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Post by LG Martial Arts on Mar 17, 2013 16:39:51 GMT
Hello all. I'm looking at expanding my Japanese sword collection (Munetoshi Tessen Forge Folded T10 Katana and a couple of steel [imported from Japan] Iaitos), and have been looking at the Project X katana with tons of interest (drooling is more like it :mrgreen: ). I'd like some opinions especially from senior members on this board. Although I've been in martial arts since the early 80's, and have a Shodan in Iaido (working on my Nidan, hopefully later this year), I haven't really held too many katanas to make a really informed decision. If you had some $ to spend - $899 (Project X sbg-sword-store.sword-buyers-guide.com/x1.html) + $420 (customization sbg-sword-store.sword-buyers-gui ... ct241.html), would you go that route, or buy something else? I'm looking for a functional sword that looks and feels awesome... something that will look and feel like a traditional Japanese shinken without the price (yeah, I know - that's asking for a lot). I want a laminated blade (for aesthetics), and also something with at least a little niku, something that will be extremely sharp yet durable for actual use (tatami omote/bamboo - traditional medium to hard targets). Thanks for your opinions.
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George
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Post by George on Mar 17, 2013 20:55:14 GMT
If you want close to Traditional but also functional check out Kaneie. They are the closest to real Ninhonto. I love this offering they have, although its a bit more pricey they have cheaper options. www.k-sword.com/?product-90.html
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kaiyo
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Post by kaiyo on Mar 17, 2013 22:06:16 GMT
heard a lot of the Project-X katana BUT no review yet or at least some pictures / opions from owners dont want to say its a bad sword or not worth the money - just no real info about a sword for 1000$
i own a Kaneie kat, the traditional polish looks amazing and it worth the money the asking for, downside is the lack of geometric yokote (though the counter polish is great)
PS: the Budo is worth a look
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Mar 17, 2013 22:42:58 GMT
thanks for the suggestions... I'm keeping my mind open!
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Post by johnwalter on Mar 18, 2013 3:51:56 GMT
The Budo isnt folded,but is the best thing on the market at or more than its price.One iaidoka to another. If you must have FF,I would go with Kaneie.Or has done FF blades,maybe check into that with Dadaochen(Ricky) owner,here on the forum.There are other options than $1500 for that,imho.Not that its a bad blade,I havent seen one in person.
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Mar 21, 2013 18:31:59 GMT
After doing much soul searching and looking at reviews on SBG/Youtube vids (featuring tameshigiri, etc), I'm still leaning towards the Project X katana as of this moment. The Budo looks like a really impressive sword, and so does the Kaneie (especially the [Chinese equivalent of] tamahagane series), but for the aesthetic, quality, cutting power, and durability I've been able to gather about the Project X, it's still in the # 1 position for me. If anyone else wants to weigh in, by all means, join in! I'd love to hear any and all ideas/reviews others have had on blades in this calibre. Just a reminder though, that my max budget is around $1,300. Thanks again for the invaluable info that's already been provided.
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Mar 21, 2013 18:35:06 GMT
After doing much soul searching and looking at reviews on SBG/Youtube vids (featuring tameshigiri, etc), I'm still leaning towards the Project X katana as of this moment. The Budo looks like a really impressive sword, and so does the Kaneie (especially the [Chinese equivalent of] tamahagane series), but for the aesthetic, quality, cutting power, and durability I've been able to gather about the Project X, it's still in the # 1 position for me. If anyone else wants to weigh in, by all means, join in! I'd love to hear any and all ideas/reviews others have had on blades in this calibre. Just a reminder though, that my max budget is around $1,300. Thanks again for the invaluable info that's already been provided. Btw, this ancient Nihonto just makes me drool whenever I see it www.nihonto.ca/ss.php?title=Go%20Yoshihiro&first=2&last=14&path=go-yoshihiro :mrgreen:
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Marc Kaden Ridgeway
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Awful lot of leaving and joining going on here for me .... And gosh I can't recall doing a bit of i
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Post by Marc Kaden Ridgeway on Mar 21, 2013 19:30:43 GMT
The katana on the market that I would be most interested in right now is the Project X .
I have owned or handled (cut with) swords from EVERY SINGLE MANUFACTURER listed in this thread , and in my opinion the Ronin Elite blades blow them all away in the shaping department.
Real interested in seeing a project X and how the upgrades complement the blade.
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Post by Lonely Wolf Forge on Mar 21, 2013 20:17:17 GMT
If cutting performance is important to you id deffinately go with the Budo or RK, i have yet to see a blade outperform them as far as mat cutting and trick cuts go, and ricky has really stepped up the quality on these swords since his first run of wind gliders way back when, i own 2 of the original demo blades and after much use they are still sharper than any other sword ive handled.
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Post by frankthebunny on Mar 21, 2013 20:24:22 GMT
although it's not on your list I would also suggest a Kaneie for that kind of money
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Post by Jussi Ekholm on Mar 21, 2013 21:52:02 GMT
Well you are most definately not going to get anything near the sword you linked for 1000$ And Darcy has absolutely stunning photos. But I believe you might want a sword that has hada? Now I'm very amateurish photographer, and I take my pics on phone... but here are couple of shots I just took on Bugei Bamboo. (ignore the scracthes they are from use, but after the regular Hanwei treatment fades away and hada becomes more subtle, it's quite nice to look at) Bugei swords will be good cutters, however the Bamboo ain't a light sword as mine weighs 1220 grams. Mine doesn't have niku, but I've read many comments of Bugei swords having niku. However this is thick in kasane, 7mm sakikasane. I'm not saying that Bugei will be better or worse than others in this price range. But it might be something to look at if you want a nihonto like appearance. Laminated blade alone won't produce the pattern, folding is needed to achieve it. I think Bugei might be a bit cheaper option in the US than Kaneie (I might be wrong though, I don't know exactly how much Kaneie costs in the US), but if I were to put this much money for new production sword, Kaneie might be my first choice. Just note that the Bugei Bamboo is the only true high end production sword I've owned. Bugei, Ronin Elite, Project X, Kaneie, top Huanuo might all be pretty close to eachother, but I haven't owned any of them. In the end what you like the most matters.
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Mar 21, 2013 23:38:32 GMT
:shock: I just read the poll I created and I misspelled Kaneie with Kanweie. I guess I was in a hurry and combined Hanwei and Kaneie togethter :mrgreen:
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Post by slopez on Mar 21, 2013 23:59:15 GMT
For that money I would also recommend Kaneie. I have one, and I have a custom that will be coming. I am selling the one I have because of the length only, perfectly balanced, everything is done great. I also have handled a ronin elite, and rk as well. If you are wanting and looking for a close similarities to japanese blades I would go with kaneie. The blade shape on the ronin elite are very nice, but they are definately thick and you can feel the weight. The tsuka are thick, which I did not like. If you are wanting laminated blade for looks, I would not go with the elite. They put a lot of work into making a blade with soshu lamination but the polish does it no good. For me if ronin did a project x with a good hadori polish like on kaneies, I would go for one. With all the work and uniqueness going into that lamination, I just feel it is for nothing without a proper polish to truly bring out the details and work. It really doesnt help that part of the blade is done in mirror polish which takes away seeing the hada really from what I saw. Which again, why do the lamination if you wont show it or bring it out properly? To me the selling point of ronin are thick blades done in unique and rare lamination. Thats what sets them apart, not saying that they dont do other things right, just what sets them apart. For the same price you are able to pick out a kaneie sword. I can not seem to sell mine, so as I never used it I may end up doing cutting with it and can share results on how it does. Also for 1000 here is a kaneie with a minor flaw you can get for few hundred dollars below what it would have been. www.thesamuraiworkshop.com/EN/ca ... uct_id=364 The only flaw is a small spot of rust, which they show in last photo. I would say thats nothing and in no way really takes too much away from it. You also get it at a great price. You can get a full custom from kaneie for around 1600 as well. I emailed them getting a price range with silver fittings and leather with bo-hi and it came out to around that much. You can ask for a thicker blade, wider blade, any length. You can make it yours, and it will have an excellent polish on it. If you would like i can take pictures of my kaneie, elite, and the rk side by side to show you blade shape, tsuka shape, so you can see a little the difference. As much as I know pictures wont give you a true estimate of them, it can help.
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Mar 22, 2013 0:05:00 GMT
The Go Yoshihiro sword I posted a link to is AMAZING imho :shock: ... too bad I don't have the cash flow to be able to afford something like that. Here's a couple of links to that beautiful sword again: www.nihonto.ca/go-yoshihiro/ and www.nihonto.ca/ss.php?title=Go%20Yoshihiro&first=2&last=14&path=go-yoshihiro. And yeah, I'm definitely looking for a sword with nice hada, flowing hamon, traditional geometry (or as close as possible), and an overall great feel/durability for all types of cutting, preferably mid to hard targets. BTW, thanks again to everyone who's contributed to my post.
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Mar 22, 2013 0:29:09 GMT
That would be AWESOME! Please either post the pics here or PM me with them. Thanks again for your insight.
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Mar 22, 2013 0:51:29 GMT
Thanks for your input... I've seen quite a bit of your vids (destruction tests & cutting with the Elite & one of my personal favs the Musashi Highlander) and value your thoughts and pointers. I'm also really interested in how the upgraded furniture will add to the Elite blade. I don't like putting people on the spot, especially since I'm one of the new guys on the block so to speak, but since you have tons of experience with all of the makers mentioned, which one would you absolutely recommend as being the best all around for blade type/shape/durability/cutting power?
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Post by Vue on Mar 22, 2013 4:00:13 GMT
LOL Kanweie..... Like many have said, the closes thing out of this line up to look like and handle like a traditional sword is Kaneie. The second would be the in terms of Koshirae mostly, with then rest you would need to customized them and depends on which model you choose it could get quite costly. For my taste personally I would need to throw another 1K+ to make the Ronin Elite look like a traditional sword, Kaneie on the other hand has all those attributes without the extra costs in customization but each to their own Not sure if you read this thread already but if you haven't, it should be little helpful - viewtopic.php?f=9&t=15558Good luck with your endeavor
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Post by stickem on Mar 22, 2013 13:31:09 GMT
Might as well look at these: www.bugei.com/peace-sword-1511-prd1.htmIf you are able to spend >$1,000, then I'd definitely look at a Peace Sword. For higher end production katana, I'd echo those folks who suggested Bugei and Kaneie. Keep in mind, everyone has their own preferences for what they like in a sword. All these suggestions (e.g., Hanwei, Huanuo, , Ronin, Dynasty Forge, etc.) can be good ones for you as well, especially if you want to spend <$1,000. For more info, try this thread where someone recently asked the question, what high-end production katana would you buy: forum.sword-buyers-guide.com/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=15850&start=0
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Post by slopez on Mar 22, 2013 21:52:11 GMT
Here are the pictures I mentioned before. Kaneie is the black ito, black same and silver fittings on left, ronin elite in middle, and rk2 on right in all pictures. I am not a great photographer and a complete newbie in taking photos of katanas, which I have come to see is very hard to do to get good detail with lighting. I do not own the elite or rk anymore, I gave one to a classmate and the other just to be at dojo in case someone needs one. I dont keep swords I dont use, im the type of guy who would buy a ferrarri and tear up the streets with it, or a classic car. Need to use them to truly appreciate what they are and what they are built for, applies to anything with me. Anyways lol, attached are the photos, hope they help.
Also with bugei, I would go for the peace sword as well. For me I would only want the blade, it is gorgeous but I dislike the the saya and fittings, just not to my taste. Now if I could have their lion dog them on the peace blade I would love that.
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Post by Jussi Ekholm on Mar 22, 2013 22:14:54 GMT
Nice to see that comparison, the Kaneie looks spectacular.
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