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Post by Jussi Ekholm on Mar 13, 2012 22:05:06 GMT
I'd say it's acid enhanced. As far as I know Paul Chen swords go through an acid enhancement in order to get that whitish look on their hamons. It's created like this to save costs in polishing. At least the old generation PPKs had real hamons underneath the treatment as they should have had.
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Post by Kumdoalan on Mar 13, 2012 22:06:19 GMT
I really wanted to not only get a great hamon, but also a Saya that is great to look at.
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Post by Kumdoalan on Mar 13, 2012 22:08:05 GMT
see, the moment I hear "etch" I think "Fake!"
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Post by Adrian Jordan on Mar 13, 2012 22:15:27 GMT
HaHa, me to. However, Hanwei makes a decent product, and that model has a real(nice even,) hamon under the etch. Hanwei has their own secret etching formula and they use it to control costs.
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Post by Kumdoalan on Mar 13, 2012 22:23:55 GMT
Thanks for all the links,,,Im going over them each right now and looking for anything that fits the goals i have for my sword...
To review:
I have about 10 years of Kendo / Kumdo behind me and now I seek to advance to the stage of doing "cutting" as well as learning with my class how to tend to a Katana .
Im a bit of a bladesmith myself as I make a few hunting knives in a real forge in my free time, and so I think it's expected that I own a sword that has just a little something "extra" about it.
I also wanted a sword to have an interesting Saya so that the whole sword package looks nice and custom .
I got to have a good hamon.
And that means I can not have a hamon that is acid etched, or shows the signs of being exposed to acid to help bring out the hamon.
acid etching means "Fake" to me, and Im not going want to be looking at a Fake hamon every time I draw my sword...
It would be nice if the steel was folded. It would be nice if the steel was not just common 5160 steel as that is considered a truck spring steel and not really able to show an interesting hamon. I also have some serious doubts about 1045 steel as that just seems to me to be not the best steel for my needs It would be nice if the tang was signed. It would be nice if the Saya was cool to look at and not just black like all the rest of the guys.
suggestions?
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Post by Kumdoalan on Mar 13, 2012 22:34:28 GMT
I have been to a lot of websites over the last few days looking for the magic katana that has what Im looking for at a price i can live with...
The two i listed in my links are kinda representing what im aiming to find . a sword for under $400.00 that has plenty of "Wow" to it...interesting steel, interesting design to the saya, a whole package that is just a small step above the normal very drab swords that people can afford.
Let me know if you have any names of swords or a link that gets me in the ball park.
The only real concern I have is that the sword I finally decide to get has to be from a maker who is know for making swords that dont fall apart... I stand about 6 feet tall.and so I got to think that most swords on the market are of a size i can learn to deal with.
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Post by Chinook Kaze on Mar 13, 2012 23:15:07 GMT
Take look at this sword for sale in the SBG classifieds "items for sale or trade" The Shinogi-Zukuri sword. Might fit your bill and is a great price for what it is. I'm surprised it hasn't sold already: viewtopic.php?f=36&t=10065
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Post by lamebmx on Mar 14, 2012 1:21:57 GMT
I will second the opinion of a fake hamon. Good news though, most of them can be easily polished off to let the true blade shine. Also, I might add, There are quite a few around who customize, and you have your own skills too. You could probably make your own fittings building on your current metal working knowledge. You can have someone else do the wood customization work. Just trying to help you keep thinking of the different options. Making the decision harder, but better fitting what you want.
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