Trade for Tek Gear: Japanese Sword/Katana

[Sonofasailor]

If you are seriously interested and want to hear the background of the sword, PM me and we can talk over the phone. This sword was NOT made in China, NOT mass produced, NOT a "replica." I saw with my own eyes, actual people, hand-making these swords in a little shop in Sakai, Japan.

Thanks Kim for your contribution.

 

[Kim]

A guy comes on here trying to make an honest trade and you turn this into a bashing thread.

I don't think anyone is bashing you, and as I said - modern versions made for practice cost in the area of what you paid...so it's a perfectly good deal. I also said MOST of the modern production models are made in China - but that's not ALL of them.

I thought a little more information might be helpful that's all.

Out of curiosity, if you saw them being made, how many times was the blade folded and hammered? That's what gives original katanas their temper and flexibility. Good ones have more than 50,000 layers, or they've been folded and re-beaten at least 16 times.

 

[ApexLongimanus]

Not just that. You actually need a licence to buy a real katana - the same as a gun. It's possible to get them illegally too, but it's big trouble if you're caught.

An authentic katana will cost at minimum a few thousand dollars. I've seen some worth more than $20,000. They can also be MUCH more!!!

true. i bought an "authentic replica" (=a recently made katana made after a historical one) in japan and they were not able to hand it to me. the only viable option was for the shop to officially export it and ship it abroad.
and yes, it sent me back a few bucks (at a time when the exchange rates were way more favorable than today...)

 

[Jim Lapenta]

The above is why I asked about the alloy. A decent practice blade goes for 400 or more for something like a Chen blade. And those are very plain. The last price I got on a true folded blade sword with handle, tsaba and mizuni figures was 400. That's per inch of blade desired! This was not a decorator blade but fully sharpened and designed to be used in combat or on practice dummys. No way I could afford it so I settled for one of the stainless sharpened replicas. That was over 20 years ago. That blade would have been worth more than my car, bike, and most of my dive gear together now! Oh well, folded steel under the bridge now. So Kim's posts about them running 20 grand or more is not out of line at all. I've heard of collectors paying double that for officer's swords brought home after WWII by GI's.