[geeks] Swords

[Phil Stracchino]

On Mon, Oct 20, 2003 at 11:38:56AM -0500, Bill Bradford wrote:
> On Mon, Oct 20, 2003 at 08:19:05AM -0400, Kevin wrote:
> > Whats your budget?  Decent ones can be had for ~$1k
> > (maybe a bit less) and really nice ones will run you
> > $9K - $20K+.
> 
> >From what I've seen, you can get no-frills models for ~$200.
> They're not collectors editions, but decent "working" instruments.

Any katana you can buy for ~$200 is likely to be ground out of a piece
of 440C stainless and intended primarily for display.  It'll most likely
have no temper and bend easily, and won't hold an edge.

Oh, and ANY sword whose description says "full-length threaded tang" is
almost certainly worthless except as a wallhanger.  This is marketer
speak for "pin tang", meaning the tang is a piece of 1/4" mild steel rod
welded to the root of the blade, threaded on the end, and the guard and
hilt are retained by a fancified nut.

(Most katana I've seen, even the $200 ones, do actually have a real tang
 and a mekugi (hilt pin, traditionally bamboo).  Ironically, because of
 how the hilt of a Japanese sword is constructed, trying to fake it and
 make a katana with a threaded pin tang that still looks right is more
 effort than just doing it right in the first place.)


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