SlayerofDarkness
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"Always give everyone the benefit of the doubt."
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Post by SlayerofDarkness on Jan 4, 2009 19:54:00 GMT
Hello, all... The recent 'post your; the list' thread has inspired me to post my list in a new thread, asking everyone about the swords on my list and your opinions about them.
If you think that I should/should not get a particular sword, please post the reasons behind such an opinion. thanks for your input, it is highly apprciated!
Manufacturer______Name_________Where to Get_________Price__
Cold Steel Gim Sword Trueswords.com $223………
Cold Steel Grosse Messer KultofAthena.com $169………
Cold Steel Shamshir KultofAthena.com $199………
DarkSword the Guardian ArmsofValor.com $248………
Generation 2 High Elven King Sword ArmsofValor.com $259………
Generation 2 Black Prince Sword ArmsofValor.com $233………
Generation 2 Chaos Sword ArmsofValor.com $233………
Musashi Black Zatoichi SwordsofMight.com $39…………
Musashi Koga Ninja Sword SwordsofMight.com $32…………
Musashi Rosewood Shirasaya SwordsofMight.com $30…………
Strongblade Tempered Dark Recourse Strongblade.com $100………
Strongblade Tempered Viking Raider Strongblade.com $99…………
Strongblade Tempered Warspike Strongblade.com $145……… Windlass 1860 Light Cavalry Saber SwordsofHonor.com $81…………
Windlass Raptor Sword KultofAthena.com $159………
Windlass German Bastard Sword Reliks.com $210………
Windlass Fantasy Viking Sword MuseumReplicas.com $160……… P.M.I. Hanwei Practical Kung-Fu Sword KultofAthena.com $129………
Hanwei Warlord Dadao KultofAthena.com $84………
Hanwei Banshee KultofAthena.com $119………
Valiant Armoury Han Sword KultofAthena.com $159………
Cheness S.G.C. Tsukikage Sword-Buyers-Guide.com $279………
Cheness Tenchi w/out Bo-Hi Sword-Buyers-Guide.com $249………
Cheness Tenchi Ko w/out Bo-Hi Sword-Buyers-Guide.com $189………
Cheness Kaze Sword-Buyers-Guide.com $279………
Cheness Kaze Ko Sword-Buyers-Guide.com $219………
Cheness Oniyuri Sword-Buyers-Guide.com $249………
Ryumon Ryumon Dragon Sword TrueSwords.com $209………
SBG ‘Design Your Own’ Katana Sword-Buyers-Guide.com $300………
All of DSA's swords....
And, last but most certainly NOT least, the VA Signiture line Bristol!
What do you think?
Thanks again! -Slayer
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Post by Tom K. (ianflaer) on Jan 4, 2009 20:54:39 GMT
wow, that is one hell of a list. opinions on those swords will vary wildly. many of these swords are going to be vary good while others may or may not be. really a lot of what makes a sword good is what makes it good for an idividual person. a lot of these swords look to me like they'll be mutually exclusive. by that I mean that once you own a high end Hanwei you will not be satisfied with a $50 Masahiro (unless perhaps its the legendary bamboo).
so now the question is really "what sword is right for you?"
tell us what you would want in a sword, what is most important to you. I see you have all types listed so let's try to prioritize the style you want to focus on first.
what do you want to do with the sword you get? training? backyard cutting? display only? forms? sparring?
what sort of training do you have? any? it's ok if you answer none here, that's a lot of us too.
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Marc Ridgeway
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Post by Marc Ridgeway on Jan 4, 2009 21:09:59 GMT
Manufacturer______Name_________Where to Get_________Price__
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Windlass Raptor Sword KultofAthena.com $159………
Windlass German Bastard Sword Reliks.com $210………
Windlass Fantasy Viking Sword MuseumReplicas.com $160………
Windlass Baron’s Sword KultofAthena.com $179…… P.M.I.
I'd say that Windlass are usually woth buying... they are made pretty well, and resell ok too...These might not have been my exact choices, but taste is taste right? Windlass is pretty much OK with me
Cheness Kaze Sword-Buyers-Guide.com $279………
Maybe a go at this too, it is a decent backyard sword I guess, and will make a good comparison when you get a nice katana
SBG ‘Design Your Own’ Katana Sword-Buyers-Guide.com $300………
Don't know about these , but I don't like the looks of the fittings... But i do know Paul is a stand up guy, and I trust him to sell a good product
All of DSA's swords....
They have a couple of swords that mildly interest me... the Gothic being the most interesting to me... most of the one handers are over 3 lbs... and gosh, thats heavier than a heavy katana [/color]
And, last but most certainly NOT least, the VA Signiture line Bristol!
Ah Now youve piqued my interest...I haven't handled one yet, but I consider the whole VA Atrim/fletcher series to be the most exciting production sword development in years...I'll likely wait a generation or two so the kinks at the forge get worked out though... But that Hegmark will be mine ...oh yes it will....
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SlayerofDarkness
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Review Points: 65
"Always give everyone the benefit of the doubt."
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Post by SlayerofDarkness on Jan 4, 2009 21:19:04 GMT
I'm mainly into medieval swords (which is funny, because my interest started when I began training in American Kenpo karate, lol), but i also love katanas. I prefer beaters, but I like all functional swords. my purposes would be: Training (mildly, as I don't train professionally; I'm just self trained) Cutting (YEAH!) and self-made forms (I'm pretty good at creating a form on the spot, if you know what I mean)
Thanks!
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 4, 2009 21:46:12 GMT
Okay, you know all those katanas without a tsuba you have on your list...you can cross them off right now. For what you want, these swords are not it. They make okay deco pieces...but for an actual sword for use, they are down right dangerous.
I kinda disagree with marc about windlass. Some are very nice swords...but they make some that are just plain bad. So it really depends from model to model. Although in general shorter blades are okay...but once again that is only in general.
Cold steel...gah. They are probably the only company I hate worse then DSA. At least DSA swords are tough...cold steel doesn't even have that. Their hilt assemby is just useless in most of their swords.
That brings up DSA...they at least seem to have gotten better lately...but until I see more reviews of them from sources I trust or see one in person, I'm not sold on the improvements. They are still too heavy...and I'm gonna assume badly balanced as well. No distal taper and all. And they still don't have the geometry for a sharp. I mean honestly, at this point, they should just bite the bullet and make their swords sharp to begin with since a 1mm edge makes for a poor stage sword anyways. Along with the new peened swords, it looks like they are taking a step back from the stage groups and more into the sharps anyways...and the half stepping kinda bugs me. It ends up with a product that isn't good for either groups. Maybe DSA will be worth checking out in the future...but considering at that price I can get the VA atrim line or hanwei tinker line, I think not.
That brings up the VA...yeah definately worth a look. I may even get the bristol practical version if money allows.
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Post by Tom K. (ianflaer) on Jan 4, 2009 22:55:42 GMT
I agree with Cold Napalm on every point (once again) except I don't as rabidly hate cold steel, though I still won't buy another sword from them.
Valiant Armory: the new stuff is great, the old stuff is junk. basically you have the practical line and the signature line to pick from.
Cheness: they are nice and tough even though we have been picking apart their fittings and stuff. if you really like what you see and you want a good tough blade go for it. The Kaze is their best.
Ryumon: I don't like this company but the dragon seems to be their best model. anything else by them I consider too risky to be worth my money, I'm still not sold on the dragon but it has many positive reviews.
SBG Custom: don't know yet, but I have faith in Paul. I'm anxious to see what the new SBG ELITE will bring to the table, I suspect there will be options like hamon type and amount of sori so I'm waiting to see what happens there.
I don't know anything about strongblades that isn't in the few reviews we've had on them. they seem to be an up and comming brand so I'm keeping an eye on them but progress seems slow and I'm just not excited about any of their models yet.
Windlass does have a few nice swords but they also have a lot of stinkers do heavy research pick and choose carefully.
Musashi: top pick for everyone looking for a sub $100 katana and from what I hear, for good reason. here's the thing though, if you have better swords (and yes, I think cheness qualifies) you'll not want to settle for musashi. or maybe you will, but I wouldn't.
Hanwei: makes darn good katanas but I'm still not sure on all their other stuff. I've heard bad things about Hanwei's western swords and mixed reviews both good and bad on their Chinese stuff. for chinese swords I'd go to Garrett Chan's Jin-shi.com first.
generation2 you might be on to something here I'm not sure. I've heard lots of good reviews on them but also some serious complaints here and there. sorry I can't help you much here.
my top picks: #1: Valiant Armory practical series #2: Roninswords.com any model #3: Hanwei Practical Katana series #4: Valiant Armory signature series #5: Cheness Kaze #6: everything else
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 4, 2009 23:15:32 GMT
Ok so I know jack and s*** about western swords so I'll say what I can about the katana on your list. Mainly I'll talk about their manufacturers. Ryumon - they can be good but its a crap shoot when it comes to quality. Sometimes you get a good one sometimes you don't. Musashi - For the money they're really quite good - especially since many of them are sub-$100 swords. Even their Elite line coming in at $200 is nice - and even though I sell Musashi I'd have to say that if you were going to spend $200 for a functional katana I'd go with a Hanwei from wiwingti. Of course if you're dead set on a musashi, I'm sure we can come to a good agreement. Cheness - nice blades, bad to mediocre fittings. Not saying they make bad swords - as they're great tough cutters and aside from their fittings I haven't got anything bad to say about them. Not my favorite manufacturer though in the low end production katana line-up. Hanwei - I absolutely LOVE Hanwei. For $200 and above I think they've got fantastic katana. As the money goes up so does the quality of the blades and fittings. Even in the sub $400 group though Hanwei beats out Cheness and Ryumon hands down. So.... the way I'd rate things is this: Ryumon/Masahiro: Bottom of the barrel period. While they have put out a good product in the past their consistency in quality is suspect. Musashi: For sub $100 katana, even up to $150 - these are great katana! I love them for the cost. No`t the best katana you can get though. Cheness: Great cutters but the quality of their furniture is not all there. Still nice katana for the money though. Hanwei: Not on your list of katana but you seriously need to look at this company. They make fantastic katana for the money and they are indeed tough! I'd say Cheness has nothing on Hanwei in toughness. All listed in order of perceived quality. Hope this helps.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 4, 2009 23:40:20 GMT
I don't know Cold Steel all that well, but I DO know the Cold Steel Gim. Love it, love it, love it.
Tough sword. Built well. Easy to disassemble for cleaning or for that initial oiling when you first get it. Fits my hand well, balances well. A little heavy, but not too bad. Learn round movements. That's how it's supposed to be used anyway.
Only real problem I have with it is that, as a Jian, it should have a tassel. But that's not hard to fix. Just have to find the right nut. And a tassel to put on it, of course.
As for its cutting, well, Paul showed us that on his review. Just make sure you use a coupon code when you buy it. Trueswords is usually pretty good about those.
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Post by Jeff K. ( Jak) on Jan 5, 2009 1:43:52 GMT
The Windlass German Bastard is a great little sword. I did a review which can be sen on the SBG Home page under reviews. Despite the heavier wieght it is very well balanced and a very quick sword. Ive cut a fair bit with it and it is still rock solid. www.sword-buyers-guide.com/german-bastard-sword.html
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Post by Dave(utilityslave) on Jan 5, 2009 2:45:14 GMT
So Slayer, I think it's safe to say you wish to be a collector. The question is what do you want to collect and for what purpose. Do you want a representative of each group of swords or a museum like collection with several examples of each group or a collection dedicated to cheap production swords to display. Just think of the few nice swords you could collect instead of the money you would spend on fulfilling this list not to mention the amount of effort. Remember that as you get older your taste can change drastically along with your priorities. Storage/display issues should also be considered when deciding on a collection. First of all you should consider your financial capabilities and behave in a realistic manner in respect to the points mentioned above. If you were independently wealthy and had your own space then that's one thing but right now your decisions affect and rely on others so keep them in mind as well. A few quality for the money blades to display and learn cutting with are a nice start of a collection and there is time to expand the numbers and types. Maybe it would be good for you to curb your enthusiasm a bit and try to take things one day at a time and in stride. Don't give in to the pressure to overextend yourself trying to acquire all that eye candy out here. Once you have owned a couple nice blades you will have a better idea of what you like and less dependent on others telling you what you should like. Patience!
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 5, 2009 6:08:49 GMT
A lot of those swords have been reviewed in detail by members here at SBG. Use the search feature of this forum to find the reviews.
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Post by kidcasanova on Jan 5, 2009 11:40:31 GMT
A lot of those swords have been reviewed in detail by members here at SBG. Use the search feature of this forum to find the reviews. You beat me to it, Bill! There's even more than one review available for several of these swords.
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SlayerofDarkness
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Review Points: 65
"Always give everyone the benefit of the doubt."
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Post by SlayerofDarkness on Jan 5, 2009 17:03:10 GMT
Thanks, guys! Remember, this isn't a list I'm trying to get in a year or so . These are just the ones that appeal to me, and I'll probably end up ditching half of 'em. As for the tsuba-less blades, yeah, you're right about the danger. However, I'm planning on making the shirasaya my first project peice, and for $30, I'd say it's worth it . I've already ditched the Zetsurin, it seems to be a good display, but not the best of Musashi's stuff anyway. What do you think about the Wind Katana? (Sam, looking at you ) Thanks again! -Slayer
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Post by Deleted on Jan 5, 2009 17:56:32 GMT
Slayer,
Trueswords.com is known change the names and stock numbers of the swords they sell from the manufacturer's original names and numbers. This is partly to prevent cross shopping their products which is fine but of course it does make it difficult for me to see what you're talking about. I've gone to their site and looked for the Wind Katana by Musashi for $159 but currently they're not carrying any katana from Musashi for that price nor with that name.
Can you provide a link? If you're looking at Musashi katana at that price I do have a few options I might be able to throw your way. Let me know if you're interested and I'll send details to you in pm.
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SlayerofDarkness
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Review Points: 65
"Always give everyone the benefit of the doubt."
Posts: 3,067
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Post by SlayerofDarkness on Jan 5, 2009 18:18:56 GMT
Thanks, Sam...well, aparantally it has been discontinued . You can see the exact sword on the main SBG site under the japanese sword reviews. It is also known as the Musashi Bamboo and the Musashi Poison Ivy. If you can get one of these, let me know and I'll snatch it up as soon as i can. Thanks!
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Post by Deleted on Jan 5, 2009 18:43:27 GMT
I really don't think that the Bamboo and the Poison Ivy are the same katana. If I'm not mistaken the Poison Ivy was a Chris Zhou blade and the Musashi Bamboo (Black Bamboo, Bamboo Warrior etc) is a newer production model with a DH blade, not a Chris Zhou blade.
Anyway to my knowledge the Poison Ivy is gone. Can't be gotten anymore. The Bamboo, well it seems everyone is expecting re-stocking of that sword by the end of January at the latest.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2009 19:59:31 GMT
Nice list, I don't know much about most sword manufacturers but I do own a Cheness Mokko Katana and a DSA Oslo Viking. I can vouche for the Cheness and DSA swords as being well worth the money. My Mokko as taken man terrible hits (some of them I expected to cause the blade to either snap or cause serious warping in the blade) after repeated strikes against a wood stump, iron poles and a thick plastic barrel the blade is still free of serious damage and the fittings are still tight (after I thudded the butt of the sword on a wood bench). The blade is covered in scratches but the sword is solid. My DSA oslo has a small bend in the blade following a jarring strike to a dead tree, but the fitting remain solid (the sword doesn't rattle even though the force of the blow rattled me!). If both swords were good indicators of the overall quality of the company i would say that money invested in the works of Cheness or DSA is money well spent.
Oh, forgot to mention, the mokko is a beater, so its handling is probably considered "sluggish" by many. The Oslo feels heavy but to think it slow would be blatantly foolish, the sword recovers very quickly and it hits very hard.
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SlayerofDarkness
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Review Points: 65
"Always give everyone the benefit of the doubt."
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Post by SlayerofDarkness on Jan 7, 2009 22:49:02 GMT
Thanks, Grinner! Oh, and there were 2 different 'Musashi Bamboo' katanas made; I was refering to the Musashi Bamboo Elite, while Sam was thinking of the Musashi Black Bamboo/Bamboo warrior. This has already been discussed between Sam and I in a seperate post, but I wanted to clear that up for everyone else out there . thanks again!
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Post by Deleted on Jan 11, 2009 2:36:31 GMT
High there, im new to this forum and wanted peoples opinions on swords from badtrack.blade and katana1980 on ebay? They offer folded steel sanmai clay tempered for about £150 - are these swords any good? I currently own a straight masahiro kenshin long handle edition katana (ninjato?) and a musashi shirasaya katana - how do they compare to these?
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Post by Deleted on Jan 11, 2009 14:24:30 GMT
tdb -
Welcome to the forum. About your questions - I have no experience with the sellers from ebay as I try not to deal with ebay much at all. Sorry.
Regarding the masahiro - no idea about the particular model you're inquiring about but I can say that with masahiro the quality is spotty. Sometimes you get a nice product from them and sometimes you get crap. Its a chance you take.
Musashi is pretty consistent with quality - that being said they're a good deal for the money. The musashi shirasaya (in rosewood and black) have been very popular and continue to be quite popular. Good quality blades, popular shirasaya fitting... nice swords overall for the price.
Of course you know this already since you own them but as for the sellers you mentioned - its the same as anything on ebay - you take your chances.
Sorry I couldn't help you more.
Sam
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