 GMT
Post by Marc Kaden Ridgeway on Jan 6, 2012 16:24:33 GMT
Ronin Katana
Marc Kaden Ridgeway
6 Jan 2012
Atlanta , GA
Review Ronin Katana? Ronin Katana what? Didn't you just review a wak?
Why Yes, yes i did... no you got me wrong. This isn't a review of a Ronin Katana product ... It's a review of Chris Scoggin. The man. The company. Ronin Katana.
Wait! You can't do that... this is the sword review section. Doesn't this belong in member feedback?
Well, besides the fact that I can do pretty much whatever I like around here , until Paul takes my magical green coat away (insert evil laugh here)... isn't every sword review a bit of a review of the company as well?
Chris Scoggin is an honest man offering an honest product. Refreshing in an industry where there is so much dishonesty.
Chris is a man dedicated to improving his products, quality control and imperical testing.
Yes, I consider Chris a friend... but that doesn't have anything to do with this. Its not like we grew up next to each other is it/ I met him through the sword community... and if he wasn't honest , forthright and an all around good bloke I wouldn't consider him a friend. I detest the slimeballs that want to predate on the sword community. Ifs theres any reading this, you know who you are. Probably none reading this though... because those kind of scumbags don't last long at SBG.
I have over the years , recieved 3 "free" swords from Chris, for review/testing. The first two were Dojo-Pro #2 and #5 , one with a "ghost hamon" and one without. Chris's dedication to quality led to his desire to test the fidelity of these "ghost hamon" kats , which led to this review : viewtopic.php?f=6&t=179&p=415&hilit=a+tale+of+two+Ronin#p415
originally published on the old forum : sbgswordforum.proboards.com/inde ... 212&page=2
and featured on the main page
www.sword-buyers-guide.com/Ronin ... eview.html
Recently , he sent me a wak from the 2012 shipment for review , that led to this review : viewtopic.php?f=6&t=8479
Well now, he's done it again. Chris's dedication to quality , improvement and imperical testing have led to him sending me 5 more katana. These are all scratch and dent/ returns... swords that have been rejected by Ronin for quality control issues.
He sent them to me for one reason... to destroy... and why not, I make a great testing dummy right? Through this Chris hopes to find out more about the quality of his products, the limitations of them , the limitations and qualities of the steel types, and ways to improve his already well - regarded products.
Ronin Rejects
So lets us take a look at these Ronin rejects shall we? You're not going to see 50 posed outside shots here like my usual somewhat (it seems) reviled reviews... theres no need, and besides , its cold out there.
Just a few quick snaps should get across the point I'm trying to make.
So, if youre anything like me, at this point you are thinking , "Wait , these are rejects?"
Or if you're really like me (mentally touched) you're actually mumbling it aloud , half discernable, with a touch of drool on your chin...
At any rate , not bad looking rejects.
Let's take a closer look.
Still not looking bad... but wait , I've owned pretty close to two-hundred kats...written over 3 dozen reviews, I should be able to QC as well as anyone , right?
So let's really zoom in and see exactly why these swords are Ronin Rejects
For the purpose , the sword at the top of the following picture will be known as sword one... then progressing down they shall be enumerated sword 2, sword 3 and thusly.
-----------------------------------------------------TOP--------------------------------------------------
Sword 1
Sword 1 is a beautiful katana and was rejected it seems for rust. Light surface rust , which will take all of 10 minutes to clean up with a bit of sand paper.
Sword 2
Sword 2 is a special case ... it is a return. One can tell it is NOT in unused condition. There is a small chip in the blade, and some scratches on the shinogi -ji . Also one can tell from the mekugi that this sword has been disassembled and reassembled... badly. So someone used and damaged this katana and then returned it... and there is a slightly loose kashira, presumably the reason for the return. Chris did not have to accept this return. But he did . Good on him.
Sword 3
Blemished Saya
Sword 4
Blemished Saya
Sword 5
Loose kashira
So there you have it.. I just redid the QC that has been done before me . It wasn't easy ... cursory inspections didn't catch all that . Pretty thorough QC.
So if youre buying a sword with your hard earned money, isn't it nice to know this level of customer service and QC goes into it?
Damn right.
This is just a small example of the kind of service that Chris of Ronin and Paul of the SBG Store offer every single day on Ronin Katana.
Those of you that know me know i have some pretty refined and expensive tastes when it comes to swords. i've been called a snob on more than one occasion, i can tell you that.
What my thing really is , is I like a sword that is good at being what it is. I don't like half-assed things. If its is a high-end sword , I want it to be a good, beautiful , harmonic high-end sword.
If it's a wallhanger , i want it to be a good wallhanger.
And if it's an affordable , dedicated heavy cutter, I want it to be a cutter... and that means a good sword all around, cause a cutter needs to have no parts that fail... So if I want an affordable dedicated cutter , i want it to be a Ronin, becasue they have attention to detail, and they are good at what they do.
Likewise with Chris and Paul... when it c omes to selling swords and offering great QC and customer service , they are good at what they do.
i can't wait to see the new , high-end line from Chris and Paul.
Marc Kaden Ridgeway
6 Jan 2012
Atlanta , GA
Review Ronin Katana? Ronin Katana what? Didn't you just review a wak?
Why Yes, yes i did... no you got me wrong. This isn't a review of a Ronin Katana product ... It's a review of Chris Scoggin. The man. The company. Ronin Katana.
Wait! You can't do that... this is the sword review section. Doesn't this belong in member feedback?
Well, besides the fact that I can do pretty much whatever I like around here , until Paul takes my magical green coat away (insert evil laugh here)... isn't every sword review a bit of a review of the company as well?
Chris Scoggin is an honest man offering an honest product. Refreshing in an industry where there is so much dishonesty.
Chris is a man dedicated to improving his products, quality control and imperical testing.
Yes, I consider Chris a friend... but that doesn't have anything to do with this. Its not like we grew up next to each other is it/ I met him through the sword community... and if he wasn't honest , forthright and an all around good bloke I wouldn't consider him a friend. I detest the slimeballs that want to predate on the sword community. Ifs theres any reading this, you know who you are. Probably none reading this though... because those kind of scumbags don't last long at SBG.
I have over the years , recieved 3 "free" swords from Chris, for review/testing. The first two were Dojo-Pro #2 and #5 , one with a "ghost hamon" and one without. Chris's dedication to quality led to his desire to test the fidelity of these "ghost hamon" kats , which led to this review : viewtopic.php?f=6&t=179&p=415&hilit=a+tale+of+two+Ronin#p415
originally published on the old forum : sbgswordforum.proboards.com/inde ... 212&page=2
and featured on the main page
www.sword-buyers-guide.com/Ronin ... eview.html
Recently , he sent me a wak from the 2012 shipment for review , that led to this review : viewtopic.php?f=6&t=8479
Well now, he's done it again. Chris's dedication to quality , improvement and imperical testing have led to him sending me 5 more katana. These are all scratch and dent/ returns... swords that have been rejected by Ronin for quality control issues.
He sent them to me for one reason... to destroy... and why not, I make a great testing dummy right? Through this Chris hopes to find out more about the quality of his products, the limitations of them , the limitations and qualities of the steel types, and ways to improve his already well - regarded products.
Ronin Rejects
So lets us take a look at these Ronin rejects shall we? You're not going to see 50 posed outside shots here like my usual somewhat (it seems) reviled reviews... theres no need, and besides , its cold out there.
Just a few quick snaps should get across the point I'm trying to make.
So, if youre anything like me, at this point you are thinking , "Wait , these are rejects?"
Or if you're really like me (mentally touched) you're actually mumbling it aloud , half discernable, with a touch of drool on your chin...
At any rate , not bad looking rejects.
Let's take a closer look.
Still not looking bad... but wait , I've owned pretty close to two-hundred kats...written over 3 dozen reviews, I should be able to QC as well as anyone , right?
So let's really zoom in and see exactly why these swords are Ronin Rejects
For the purpose , the sword at the top of the following picture will be known as sword one... then progressing down they shall be enumerated sword 2, sword 3 and thusly.
-----------------------------------------------------TOP--------------------------------------------------
Sword 1
Sword 1 is a beautiful katana and was rejected it seems for rust. Light surface rust , which will take all of 10 minutes to clean up with a bit of sand paper.
Sword 2
Sword 2 is a special case ... it is a return. One can tell it is NOT in unused condition. There is a small chip in the blade, and some scratches on the shinogi -ji . Also one can tell from the mekugi that this sword has been disassembled and reassembled... badly. So someone used and damaged this katana and then returned it... and there is a slightly loose kashira, presumably the reason for the return. Chris did not have to accept this return. But he did . Good on him.
Sword 3
Blemished Saya
Sword 4
Blemished Saya
Sword 5
Loose kashira
So there you have it.. I just redid the QC that has been done before me . It wasn't easy ... cursory inspections didn't catch all that . Pretty thorough QC.
So if youre buying a sword with your hard earned money, isn't it nice to know this level of customer service and QC goes into it?
Damn right.
This is just a small example of the kind of service that Chris of Ronin and Paul of the SBG Store offer every single day on Ronin Katana.
Those of you that know me know i have some pretty refined and expensive tastes when it comes to swords. i've been called a snob on more than one occasion, i can tell you that.
What my thing really is , is I like a sword that is good at being what it is. I don't like half-assed things. If its is a high-end sword , I want it to be a good, beautiful , harmonic high-end sword.
If it's a wallhanger , i want it to be a good wallhanger.
And if it's an affordable , dedicated heavy cutter, I want it to be a cutter... and that means a good sword all around, cause a cutter needs to have no parts that fail... So if I want an affordable dedicated cutter , i want it to be a Ronin, becasue they have attention to detail, and they are good at what they do.
Likewise with Chris and Paul... when it c omes to selling swords and offering great QC and customer service , they are good at what they do.
i can't wait to see the new , high-end line from Chris and Paul.