New to Sword Collecting
May 10, 2012 11:43:04 GMT
Post by Deleted on May 10, 2012 11:43:04 GMT
Well, this is my first post here as I found this site a week or so ago and have been reading a ton of posts and stickies. I'm new to sword collecting and have been a life-long Martial Artist. I've always been fascinated by the Samurai and have researched them since I was a young child. I bought my first Ninja-to when I was 10 but it was only a 440 stainless steel wall hanger. I've owned dozens of wall hanger Katanas over the years. A few years ago I bought a Paul Chen Practical Katana but ended up snapping the blade doing some cutting. Now, I'm ready to really step things up and build a great collection of "REAL" Katanas. I just also purchased an Oda Nobonaga Armor set so I'm excited about that. What price range should I start? I'm thinking between $300-$500 for my first sword. I know I will be adding many more.
I was looking at the Ronin Dojo line and they seem really nice. For Aestetics though I would LOVE something that has been clay tempered with a real Hamon. However, I want a sword that will be a workhorse and be used for cutting mostly bamboo. I've been researching between 1060, 1095, and T10 steel and I'm undecided. There are pros and cons but it looks like the tempering process is the most important so I need to find a reputable smith. I know I will be buying several of each steel so in the end it prob. isn't a huge deal but I want something that can certainly take some abuse. I know to stay away from Ryan Sword but what other smiths would you guys recommend and going over the $500 budget will that yield a much better product?
Thanks,
Pete
I was looking at the Ronin Dojo line and they seem really nice. For Aestetics though I would LOVE something that has been clay tempered with a real Hamon. However, I want a sword that will be a workhorse and be used for cutting mostly bamboo. I've been researching between 1060, 1095, and T10 steel and I'm undecided. There are pros and cons but it looks like the tempering process is the most important so I need to find a reputable smith. I know I will be buying several of each steel so in the end it prob. isn't a huge deal but I want something that can certainly take some abuse. I know to stay away from Ryan Sword but what other smiths would you guys recommend and going over the $500 budget will that yield a much better product?
Thanks,
Pete