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Post by treeslicer on Mar 10, 2021 4:20:26 GMT
Quick question...I have a wood longsword from Purpleheart Armoury. It has a fuller through most of it. If I get the "swish" sound throughout the cut, does that mean I'm getting proper edge alignment, or is that only a thing with katanas? IMHO, when you are practicing with a double edged sword, the tachikaze will be least (or totally absent) when the blade is properly aligned. This is because the blade cross-section is symmetrical, having both a sharp leading edge as well as a sharp trailing edge. Symmetrical airfoils at angle of attack = zero (not twisted across the airflow), don't cause much turbulence in passing through the air.
Tachikaze from a katana is produced by vortex shedding, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vortex_shedding en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%C3%A1rm%C3%A1n_vortex_street because a katana has a blunt trailing edge. The right sound for katana is a high pitched humming swish which is least when the alignment is good (that is, AOA=0), and increases pitch with speed. When your alignment is wrong (AOA not = 0), chaotic vortex production due to the stall conditions over the blade will make a much louder "swoosh" with no characteristic pitch (white noise). This is why judging your form by the amount of noise generated can lead beginners astray.
All bo-hi do is make all these effects louder by adding two more sources of vortex shedding. Your symmetrical wooden sword may be too thick to get good indications of alignment, but if possible, try to get the least and highest pitched sound from it at a given swing speed. BTW, the sound also gets louder the faster you swing, but won't sound the same way as when you twist the blade.
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Post by gwynbleid on Apr 23, 2021 20:58:58 GMT
I'm a complete novice at cutting, and I was hoping to get some advice on the cuts in the video below. I think my edge alignment on these was generally okayish, but as you can see, the results weren't great. Even when I cut through the pool noodle, the cuts were very jagged and more tears than cuts. I think my biggest problem here was my follow through, both in terms of keeping the plane of the cut steady and stopping the cut too soon. Any tips would be appreciated. Thanks!
I suggest you slice the pool noodle, drawing the blade across it, and you need much more velocity than that. I would also suggest practicing cuts with your entire body. Your hips should be generating the force, transfered up and out. Edge alignment is obviously necessary for any real sword cut, but it is like literally first item on the list of things you need to be able to do correctly. Proper extension of the arms and ulnar deviation is key too.
I suggest reading "Cutting with the medieval sword: theory and application" by Michael Edelson is what I've been using along side a few other books and videos, and I can usually cut pool noodles every time. The cuts aren't always perfect, but with persistent practice, and self evaluation they're improving, and I'm sure the same goes for you. Just keep it up
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Post by gwynbleid on Apr 23, 2021 21:06:08 GMT
While stepping can make it easier to incorporate the hips to generate power (careful though, don't step first and then cut, as you often see with people who cut a lot but don't fence/fight), it also makes it harder to get edge alignment, cutting angle and and/arm-movement right. I suggest continuing without stepping first, focusing on increasing speed in the strike while maintaining correct blade alignment. Why would you suggest to practice cutting without stepping, before during or after? I was always told/taught that you should power the strikes with your entire body starting with your hips, just like you would with a real punch. That's why proper footwork needs to be second nature. And like with boxing, you gotta know how to transfer energy from your entire body, not your arms.
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Post by Lukas MG (chenessfan) on Apr 23, 2021 21:18:26 GMT
Because in the beginning, edge alignment and blade control is difficult enough without adding footwork. Throwing cuts with footwork, moving around, etc is something one can train once the blade action itself is done correctly.
Side note: edged weapons don't so much rely on power and in fencing you might quite often throw a cut that is not fully powered from the core.
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Post by gwynbleid on Apr 24, 2021 23:47:19 GMT
Side note: edged weapons don't so much rely on power and in fencing you might quite often throw a cut that is not fully powered from the core. [/quote]
Forsure. Yeah learning hema is definitely not easy without a proper trainer.
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