|
|
Post by aussiedan on May 28, 2014 2:52:55 GMT
Hi Everyone
I was wondering how straight a production Katana blade should be on a lets say US $400 sword? I understand that due to the hopefully handmade production there are little flaws etc, but what is reasonable?
Also what is the best way to tell if a blade is perfectly straight? Is there a trick. I looked at a blade yesterday for probably half an hour trying to really be sure if it is straight or not. Thought my eyes are going to pop out at some point. But something just doesn't seem right and I might have to look at it at a different angle, literally?
Any help would be much appreciated. I tried to search the forum for a similar topic but couldn't find any. So my apologies if this has been brought up before.
Cheers
Dan
|
|
|
|
Post by Adrian Jordan on May 28, 2014 3:06:42 GMT
Hey, Dan. Am I understanding correctly that it has a bend(to the side), and not just curved? If it's a bend, then no, it shouldn't be there. Have you cut with it? If not, then I'd contact the seller and ask for a replacement. A picture would help if you're able to put one up.
|
|
|
|
Post by frankthebunny on May 28, 2014 3:09:59 GMT
The blade should be as straight as possible. If you can't see a bend or deviation after looking that long, it's either not there or so slight it won't be an issue. Change your angles and more importantly, the lighting. As long as the blade doesn't scrape the interior of the saya when drawn and sheathed, or affect your cutting it should be fine. If there is a bend you can carefully and slowly apply some pressure to straighten it.
Try looking down the mune, with a strong light hitting one side, from the kashira to the tip of the kissaki.
|
|
|
|
Post by aussiedan on May 28, 2014 3:22:52 GMT
Thanks frankthebunny
I figured lighting is an integral part. I have a look later today and report my findings.
Thanks heaps
Dan
|
|
|
|
Post by aussiedan on May 28, 2014 3:25:43 GMT
Hi Adrian
Thanks for your reply. It would be a bend in the last third of the blade towards the end of the blade. But the longer I looked at it I started to think that the blade doesn't sit straight in the Tsuka. But it gets a bit weird after looking at it for a while :-)
I will write up a complete review of this particular sword tonight. It is a SBG Black Dragon Forge and I want to be spot on in the review. So keep an eye out for it if you would. Your opinion is very much appreciated and valued.
Cheers
Dan
|
|
|
|
Post by chrisperoni on May 28, 2014 3:41:28 GMT
If you can take it apart you can just lay the blade on a flat surface and check for bends.
|
|
|
|
Post by johnwalter on May 28, 2014 5:00:27 GMT
Chris gave you the best way to check.Also,none of these swords will be perfect,even just a small imperfection in the mune from hammering or grinding can make the blade appear slghtly bent.As well as a slightly off center mounted tsuka,even on off mounted kashira can make you "see" a bend when holding the sword and trying to line it up.
|
|
|
|
Post by aussie-rabbit on May 28, 2014 7:44:11 GMT
Also a straight edge laid along the blade would give you confidence  |
|
|
|
Post by aussiedan on May 28, 2014 12:54:41 GMT
Thanks everyone.
After further investigation I decided that it is a pretty straight blade. :-)
Doesn't hurt to ask.
Cheers
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on May 28, 2014 18:38:34 GMT
This can drive you nuts when you start really paying attention to details. It'll be a nightmare trying to work on sword alignment during cuts if the sword isn't even in line with itself. It's one of the compromises that come up when trying to save money, you have to find an acceptable point of "good enough" to work with. A bent sword with scrape in a good saya, and conversely a good sword will scrape in a poorly made one. If the tolerances are loose enough it will work together even if certain individual components aren't quite where they need to be.
A good sword is a good sword, but in the meanwhile work with what you can.
|
|
|
|
Post by Acebigdog on Jun 4, 2024 13:37:26 GMT
Hello Dan,
I’m not a sword expert, but I find myself in a very similar situation. I recently bought a ~400$ Katana online, and drove myself nuts thinking it has a bend slightly to the right. I’m still not 100% sure it’s completely straight, but it is handmade and it still cuts well. It doesn’t scrape the saya so even if it isn’t perfect, it’s still pretty damn good. Certainly not noticeable to anyone who isn’t an OCD perfectionist like myself lol. I also had a lot of trouble find info on this so I was happy to find this page and read the comments.
|
|
mrstabby
Member
Posts: 1,870
Member is Online
|
Post by mrstabby on Jun 4, 2024 14:10:36 GMT
Be aware this thread is pretty old.
A small bend can be straightened pretty easily. I personally use an aluminium ruler to gauge straightness but most table tops are straight enough. If you can wiggle the tip when you put it one side up and hear a noise when tapping the middle if you turn it around it is bent. If the sound/space is at the same position in either orientation it's the table.
Gauging by eye can be hard if the grind is not perfect, so a streight blade can appear bent when it is straight. A bit of wavyness can be due to the manufacturing process and is OK, but it should not have too much of a sideways bend or twist in the blade - twisted blades are the worst to fix, almost impossible without some specialized equipment.
Hopefully it's just the grind making you feel like it's bent.
|
|
|
|
Post by openmouthinsertfoot on Jul 9, 2024 0:29:30 GMT
The short answer and the long are the same: it should be straight.
If it seems off (and it’s not obvious), take a closer look at the hilt. Even if it’s only a few degrees off-square, the sword will appear off. For display purposes, won’t be noticed. In your hand, yes. Using the sword, the hilt is a subconscious visual reference point to control the pitch of the blade on your swing.
If you want to test how straight the blade is, get yourself a block of wax. Test it to be square, and mark a centerline. Start spine-down with the hilt flush against the side of the block. If the blade is straight along your mark, then the hilt geometry is good. Flip it over edge down on the block, starting with ricasso on the near side of the block and lower the tip until the blade is resting on the centerline. Pull the blade straight back, maintaining contact with the block across the entire draw, until tip is halfway across the block. The cut mark should be thin and not grooved, and the wax pushed evenly on either side.
If your blade has a belly, follow the curve tangentially across the block instead of drawing directly back.
If you were so inclined, fixing it would be pretty easy if you have any practice at metalwork, and a good spot to wade in and learn if you don’t.
Though I do have a tendency to put my foot in my mouth…
|
|
|
|
Post by openmouthinsertfoot on Jul 9, 2024 13:58:28 GMT
The short answer and the long are the same: it should be straight.
If it seems off (and it’s not obvious), take a closer look at the hilt. Even if it’s only a few degrees off-square, the sword will appear off. For display purposes, won’t be noticed. In your hand, yes. Using the sword, the hilt is a subconscious visual reference point to control the pitch of the blade on your swing.
If you want to test how straight the blade is, get yourself a block of wax. Test it to be square, and mark a centerline. Start spine-down with the hilt flush against the side of the block. If the blade is straight along your mark, then the hilt geometry is good. Flip it over edge down on the block, starting with ricasso on the near side of the block and lower the tip until the blade is resting on the centerline. Pull the blade straight back, maintaining contact with the block across the entire draw, until tip is halfway across the block. The cut mark should be thin and not grooved, and the wax pushed evenly on either side.
If your blade has a belly, follow the curve tangentially across the block instead of drawing directly back.
If you were so inclined, fixing it would be pretty easy if you have any practice at metalwork, and a good spot to wade in and learn if you don’t.
Though I do have a tendency to put my foot in my mouth…
|
|
|
|
Post by larason2 on Jul 9, 2024 22:51:19 GMT
If it's a differentially hardened sword, they frequently come bent. I'm not going to bother to polish it if it's not straight, so I at least try to bend it back using sword benders. I use my eye, looking along the Ha or the Mune holding it straight up, usually against something dark. If I'm not sure it's bent, I incline the blade at different angles, or look close at the part in question. This seems to work well enough for me.
Basically every sword like this has some fine undulations along the blade, but a good polish will flatten those so they aren't bothersome. The other point is it shouldn't feel side heavy when holding with one hand. If it feels balanced with one hand and it looks straight, that's straight enough for me to polish. If there's a curve in it somewhere (most common is at the tip/kissaki), sometimes I'll try to polish it out, but sometimes I'll just leave it if it doesn't make the sword imbalanced. That's all hardened steel, at the tip, and it's not going to affect cutting much anyway.
|
|
