Ryumon Folded Dragon Tanto
Dec 5, 2012 8:26:37 GMT
Post by JagerTotez on Dec 5, 2012 8:26:37 GMT
Introduction
Greetings everyone! This will be my first post wherein I'll try to give something back to the community that has helped me learn so much.
I just purchased a Ryumon Folded Dragon Tanto from Swords Of Might. After reading several reviews from varying sources (including two here) which had mixed opinions I decided to take the plunge. For the price, I figured it was worth the risk. I had seen some photos of what people got and I was a bit nervous but all in all I am fairly pleased with my purchase.
I hope this review, despite my limited knowledge, can be of some use to someone out there in the market for a value-priced tanto.
Historical overview
While I can not speak to this particular tanto, as I have not nearly enough experience in the field, I can quote wikipedia with regards to the tanto.
"The tantō is commonly referred to as a knife or dagger. The blade is single or double edged with a length between 15 and 30 cm (6-12 inches, in Japanese 1 shaku). The tantō was designed primarily as a stabbing weapon, but the edge can be used for slashing as well. Tantō are generally forged in hira-zukuri style (without ridgeline),[1][6] meaning that their sides have no ridge line and are nearly flat, unlike the shinogi-zukuri structure of a katana. Some tantō have particularly thick cross-sections for armor-piercing duty, and are called yoroi toshi. Tantō were mostly carried by samurai, as commoners did not generally wear them. Women sometimes carried a small tantō called a kaiken[7] in their obi primarily for self-defense. Tantō were sometimes worn as the shōtō in place of a wakizashi in a daishō,[8][9] especially on the battlefield. Before the advent of the wakizashi/tantō combination, it was common for a samurai to carry a tachi and a tantō as opposed to a katana and a wakizashi.[8]
It has been noted that the tachi would be paired with a tantō and later the uchigatana would be paired with another shorter uchigatana. With the advent of the katana, the wakizashi eventually was chosen by samurai as the short sword over the tantō. Kanzan Satō in his book The Japanese sword notes that there did not seem to be any particular need for the wakizashi and suggests that the wakizashi may have become more popular than the tantō due to the wakizashi being more suited for indoor fighting. He mentions the custom of leaving the katana at the door of a castle or palace when entering while continuing to wear the wakizashi inside."
Full Disclosure
I am in no way an expert. This is my first review and my first TRUE sword (See sword-like-object) and as such take everything I say with a grain of salt. I can speak only to how this blade feels to me, and how it looks to me. I can not say it is better or worse than anything else as it is my own personal baseline. Your mileage may vary with this if you decide to purchase it.
That said, I will be as honest and unbiased as I can and will strive to be accurate and provide as many detailed photos as I can to assist those interested in this blade in getting to know it a little better.
Initial Impressions
First: Wow, This got to me fast. I ordered it one day from when it was shipped and two from when it arrived at my front door. I don't live super far away from it's origin, however it was pleasing to me how fast my order was taken care of and how promptly I received my package.
My package arrived like this (Cat not included.)
Which I promptly shook. I do this with any package I know isn't breakable just to see how it is packed before I open it. I heard a thumping as I shook it.
I opened it to find....
A box! Just what I always wanted!
That was what was inside of the bigger box, no packing pellets, no nothing.... That was somewhat disconcerting....
I continued on in hopes that all was well with my order.
Inside the smaller box was the wooden box (Not broken!) that encased the tanto, it was fairly attractive if a bit cheaply made. I liked it and it certainly doesn't detract from the blade. I'll keep it as a nice place to contain my tanto when not in my obi at the Dojo.
Onward!
Wrapped in a plastic sheath was my tanto, seemingly in fine shape. Nothing noticeably broken or otherwise prompting concern so I removed the plastic for a closer inspection.
Pretty! I like it already. I wanted the red saya to match my red/burgundy ito wrap that will be on the katana I have ordered. Should look pretty snazzy when paired together. Everything seemed well on the outside save for a few minor things like thin spots of the saya finish (expected for 65 bucks shipped) and ever-so-slightly loose ito (equally expected.)
There is a closeup of the tsuka and ito. The ito seems to be synthetic silk, however Swords Of Might claims it to be cotton. If it is, it is very stiff and rough cotton.
As you can see, the diamonds are not all even and some are even a bit wonky. No big deal and not unexpected at this price point. Also the ito is not wrapped in an alternating pattern. Again, not unexpected.
Unlike some people have had in the past, my samegawa were where they needed to be to hide any uncovered spots under the ito for a flawless illusion of a full samegawa wrap. I was quite pleased as this was one this I was worried about.
The dragon menuki were a bit off-center on the tsuka which was easy enough to correct. Some people claim to have had poorly cast menuki but mine were fine.
The blade is pinned in at a single point as is common with tantos and it seems like they may have glued the pin in place. Not really a bad thing but it makes customizing down the line more of a hassle, however it was not unexpected at this price.
Ok, so let us pop this baby out of the saya!
Pretty as well! The blade has a very pleasing and subtle folded pattern (as it should, considering it is marketed as a folded blade) which I have no reason to believe is not real. The bo-hi runs almost the length of the blade and comes smoothly out just before the kisaki. There is no hamon.
A better view of the folded pattern.
Upon closer inspection of the blade and fittings, I noticed how tightly everything was put together. There was no rattle in the saya (in fact, it may even be a bit stiff in there for my liking.) There was no rattle anywhere for that matter.
Continuing a closer inspection, I came upon a few expected flaws which seem to be common in low-priced swords
Firstly, the blade is canted off to the right a bit as pictured below
Equally it is canted in the back of the blade, though less so than other blades I've seen reviewed.
Also of minor note, the blade seems to have been rammed into the habaki. There is a bit of what seems to be peening at the bottom of the blade where it meets the habaki.
The one thing that I was particularly worried about, based on some other folk's experiences, was the kisaki. I feared I would get an ugly kisaki that would look like the blade fought a cinderblock and lost, however I was pleasantly surprised to find that it was in good order and shaped well, albeit not polished fantastically (In fact, the blade as a whole could use a better polishing if you were very particular.)
Statistics
Blade/Nagasa Length: 10"
Handle/Tsuka Length: 5.25"
Overall Length: 17"
POB (Point of Balance): Mine was balanced just after the tsuba
Weight: .76 lbs
Handling Characteristics
I cannot speak to this yet. I have not had the time to do much of anything with it other than photograph it and inspect it. When I have the time to really get a feel for it I will update this.
Test Cutting
The blade is sharp, however not super sharp. I'll do some test cutting soon to see how well it does (for what it is obviously.)
Conclusions
All in all, I have to say my fears were put to rest and I am very pleased with my purchase. For $65 and three days wait, I received a fairly nice tanto which will look and should function just fine for it's purposes. Later on I will upgrade to something better but for an entry-level highly-affordable tanto I have to say I am quite impressed with Ryumon's product. I would purchase this again and would recommend it to anyone looking for a tanto under the above mentioned and bolded circumstances.
Pros:
Price!
Tight fitting everything.
Sharp (though not super sharp)
Cons:
Minor defects associated with low-priced swords in general
Potential for lemons
Maybe not a polished as some may like
Greetings everyone! This will be my first post wherein I'll try to give something back to the community that has helped me learn so much.
I just purchased a Ryumon Folded Dragon Tanto from Swords Of Might. After reading several reviews from varying sources (including two here) which had mixed opinions I decided to take the plunge. For the price, I figured it was worth the risk. I had seen some photos of what people got and I was a bit nervous but all in all I am fairly pleased with my purchase.
I hope this review, despite my limited knowledge, can be of some use to someone out there in the market for a value-priced tanto.
Historical overview
While I can not speak to this particular tanto, as I have not nearly enough experience in the field, I can quote wikipedia with regards to the tanto.
"The tantō is commonly referred to as a knife or dagger. The blade is single or double edged with a length between 15 and 30 cm (6-12 inches, in Japanese 1 shaku). The tantō was designed primarily as a stabbing weapon, but the edge can be used for slashing as well. Tantō are generally forged in hira-zukuri style (without ridgeline),[1][6] meaning that their sides have no ridge line and are nearly flat, unlike the shinogi-zukuri structure of a katana. Some tantō have particularly thick cross-sections for armor-piercing duty, and are called yoroi toshi. Tantō were mostly carried by samurai, as commoners did not generally wear them. Women sometimes carried a small tantō called a kaiken[7] in their obi primarily for self-defense. Tantō were sometimes worn as the shōtō in place of a wakizashi in a daishō,[8][9] especially on the battlefield. Before the advent of the wakizashi/tantō combination, it was common for a samurai to carry a tachi and a tantō as opposed to a katana and a wakizashi.[8]
It has been noted that the tachi would be paired with a tantō and later the uchigatana would be paired with another shorter uchigatana. With the advent of the katana, the wakizashi eventually was chosen by samurai as the short sword over the tantō. Kanzan Satō in his book The Japanese sword notes that there did not seem to be any particular need for the wakizashi and suggests that the wakizashi may have become more popular than the tantō due to the wakizashi being more suited for indoor fighting. He mentions the custom of leaving the katana at the door of a castle or palace when entering while continuing to wear the wakizashi inside."
Full Disclosure
I am in no way an expert. This is my first review and my first TRUE sword (See sword-like-object) and as such take everything I say with a grain of salt. I can speak only to how this blade feels to me, and how it looks to me. I can not say it is better or worse than anything else as it is my own personal baseline. Your mileage may vary with this if you decide to purchase it.
That said, I will be as honest and unbiased as I can and will strive to be accurate and provide as many detailed photos as I can to assist those interested in this blade in getting to know it a little better.
Initial Impressions
First: Wow, This got to me fast. I ordered it one day from when it was shipped and two from when it arrived at my front door. I don't live super far away from it's origin, however it was pleasing to me how fast my order was taken care of and how promptly I received my package.
My package arrived like this (Cat not included.)
Which I promptly shook. I do this with any package I know isn't breakable just to see how it is packed before I open it. I heard a thumping as I shook it.
I opened it to find....
A box! Just what I always wanted!
That was what was inside of the bigger box, no packing pellets, no nothing.... That was somewhat disconcerting....
I continued on in hopes that all was well with my order.
Inside the smaller box was the wooden box (Not broken!) that encased the tanto, it was fairly attractive if a bit cheaply made. I liked it and it certainly doesn't detract from the blade. I'll keep it as a nice place to contain my tanto when not in my obi at the Dojo.
Onward!
Wrapped in a plastic sheath was my tanto, seemingly in fine shape. Nothing noticeably broken or otherwise prompting concern so I removed the plastic for a closer inspection.
Pretty! I like it already. I wanted the red saya to match my red/burgundy ito wrap that will be on the katana I have ordered. Should look pretty snazzy when paired together. Everything seemed well on the outside save for a few minor things like thin spots of the saya finish (expected for 65 bucks shipped) and ever-so-slightly loose ito (equally expected.)
There is a closeup of the tsuka and ito. The ito seems to be synthetic silk, however Swords Of Might claims it to be cotton. If it is, it is very stiff and rough cotton.
As you can see, the diamonds are not all even and some are even a bit wonky. No big deal and not unexpected at this price point. Also the ito is not wrapped in an alternating pattern. Again, not unexpected.
Unlike some people have had in the past, my samegawa were where they needed to be to hide any uncovered spots under the ito for a flawless illusion of a full samegawa wrap. I was quite pleased as this was one this I was worried about.
The dragon menuki were a bit off-center on the tsuka which was easy enough to correct. Some people claim to have had poorly cast menuki but mine were fine.
The blade is pinned in at a single point as is common with tantos and it seems like they may have glued the pin in place. Not really a bad thing but it makes customizing down the line more of a hassle, however it was not unexpected at this price.
Ok, so let us pop this baby out of the saya!
Pretty as well! The blade has a very pleasing and subtle folded pattern (as it should, considering it is marketed as a folded blade) which I have no reason to believe is not real. The bo-hi runs almost the length of the blade and comes smoothly out just before the kisaki. There is no hamon.
A better view of the folded pattern.
Upon closer inspection of the blade and fittings, I noticed how tightly everything was put together. There was no rattle in the saya (in fact, it may even be a bit stiff in there for my liking.) There was no rattle anywhere for that matter.
Continuing a closer inspection, I came upon a few expected flaws which seem to be common in low-priced swords
Firstly, the blade is canted off to the right a bit as pictured below
Equally it is canted in the back of the blade, though less so than other blades I've seen reviewed.
Also of minor note, the blade seems to have been rammed into the habaki. There is a bit of what seems to be peening at the bottom of the blade where it meets the habaki.
The one thing that I was particularly worried about, based on some other folk's experiences, was the kisaki. I feared I would get an ugly kisaki that would look like the blade fought a cinderblock and lost, however I was pleasantly surprised to find that it was in good order and shaped well, albeit not polished fantastically (In fact, the blade as a whole could use a better polishing if you were very particular.)
Statistics
Blade/Nagasa Length: 10"
Handle/Tsuka Length: 5.25"
Overall Length: 17"
POB (Point of Balance): Mine was balanced just after the tsuba
Weight: .76 lbs
Handling Characteristics
I cannot speak to this yet. I have not had the time to do much of anything with it other than photograph it and inspect it. When I have the time to really get a feel for it I will update this.
Test Cutting
The blade is sharp, however not super sharp. I'll do some test cutting soon to see how well it does (for what it is obviously.)
Conclusions
All in all, I have to say my fears were put to rest and I am very pleased with my purchase. For $65 and three days wait, I received a fairly nice tanto which will look and should function just fine for it's purposes. Later on I will upgrade to something better but for an entry-level highly-affordable tanto I have to say I am quite impressed with Ryumon's product. I would purchase this again and would recommend it to anyone looking for a tanto under the above mentioned and bolded circumstances.
Pros:
Price!
Tight fitting everything.
Sharp (though not super sharp)
Cons:
Minor defects associated with low-priced swords in general
Potential for lemons
Maybe not a polished as some may like