Greetings!
As promised, here is a post dedicated to my first ever Katana which I just recently received.
Firstly I want to say that I am not an expert on Katana's, but have done a little research so hopefully I'll know what I'm talking about.
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Okay! So I bought the sword from a Chinese swordsmith and although the Japanese blades are better quality, they're also three times more expensive and as it is my first Katana, I wasn't going to go overboard.
The shipping was really fast, took about 2-3 weeks as I was expecting at LEAST a month I thought this was great.
It arrived in a foam box wrapped in yellow tape. I cut it open and it was sitting nice and snug inside this beautiful silk bag.
Upon my first inspection nothing was wrong, the blade was in plastic and well oiled, it was lovely.
Then I noticed a couple of small details which got on my nerves a little. The sageo (sheath wrapping), which is meant to be white spotted burgundy, ended up being more of a light pink spotted burgundy because the colour seeped a little into the white, minor, but annoying.
The ends of the sageo have also frayed quite a bit, but since it's silk I'd rather keep it than replace the sageo with a lesser quality cotton.
A few days later in the post came the maintenance kit! Which I was really excited for so that I could disassemble the Katana and look at the signature on the tang on the blade. Alas! The mekugi pegs seem to be stuck in the tsuka (handle), really tight!
I asked the seller why this could be, to which he said, "Because the sword is brand new, it will need some movement to be able to loosen the pegs more."
Mostly I really like the hamon (temper line) on the blade, it isn't like other ones where they're just waves or spikes, its unique, unfortunately it's hard to capture on camera.
I also opted for the bo-hi (fuller line) because I think it makes the blade look lovely. (excuse the dust on the blade, it's oiled and the bits come off when it's in the saya).
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I also would really like to name this Katana. But I have no idea what to call it. I was thinking of something to do with the bird theme it has but can't think of anything sufficient.
So in conclusion I want to say that when I hold the sword I feel something, I understand why some Japanese believe that swords have souls, it feels like you're holding a living object.
Now this great blade is sitting in it's delegated spot in my room, along with it's silk bag, maintenance kit and my new green belt. I hope to one day use it in some form of Iaido, whether it be in a class or at home.
Thank you for reading.
As promised, here is a post dedicated to my first ever Katana which I just recently received.
Firstly I want to say that I am not an expert on Katana's, but have done a little research so hopefully I'll know what I'm talking about.
-
Okay! So I bought the sword from a Chinese swordsmith and although the Japanese blades are better quality, they're also three times more expensive and as it is my first Katana, I wasn't going to go overboard.
The shipping was really fast, took about 2-3 weeks as I was expecting at LEAST a month I thought this was great.
It arrived in a foam box wrapped in yellow tape. I cut it open and it was sitting nice and snug inside this beautiful silk bag.
Then I noticed a couple of small details which got on my nerves a little. The sageo (sheath wrapping), which is meant to be white spotted burgundy, ended up being more of a light pink spotted burgundy because the colour seeped a little into the white, minor, but annoying.
The ends of the sageo have also frayed quite a bit, but since it's silk I'd rather keep it than replace the sageo with a lesser quality cotton.
A few days later in the post came the maintenance kit! Which I was really excited for so that I could disassemble the Katana and look at the signature on the tang on the blade. Alas! The mekugi pegs seem to be stuck in the tsuka (handle), really tight!
I asked the seller why this could be, to which he said, "Because the sword is brand new, it will need some movement to be able to loosen the pegs more."
Other than that I am extremely pleased with this beautiful item. I love the theme of the bird/eagle/hawk throughout the fittings. I love the deep burgundy colour of the saya (sheath) and tsuka ito (handle wrap).
Mostly I really like the hamon (temper line) on the blade, it isn't like other ones where they're just waves or spikes, its unique, unfortunately it's hard to capture on camera.
I also opted for the bo-hi (fuller line) because I think it makes the blade look lovely. (excuse the dust on the blade, it's oiled and the bits come off when it's in the saya).
-
I also would really like to name this Katana. But I have no idea what to call it. I was thinking of something to do with the bird theme it has but can't think of anything sufficient.
So in conclusion I want to say that when I hold the sword I feel something, I understand why some Japanese believe that swords have souls, it feels like you're holding a living object.
Now this great blade is sitting in it's delegated spot in my room, along with it's silk bag, maintenance kit and my new green belt. I hope to one day use it in some form of Iaido, whether it be in a class or at home.
Thank you for reading.
Kirstine Powhiro
6th Grade (Green Belt)
Rhee Tae Kwon Do
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