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Post by ltgseb on Sept 2, 2020 3:37:37 GMT
Came across this video on YouTube and thought what a nice way to give a new purpose to an old shinken (or any shinken for that matter):
Would love to know if anyone here has done this, and if the technique shown in the video is sound (seems like it is, but I don't have the file and stone he used and haven't tried it).
Also would love to know if there are other ways to properly dull a shinken, and if the steel grade matters (I.e. stainless versus 1045, 1095, T10, spring , etc..).
To be clear, the resulting blade should be completely dulled from base to tip, and impossible to cut oneself with, as demonstrated in the video.
One other question I have is how to properly dull the tip. Any special tool?
And finally, what grit numbers should I use for the stone? Any stone brand recommendations?
Thanks in advance!
S
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Post by MOK on Sept 2, 2020 8:47:21 GMT
Seems a bit of a waste, except with the badly tempered one, but I honestly can't see any way for it to not work. The exact tools don't matter in the least. What he did was simply remove enough material to make the edge dull so it doesn't cut, then polish it nice and smooth so it doesn't scratch and tear. You can do that with any flat file (medium-fine works more quickly, fine-superfine leaves less clean-up) and a couple of grits of fine sandpapers, stones or diamond hones. The tip is just a matter of doing the exact same thing all the way over and around it, making it flat in cross-section and round in profile , so there are no sharp corners left. It's the exact same kind of thing that anyone who spars actively has to do with their wasters now and then to smoothen out all the dings and notches they develop over time so they won't scratch their opponents and their gear.
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Post by ltgseb on Sept 2, 2020 11:00:24 GMT
MOK thanks for the quick response! I see what you mean. Seems simple enough. And well, it is a waste if the sword isn't being used. In this case, it's more likely to be used for iaido practice than for cutting. So the "conversion" is intently to minimize "waste", as it were :-) Thanks again for the tips!
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Post by ltgseb on Sept 2, 2020 11:05:07 GMT
Btw I imagine that once dulled, the edge could be sharpened again, if so desired? There's probably a limited number of cycles, but I like the idea of a sword being able to serve multiple purposes during its lifetime. I don't think the same could be said of those aluminum alloy Iaitos (sharpening them for cutting).
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Post by MOK on Sept 2, 2020 12:41:03 GMT
MOK thanks for the quick response! I see what you mean. Seems simple enough. And well, it is a waste if the sword isn't being used. In this case, it's more likely to be used for iaido practice than for cutting. So the "conversion" is intently to minimize "waste", as it were :-) Thanks again for the tips! Good point - a sword in the hand is worth two in the rack. Btw I imagine that once dulled, the edge could be sharpened again, if so desired? There's probably a limited number of cycles, but I like the idea of a sword being able to serve multiple purposes during its lifetime. I don't think the same could be said of those aluminum alloy Iaitos (sharpening them for cutting). Yeah, you can, but every time you do this you make the blade a little narrower; after a few cycles it'll be readily visible, after a handful more it'll start to have a palpable effect on the sword's handling and performance, and eventually you'll just have no blade left. This happens over a much longer time to any working sword that needs to be sharpened regularly, anyway, but erasing and then recreating the edge geometry entirely is far more aggressive about it. European military sabers were not uncommonly blunted for use as training weapons when they were retired from combat service, but I can't think of any example of such blunts being sharpened again. And, yes, aluminum is no good for an actual live blade. It was briefly popular for wasters at one point because it's lighter than steel so you can make the edges thicker without increasing the weight, but I haven't seen or even heard talk about aluminum wasters in years now; everyone who used them seems to have moved on to better designed steel blunts and feders. You mostly only see it in Japanese iaito, now. PS. Oh, and welcome to the forum!
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Post by ltgseb on Sept 2, 2020 20:08:32 GMT
MOK thanks! Yeah totally makes sense. Thanks for the tip!
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