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Post by Robert in California on Feb 29, 2016 6:12:02 GMT
Huawei did make that fancy niku katana...don't see it anymore....guess must have sold.
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Post by Croccifixio on Feb 29, 2016 6:24:36 GMT
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Post by Kiyoshi on Feb 29, 2016 6:35:44 GMT
Unfortunately for me, I absolutely suck at things like that. I can build a house from the ground up but I can't evenly file or sharpen anything. I tried adding a counter polish to one of my old beaters and that just... It sucked, lol. I don't know what it is about things like that, but no matter how hard I try, what precautions I take, how patient I am, I cannot do things evenly or symmetrical.
Edit: What sword is that? The geometry is a little bleh but that thing has a ton of niku.
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Post by Croccifixio on Feb 29, 2016 6:44:20 GMT
Unfortunately for me, I absolutely suck at things like that. I can build a house from the ground up but I can't evenly file or sharpen anything. I tried adding a counter polish to one of my old beaters and that just... It sucked, lol. I don't know what it is about things like that, but no matter how hard I try, what precautions I take, how patient I am, I cannot do things evenly or symmetrical. Edit: What sword is that? The geometry is a little bleh but that thing has a ton of niku. Custom katana I had made using some ArtsFeng fittings from Jussi Ekholm. The smith who made it was the smith of the old KC 5160 line. Was able to get it at a very cool $220. And I agree, the geometry isn't something to write home about.
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Post by Kiyoshi on Feb 29, 2016 6:50:00 GMT
But that niku is something you don't see on... Anything really. That is the most I've seen on any sword all the way up to the pricey stuff like bugei/hanwei. It takes a lot of time (and therefore money) to balance niku like that and crisp geometry though, so it isn't surprising that the niku rounds out the lines overall on the sword.
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Post by Croccifixio on Feb 29, 2016 6:56:22 GMT
Also would have preferred nohi but I just gave him freedom to do what he liked with my fittings (he just asked me some things, like my height and preferred handle length).
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Post by Anankai on Feb 29, 2016 8:49:02 GMT
I would like to try myself to put a geometric yokote on one of my blade. Do you think it is doable on this one Mikeeman ? And maybe if you could explain a bit how you do it?
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Post by ambulocetus on Mar 3, 2016 1:24:17 GMT
Ok, so no forges or vendors have all four of these features. Do any of them have 2 or more?
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Post by Kiyoshi on Mar 3, 2016 1:44:49 GMT
Most vendors will let you get a custom blade with the dimensions you want, though off of the shelf they have less taper than I would like though they all have it. St-nihonto (and his alts), even-sword (and his alts), and huawei all have swords with geometric yokote. Huawei has a couple with niku and geometric yokote and again, they all have distal taper but they are a little thick for my taste, most find them acceptable.
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Post by randomnobody on Mar 3, 2016 1:45:33 GMT
Hmm, some Ronin models might have both niku and geometric yokote, but no funbari and o can't remember what the machi look like on them.
Hanwei tends to make very flat bevels, a few of their swords have geometric yokote, but none have funbari that I've seen and the machi are probably uneven.
Really, the biggest problem with machi alignment is that nobody seems to get that the ha-machi does NOT rest on the habaki, as the mune-machi does, but actually sits behind the habaki. At least, I think it's supposed to, I remember reading that somewhere, and the only antique I have conforms to this. I forget the exact reasoning, something along the lines of stress points. Most (probably safe to say ask) production katana have prefab-style habaki with a deep notch (okay, usually 1/4" or so) at the back for the mune-machi, and a much shallower notch (1/16"? 1/32"? Really small...) up front for the ha-machi. Again, this really shouldn't sit on (or in many cases protrude over) the habaki, but that's just one of the things production forges haven't really figured out, like funbari and niku.
I've just gone to bed (smartphones are the ruin of good sleeping habits) but tomorrow after work I'll try to get up a comparison between my antiques, my custom, and some of my production stuffs to hopefully demonstrate each quality you're looking for, although I don't think any of mine have true geometric yokote, though one no doubt used to before someone prior to my ownership decided to polish it themselves...
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Post by ambulocetus on Mar 3, 2016 5:27:37 GMT
Ya, inside the habaki there is a little piece that butts up against the ha-machi, I forget what it's called, but it helps the habaki do it's job as a shock-absorber. That's why habaki are always made out of a softer metal. The cheap way with the machi on the outside is putting a lot of stress right on a weak spot. And fumbari allows for a wider nakago, which gives a little extra strength.
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Post by Kiyoshi on Mar 3, 2016 6:06:15 GMT
Fumbari isn't really need on a katana though. I like the fumbari/koshizori combo that is seen on a lot of the tachi but fumbari is pretty hard to find on modern katana, even nihonto and a lot of times unnoticed until you look pretty close.
PS, that small sliver is called machigane.
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Post by randomnobody on Mar 3, 2016 9:58:59 GMT
That's what it was, the machigane. Knew there was something I was forgetting. Koshi-zori, that's another thing the production world needs more of... Just not enough knowledge to make enough demand.
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Post by Kiyoshi on Mar 3, 2016 10:29:51 GMT
I do like me some koshizori. I was thinking heavily about getting my next katana with koshizori but I have other options I'm debating.
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Post by Jussi Ekholm on Mar 3, 2016 11:56:39 GMT
I think we at the forum are generally expecting too much from our swords. In general the good 300-500$ swords are very good swords for the money and best of all they are very affordable. Of course corners have to be cut to arrive to that price point. Heck you even see pretty cool 100-200$ swords that can take a lot of use and even look pretty nice.
So let's assume they could make a custom habaki to your sword for c. 100$'s. Throw in another 100$ for upping tsuka & tsukamaki. Maybe 200$'s so they will try to get the blade profile and features more to your liking? There is also the big IF in the air. Chinese forges/retailers seem to have quite hit or miss reputation when it comes to custom blades. You can read stories on this forum and others. Some years ago I asked quotes from couple well known forges/retailers for a sword to my specs and they quoted c. 1000$'s. I won't be spending that money into a Chinese made sword (and in this case totally risking it as it would be one off sword), I'll just be happy with 300$ swords and accept the few minor issues they have.
Nowdays I tend to think the c. 300$ market is where you get most for your money. Well the few good c. 100$ swords might even have that beat. Even if you go for Kaneie, Bugei and at that "high end" Chinese production sword level, I don't think it will be anything mindblowing, at least it wasn't for me.
I used to have a good Bugei Bamboo several years ago that would have ticked most of your boxes. I got a good deal on used one back then. The problem is just that brand new Bugei Bamboo runs at 1470$'s. I'd rather buy 1 or 2 300$ swords and save the rest for a real Japanese sword. Still I have to say that the Bugei Bamboo I had has probably been the best Chinese made Japanese sword I've ever owned.
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Post by Kiyoshi on Mar 3, 2016 12:58:21 GMT
Well, I wasn't exactly considering a Chinese one for my next sword. If I get anything from China, it will be just a bare blade and that is a large if. Next sword I get will likely be high dollar. I'm rather satisfied with what I have for now. I think the forges can put out good stuff, but like I've said in my reviews, the customer service is just the dumps. If it wasn't for that, I would happily recommend chinatana as they can give you bang for your buck. However, the customer service is so abysmal in my cases, my advice is go just... buy your sword somewhere else.
I'm unsure on the bugei because they seem a bit hefty for my tastes. The measurements given on the sight have just a tad too much at the tip and I don't really like any of their fittings. I would like it if they sold bare blades, then I could have one mounted to my liking. However, if the nakago are like hanwei's usual, it would be difficult since there is no real curve in them (at least the practical don't, I haven't really seen others) so my tsuka won't be shaped how I'd like.
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Mikeeman
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Posts: 2,904
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Post by Mikeeman on Mar 3, 2016 18:39:48 GMT
I would like to try myself to put a geometric yokote on one of my blade. Do you think it is doable on this one Mikeeman ? And maybe if you could explain a bit how you do it? Sure thing, man. I'll try to get a little tutorial up some time this weekend.
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Post by Anankai on Mar 4, 2016 2:30:32 GMT
I would like to try myself to put a geometric yokote on one of my blade. Do you think it is doable on this one Mikeeman ? And maybe if you could explain a bit how you do it? Sure thing, man. I'll try to get a little tutorial up some time this weekend. Thanks Mike! That would be awesome!
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Post by Shishi on Mar 20, 2016 12:19:22 GMT
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Post by Shishi on Mar 21, 2016 19:31:23 GMT
...... I miss josh. He at least appreciated huawei. I'm ready to say goodbye to this forum. My opinions are clearly of little value here.
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