Samurai Sword???

[CKE]

First, I hope I spelled Samurai correctly :)

Well being at home all day makes for good movie viewing. I just finished up Kill Bill Vol II. I must say this is Tarantino's best work. It has a bit of everything in it. My favourite scene is "The Man from Okinawa" in Kill Bill Vol I.
Anyways to my point...are there such good Samurai Swords available as a Hattori Hanzo?? I know he is fictional but are there makers out there that actually make a useable sword of amazing quality??? This is purely for educational purposes...meaning I am not going to take up the way of the sword as a lifestyle :) Anyone here know of any good makers or producers of Samurai swords??? Thanks and Take Care!!!

[Ray.Hood]

Hey CKE, how are you? Cold Steel makes a nice set of swords. Katana, Wakizashi, and I think they are all folded steel maybe. Not sure, but it is worth a shot.Later man, Ray. :D

[UK KEN]

Hello!

I have handled and used a few different swords. The Paul Chen Practical Plus range are excellent for the money! They have a forged blade with a nice hamon and a superb factory edge!

There are two wooden dowels holding on a white ray skin handle with black leather binding. The Tsuba is basic but good looking, a sunburst design. The whole package looks very good, but the handling is even better! It is well balanced and very strong with no handle rattle.

There is enough spring in the "live" blade to be forgiving when mis-striking the target. It takes a huge number of cuts to even start to dull the blade. The cutting power of the Katana is exceptional in the right hands. It can easily cut through 10" diameter rattan roll with a NE to SW draw cut!

I hope that this is of some help.

Regards Ken :)

[Milu]

Robert Criswell for mid-price.

[CKE]

Hey Ray> I am doing well :)

Thanks for the info guys. I did some searching on BFC and got a few other names. I am not thinking about becoming a mall ninja or anything :) The movie just got me thinking...is there any real old world sword makers left. Swords have such a historyand are quite a bit more of a challenge to make than knives. I know Wally Hayes of Canada makes very good swords. Just some idle thoughts rattling around inside my head today :) Thanks for the info guys :) Take Care!!!

[samosaurus]

Yoshindo Yoshihara.. Japan's living treasure.. :D

Sam

[Mr Blonde]

I for one do not care much if a sword blade is forged, folded or has a hamon, I'd much rather have a quality factory blade in a good knife steel I know.

Could a company, like say Spyderco , turn out a good user katana with their regular production methods (e.g. CNC machining) and a steel like VG10 or S30V?

Wouter

[The Deacon]

[quote="Mr Blonde"]I for one do not care much if a sword blade is forged, folded or has a hamon, I'd much rather have a quality factory blade in a good knife steel I know.

Could a company, like say Spyderco ]Am completely out of my element here, but would a "good knife steel" necessarily make a good, usable, sword blade? Are the forces encoutered by a sword blade so different from those a knife blade must contend with as to favor an different composition? Or would just a different heat treat suffice? Can't really see them both working well with the same steel at the same hardness, am I missing something?

[vampyrewolf]

High Carbon steels tend to work better for swords, due to impact resistance.

5160 for example, makes one **** of a bush blade, as does O-1 when properly heat treated.

[Ray.Hood]

Good to have you back man. Saw Kill Bill 1, haven't seen 2 yet.
Gotta look out for the wife's interests more. life is good. :D

[RLR]

Methinks any super FOLDER steel would shatter in a sword. I've seen VG10 shatter in a small knife - it's too hard for swords.

[UK KEN]

Craig

If you take a look at this link it will give you some idea why the steel used in most folders or fixed blades would be unsuitable for a Katana. http://www.dojoofthefourwinds.com/video.html
Then this link will give you the history of the Katana, pretty gruesome testing but that is why they have ended up being the weapon that they are today. Not only did they have to cut well but also had to survive a battle situation where clashes with other swords or steel weapons was inevitable.
http://www.wdob.net/mai/weapons/katana/ ... istory.php

Regards Ken :)

[CKE]

Thanks much guys...I look forward to some good reading and research :)

[thombrogan]

[quote="Mr Blonde"]Could a company, like say Spyderco ]

Only if they sold the VG10 or S30V to buy something such as 1050, 1095, or L6. Too much chrome seems to spoil the soup.

[Mr Blonde]

Ok so a carbon type steel it is then. I don't care, as long as it works. I would still be highly interested in a Spyderco user Katana that was made as good as possible, without having to be of "traditional design and production". Has somebody scooped up Wally Hayes yet, for a custom collab wakizashi-tac?

Wouter

[severedthumbs]

Mr. Blonde these swords have been made for centuries and have been perfected by the Jap's. No cnc, no super steels. Just good ole hammer forging and hand grinding, this is what makes a good sword. Believe me a Cold Steel sword does not come close to a real hand made Jap sword.

[Ray.Hood]

Oh well, they do look nice. Did some checking, they are not very strong.
Not enough carbon in the steel and too much chrome.

[CKE]

Mr. Blonde...Mr. Hayes has been scooped by Swamp Rat knives. Quite a cool design if I do say so. Part of their "Through the Hands of a Master" collaborations :)