Samurai Swords Buying Guide

Miyamoto Musashi – His Life And Legacy

If you’ve had anything to do with the world of Japanese sword arts, for any length of time, then it is very likely you have heard the name Miyamoto Musashi or the sword named after him , the Miyamoto Musashi Katana.

Although some may argue this fact, it is very likely that he the most famous swordsmen that ever lived. He is famed for his battles, his distinct styles of swordsmanship, and he created a legacy that has out lived him by close to 400 years!

THE LIFE OF MIYAMOTO MUSASHI

Miyamoto Musashi was born Shinmen Takezo in Harima Province around 1584. There is some that argue the date and place where he was born. There are some discrepancies between the facts that we know, but for the purposes of our article that place and date works fine. We do know that he lived for around 60 years, and authored his book near the end of his life.

Here are some of the more notable events throughout the life of Musashi:

1. 1596 – At the age of 13 Miyamoto Musashi won his battle against Arima Kihei
2. 1600 – It is believed that Musashi fought in the battle of Sekigahara, on the losing side.
3. 1604 – Musashi wins Musashi has 3 matches with the Yoshioka clan in Kyoto. He also battled a Buddhist priest trained in the style of Hozoin-ryu.
4. 1612 – After a time of travel, and various duels, Musashi has his most famous battle with Sasaki Kojiro.
5. 1615 to 1621 It is believe that Miyamoto served at Osaku castle, and worked as a construction supervisor that this time.
6. 1630 – Begins to further his knowledge of the arts
7. 1637 – Plays an important role in the Shimabara rebellion
8. 1645 – Finishes his book Go Rin No Sho (The Book of Five Rings).

Obviously this is a brief overview of Musashi’s life. Along with being a famed swordsman in his time, Miyamoto was also an accomplished artist, calligrapher, and sculptor. Through most of his life he lived as a hermit, and spent his time studying Buddhism and the martial arts.

A LEGACY THAT LASTS THROUGH TO TODAY

Musashi was responsible for the Hyōhō Niten Ichi-ryū or Niten-ryū styles of swordsmanship. Near the end of his life Miyamoto also the authored the Go Rin No Sho which literally translates to “A Book of Five Rings”. The book was considered to be a swordsman’s guide to strategy. A complete English translation of the book can be found here.

Whether you believe Musashi to be the world’s most famous swordsman or not, one thing does stand. His influence on the Japanese arts has had a legacy that lasts right through to today!

Posted in Famous Martial Arts People | No Comments »

Shotokai karate - Kyle Karate Club

Hi,

My name is Andy Brown, I’m a 53 year old male who lives on the west coast of Scotland. I’ve been practicing Shotokai karate with Kyle Karate Club and have reached the level of 1st Dan Black belt. Shotokai was developed by Sensei Mitsuzuke Harada and brought to the UK in the 60’s when he moved here.

Over the years since then there have been some splits within the original group which has left us independent. We still recognise Sensei as the developer of our style even if we no longer have the opportunity to practice with him.

I, like so many others, got interested in martial arts during the time of the Bruce Lee movies. I tried Kung Fu from books (nearly permanently damaged my knee – ALWAYS go to a club with a good instructor!), Aikido, Judo, Sport karate and finally Shotokai. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in Shotokai Karate | No Comments »

Need Your Input On The New Sword Design i

It’s Saturday morning here and looks like we don’t need to expect a lot of sun today…Ideal weather to finish some things here

It seems like most of you guys (and girls ) liked the cheap battle ready katana from the Konron Forge ? The forge had some problems lately..one of the problems was the fact that they did need to re-locate their forge..but that was not the only problem, there were 2 more things going on there. First, the smith (yeah, they only one they have) was in the hospital for 1 ½ month for an operation and one of the polishers was sick. So that sucked big time and caused a big delay !

But good news, they’re fully operational since this week and it seems like all of the troubles are gone and we can continue with our work. Actually the new batch of 9260 steel blades are almost forged so they only need to finish the blades and mount the swords now… and this is the point were I would like to ask you for some advice. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in General | No Comments »

Kendo, Kenjutsu and Iaido : The Main Japanese Sword Arts

If you’ve been considering getting started in the Japanese sword arts you are in for a very rewarding hobby. These types of martial arts allow for something different when compared to the more traditional hand-to-hand combat styles. Whether you are a new budo practioner, or have already started on your path to learning the way of the warrior - your first step to get started in the path of the samurai is to learn a little about the arts themselves.

The Japanese sword arts that are commonly taught today are divided into three main areas. We could further differentiate these by talking about different families and styles, but an overview of kenjutsu, kendo, and iaido should be enough to get you started.

KENJUTSU – THE ART OF THE SWORD

Kenjutsu translates to “the art of the sword”, and it is the more traditional of the arts taught today. Kenjutsu is primarily combative in nature. It is the main way that koryu (traditional schools) train their students to use their swords against a variety of classic weapons.
When you study this form of Japanese martial arts you can expect partnered practice with a variety of kata. If you study Kenjutsu you will also likely study sword drawing and sheathing techniques. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in Japanese Martial Arts | No Comments »

New cheap handmade samurai sword - Ideal entry level sword

A few days ago, our members already got a notification about the new things that were going to happen here at our store (not a member yet ? Go here, subscribe and you will be part of our elite club ).

Today I can announce a first new toy…I’m not sure if you remember the 9260 steel samurai swords we got in from the Konron forge. They were a huge success and the first and second delivery did sold out within a few weeks. At this moment, the forge need to re-locate and it will still take a few weeks before they can start producing. So patience is the message here

On the other hand, we have a second forge we’re working with who will supply us the more higher end stuff….but…the last months we were also working with that forge on an very affordable yet high quality katana and well here it is :

The KIKU Katana !

Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in Sword reviews | 3 Comments »

Caring For your Katana: A brief guide to cleaning your blade

Whether you’re a collector of swords, or a budo practitioner, proper maintenance of your swords is paramount to keeping them in good shape. It would be a shame to have that new katana, which cost you $1000, to become useless because of rust or a cracking handle. Fortunately proper sword care is not difficult, and it needn’t take hours of your time.

If you use your sword, you should clean the blade after every use. Every time you touch the blade of your samurai sword, your fingers leave behind salts and oils that can promote rust. If you are a collector, you should clean your katana ever 3 weeks, or anytime you handle the blade of the sword. Cleaning your blade will only take you a few minutes, but the time spent will add years to the life of your blade.

WHAT NOT TO DO
Before we talk about how to clean your blade, let’s talk about some things you shouldn’t do. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in How To | No Comments »

Ninja Festival In Japan, get prepared !

When I was young, Ninja’s were IN…dozens of Hollywood movies were made and we all wanted to be (at least me) a real ninja some day. Very soon , I discovered that I would never had the skills to become a real ninja and decided to start a Japanese sword shop one day to supply the ninjas with good quality ninja swords.

Soon after I started the sword shop, I did found out that they did no longer exist…shit !

Anyway, it seems like they’re still very hot these day’s , even in Japan. In a little place about 450 kilometres from Tokyo there’s a small city named Iga which is known as a traditional home town of the Ninja.

From April 1th until May 6th there’s a Ninja festival over there which attracts almost 30.000 visitors each year ! At this yearly event you can watch Ninja-inspired dance performances, competitions, and opportunities to practice ninja skills. Sounds like the place to be ! Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in General, Uncategorized | No Comments »

Could this be a fake Japanese Katana ?

We do get lot a lot of weird mails in our mailbox and from time to time, there are people who are offering us ‘real antique Japanese swords’. Whenever I see that line in the subject, I already know enough. Normally , I just hit the delete button but this time I decided to see what kind of antique baby they had to offer us …

“Dear Sir,

I live in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan province, Indonesia.
I have original Samurai sword from my fore father who got from Japanese soldier with specification as follows:

1. It is made in 1718, can be seen at the writing on the samurai sword.
2. If we want to take the samurai from its cover, the samurai will sound “srriing” or will sound look like bee.
3. After coming out from the cover, the samurai is still elastic and soon becomes tense.
4. There is a picture of sun shinning and two Japanese flags which cross two each other on the samurai body near samurai holder.
5. The sword can be bent like belt.
6. If we bring “magnet” near and touch the samurai, it doesn’t stick with the samurai.
7. The samurai will not wet even though we pour water on it.
8. There are 3 small swords to complete the samurai.
9. The samurai has certificate written in Japanese language.
10. There is “giok” stone on the samurai holder
11. We have tried to cut nail and the result is the nail is cut on one hit

Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in Samurai Sword guide | 15 Comments »

Tamahagane Tachi for sale & new katanas on the way !

It has been a few weeks since you heard something from us but we were extremely busy with some things and there wasn’t much time left to write something down.

But we’re still alive and kicking

Now we have a great deal to announce and you’re the first to hear about it. Two weeks ago I was on the phone with one of our forges and after lot of talking and negotiating they gave us a little extra because we’re a good client.

You remember the tamahagane tachi we got in a few weeks ago..that on is already sold BUT they did send us 2 new one’s we can offer for 1200 euro/piece. Keep in mind that this is the first time we got an offer like t his and it won’t be repeated within the next few years. As you can see in our shop it’s priced at almost 1900 euro ! Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in General | 4 Comments »

9260 Katana Sword review with Video.

Introduction
Hello, welcome to this review about the Konron 9260 Katana. I am Daan. I own a Hanwei Practical Katana and use it for so called “Backyard Tamishigiri”. I have had no official sword training, so I learned everything I do and know on the internet, online forums and just lots of practicing.

A few days ago Dave asked me if I was interested in testing and writing a review about the 9260 Konron Katana. I gladly accepted to enjoy the “feel” of an other katana and to review it, have fun reading this review!

The Review
Looks
While removing the packaging, I got a smile on my face, at First sight the sword looks and feels nice and sturdy.
Fuchi en de Kashira - The fuchi and the kashira are decorated with a decorating that looks nice, and is not too much over-the-top. The kashira also has the usual golden accent that fits nice with the rest of the fittings.
Menuki – The menuki looks nice as well, although it’s a bit harder to recognize the flower motive. They are made out of copper.

Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in Sword reviews | No Comments »