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Post by sourcheese on May 25, 2016 4:18:03 GMT
From the research I have done it seems that they had issues when they first started. Now they are much improved.
What I'm ordering is a custom.. simplw wood grain saya, black Musashi style tsuba. Simplementation design with wood and earth tones.
I like the customization.
I'll be doing spring steel with no clay temper, no abrasive hamon. I wanted it monosteel so that it minimizes any mistakes. No Bo hi.
When it comes in I'll let you all know.
It is my first katana. So take it with a grain of salt.
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Post by chrisperoni on May 25, 2016 4:46:10 GMT
They are scammers who continue to lie about the steel they are selling. You really shouldn't support them and their continued inexcusable behaviour.
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Post by Insane on May 25, 2016 5:28:14 GMT
What Chris says is spot on. They lie and they cheat and will not get one cent of my money.
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Post by sourcheese on May 25, 2016 6:48:11 GMT
I've seen good and bad reviews. It seems the good reviews are more recent.
I do want a custom mono spring steel katana with a style that I'm looking for. What I'll do when I get home is take a picture of the style I'm looking for and see if you guys have an idea of where I can look.
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Post by Cottontail Customs on May 25, 2016 7:35:05 GMT
In a nutshell, RS earned a bad reputation years ago by deceiving their customers and lying about their products, among other things. There was then an unfortunate and misguided resurgence more recently which was short lived due to the same issues of deceitful practices and questionable materials. If you like their swords and want to buy one despite the warnings, at least be very wary of anything they claim to be laminated as some examples were proven to be faked. If you are open to other suggestions, I'm sure people will be happy to help. Good luck
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 25, 2016 11:08:42 GMT
I would definitely suggest avoiding Ryan sword due to their cruddy business tactics. However, if it's customization that you are looking for, I would highly recommend JKOO/ Sinosword. I ordered a custom from them a while back and am very happy with what I received. You might have to be a bit patient with them, and as with all Chinese customs, be very specific about what you want, and ask for pictures before they ship. I had a good experience with JKOO. There's a review of my sword coming down the pipeline. Here's a link: sinosword.com/Custom-Japanese-Samurai-Katana-Sword-Unique-Design.htmlIn the meantime, keep researching makers. Both Hanbon forge and Huawei on eBay are much better than Ryan sword.
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Post by DigsFossils-n-Knives on May 25, 2016 11:18:46 GMT
Not only is RS guilty of deceitful practices and questionable materials, they are also guilty of poorly heat treating blades.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on May 25, 2016 11:35:12 GMT
And poorly heat treating anything is VERY dangerous trust me!
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Post by gundy on May 25, 2016 15:42:51 GMT
there are plenty of other eBay katana sellers that offer the same level or above customization with much better customer services. I believe Hanbon and St. Nihonto are also around similar price range compare to Ryan. is tsunami dragon any good?
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Post by highlander200268 on May 25, 2016 16:02:22 GMT
if it helps i just got a 9260 spring steel huawei katana with musashi style , it is awesome, i would suggest them over ryan sword personally, here is a picture of mine
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Post by zabazagobo on May 25, 2016 17:12:39 GMT
Ryanswords are crap. Their heat treatment is poor and the steel is a flavor of the month mystery. Check out this video done by forum member Lonely Wolf Forge, it shows how the blade edge rolls significantly rather than chips, indicative of improper heat treat. I would not suggest buying these blades. Link: sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/thread/48019/chop-bsFor higher quality off of Ebay, go with Huawei. I won't recommend Hanbon based on several lackluster purchases from them I've had, but others seem to have had much better luck than I with them. I fell for the trap of "customizing" my first few ebay katana. The quality of materials and assembly is subpar. Don't think you get much that is of appreciable quality in terms of fittings buying katana off of ebay in the $200 range these days. Not to sound like a grump, but having a comfortable tsuka with tight ito and a properly heat treated blade is much more important than extravagant colors or unique fittings. Of course, that's all assuming you plan on using that sword in practice. If its just a display piece, whole different ball game.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 25, 2016 18:31:52 GMT
Gundy, I believe St Nihonto and tsunami dragon are part of Ryan sword, just under different names
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Post by johnwalter on May 25, 2016 18:42:30 GMT
Ryansword? Why?
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Post by Adrian Jordan on May 25, 2016 20:22:27 GMT
As you can probably tell, Ryansword has built up a considerable amount of ill will. This is not specific to this forum, most that you will find do not like/trust them. If you do use them, please go into the transaction with your eyes open. I would also use PayPal, so that you are covered. I have seen them refuse to admit a mistake or acknowledge that an order was even placed(this after payment).
As mentioned above, they have on several occasions(that we know about) charged much higher prices for, say, a laminated blade, only to send a mono-steel blade that has been polished to look laminated. Sales proceeding provided proof of this have been shown to be of the same ilk: low-cost blades made to look like the high-price blade they are sold as. Reports of a sub-par heat treatment are also seen.
You mentioned that you are getting a mono-steel, TH blade, so you shouldn't have to worry about the folding/lamination issues(either the misrepresentations or the physical issues). While most of us would not buy one for either concern about heat treatment or the lack of desire to support a dishonest vendor, there are some examples of their low-cost mono-steel blades being worth their price. If you buy from them, I would suggest that you stick to one of these lower-cost swords.
A good policy when using even the most trusted of these eBay vendors is to insist on pictures of the sword prior to shipping. This will help ensure that you get what you ordered. When you buy an off-the-shelf item, you usually get what was pictured, but when ordering customization it is often seen that you don't get exactly what you ordered(something is a different color, different style, etc). This is generally because they have run out of whatever specific item you ordered, and they wish to finish the piece and send it. Insisting on pictures can help keep your vision intact.
I don't say these things as a scare tactic to drive you away from Ryansword. I want to make sure that you are covered, get what you payed for, and the recommendations above apply across the board. Best of luck, and I hope you get a great sword.
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Post by sourcheese on May 25, 2016 21:31:51 GMT
Highlander who was the seller for that? That's almost exactly what I'm looking for. Everyone thanks for the info and sterring me clear of a potentially dangerous purchase
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addertooth
Member
Working the tsuka on two bare blades from Ninja-Katana, slow progress
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Post by addertooth on May 25, 2016 21:36:12 GMT
Sourcheese, I will take a surprisingly moderate view. We look forward to seeing pictures of your sword when it arrives. Every data-point is useful to readers here, as it applies to the sword purchasing decision. People are being factual when they say buyers here have experienced a mixed bag with purchases from RS. Both of my RS blades were on the fancy high end. I would like to see what his product is like on the more reasonably priced end of his offerings.
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Post by sourcheese on May 25, 2016 21:44:57 GMT
Nevermore just saw the name. Thank you all for the advice
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Post by Adrian Jordan on May 25, 2016 22:50:41 GMT
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Post by sourcheese on May 26, 2016 0:20:21 GMT
I think I know what I'm going to do. I'm at work now so I can't post but I'll show you guys what I picked. This thread has over 300 views. I'll send Ryan sword an email letting them know that I am using this sword for cutting and it's not for display. I just like the customization that I picked.
Then I'll send them the link to this thread letting them know that I want to ensure that the heat treat is correct and that I will be reviewing and posting on this thread. And that with over 300 people viewing this thread their are a lot of people on the fence as to if they want to purchase as well or not.
And if my review shows that the sword does in fact have bad fittings and that the heat treat is in fact bad.. then once and for all Ryan sword is shown as a faulty product and Ryan sword themselves will be able to see this thread.
And if they send me junk knowing that over 300 people are viewing this thread then they are no good.
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Post by stoicshadow on May 26, 2016 0:44:28 GMT
Sourcheese I just noticed your post and only want to help. I would really recommend canceling your order with Ryansword. I have never personally purchased a katana through Ryansword but I know three people who have done so within the past year. Two out of the three requested a custom and the third one bought a sword off of the shelf. To keep it very basic all three had a considerable amount of problems with their order. All three of them had their swords tested by a friend of mine who co owns a high end jewelry store and we found that Ryansword passed off the katanas as 1095 steel when they were actually 1045 steel.
I was meaning to make a thread but a group of people I know have purchased katanas over ebay/aliexpress from several of the major vendors. None of these people are on the forum so I planned on posting on their behalf. I traveled to New York recently to visit the jeweler friend who tested the batch of ebay/aliexpress swords. The results reflect several vendors mislabeling the steel their katanas are made from.
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