Daniel Dacombe
Member
Company Representative - Ronin Katana
Posts: 4,156
|
Post by Daniel Dacombe on Mar 23, 2016 0:30:27 GMT
The Ronin Katana Scratch and Dent Sale is well underway, with hundreds of swords already shipped out. Some have already arrived to the lucky folks who ordered them. I've been getting lots of questions about what constitutes a scratch and dent sword - what you can expect from getting a sword that is technically "damaged."
Actually, that's what this thread is for - we want you to post your scratch and dent swords!
Show us pictures, give us your first impressions - we want to hear what you found when you opened the box. Please share it with the forum!
I'll start with my Youtube video review from a previous year's sale - enjoy!
|
|
|
|
Post by Bookie on Mar 23, 2016 1:44:11 GMT
Ordered and received the Dojo Pro Wakizashi #1 and the Dojo Pro Katana #2 to create a daisho for myself. When the double package arrived, it was beat to the netherworld and looked like it had met Popeye on a bad day. With trepidation, the boxes were opened and anxiety increased as I watched pieces of Styrofoam come tumbling out. Some through large gaping holes in the sides. Upon removing the bag from the Wak, it was with great relief that the only defect readily apparent was the habaki not really snug in the saya. A measly drop of Crazy Glue inside the saya took care of that...er, stuff.
This next pic is of the Wak to give you an overall idea of what the design looks like. As for the katana, just imagine the Wakizashi a little bit longer!
After about 5-6 minutes of further inspection, I found another nasty. The tsuba is blackened, anodized I believe, and a smear of copper shows where the blackening appears to have rubbed off. When taking this photo, a small horizontal scratch was observed on the kurikata. The natural grain of the horn has created an "eye" and the scratch runs through it. So much for the defects on the little guy.
While inspecting the Wak, I laid the katana on the bed of my lathe. When I picked it up, it slipped a bit and (insert non-Christian verbiage here) I put a scratch in the saya! Aarghhh! My bad.
The katana was inspected and it was inspected again. No defects. I took into the next room where the light is much brighter. Still no defects. Desperation was setting in. There had to be SOMETHING wrong with this thing! I drug it outside and after a minute, there it was. In fact there were two of them, just alike, but going opposite directions...buffing marks on the blade.
On the omote near the kissaki:
And getting close to the habaki:
When I turned the blade over the same two faint marks were found on the ura. If the light hadn't highlighted the four wispish marks, they would not have been found for who knows how long.
That's all that is wrong with the two swords. Other than those glitches, are the swords then perfect? No, they're only sub-three hundred dollar Nihonto wanna-bes, but they're mine, the defects are not worth worrying about. Ronin Katana did right by me and then some. I received great value for monies tendered and am very pleased with what I have and you know what? Life doesn't get any better. Cheers, Bookie
|
|
|
|
Post by Pogo4321 on Mar 23, 2016 2:17:34 GMT
Hey, Bookie. Those look pretty good for blems. I had a tsuba with a similar condition and took the blackening off all the way round the edge. Thought the black with copper rim looked pretty sharp.
|
|
|
|
Post by Bookie on Mar 23, 2016 4:32:09 GMT
That sounds interesting Pogo. I'll play with that tomorrow. Thanks.
|
|
|
|
Post by nddave on Mar 24, 2016 18:01:32 GMT
No pics to show yet but I just purchased the Dojo Pro Model #15 a few minutes ago. It is special to me because it is of the hard to find 26" blade length which is what I prefer and have looked for years for in the production market. With my budgeting $150 was too good to pass up so hopefully the S&D issues aren't too harsh. Judging by others S&D stories and reviews I don't think I have too much to worry about. As long as the tsuka is in good shape nothing else will bother me too much regarding dings and scratches. I'll update this post with pics when I get it and plan on doing a review as soon as it arrives as well.
|
|
|
|
Post by nddave on Mar 31, 2016 21:36:30 GMT
Just received my #15 Dojo Pro and after a hour inspection and wipe down here are some pics and first impressions before a post the full review tonight.  As far as packaging goes the outer shipper and inner manufactures box were in great shape, perhaps there's a little more TLC from the Idaho UPS people, lol. Inside was the standard styrofoam holders with the sword in its sword bag. One note which seems different is that my sword bag is nylon rather than cotton. No big deal though, free is free and I have plenty of cotton ones from my previous katana purchases. Blade was covered in the previously mentioned saya wax and shipping oil. after a quick wipe down with a towel and some Flitz the blade looked pretty good. There is some light discoloration on each side in the middle of the blade on the edge about an 1 1/2" long. It has a yellowish tint to it and might have been done when it was being sharpened. aside from that there is some mild unevenness in the polish of the blade in spots most noticeably near the habaki. Also just below the kissaki there are a few blemishes on the blade on each side about three or so on each side, very tiny and not very noticeable but I did get the most noticeable in a pic.   The saya looks good and fits snug at the habaki and there is only a very minimal sound of movement toward the end. Koiguchi has some slight discoloration but is even and smooth. Inside the mouth of the saya its kind of ugly but again it fits snug even though it doesn't sit fully flush when sheathed. Kurigata looks good and the sageo is tied nice and tight. The only issue with the sageo is one of the tail ends is heavily frayed so I had to remedy that as see in the pic by melting the loose threads together then looping them around the loop. Did the same on the other side to match but that side was good.    Tsuka is in good shape on the outside and the ito is pretty tight and alternating. Love the shape of the tsuka and it so far it is the most comfortable tsuka I have held. There is just some slight movement in the middle diamonds. Fuchi and Kashira are in good shape and fit properly. Ito knots are tight and the only issue I can see is it looks like underneath the knot the ito is frayed a little. Menuki are in good shape and placement with no movement and mekugi are solid and in good shape as well. The main issue I have with the tsuka is that it is so tight on the tang it seems to not want to disassemble. I didn't want to chance damaging anything and I don't think it is glued but I quit after a few taps to loosen it and reinserted the mekugi.  Tsuba is in good shape and sits flush and has no movement. The seppa do have slight movement to them from side to side though. Habaki is in good shape and has a slight duller polish on the lower textured part that seems to be due to a rough polish. rubbed it down with some Flitz too but it didn't want to shine up and the discoloration stuck. Fits flush and aside from some space on the faces of the blade it looks and fits great, no movement. Overall I feel this sword was a bargain for what I paid and would recommend anyone else to give them a shot. Seems I got the bulk of the apparent issues with these swords but if I can live with them for the price I'm sure many would be comfortable with them too. Full review will be up later today. |
|
|
|
Post by Bookie on Apr 1, 2016 5:07:05 GMT
Could the blade discoloration be due to heat, perhaps?
|
|
|
|
Post by Bushido on Apr 1, 2016 18:07:33 GMT
I just received my three Elites! My god... They are fantastic. Full reviews are coming, but I want to keep the suspense up so I'll only post a few sneak peaks now ;) Boxes! ^^  Bare blade in shirasaya:     It looks great, the lacquer is nice and glossy, no scratches or dings in the shirasaya as far as I can see... At first I was like "Is this really a scratch and dent item??". Upon closer inspection I found some small signs as to why this sword was sorted as S&D, but it's not really much at all. The downsides that I can find is that the fit between the tsuka and the saya isn't perfect so there is a small gap, the habaki fit around the blade is not the best, the kissaki polish is so so and has some rough scratches as you can see from the picture, and lastly I can't seem to find any lamination lines which I would expect from a soshu kitae lamination blade... Perhaps what that means is that the softer side panels actually cover the harder center steel which might affect edge durability... OR... Perhaps this is not a Soshu kitae laminated blade but in fact something else? Daniel, care to comment on this? Either way it doesn't really bother me at all, the sword is stunning, nice and straight with nice and crisp lines, a geometric yokote and a genuine Hamon that is absolutely fantastic, at $200 this is simply a bargain! Next up is a fully dressed dragon themed Elite:  First surprise, this fantastic sword bag! I honestly wasn't expecting that, I figured scratch and dent would mean no frills or extras so the fact that this was included at all came as a very nice surprise!        Again, fantastic sword... The blade is nice and straigth with crisp lines, the dragon fittings look really nice, Hamon looks amazing with lamination lines present as would be expected, the tsuka wrap is nice and tight with even diamonds... The only downside I can find on this blade is a small spot of surface rust which should come out with a light polish, and the blade doesn't quite center properly in the saya so the seppa sticks out over the edge of the saya on one side and on the other side it doesn't quite reach past the edge... Again, very minor flaws. Even if I can understand why it was sorted as Scratch and dent I still find it to be a real bargain at only $450! My last purchase was this sharingan style Elite:   Again with the really nice sword bag!     This one was tricky. I'm honestly not sure why this is a S&D item. It rattles a little in the saya (although the habaki fits very well in the mouth of the saya), and I found some small casting flaws (sharp edges and small pits) in the fittings, but that's about it. In my mind, this is a fully functioning Elite at half price. Simply amazing value for money if you ask me, I am so happy with my Elites! Thank you so much Daniel, fantastic sale and the harshness of your S&D sorting is as impressive as always! Also, you did me a huge personal favor without me even asking for it (me being an overseas buyer and all) and I am extremely grateful for that! Thank you so much! :) Attachments:
|
|
|
|
Post by nddave on Apr 1, 2016 19:07:30 GMT
Could the blade discoloration be due to heat, perhaps? It could be but it looks more like something was swiped across it which is why I was thinking it might have been an polishing/sharpening error or something. I haven't cut with it yet so not sure if that will impact durability but to me it seems more like a cosmetic issue than something during forging. Edge is nice and sharp and does excellently on paper test. I also noticed I have a little of the "ghost hamon" a little further up the blade towards the sweet spot. Wife wanted to go out to dinner last night so never got to really sit down and get a review going but I should have it up tonight with more details and better pics. Awesome swords Bushido, yea it seems the bulk of the issues are cosmetic which can be easily remedied with a little experience and elbow grease. Those Elites are a steal at $450, three high end production swords for the standard price of most other higher end swords cant be beat. I might have opted for an Elite but those blades are too long for me. Loving this 26" Dojo Pro though, As I said before it feels like this sword was made just for me, lol. |
|
|
|
Post by Bushido on Apr 1, 2016 22:56:10 GMT
Elite bare blade review is now up, two more to go!
|
|
|
|
Post by William Swiger on Apr 1, 2016 23:24:26 GMT
Only 1 Elite left on the S&D sale.
|
|
|
|
Post by Bushido on Apr 2, 2016 14:08:21 GMT
My second Elite review is now up, one more to go :)
|
|
Daniel Dacombe
Member
Company Representative - Ronin Katana
Posts: 4,156
|
Post by Daniel Dacombe on Apr 2, 2016 14:48:48 GMT
Great pictures and comments guys, keep them coming!
|
|
|
|
Post by Bookie on Apr 4, 2016 6:00:04 GMT
nddave: Can you a post a close-up of your tsuba? The 26" blade does sound interesting as I am doing a 24 incher now. Am carving the panels for same at the moment.
Bushido: Very nice grab! I'd be proud of those blades myself.
|
|
|
|
Post by nddave on Apr 4, 2016 7:59:20 GMT
nddave: Can you a post a close-up of your tsuba? The 26" blade does sound interesting as I am doing a 24 incher now. Am carving the panels for same at the moment. Bushido: Very nice grab! I'd be proud of those blades myself. Just finishing up my full review and in the process of posting it now. Better Tsuba pics will be in it. |
|
|
|
Post by Bushido on Apr 5, 2016 15:49:29 GMT
nddave: Can you a post a close-up of your tsuba? The 26" blade does sound interesting as I am doing a 24 incher now. Am carving the panels for same at the moment. Bushido: Very nice grab! I'd be proud of those blades myself. Thanks man! I am very happy with them :D The third and last review of my Elites is now up btw! |
|
|
|
Post by Bookie on Apr 5, 2016 20:42:06 GMT
Nice review, Anton. Like the pics. You definitely received a bargain. In fact, I believe all three of us have received just that!
|
|
|
|
Post by William Swiger on Apr 18, 2016 14:31:47 GMT
Received my Elite S&D #40 today. Honesty, the only issue I found is the tsuba is bent some on one side. Also the tsuba has a lot of sharpish places on the design cut in the center. Good deal for the S&D price.
|
|
Daniel Dacombe
Member
Company Representative - Ronin Katana
Posts: 4,156
|
Post by Daniel Dacombe on Apr 19, 2016 0:48:43 GMT
Received my Elite S&D #40 today. Honesty, the only issue I found is the tsuba is bent some on one side. Also the tsuba has a lot of sharpish places on the design cut in the center. Good deal for the S&D price. High praise from you, Will. Thanks for sharing. |
|
Things have changed!