Kaneie Royal Blue Musashi
Mar 24, 2018 18:48:39 GMT
Post by Brian Weiss on Mar 24, 2018 18:48:39 GMT
Introduction
The Kaneie Royal Blue Musashi is my 3rd katana, and is of the Menkyo Class line which features a full art polish. I had been looking for one since I learned of the brand and its reputation, and it would've been the pick for my first sword had they still been readily available. Through a fortunate circumstance someone was selling one on the Kompletely Katana Facebook group, and after some negotiation and some shipping issues I had it in hand.
Full Disclosure
This is a 2nd (actually 4th) hand sword, which I did not pay full retail price for. Kaneie swords are no longer for sale, so obviously I'm not being paid to review their products.
Initial Impressions
Received damaged after a shipping snafu, where the seller accidentally cris-crossed his shipments and I got the wrong sword. The other buyer was most gracious and quickly put it back in the post for me. For some reason it bounced around distribution centers for a while, and delivery was delayed. Somewhere during the course of its travels, the steel tsuba was bent on one side, the tsuka core had been pushed down the nakago, and the meguki were either bent or broken. Not a great start... but after inspection the blade was fine, and what a beautiful blade it is.
Statistics
Blade/Nagasa Length: 28.5"
Handle/Tsuka Length: 10.25"
Weight: 2lb 9oz
The Blade/Nagasa
Blade is T10, differentially hardened monosteel. The blade was well greased prior to shipment, and shows no signs of oxidation. The blade is slightly wider than the Kurin, and without the bohi it is a bit heavier. Edge is sharp, and there is a short (less than an inch or so) "virgin edge" from where the ha meets the habaki. There is some niku, and the overall blade shape & dimensions seem more suited for cutting medium to heavy targets with the proper technique than the Kurin.
The polish is beautiful, with clean well defined lines. The hamon does not appear to have been enhanced in any way, and is fairly thin and close to the edge. As this is a used sword, there are a few minor scuffs from light cutting which are pretty hard to see and should be fairly easy to get rid of. It's difficult to photograph.
There is a blemish on the mune near the habaki that I knew about beforehand, which looks like an errant file mark. It was bigger, but I have made the first few passes at minimizing it through light polishing.
Habaki fit is adequate, but it's not as well done as the Kurin. It doesn't fit flush to the seppa on one side, which may be shipping damage related. I'll likely have the habaki replaced.
The Handle/Tsuka
Ito is blue silk, supposedly japanese. There is some wear and dulling from handling, but for the most part its in very good shape. The same has receded and yellowed a bit. The meguki are basically toast due to shipping damage. Llike the Kurin, that the meguki-ana were drilled straight across, making them more difficult to access.
The tsuka core wood is in good shape and there doesn't appear to be any cracks, but it is not well fit to the fuchi and there appeared to be an errant drill hole. The rikko shape of the core is comfortable, but I prefer the haichi profile of the Kurin.
The Guard/Tsuba
Musashi design, made of steel, and obviously the part that took the brunt of the shipping damage. There was a bit of a patina on the habaki and both seppa, which I polished off.
The Pommel/Fuchi-Kashira
Basket weave style, made of a brass alloy. The casting are a little sloppy to me, and a bit of a disappointment. I like the design, but the execution is off.
The Scabbard/Saya
Standard Kaneie/Kurin saya. It fits with minimal saya rattle, and the finish is nice and easier to maintain than a gloss finish. The wood appears to be good, but is not as well finished as on the Kurin. I believe the Sageo is silk, and the color is more greenish-blue than the ito.
Handling Characteristics
I'm not swinging this thing around at all with the current meguki, so I cannot comment on this at the moment. Of the three swords I've had in my possesion, this one feels the most "right" in hand in terms of weight, though the tsuka shape isn't optimal for me.
Conclusions
Worth it for the blade alone, and I'm very fortunate that it didn't sustain any damage. I really want to go through a few motions with it, but am going to have to wait until I can get it properly repaired. It deserves to get properly fitted out, so I have some really nice recent vintage koshirae on order. Once I receive them I will send the sword off to have them fitted to a new tsuka.
Pros
- blade quality is the highest I've personally seen
- full art polish, great for presentation
- blade profile should be well suited to spirited cutting
- quality steel and wood
- excellent ito wrap, though used
Cons
- no longer made
- cast fittings are sloppy
- meguki-ana are drilled straight across
The Bottom Line
Even with the unfortunate shipping damage, I can see why these blades are held in such high regard. The seller said it had not been cut with, which I later found out not to be the case. This was a little disappointing, but it is what it is I guess. Still, I got a great price for it, and will possibly be reimbursed for the full price of the sword by the USPS. It's definitely worth putting some money into to get it back up to speed after the USPS gave it their lumberjack-esque touch, and I think once it's done I'll have a truly excellent production sword worthy of both display and functional use.
I will say this for anyone on the fence about purchasing a Kurin. The quality of the polish on my Hybrid is VERY close to this sword, and I will say without reservation that the overall fit an finish is superior. I don't see much of a point in chasing a Kaneie outside of bragging rights when there is a current (and in my opinion overall superior) product available.
The Kaneie Royal Blue Musashi is my 3rd katana, and is of the Menkyo Class line which features a full art polish. I had been looking for one since I learned of the brand and its reputation, and it would've been the pick for my first sword had they still been readily available. Through a fortunate circumstance someone was selling one on the Kompletely Katana Facebook group, and after some negotiation and some shipping issues I had it in hand.
Full Disclosure
This is a 2nd (actually 4th) hand sword, which I did not pay full retail price for. Kaneie swords are no longer for sale, so obviously I'm not being paid to review their products.
Initial Impressions
Received damaged after a shipping snafu, where the seller accidentally cris-crossed his shipments and I got the wrong sword. The other buyer was most gracious and quickly put it back in the post for me. For some reason it bounced around distribution centers for a while, and delivery was delayed. Somewhere during the course of its travels, the steel tsuba was bent on one side, the tsuka core had been pushed down the nakago, and the meguki were either bent or broken. Not a great start... but after inspection the blade was fine, and what a beautiful blade it is.
Statistics
Blade/Nagasa Length: 28.5"
Handle/Tsuka Length: 10.25"
Weight: 2lb 9oz
The Blade/Nagasa
Blade is T10, differentially hardened monosteel. The blade was well greased prior to shipment, and shows no signs of oxidation. The blade is slightly wider than the Kurin, and without the bohi it is a bit heavier. Edge is sharp, and there is a short (less than an inch or so) "virgin edge" from where the ha meets the habaki. There is some niku, and the overall blade shape & dimensions seem more suited for cutting medium to heavy targets with the proper technique than the Kurin.
The polish is beautiful, with clean well defined lines. The hamon does not appear to have been enhanced in any way, and is fairly thin and close to the edge. As this is a used sword, there are a few minor scuffs from light cutting which are pretty hard to see and should be fairly easy to get rid of. It's difficult to photograph.
There is a blemish on the mune near the habaki that I knew about beforehand, which looks like an errant file mark. It was bigger, but I have made the first few passes at minimizing it through light polishing.
Habaki fit is adequate, but it's not as well done as the Kurin. It doesn't fit flush to the seppa on one side, which may be shipping damage related. I'll likely have the habaki replaced.
The Handle/Tsuka
Ito is blue silk, supposedly japanese. There is some wear and dulling from handling, but for the most part its in very good shape. The same has receded and yellowed a bit. The meguki are basically toast due to shipping damage. Llike the Kurin, that the meguki-ana were drilled straight across, making them more difficult to access.
The tsuka core wood is in good shape and there doesn't appear to be any cracks, but it is not well fit to the fuchi and there appeared to be an errant drill hole. The rikko shape of the core is comfortable, but I prefer the haichi profile of the Kurin.
The Guard/Tsuba
Musashi design, made of steel, and obviously the part that took the brunt of the shipping damage. There was a bit of a patina on the habaki and both seppa, which I polished off.
The Pommel/Fuchi-Kashira
Basket weave style, made of a brass alloy. The casting are a little sloppy to me, and a bit of a disappointment. I like the design, but the execution is off.
The Scabbard/Saya
Standard Kaneie/Kurin saya. It fits with minimal saya rattle, and the finish is nice and easier to maintain than a gloss finish. The wood appears to be good, but is not as well finished as on the Kurin. I believe the Sageo is silk, and the color is more greenish-blue than the ito.
Handling Characteristics
I'm not swinging this thing around at all with the current meguki, so I cannot comment on this at the moment. Of the three swords I've had in my possesion, this one feels the most "right" in hand in terms of weight, though the tsuka shape isn't optimal for me.
Conclusions
Worth it for the blade alone, and I'm very fortunate that it didn't sustain any damage. I really want to go through a few motions with it, but am going to have to wait until I can get it properly repaired. It deserves to get properly fitted out, so I have some really nice recent vintage koshirae on order. Once I receive them I will send the sword off to have them fitted to a new tsuka.
Pros
- blade quality is the highest I've personally seen
- full art polish, great for presentation
- blade profile should be well suited to spirited cutting
- quality steel and wood
- excellent ito wrap, though used
Cons
- no longer made
- cast fittings are sloppy
- meguki-ana are drilled straight across
The Bottom Line
Even with the unfortunate shipping damage, I can see why these blades are held in such high regard. The seller said it had not been cut with, which I later found out not to be the case. This was a little disappointing, but it is what it is I guess. Still, I got a great price for it, and will possibly be reimbursed for the full price of the sword by the USPS. It's definitely worth putting some money into to get it back up to speed after the USPS gave it their lumberjack-esque touch, and I think once it's done I'll have a truly excellent production sword worthy of both display and functional use.
I will say this for anyone on the fence about purchasing a Kurin. The quality of the polish on my Hybrid is VERY close to this sword, and I will say without reservation that the overall fit an finish is superior. I don't see much of a point in chasing a Kaneie outside of bragging rights when there is a current (and in my opinion overall superior) product available.