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Imagine it, ancient Japan. Your robes roll with the wind. The air strokes your face with its gentle fingers. You look around you as the sky turns gray. You knit your brows and spread your legs. You firmly stand as you unsheathe your sword.

Feel that hilt; grip it good as your fingers curl around its soft exterior. Deeply breathe in and wrap both hands around the hilt. Raise your arms and get ready. Slash the air with your sword, sense that adrenaline, that energy. Sweat rolls down as you swing, gashing an invisible foe with strength flowing through your body. As you continue, your speed increases. Your hits become harder, more powerful.

Can you imagine it? Can you feel that rush of energy?

Learn to dance with a Japanese samurai sword with this workout. Use an ancient technique to get those curves. Get the body you’ve always wanted with this latest and raving exercise, the samurai sword workout. Trim your body. Stomp and swing the cholesterol off your system. Burn that cholesterol! Pant as you move with your katana, beating the fat away. Move your hips and torso. Slit and slash your foe, the flab.

Surely, you will notice how your body changes with this workout, especially around your waist. You will get the curves you’ve always wanted in a very beautiful way. Because it is safe, you don’t need to worry for any side effects.

Escape the stresses and problems of modern life. With these choreographed movements, you will definitely strengthen and tone your body. Your focus will sharpen with this workout as well.

Originally this workout targeted the male audience, but inventor, Takufuji Ukon, noticed how women raved the said exercise and enrolled for lessons. With his sword dancing ability and fitness training, he combined exercise and Japanese culture in a wonderful symphony of healthy movements.

He states that the exercise can make women believe that they can be someone they can never be.

He tells his students to imagine their enemies as body flab, and channel their negative energies and whims on that enemy. He says that the time for cutting people is over and the killing of pessimistic thoughts is now.

Several of his students confirm the workout’s positive effects. The women’s self-esteem improves as well, claiming that they do feel good just hacking away.

With these confirmations, surely wielding a sword made of wood can lift your spirits, make you feel powerful.

Swing your hips and cut that enemy! Stomp one foot forward and release that dark aura. Defeat your enemies with your optimism and esteem enveloping your blade. Feel good inside and out.

Imagine it once more, ancient Japan. Your robes gracefully flutter as you wield your sword with precise movements. You pant and feel your hot breath mixing with the air. You put your right foot forward. Your foe kneels before you, waiting for your attack. Without hesitation, you raise your katana and slice his shoulder. Your blade rips his flesh with accuracy. A victorious and triumphant feeling electrifies your entire body. The sky slowly turns blue, applauding for your victory.

If you know all of these you will probably know more than your friends   I also need to thank Pierre for revising  all of the images (and correcting me along the way)  to make sure i’m not screwing things  up…

This is the overview, let’s dive into the details…

The kissaski (鋒) is the point of a katana. You can find them in different variations of length but mainly we have :

• Ko kissaski (小鋒) : small  point
• Chu kissaski (中鋒) : medium point
• O kissaski (大鋒) : big point

The kissaki in the picture above is considered  a Chu kissaski, something you will find on most of the production swords.

The Boshi (帽子) is the hamon that is running along the kissaski of the blade

The Yokote (横手) is the line that divides the body of the blade (ji)  with the tip (kissaski). It’s not just a ‘line’ like you can find on many production katana, it’s a change in geometry of the blade towards its tip. On a picture is very hard to see if there is really a change in geometry, it’s something you need to feel to be sure

The Koshinogi (小鎬) is the extension of the shinogi at the tip of the katana

The Fukura (フクラ) refers to the roudness, the curvature of the cutting edge along the kissaski

The Mitsukado (三角) is the point where the Yokote, shinogi and the koshinogi are having a party

The Shinogi (鎬) is the ridgline  that seperates the edge (ha) and the back (mune)

The Shinogi-Ji (鎬地) is the are of the blade between the Shinogi (ridgline) and the mune (back of the sword)

The Habuchi (?) is the line  of the  hamon

The Hamon (刃文) is the temper pattern along the blade it’s edge

The Ha (刃) or Yakiba covers the whole area between the Ha-saki (刃先) or cutting edge  and the habuchi

The Jihada (地肌) is the surface pattern of the hada. It’s the main part where you can properly appreciate the Jigane (地金) which is very hard to point at since the Jigane is the steel that maks the blade. So the Jigane is also present in the ha, shinogi-ji, tang, etc

The Hi (樋) is the groove in the blade. Here same story as with the kissaski, they  do come in various shapes and types. Lot of folks confuse the word Hi with Bo-Hi which is a certain type of Hi. Bo-Hi(?) can be translated as ‘Big groove while a Soe-bi(?) for example is a small, fine groove.

The Sakihaba (先幅) is the width of the blade at the Yokote

The Monouchi (物打) is the part of the blade that is most used for cutting

"Tateishi Onojiro Norijuki, aka Tommy," (1860) by the studio of C.D. Fredricks & Co.

U.S. Commodore Matthew Perry shoved his ship into Edo during 1853. He sought to end the Tokugawa government and started capturing the Japanese community. Also during that era, Adm. Perry and the U.S. consul had destabilized such government resulting to food deprivation and political conflict. The U.S. created formal dealings in order to manage but disparagement of the Shoguns (a commander of a force) had commenced.

Throughout this commotion, a U.S.-Japan Treaty of Amity and Commerce was formed and a designated Japanese representative cruise to America to bring it to President Buchanan. It was March 29, 1860 when they reached San Francisco and such tour lasted for three months ending in New York. That started the new show “Samurai in New York” held at the Museum to honor its 150th anniversary.

Different displays were presented in the well-ventilated site. Among the entire exhibit, a souvenir to the U.S. Navy was in the central display case. A Japanese sword with a uniquely profiled sharp curving blade. It outlined the element for an introduction from the productions of Walt Whitman’s poem “The Errand Bearers.” The meaning was apparent, tensions that were rising en route for the Civil War had outmoded the Japanese visit in New Yorkers’ awareness and that time it made a huge impact.

The Show wasn’t presented remarkably as it seem. It was modest and needed a lot of wary understanding for it to become known. Gigantic enough, well-known photographers like Mathew Brady flew and incite the Japanese delegates. New Yorkers also rushed to buy those captured images of men in their kimonos.
As the principals claim the main stage, other imagery mark members of the assignment whose distinctiveness were lost. Opposing to American outlook, these were not superior affiliates of the shogunate. Most were in 20s and 30s and do not take any inventiveness. Unwilling to leave the Hotel, they visited a rubber factory, schools, hospitals, and naval shipyard.

As an effect, representatives frequently accounted life in the hotel. One picture shows how they use equipment such as sewing machine in which some became curious because it was new to them. Another picture displayed a reminder that Japan was eager to progress more technologically.

There were mainly two sides with different goals and showed different disappointments. For the Japanese, the visit was like a ritual. For the Americans, the celebrations were fixed to business. New York Merchants that were thankful for the opening of Japan and presented to Adm. Perry a silver service that is shown in a duplicate of the treaty. Unsure thoughts from the American side become noticeable as the show progress.

Members of the Japanese Embassy, photographed on their trip to America in 1860. Picture by C.D. Fredricks & Co

A song sheet’s lines displayed racial appellation while with the Japanese work of art showed a solemn appreciation of their ability. Some were uncertain in engaging affiliation with the Japanese; others were focusing onto their philanthropy. But without question when our exchange with Japan is fully open, goods that were bought by the Japanese will be returned to us in the figure of replication with enhancement.

Samurai in New York: The First Japanese Delegation, 1860
Through October 11, 2010

The exhibition documents the visit of the first Japanese ambassadors – 70 samurai – following the missions of Commodore Matthew Perry to Japan, starting beginning in 1852, that opened Japan to trade with the West.  In addition to important international trade documents, 19th-century photographs, ephemera related to the epic visit, newspaper accounts, the exhibition features 19th-century woodblock prints, silver, ceramics, and jewelry.

Walter Sorrells

Bibliography on Walter Sorrells

Walter Sorrells is a martial artist who studied karate at the same time learning iaido – the art of drawing a sword. Since he was fond of practicing iaido, he was then influenced in the art of shinkendo  and later on crafting swords. At that time wherein he was crafting his very own swords, he was also mastering iaido so his skill in drawing the sword and making the sword developed and matured simultaneously.

While he was busy learning how to use a sword and create it, the said activities provoked him to write a novel about a blacksmith taking his own experience into account for the sole purpose of making it original and unique. Unfortunately, that particular book didn’t become famous (unlike his other writings) but his skills in crafting swords developed and went to a whole new different level and began to find it nifty and fun.

As he was growing up, he became fond of painting, drawing, and woodworking – anything that he can use and create with his hands. And while he was learning and mastering martial arts, crafting and making sword was just added to one of his many hobbies. This doesn’t imply that he is a novice when it comes to creating wonderful crafts using both of his hands.

Aside from being a martial artist, blacksmith and many more, he was also a prolific writer before being mesmerized with sword-making. He was influenced to write novels by being fond and enthralled of the history, crime, weapons, and myths or story-telling. He considers that all of his past experiences and his likes are somehow connected with each other with the way his life is running and turning out to be.

Since he is involved in sword-making, he never engaged in such an activity without being equipped with the right ammunition for the job. He tried to read, comprehend, and absorb as many information he could get his hands on. Not only that he limited his resources to reading books but he also participated on different workshops, attended conferences, and listened to forums.

But the most important thing that he made sure he’ll always do – practice forging the swords until he reaches or achieves that feeling of ‘ecstaticness’ whenever he looks at the blades that he just finished forging. He also stressed the fact that for a person to learn, he needs to experience failure over and over again. This is the only way that an individual would improve his game. His toughest challenge right now is knowing how to incorporate all of the changes he made in the past to make the perfect sword because as of the moment, every time he forges a sword, it always comes up being better that the previous but having the a new setback to improve on.

Walter Sorrells was influenced by a lot of philosophies he learned during his practice of martial arts and sword making. To be a good smith, one should consider a lot of aspects in making one. But it doesn’t necessarily mean that the smith should be into iaido or any martial arts that involves the utilization of swords. He believes that there is no requirement to become a blacksmith. As long as you have the hands and the tools then you are good to go. The success of a blacksmith lies on the functionality of his crafts. Once it serves its purpose then it is said to be a quality blade.

Walter at work

I was always interested in Japanese swords. We practiced iaido as part of our training in the school where I studied karate. Later I took up shinkendo, but that actually happened at about the same time I started making blades. So my sword-making and sword-wielding skills developed together.

As it happens, the initial impetus for my sword making was that I was writing a novel about a swordsmith. So I thought, “Well, I’ll do a little research and get my hands dirty so I can make the character seem authentic.” Sadly, the book died. But I caught the blade-making bug pretty badly and have been making blades ever since.
In terms of why I would actually go to the extreme of smelting steel in my back yard and all doing all this stuff: it’s just fun to me.

I’ve always liked painting, drawing, woodworking and generally working with my hands. So this is just an extension of that. Martial arts happened to be a doorway into this particular craft. If I’d been into historical reenacting, I’d probably be making European style blades today.

Speaking of your background, what many people might not know is that you are also a successful novel writer. Are these 2 completely different jobs or are they somewhere crossing some lines every now and then ?

Yeah, I alluded in the earlier question to the fact that I’m a writer first and a sword maker second. But I try to live an integrated life – meaning that I try to do work that I enjoy, and to work at things that I do for enjoyment. Work hard, play hard. All the activities and intellectual pursuits of my adulthood were pretty much in place by the time I was about thirteen years old. To put it another way, I guess I have a permanently adolescent view of the world.
I’ve been fascinated by weapons, history, crime and story-telling since I was a kid. So it’s all connected in one way or another. We’re all the hero of our own story, right?

Like many others, you started out with making stock removal swords but there’s still a huge difference between that and forging them. How did you obtain the necessary knowledge for that or was it rather an “I try , fail and start over again until it get’s better” process ?

I’m kind of an information sponge. I’ve read pretty much every word that’s been written in the English language about blade making. I’m exaggerating a little, but, yeah, my approach is to throw out as wide a net as possible, gather as much information as possible, then go into the workshop and bang away. The internet is really helpful, too. I can’t exaggerate the importance of forums like Don Fogg’s in my learning process. Going to hammer-ins and conferences and knife shows and Japanese sword shows are all useful sources of knowledge, too.

But ultimately you have to fail a lot in order to improve your game. Every sword I make is a disappointment to me in some way…but that’s what makes me keep coming back. If you just reached a certain level and then kept doing the same thing over and over, you might as well work in a factory.

That said, from the moment that I started messing around with blademaking, I was aiming to work on Japanese style blades. As soon as I got started, though, I realized that I needed some foundational skills before I tackled Japanese-type work. I just didn’t know enough. So I spent several years making hunting knives and folders and things of that nature, learning about heat treating, hammer control, grinding, and so on. But I always saw that as kind of a transitional phase of my training.

With all the modern (made in China) katanas, there are a lot of discussion about ‘this is not a traditional made’ sword. For most people , the definition of a traditional made sword stops when a hamon shows up and or when the blade is folded for several times and a hada is visable. What’s your definition of a traditional made katana ?

Forging a billet of steel

I have found very few smiths who find this to be an important issue. It’s mostly sword buyers and collectors who start all these idiotic flame wars about the question. I mean, the most strict definition of a traditionally made Japanese sword is that it’s made from tamahagane produced in Japan by the NBTHK, and is forged by a sword maker who has completed a Japanese apprenticeship, and is licensed by the Japanese government. Can an American (or a Chinese guy, for that matter) produce a functional equivalent of such a blade? Absolutely.

But ultimately I find this to be an uninteresting, backward-looking question. I’m really interested in the Japanese sword making tradition. One of my goals (not yet realized) is to make swords that are indistinguishable from the best traditionally made Japanese blades. But to me that’s not the end of the line. It’s just one interesting thing that a bladesmith can aspire to. I find the Japanese tradition inspiring…but I’m not trying to “be a Japanese smith.” I’m Walter Sorrells. I live in America. When they play the Star Spangled Banner, I stand up and salute the flag. To try and somehow “be a Japanese smith” seems like a kind of misguided notion. I just like Japanese blades and am interested in how they look and how they work and how they’re made. It’s a challenge, but it’s not an existential goal.

Likewise, for a collector or buyer of swords, you want to be aware of the methodology used by the sword maker and you want it to match up with your goals as a buyer. Do you want to hang it on the wall? Do you want to use it for iaido? For tameshigiri? Do you only have 45 euros to spend? Do you want a blade signed by a famous Japanese guy who died eight centuries ago? As long as everybody’s participating in the game with a full knowledge of how the blade was made and what it was made from, then everybody should be happy. There’s no right or wrong way to play the game.

To continue on the traditional subject, how different would the katana world lok like today if smiths in ancient times had the same sources of steel as today ? I can’t imagen they would have refined or even ever started to fold their blades or use different kind of laminations to make it stronger. Perhaps the whole culture aspect around it would be non excisting ?

You’re absolutely right. If performance is the sole metric, then a blade made from monosteel is clearly superior to a traditionally made blade. All kinds of armchair smiths out there will dispute this. But I’ve personally tested a great many swords and as far as I’m concerned this is a settled matter. Smiths a thousand years ago were making weapons. If they’d had billets of W2 steel available, they wouldn’t have bothered folding the stuff. Folding was done to refine primitively smelted steel into something that was useable. Period. This is not a matter of debate; it’s simple fact.

Now, there are people who think that making the claim that modern steel is functionally superior somehow undermines the supposed “perfection” of traditional smiths. This is moronic. The achievements of traditional smiths must be seen in the context of their historical era. They used great skill and extremely primitive equipment to make objects of exceptional durability and functionality and beauty. That is an achievement that stands entirely on its own, and dwarfs anything I’ll ever do in my shop.
The esthetic issue is different.

I think that folded steel (in particular folded steel made from primitively smelted raw steel – i.e. tamahagane) is obviously more complex and esthetically interesting than monosteel. Personally I find that both function and esthetics offer interesting challenges, so I play the whole field. Where does tradition end and modernity begin? To me those are just little boxes. Yoshindo Yoshihara uses a power hammer. Does that make him some kind of modern fraud? Not to me. Ultimately all that matters to me is that when I pick up one of his blades, I go, “Wow! This is beautiful.”

Modern steel billet

For what it’s worth, my definition of a “traditionally-made blade” is a blade forged from primitive steel, folded, forged to shape, differentially hardened, and roughly falling within the bounds of the Japanese tradition of sword geometry and construction. That’s why I like to say that my work is “Japanese-inspired.” That means I feel free to draw from, imitate or reject anything within that tradition on a case-by-case, blade-by-blade, client-by-client, whim-by-whim basis. If you buy a sword from me, you’ll know exactly how I made it…and then you can put whatever label on it that you want.

A lot of people argue over these issues. It all seems a bit ludicrous to me. The fact that these arguments are frequently conducted by people with very little knowledge only makes the situation more grotesque. I mean, at the end of the day, we’re just screwing around. Swords have precious little relevance in modern times. If making and using swords isn’t fun, then why do it? As a craftsman, of course you take your work seriously. But, come on, lighten up a little, guys. We’re not curing cancer here!

Does a smith need to be ‘into’ a sword drawing arts (a practitioner in other words) to be able to make a good functional sword for a practitioner ? As a follow up, is there a difference between making a sword for a collector and for a practitioner, assuming they both want a descent blade but the first one (collector) doesn’t actually want to use it.

I don’t think there’s any required background for a smith. But I do think that Western smiths do need consider their blades as functional tools first and foremost. High level Japanese smiths don’t have to worry about function because nobody pays twenty, thirty, forty, fifty grand for a sword and then goes out to chop up floor mats with it. Western smiths, on the other hand, have to presume that somebody will eventually use every blade they make.

Particularly in the United States, with its aggressive liability laws, you don’t want a blade flying apart and stabbing somebody in the face. Also, ethically, if you make a tool, you want it to function safely and effectively.

So anyway…all of that said, people who train with swords will necessarily have a leg up when it comes to performance issues. My sense of proportion and weight has changed a lot over time, and it’s happened entirely because of my experience using my own blades.
As a result of all that, I don’t think there should be any difference between a collector blade and a user blade, per se. All collector blades should be functional.

Most of your blades show a very eye catching hamon (Your Mount Fuji hamon is one of them I’m thinking of right now). Is there some type of steel & technique you prefer above another to create them and does different kind of hamons affect the overall (cutting/performance) ability of a blade ?

Mount Fuiji in the mist hamon

I find hamons to be really interesting to make. I view them as primarily an esthetic component of the sword. For functional purposes, the best hamon would probably be a medium suguha. But I don’t find that to be all that fun to make (especially on monosteel blades where there’s no hada to take up the esthetic slack). I like using 1050 and W2 best. They both yield fairly detailed hamons.

On lot of cheaper (and even more expensive) production blades, the machi doesn’t line up and the mune machi is usually placed a bit higher. This is probably done to keep costs as low as possible or because the lack of proper knowledge but can it be considered as a flaw and even dangerous when the sword need to be used for cutting exercises ?
It seems reasonable to think that would be the case, but this is one of those things where you really can’t know the answer without a lot of testing. Obviously it’s an esthetic flaw…but I’ve never tried beating up a blade with a misplaced machi, so I can’t really say for sure if it would be significantly more likely to break.

Do you have an all time favorite blade you have ever forged throughout your smith career and why ?

Well, I still don’t feel like I’ve quite hit my stride as a smith. I’ve done a couple of tantos that I thought were pretty nice, including an osoraku tanto that I just finished. But I’ve had a backlog of orders that I’ve been trying desperately to get rid of for about three or four years and that puts a lot of pressure on me to just get swords finished.

Obviously you’re not going to ship blades that have significant problems. But sometimes you just think: I wish that was better. I’m really looking forward to just making blades for my own pleasure again – without any feeling that by putting excessive amounts of effort into one customer’s blade, I’m screwing everybody else in my order queue. I think you’ll see my work hitting a new level in about two years. So I guess what I’m saying is that my favorite blade is a blade I haven’t made yet.

You’ve done a number of instructional videos for teaching various aspects of the craft of bladesmithing. Tell me about how you got into that.

I’m a huge believer that there shouldn’t be secrets in a craft. Artistry and hard work can’t be taught…but they are what distinguish good craftsmen. The tricks of the trade are just that: tricks. My dad was a college professor and my mom was a minister, so I was raised to believe that people should share and communicate knowledge rather than hoarding it.

Anyway, I think my most obvious strength as a smith is my hamons. As a result I used to get a lot of email from people who’d basically say: “How do you make your hamons?” It got a little burdensome answering all the emails about the exact same question. Moreover, there’s no way to do justice to what is really an honest and reasonable (but complex!) question in a three paragraph email. So I thought that I’d make a short video and sell it for a nominal amount just to cover the cost of the thing.
Once I started making the video, though, I got obsessed and have now finished a whole set of video’s.

I’ve seen a lot of really crappy instructional videos and I just felt like I owed it to whoever was watching the video to provide clear and accurate audio, careful editing, a scripted voice-over, close-ups of significant details, decent lighting, a camera that didn’t wobble, and so on. Once I made the decision to do all of that, I realized I was sort of crossing the Rubicon on this project and it would end up being a much more serious and time-consuming endeavor than I’d originally intended. I invested in a bunch of video production equipment and off I went.

Making Hamons video cover

Anyway, once I was done with the hamon video I got a lot of response from people who basically said, “This is the best knifemaking video I’ve ever seen.” But I saw a lot of ways I could improve on that first one. So I went on to make a polishing video, then a mounting video, then a forging video. With each of them, I’ve tried to improve every aspect of production, moving to Hi-Def, improving my set, my lighting, my microphones, etc. Basically I try to make the videos that I wish I had been able to buy back when I first started making blades.

I’ve got one more in the works. It’ll be about the construction of habakis, fuchi/kashiras, etc. Not about decoration (a subject about which I’m not even vaguely qualified to teach anybody!) – but just the physical construction of the fittings, so that if somebody wants to mount their own blade, they can make functional fittings themselves.

I’m still looking to interview other Western (Japanese) Swordsmiths , Tsukamakishi, Togishi, etc, who would you send me to and do you have 1 question for him (or her) ?

Well, I’m friends with Chris Osborne, who has really been developing as a polisher. I think he’d be a great person for you to talk to. He’s very exacting, very serious about what he’s doing, and a hell of a nice guy. Another person to talk to is Rick Barrett. He’s so good with a grinder that every time I see him I want to punch him in the face. In all seriousness, I think he’s the best pure craftsman among Western smiths working in the Japanese tradition.. The sugata on his blades is very good, too. If you look at the nakago on one of his blades, you’ll see that it’s just perfect. That’s a sign that a guy is sweating all the details. Also a nice guy.

Walter’s Video gallery

Title

How to Make a Saya (Japanese Sword Scabbard) with Walter Sorrells

Runtime

4:40

Views

39,379

Title

How to Make a Japanese Sword: Forging a Katana with Walter Sorrells

Runtime

8:28

Views

26,754

Title

How to Make a Japanese Sword - Forging a Wakizashi with Walter Sorrells

Runtime

5:35

Views

15,581

Title

Japanese Sword: Tamahagane Smelting with Bladesmiths Walter Sorrells and Jesus Hernandez

Runtime

9:03

Views

8,387

A few weeks back we received the first monosteel katana sample from the Zhui Feng forge and last week the folded piece came in. Not necessary to say I was happy as a little child. Yeah, still after all of these years, when new pieces come in, it’s like Santa Claus who’s dropping a package )..always super excited !

Anyway let’s dig into this and give you a first review and some facts. This is the piece we’re talking about

Our Handpolished beauty

Doesn’t look bad at first sight right ?

This katana is a forged&folded piece. The forge is making their own steel in a Zuku-Oshi Tatara (high furnace – for the people who can read Dutch, I’ve posted an article about Tamahagane maken here). So basically we can say they are producing their own tamahagane for these pieces.

Second thing I have to pint out is that they are using the traditional method to forge the blade, in other words they are using a lamination method (can’t remember which one but will ask it again) to construct the blade.

And that’s a big difference with some other Chinese manufacturers who are also making their own steel BUT lot of them don’t laminated their blades which results mostly in a very bad edge and or soft blade. So it’s nice to look but not really good if you like to actually use it for tameshigiri.  Still have another tamahagane piece here from another manufacturer with chips in the edge just from some soft cutting (reed !!)…And for a sword in that price range that’s not something you like to see.

I didn’t do a cuttingtest yet with this one but the bending test I did is already promising and the forge is willing to give a nice warranty on this blade. Once they’re back in the forge (Chinese new year now) I’m finalizing this thing but I will try to aim on a very looooong warranty

The beauty of this blade is without any doubt it’s handpolish. To be honest (actually I can’t remember a time where I wasn’t) it’s the best polish I’ve ever seen on a Chinese blade in this price range..period! And have seen quit some handpolished pieces in the last 6 years. This one is very subtle yet prominent … judge yourself :

The Nice HandPolish

The only thing I want to see a little better is the polish of the kissaski but we’le get there…

This piece only feature 1 mekugi-ana where I definitely like to see 2 once they go into production as well as telling them very clear which side they have to start wrapping the tsuka. Typical Chinese to start at the wrong side…But for the rest, very tight wrap and nicely shaped diamonds.

The tsuka is very well constructed (forgot to take some pics of that), has a nice Rikko shape and is covered with real rayskin of course and bleu silk ito. No Chinese ito but the Japanese stuff. And I’m sure because I’ve send them the ito

Same goes for the fittings, I still had some Japanese imported fittings lying around here and I send them with express mail so they could mount them on the sword. First they were only planning to send me the bare blade (since Chinese new year was very very close and they were running out of time) but I preferred to see a mounted sword. Think you have the same feeling about that…

Despite the fact that this sword is a rather big ‘thing’ with it’s 78cm blade and no hi, it still handles very well and has a nice balance.

Anyway, enough for today…we’re back on the track and very soon, the option to make your custom katana will be available again. But this time with a better and more accurate delivery time.

I was so pumped that i had made a video

/p>

Leave me some comments there as well if you can and hook me up there because i have more video’s to come very soon..

For more detailed pics, you can head over here.

For the freaks, these are the specs )

Tsuka	28cm		Sakihaba	23mm
Blade (from tsuba)	78cm		Sakikasane	4,5mm
Point of Balance	15,5cm		Kissaki	40mm
Motohaba	32mm		Weight	1250 gram
Motokasane	7mm		Sori	19mm
Tsuba	Steel		Fittings	Japanese Import

Let me know what you think guys, need some feedback here…good and or bad…

What does it do to you when you help create a blade, and when does your feeling tell you when something is in your eyes a good piece?

This is a very interesting question. Actually, Kawachi Kunihira’s book, The Art of the Japanese Sword, starts with this sentence: “When you look at a japanese sword, what do you feel?”   It is exactly the same thing. The swords are always the same, but each viewer will have a different reaction. Some people find them scary, others cool, others yet powerful, some people think of discipline, the way of the warrior in life, others yet think of killing and cutting people down, others see pure art.

I cannot really pretend that I help create a blade. The work that I do on some swords is purely technical and all the aspects that actually influence the quality of the blade are done by the (my) master. Imagine a chef, and he needs to make a great sauce. He might ask you to cut carrots and another guy to pour water (and these guys will become very good at cutting carrots and pouring water, among other things all necessary to make a sauce), but only the chef will make the sauce. When the apprentices become chefs, they make their own sauce!

As for my feeling… hmm veeeeery tough question! I am so intimate with swords that my feeling is complex and always changing. If I stick to your question, that is, what I feel when I see a really good sword, well I can say it is something etheral, like the sword was not made my a human. Perfection in anything always inspires this feeling, I think. I want to produce this kind of work, but maybe I never will!
The more I advance, the more picky I become. Less than divine perfection is not enough. I enjoy every sword, though, but my observation becomes more rethoric, less emotional. Swords that really move me, I always feel that I want to meet the guy who made it!

What would be a simple coposition to make the hardening clay and what type of commercial steel is better to try to forge our “first sword” (or folded knife or some just for starters)?

The first part of the question : 3 parts clay, 2 parts pulverized polishing stone, one part charcoal.

Hmm.. I don’t know western steels at all! If you can find them, Hitachi Materials’ Yasuki steels are the best (those commonly called “white paper” and “blue paper” and “yellow paper”). If you can find some Yasuki white #2, it’s a very very good cutlery steel. Otherwise, you can shop for Sweden steels, they have been famous for a long time.

But you know what? They are still expensive. Steel is expensive. There are so many old steels lying every where, please recycle and practice! Your best bet is to find old files and work from there. Many people make great knives from files. Go to flea markets and buy old rusty files for cheap!

In any case I suggest you start working with carbon steels. Forget alloys or stainless for now.

What is the real purpose of the habaki and why is it such an important part of the blade. How about the placement of the mune and  ha machi. I see lot of swords where they don’t line up, is that a normal thing ?

That is a very important question. The habaki is indeed critical. Well, a very simple and practical answer is: What happens if you remove the habaki and put the sword in its scabbard? The sword will not hold! The habaki’s purpose is to keep the blade secure in the scabbard, that’s it! That’s why it’s tapered: it wedges against the four carved out corners inside the scabbard.

Otherwise, there are many types of habaki and many approaches to their use. Most traditional swords have their machi in line, but it is true that I have see some swords with the ha-machi a bit higher. I  don’t know exactly why, but I feel it might be to allow to fit a cheaper habaki    It’s easier to fit the habaki if it doesn’t have to wrap around the edge, so maybe only cheaper swords have their machi not in line?!
I will ask around!