|
Post by adamthedrummer on Jun 1, 2013 13:00:39 GMT
Yes they are very nice...and quite a few options available too...mine has blue ito with green sageo...and these are meaty super tough blades too. :-)
|
|
|
Post by stickem on Jun 1, 2013 16:37:23 GMT
Go with Kris Cutlery 26". It meets all of your criteria: www.kriscutlery.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=KC&Product_Code=K26W&Category_Code=katanaThey make it with or without bo-hi. It is DH with a real (subtle) hamon, and is made of 5160 spring steel. Not a traditional looking katana but nice sori and Cecil has great customer service and will answer all your ?s. I got mine for <$300 and it is one of the best handling sword I own, such that I can even flow with it one-handed. It can (and has) take on my rock-hard, mature, 3" green bamboo too These sell out quickly, so again I suggest you speak with Cecil at KC directly. He can even do layaway to help with the cash flow Here's a review for more info: /thread/27708
|
|
|
Post by adamthedrummer on Jun 1, 2013 17:46:25 GMT
Kris cutlery eh??? Do they make wakizashis??:-)
|
|
|
Post by stickem on Jun 1, 2013 20:11:04 GMT
Here is a KC wakizashi:
|
|
|
Post by uchiha998 on Jun 1, 2013 23:07:56 GMT
I would personally stay away from Cheness. QC issues aside, there are simply better swords out there for the same price or cheaper. The ito on Cheness blades are not alternating and they do tend to come loose. If you get one with the bo-hi they have a very poor bo-hi termination. Brass tsubas and alloy fittings. If you like shorter blades may I suggest the Ronin Dojo Pro 26" model or the Ronin Dojo Pro Ko-Katana. They run $265 for the Ko-Kat and $275 for the 26" model. Both have Iron tsubas, fuchi, and kashira. The sayas also have buffalo horn koiguchi, kurikata, and kojiri. There is no doubt they are tough, durable swords and there are many destructive test videos to show this. Oh, and they have real silk alternating ito also. There really is no comparison.
If you must have a DH blade for the real hamon, it definitely gets harder to find a shorter blade without going down to a wakizashi. The Hanwei Practical Elite has a 26.75" blade. It is a pretty nice sword. I own a Practical Plus Elite and I like it a lot but its blade is 28". The Hanwei swords do not have the nice koshirae like the Ronin blades do but like I said picking a shorter DH sword for $300 will be hard. You may like the Kris Cutlery 26A but it has a very subtle suhuga hamon. 5160 doesn't produce as nice of hamon as 1095 or some other steels. But the KC is shorter and it is tough. It does have Iron fittings also. The saya however, looks like a hollowed out chair leg though. Some people do like it. The ito is kind of a synthetic silk, i think but it is an alternating wrap, which is important, if you want to be using it frequently.
|
|
|
Post by pinoyHerbalist on Jun 2, 2013 1:09:19 GMT
I think Kris Cutlery will be a great investment. To go with that investment, hope you also enjoy training with it!
Which ever one you go with, be sure it's one you will enjoy to look at, hold, and slice with.
|
|
|
Post by aussie-rabbit on Jun 2, 2013 7:58:34 GMT
|
|
|
Post by jlwilliams on Jun 2, 2013 13:41:13 GMT
Given this as the starting point, here are a few things to consider.
First, clay tempered blades with hamon may not be what you want. The whole clay tempering process was what they did way back when to get good results from the materials they had. The last few hundred years have seen steel quality and availability blossom quite nicely. I don't know the name of the best sword maker of Musashi's time, but if he could have just emailed his credit card to MSC and gat a bar of tool steel delivered instead of banging away at a cake of tamahagane, he would have done it. If you want a sword that cuts well and holds up to abuse and you could bet you life on it, skip hamon and buy a tool steel or spring steel blade. BTW, I couldn't agree more with your statement somewhere in this thread that it's real hamon or none. Real hamon is beautiful, wire brushed hamon is scratches.
Another thing you may want to consider is one of the 'tactical' katanas being offered. They don't have all the look and feel of the swords that are built to look traditional, but they are strong.
Now, moving in on what I really think is the best bet in a 'combat' sword, have you looked at guntos? The only katana made for and used in anything close to modern war is the WWII military swords. Almost all of them are available as reproductions in varrying levels of quality and price. The big advantage I see in the WWII swords is that they latch into their scabbards. Think about this. If you have a long sword on you in any sort of mayhem (I'll get to that in a minute) and you jump, fall, roll, dive for cover or the like; you don't want your sword sliding out and cutting your own leg off. In antiquity when samurai wore their swords in their sash, their way of living and fighting was evolved in accord with sword wearing. Today, not really the case. If you are going to carry any sort of blade, you need a sheath or scabbard that retains it safely. You need two catches on a knife sheath if your going on a Zodiac, because a bayonet dropping out in an inflatable boat is bad juju. Take that into consideration. You can get a copy of the NCO sword for under $200, and there are some fair officer's model repros for $350 and up. If you want a katana built for combat, the gunto is the only katana proven in combat in the post machinegun age.
Last point. I dig the idea that you want a sword that could handle combat. Seriously, the only long blades in use in modern armed conflict is the humble machete. Since you post the question 'if it all hit the fan.....' my honest answer is that it wouldn't be a katana. A machete that could be used as a tool might make it into the pack and maybe get used as a weapon, but I wouldn't carry a 40" long weapon that doesn't at least fire 5.56. Remember what I said about the gunto being proven in modern combat? Bear in mind, the guys who carried them mostly died with their boots on and their side finished second.......
I'm in no way trying to discourage your sword selection, just pointing out that one can take swordsmanship too seriously.
This is a fun thread. Thanks for starting it.
|
|
|
Post by adamthedrummer on Jun 2, 2013 17:23:31 GMT
There are plenty of very tough dh blades available now for under $300...if you want a katana go for it...I have a few and have gone as far as chopping wood with one and it didn't even flinch..just don't buy a sub $100 blade and you should be ok. If bending a blade is your concern then stick with the spring steels. The hamon may not be as vivid as say a t-10 but in general toughness for a battle ready durable blade spring steels are excellent and still quite nice. :-)
|
|
|
Post by aussie-rabbit on Jun 4, 2013 10:59:46 GMT
|
|
|
Post by adamthedrummer on Jun 4, 2013 11:04:56 GMT
Well Ricky has some 1095 budget beaters in stock at right now. They are so nice but 29 inch blade... which for me personally is a touch too long but I got one anyway...too much sword to pass up for the price. :-)
|
|
|
Post by xdskiller on Jun 5, 2013 4:41:54 GMT
aren't they 28 inches?
|
|
|
Post by adamthedrummer on Jun 5, 2013 11:11:19 GMT
Might be closer to 28? I have short arms and low shoulders so a 27 incher would be my ideal length for practicing forms...but for cutting the extra length helps with blade presence. :-)
|
|
|
Post by johnwalter on Jun 5, 2013 15:17:41 GMT
I will say Kc 26,it will give u what u want,also a nicely shaped tsuka u can rewrap. Other than that Everything from is turning out to be the best bang per buck available in its category.Only downside,since u want to rewrap,is nothing needs to be done to his.
|
|
|
Post by ninjedi on Jun 6, 2013 20:58:09 GMT
Can someone clarify for me if there is a difference here? I mean, if it's capable of cutting through a double roll of tatami, it should be able to decapitate your enemy in combat,,,,, right?
|
|
hhmoore
Member
Sneaking around once in a while
Posts: 656
|
Post by hhmoore on Jun 6, 2013 21:20:04 GMT
Anybody else feel little twinges of unease when these people show up wanting "battle ready" swords and are focused on ability to cut flesh and bone? Are there really that many people chomping at the bit for some apocalyptic situation (zombies included, or not)? I get that mats aren't the same as people...but they are good for training; and there's a lot to be said for practice and technique if a large blade is ever needed for self preservation.
|
|
|
Post by Ulrich on Jun 6, 2013 21:23:10 GMT
------------------------ If ya facing the hated enemy, he wouldn't kneel in awaiting the decapitation. He should stand there armed in full armor and will move. It's possible that he is skilled or lucky enough not to show an unarmoured point and a cut on his armor wouldn't have the desired effect and so you have to go for the thrust. Imagine to do this with a thin, cutting-optimized blade scars me. Maybe it works, but to be on a more safe side I'd go for a reinforced point. And it's also better to have some niku, to have a meaty blade for the option to break the armor off with a cutting move or just a powerful slash. IMHO.
|
|
hhmoore
Member
Sneaking around once in a while
Posts: 656
|
Post by hhmoore on Jun 6, 2013 21:58:31 GMT
Full armor? Real sword combat? Where in today's world are these part of reality? I get the theory, and don't disagree on that level...maybe I'm just too old to believe I'll be facing an armored opponent, while holding a sword, before I'm too old to have that fight. I'd be more likely to believe that my opponent would have far more advanced weaponry, and that I'd be screwed no matter what I was carrying.
|
|
|
Post by Ulrich on Jun 6, 2013 22:07:05 GMT
Nowhere. But the point is OP asks for "Battle" ready. In my opinion a battle fought with swords goes in the way I've mentioned it. If asking for modern warefare or just ripping unarmoured, defenseless civilians it would be a totally different thing.
|
|
|
Post by adamthedrummer on Jun 6, 2013 22:12:08 GMT
The 1095 budget beaters have heavy niku...but they might be sold out. :-)
|
|