Beach Mat Chop Shop (1st Time Tameshigiri)
Apr 13, 2007 0:35:44 GMT
Post by jw on Apr 13, 2007 0:35:44 GMT
Test cutting cheap beach mats. First time Tameshigiri for me!!
Went to the local Chinatown and purchased 8 straw mats for $1.99 each. Got home and started to roll them up.
Tied them up pretty tight with some twine using truckers hitches and wound up with->
1@ 1 mat
2 @ 2 mats
1 @ 3 mats
Soaked the single mat for 24 hours and went at it with my Musashi Bushido Wind Dragon to see what it would feel like with a 'lower' class blade. Also as I understand it the single mat roll is harder to cut than the multiple mat rolls so I figured it would be a good test of the sword and my amateur cutting skills.
First swing, putting a bit of force into it with a downward diagonal cut, thwack and my first cut, cut the top 4" of mat right off, no problem, sweet!!! Did about 7 cuts on the single roll with a 75% success rate for going all the way through.
On the second day I setup the double roll, which I had soaking for 30+ hours, on a 1/2" dowel, a more proper cutting stand than the first night and went at it with my Cheness Tenchi. Same first swing as the night before, bam cut the top 3" off at a nice 45 degree angle, way, way easier than the Wind Dragon, so much in fact I almost fell over from anticipating a harder to cut target. Had a 100% success rate with the Tenchi and was able to relax more and feel the cut instead of swinging as hard as I could to get through the mat.
Well there is quite a difference between the Wind Dragon and the Tenchi, kinda like night and day, the Tenchi cut it like butter!
I see now why the holding dowel is 1", the 1/2" version I was using busted on the lowermost cut.
So today I went back and bought 10 mats, next time I may get a whole box, hopefully at discount.
Looks like i'll be doing a bit of rolling tonight!!!
When I get home there is a double mat roll waiting and a triple mat roll halfway soaked, fun, fun!
So is there such thing as making the roll too tight?
Is it easier to cut if it is looser?
Happy cutting all.
JW
Went to the local Chinatown and purchased 8 straw mats for $1.99 each. Got home and started to roll them up.
Tied them up pretty tight with some twine using truckers hitches and wound up with->
1@ 1 mat
2 @ 2 mats
1 @ 3 mats
Soaked the single mat for 24 hours and went at it with my Musashi Bushido Wind Dragon to see what it would feel like with a 'lower' class blade. Also as I understand it the single mat roll is harder to cut than the multiple mat rolls so I figured it would be a good test of the sword and my amateur cutting skills.
First swing, putting a bit of force into it with a downward diagonal cut, thwack and my first cut, cut the top 4" of mat right off, no problem, sweet!!! Did about 7 cuts on the single roll with a 75% success rate for going all the way through.
On the second day I setup the double roll, which I had soaking for 30+ hours, on a 1/2" dowel, a more proper cutting stand than the first night and went at it with my Cheness Tenchi. Same first swing as the night before, bam cut the top 3" off at a nice 45 degree angle, way, way easier than the Wind Dragon, so much in fact I almost fell over from anticipating a harder to cut target. Had a 100% success rate with the Tenchi and was able to relax more and feel the cut instead of swinging as hard as I could to get through the mat.
Well there is quite a difference between the Wind Dragon and the Tenchi, kinda like night and day, the Tenchi cut it like butter!
I see now why the holding dowel is 1", the 1/2" version I was using busted on the lowermost cut.
So today I went back and bought 10 mats, next time I may get a whole box, hopefully at discount.
Looks like i'll be doing a bit of rolling tonight!!!
When I get home there is a double mat roll waiting and a triple mat roll halfway soaked, fun, fun!
So is there such thing as making the roll too tight?
Is it easier to cut if it is looser?
Happy cutting all.
JW