Shikoto Hidden Samurai T10 Katana - $300
Dec 17, 2020 7:37:16 GMT
Post by Adventurer'sBlade on Dec 17, 2020 7:37:16 GMT
www.budk.com/Shikoto-Hidden-Samurai-Katana-And-Scabbard-T10-Car-47345
This sword is available from BudK for $306.99 as of now.
Introduction
When Paul asked for volunteers from the forum to receive and review swords from manufacturers and their vendors, I wasted no time chiming in. I haven't done a formal review in quite some time, but I knew I'd be able to speak intelligently about tactical swords in particular and I think I can spin an entertaining cutting montage out of just about anything bigger than a paring knife.
I didn't know quite what to expect when I opened the box and saw this Shikoto katana, but I was pleasantly surprised to find it handles and performs satisfactorily and has sturdy, well-built fittings for a budget sword. This was a big first for me, as the Shikoto was my first differentially-hardened sword with a real hamon. Please bear with me as my katana knowledge is mostly limited to what I've accidentally picked up by osmosis while directing my attention to other types of swords.
Historical overview
This sword was made in Longquan at one of the sword factories there, then branded and sold through Budk in the USA. It seems like about as historically-authentic a katana as you can get for a couple hundred bucks. There's a little bit of eye-roll inducing ninja marketing in the BudK description. You can just pretend that's not there. There's no ninjas on the tsuba or anything.
Full Disclosure
I received this sword from BudK at no cost. The transaction was facilitated by SBG for reviewing purposes. I have no other connection to Budk.
Initial Impressions
The sword came securely packaged in styrofoam, inside a wooden presentation case, which was in a cardboard box inside a bigger cardboard box. No shipping damage and I doubt that'll be a problem for anyone else the way this was packed. The blade was covered in thick oil with no odor, then wrapped in plastic, then stored tightly inside the saya/scabbard. There was no corrosion on anything other than a little bit of normal tarnish on the genuine brass parts like the habaki.
The way the sword was packaged (plastic wrap on the blade, etc), I think it came that way right from China and wasn't messed with at BudK. What I'm getting at is I think they just yanked a random sword to send me for the review rather than trying to hand-pick the best example.
There was a cotton sword bag and a certificate inside the wooden presentation box. As for the box itself, I thought it was a nice touch to include, but it doesn't have a felt lining of any kind or really anything to keep the sword from rattling around during transport, so it's of limited use and doesn't work well to display the sword either. I feel like the box could have been omitted without being missed.
The certificate proudly proclaimed the sword as being made in Longquan, China. The text was as follows:
The History of Longquan Swordsmiths
Longquan is a famous weapon and sword-making city remotely located in the Qinxi mountains of the Zheijang Province of China. Longquan's sword making history can be traced back to the Warring Period, over 2500 years ago, when bronze age smiths began to forge iron weapons there. The region had everything needed- plentiful natural iron deposits in the streams with which to forge blades and hilt fittings, an ample supply of wood from the surrounding forests to make handles and scabbards, pure clay with which to temper the blades, and pure fresh water from springs. Today it is home to both production sword factories and custom sword smiths, making every quality level of swords, from inexpensive display models to high end, functional martial arts swords. There are still many sword smiths in Longquan. Even though they use some modern niceties, like electric blowers for their forges rather than bellows, they still craft swords using traditional methods, making hand-forged masterpieces used by martial artists around the world.
Shikoto blades are privately made by our master swordsmiths in the Longquan mountains. Although some modern production methods are used, each Shikoto sword is made one at a time, with hammer forged and hand polished blades.
I thought that was a pretty nice sentiment. Although obviously this is an inexpensive production blade made by the hundreds in some factory in Longquan, you can't ignore that kind of appeal to tradition. It's clear to me from both the sword itself and this certificate that the sword producers in Longquan take pride in what they make. Swords from Longquan will obviously vary in quality and price. But it feels far, far more gratifying to buy a sword when you know where it came from and that the people who made it consider themselves swordsmiths who are carrying on a local tradition. I got that same feeling when I bought a kukri from Nepal.
The back of the certificate was also covered with comprehensive sword maintenance and disassembly instructions in properly translated English. Points for that.
I removed the plastic wrap from the blade, wiped the excess oil off, and started dry handling it. I couldn't help but grin when I heard the very audible tachi-kaze swish sound made on fast cuts. Yes, it has a bo'hi (fuller).
Statistics
Blade/Nagasa Length: 27.25"
Handle/Tsuka Length: 11.5"
Overall Length: 39.5"
Guard/Tsuba Width: 2 5/8"
Spine thickness above habaki: 7mm
POB (Point of Balance): 4.25" from tsuba
COP (Center of Percussion): 17", maybe
Weight: 2 lbs 8 oz
The Blade/Nagasa
The blade is T10 tool steel, differentially hardened, with a visible hamon that is, for lack of a better term, squiggly. Test cutting bottles and PVC pipe did not wipe the hamon off or noticeably scratch the blade. The blade is as straight as my naked eye can tell. The level of polish is what I would describe as "satin" rather than "mirror", as you certainly can't see your reflection in it, but it's consistent and well done. The geometry consists of a mune with a ridge, a bo'hi/fuller, and then a fairly flat bevel down to the edge that is mildly convexed. The cutting edge itself is convex with perhaps a final secondary microbevel that can barely be seen. The sharpness was just barely paper-slicing with some rought spots. It does have "CHINA" laser etched on the spine near the habaki in small type.
The Tang
I was able to disassemble the hilt and expose the tang without issues, although the components were compressed very tightly for fit when it was made. The tang has an engraved signature from a Chinese smith that I cannot read, and there are otherwise no nasty surprises. It's a normal, solid katana tang.
The Handle/Tsuka
The handle is wood-cored with rayskin panels and a brown cord wrap. I believe the cord wrap is cotton but I could be deceived there. The brown color fits in nicely with any coyote brown tactical gear you might have, by the way. The handle wrap was tight, the diamond openings were pretty consistent in size, and I couldn't see the wood core around the edges of the rayskin at all. Nothing shifted during my extensive handling and test cutting. I am pleased with the quality of the grip wrap in that regard. There are two brass ornaments beneath the wrap that are hard to see clearly and do not shift around, but they look like dragons. Two bamboo pins hold the handle to the tang.
The Guard/Tsuba
The tsuba is advertised as solid brass, and that's what it feels like to me. It's a chunky 1/4" thick slab with surprisingly fine detail and an antiqued finish. There's an image of a samurai with a naginata on the grip side of the tsuba.
The Pommel/Fuchi-Kashira
The pommel is a plain brass cap with the same antiqued finish as the tsuba. It looks nice and not too industrial. The habaki and spacers above/below the tsuba are also brass, with no antiquing. The habaki looks more industrial with that machine-finish look.
The Scabbard/Saya
The saya is wood and... lacquered on the outside? I thought it was plastic, to be honest. I'm still not sure. It doesn't look or feel cheap though. It's bare wood on the inside and it holds the habaki snugly when the blade is inserted. The blade does not fall out and requires a firm tug to unseat. Matching brown cord on the saya.
Handling Characteristics
I have little katana experience to compare this to, but boy does it sing. The lengthy grip gives you the leverage you need to make it zip fast enough to swish with little wind-up space. It allows for precise cuts and stops but still feels like it could cut denser targets well. I wouldn't want it to be lighter or heavier, it feels just about right.
Test Cutting
My test cutting was done on 16.9 oz bottles on PVC target stands of varying heights. These are not difficult targets, and the sword was quite forgiving and easy to accelerate. I did not have any tatami mats, sorry, but I have no doubt that this sword will do fine on tatami if you can do your part. I tore some bottles up with bad edge alignment when doing rising cuts because I'm a little out of practice, but don't take that as an indictment of the sword's edge; it cut very cleanly when I hit that sweet edge alignment.
I struck my PVC stands on accident about, oh, 7 or 8 times. PVC is pretty brittle and I wouldn't have been surprised if I chipped the sword badly doing that, but it took the punishment well. No chips, no rolls, no bends. The sword does seem to have a pretty hard edge, just as advertised, and I think a bad heat treat probably would have revealed itself by now.
What DID happen was I rolled the tip over about 1/16" by thrusting at a bottle and striking the PVC coupling instead. I'm not super surprised and I'm kind of just relieved it wasn't worse. What I'm thinking, though, is that the tip must have been quite a bit softer than the advertised edge hardness of 62HRC if it rolled instead of snapping. This may be a result of post-tempering sharpening or polishing on grinder (tip heated enough to soften).
Conclusions
I found this to be a pretty solid and attractive sword. Would I buy it for myself? Definitely, if I were looking to spend about $300 on a differentially-hardened katana. I found the antiqued brass fittings and brown wrap far more attractive in person than they are in the BudK ad pictures.
I'm thinking you can probably get a T10 longquan blade of comparable quality from some other source for somewhat less, but probably not for much less. I looked on ebay and did some googling; I was unable to find this sword or an equivalent for less than the BudK price. And I was pretty pleased with the fit and finish on this one. I have read about quality control issues from other vendors in this price range and I think there's something to be said for ordering from a stateside company rather than ebay or directly from China. This definitely represents a move towards more reputable, functional swords for BudK. I would buy other longquan functional swords from them.
Pros
-Decent blade polish
-Solid grip wrap and solid brass fittings
-Straight blade, no visible defects
-Blade took some edge punishment without chipping
-Nice hamon
-Cool certificate
-Understated brown wrap actually looked pretty good in person
-Hilt can be disassembled
Cons
-Could have been sharper
-"CHINA" laser etched on the spine just feels like an immersion killer
-Soft temper on the very tip of the blade
-Wooden presentation box had no liner or inserts to securely hold the sword
-Kind of pricey, you may find comparable sword for less if you buy direct from China
The Bottom Line
I would recommend this to anyone looking for an easy, low-research, low-risk purchase of a basic, solid, differentially-tempered katana that looks fine on the shelf and can lay the hurt on some bottles. Honestly, after some browsing I'm convinced this is probably the highest quality sword on BudK right now and I wouldn't hesitate to steer new collectors towards it rather than the $150 katana models floating around. There's a matching wakizashi and tanto as well, and now I'm thinking about them...