The cavity inside the wooden scabbard should perfectly fit the profile and shape of the blade so that the scabbard protects the blade like “a samurai protects the emperor”. The sheath should be made of high quality, lacquered wood. The blade and the hilt are joined together by small pegs called mekugi, and a metal collar called habaki. The grip can be further improved by a leather strap or cotton band called tsuka-ito. The tsuka, or hilt, of real katanas was also covered with stingray or sharkskin, which have a rough surface and improve the tightness of a grip. If a Japanese swordsmith released such an improperly crafted katana, he would probably be required to commit suicide (seppuku) in order to preserve his honour. If you are looking for a properly crafted katana, no looseness of the handle is acceptable (the wooden core of the handle must fit tightly to the blade shaft). The handle must be tightly connected to the blade. The handle was traditionally made from soft wood (such as magnolia wood in Japan). Make sure that the handle and guard are solid as well. An authentic blade, laboriously folded from both types of steel would cost you arm and leg. Modern replicas mostly use hard high-carbon steel and spring steel. However, the quality of the steel is comparable, and modern steel is often better. When choosing between a sword made of traditional 1045 steel with a sophisticated structure of multiple layers (sometimes Damascus steel is used) and a modern industrially produced steel, you should consider the considerable difference in price caused by the cost of the blacksmith’s work. Modern homogenized steels also achieve excellent results in test cutting. In the case of modern blades, the layers only serve an aesthetic purpose.
The resulting material has over 30,000 layers.Īs for the blades made of modern steel, the folding technique is not necessary, as the steel from modern smelters is already completely homogenous and folding could deteriorate its condition. Similar bits are then combined into a single lump and then folded approximately 10 to 15 times during the forging process. The blacksmith needs to choose lumps with similar composition and process them further (the ability to choose the similar chunks of steel is indicative of the blacksmith's skill). It contains several other elements and impurities and requires further processing. The metal obtained from a smelter is called tamahagane in Japanese. Iron was initially imported to Japan, as the first smelting furnaces were not built there until the 7th century AD. The most important component of steel is iron, which is extracted from iron ore in a smelter. The production of tamahagane steel and steel folding Only one type of steel would not be suitable, that is why different types of steel with different carbon content were combined, achieving both hardness and flexibility. In contrast, low-carbon steel is flexible, which helps to absorb the impact of blows. High carbon steel is extremely hard and was used for the outer sheath of the blade, including the edge. There are several historically documented manufacturing techniques, such as the technique of pattern welding or folding (as seen in Damascus steel), which is still used today. Traditionally, the steel combines a high-carbon, harder layer with a low-carbon, softer layer. You'll know the right one at sight – or rather, at touch! But there are also ways to tell the quality of the sword online. Ideally, you should be able to touch the sword. What are Samurai Swords Made of? Look for Quality. The third part was a shorter personal weapon, Tanto dagger. The Katana was a part of samurai gear, along with Daisho and the Wakazashi short sword. The katana is the most popular samurai sword. Replicas are significantly cheaper, and they can serve their purpose well. So, what you are more likely looking for is a samurai sword replica. What you might not know is that an original samurai katana might cost you 4,000 EUR and more. the guard or tsuba - protects the hand from the opponent’s blows and prevents the hand from slipping onto the blade when attackingīut you probably already know so much.The sword consists of a single-edged blade ( ha in Japanese) and a set consisting of: Katana is easily recognizable by its curved blade, which is somewhat similar to that of a sabre. How Many Swords? What to Watch out for?.Blunt But High-Quality Swords for Training.What are Samurai Swords Made of? Look for Quality.
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