![]() It is also a very bad sword for beginners, as the extra weight can damage the body quickly. Not because of its size, but because after a few hours of practice, I found myself swinging it like it was much smaller, which makes for a terrifying feeling of power. The only production sword sized like it is the Cold Steel O katana, and maybe the old Shimzu o katana from Yarinohanzo (they are back). This is a very good sword for the price (don't worry, I'll let you know at the end). I can tell you however that it cuts cardboard boxes with ease, but requires good alignment in order to go through a mat. Will destroy elbows if one tends to grip it too hard because of its weight. It has somewhat of a forward balance, but nothing too extreme. However it is much better balanced, than lets say, a masahiro nin-to. The sword is much heavier than a regular sized iaito. When temperatures change enough a rattle appears at the end of the nakago. Then there is a small issue with the fit of the tsuka. Its slight, but noticably affects cutting. ![]() The blade is also polished unevenly, making the edge turn slightly to the blade's left at the monouchi. So instead of a real geometric kissaki, I kinda got a "fake" geometric kissaki. The kissaki was ground deeper than the monouchi. There is, as usual, something less nice to be said. ![]() The saya holds the sword when held upside down, even after many usheathings. It doesn't move anywhere, yet slides off the blade with ease. On the plus side, is the fact that the habaki was bought from Yamato Budogu, and although it is not custom made for this blade, there are no gaps except where some more niku should be. There are a couple of things that deserve special mention: The kuigata is nicely shaped and flows decently into the saya itself. The koiguchi appears to be wood, but I could be wrong. The theme is 6 wings, and is superbly chiseled. The same appears to be real, yet with small node size. I had to get them from Token Bijutsu Kogeisha (not Yamato Budogu). The fittings appear to be blackened brass flower themed fuchi kashira, and brass long dragons. I like the ito as its not shoelacy at all, it is quite rough though, almost suede like, although it gets glazed quickly. The hamon has this effect, where under the hamon (between the hamon and the edge) there is this dense area of hamon. Mirror polished, including the kissaki, so at a glance, it looks very nice. Guesstimated at 127cmĬOP: Hard to measure, but the node appears to be at the top of the monouchi, so YAY! Tsuka: 12.5'' (again, more accurately, 32cm) Not razor sharp, but that is quite unnecessary for a sword, particularly one this big. My form however needs work.ĭecently sharp. It is a bit tip heavy, which takes its toll on my elbows, but that is how a sword is supposed to be. The sword handles quite well for it size. Then again, I had the help of Dave Lorrez from samurai-sword-shop, and he is an amazing friend, and the only reason I didn't get my custom from him was because the forge he works with was full at the time. Despite the extended travel, everything was a-ok on arrival. This sword had quite the ride, first arriving at Belgium and only then coming to me. I am in no way associated with Sinosword, Yamato Budogu or Token Bijutsu Kogeisha. Of course, my sword is made out of modern T10 steel, so it features no discernable hada, and the hamon is rather simple (although something weird happens that I can't seem to get in picture) It is a good example of the Nanbokucho sugata with over 3 feet of cutting edge, scant niku, little fumabara and extended chu kissaki with little fukura. My sword is a replica of a treasure of the Uesugi clan, and possibly one of the various swords made by Kanemitsu and his relatives that were used by Uesugi Kenshin himself. A national treasure? SO I went and got myself a copy of sorts. Naturally I wanted to have on, but come on. Like someone had the same Idea I had 600 years ago. Amazingly, I came across an odachi by Kanemitsu and it just spoke to me. Eventually I realized I'd prefer a longer sword for a number of reasons (height not being one of them as I am 5'9''). I had the chance of handling quite a few SLO and a few production swords. By the way, I suck at taking pictures.ĮDIT: Just added a few things that came up after a year of use.Įver since my younger years, I enjoyed the look of Nihonto.
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