Best Forges For Japanese Weapons?

I would honestly be one of the last to suggest this but for a budding sam your eye Japanese happy pants type dude I would suggest reading all the threads here.
https://sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/board/57/japanese-swords

Every other thread, spend an hour reading here

https://www.japaneseswordindex.com/

Don't quit after reading the first page of threads, or links but I'll bet dimes to dollars, your enthusiasm is going to blunt your ability to learn the material. For $200, spend on exactly the sword that might speak the most loudly to you. Ignore any other parameter. That will truly be your first lesson.

The next sword will be much more appreciated.

Or, spend the summer reading. What I see time and again are the novice collectors writing a whole lot more than they are reading. So, go ahead and buy anything and then realize that either you are not to continue with the interest, or realize what a lesson that first sword offered.

Cheers
GC
 
Reptaronice1 said:
Any forges who are good for katanas around 350 - 500 USD?
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I highly recommend you check out Paul Chen Hanwei swords in that price range. They are made in China but are excellently made and very true to the feeling of a “real” Japanese Katana.

Check out Sato Sword Forge too. I have no first hand experience with their stuff but hear very good things.
 
Lapedog said:
I highly recommend you check out Paul Chen Hanwei swords in that price range. They are made in China but are excellently made and very true to the feeling of a “real” Japanese Katana.

Check out Sato Sword Forge too. I have no first hand experience with their stuff but hear very good things.
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So i checked out some hanwei swords, are they all forged? it looks like they are mass produced?
 
Lapedog said:
I highly recommend you check out Paul Chen Hanwei swords in that price range. They are made in China but are excellently made and very true to the feeling of a “real” Japanese Katana.

Check out Sato Sword Forge too. I have no first hand experience with their stuff but hear very good things.
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sato swords looks cool! I want to see if they would do a custom order. I like those sites but it makes me worried that its mass produced and not made to order.
 
Reptaronice1 said:
sato swords looks cool! I want to see if they would do a custom order. I like those sites but it makes me worried that its mass produced and not made to order.
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For 500$ you are not going to be able to get a custom forged Japanese sword.

Hanwei swords are excellent quality and good cutters that are what I would be likely choosing if I wanted a Katana in your price range. Saying they are “mass produced” and therefor no good would be like saying BMW cars are mass produced and thus no good.
 
As I stated in a thread regarding "Hand Made" knives there is much to actually gain from a more production process the only real draw back to a production piece is that due to volume it is easier for QC to miss something and let it through.
 
Lapedog said:
For 500$ you are not going to be able to get a custom forged Japanese sword.

Hanwei swords are excellent quality and good cutters that are what I would be likely choosing if I wanted a Katana in your price range. Saying they are “mass produced” and therefor no good would be like saying BMW cars are mass produced and thus no good.
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I bought this for 130$ https://www.etsy.com/listing/653485175/hand-forged-battle-ready-sword-1060-high but idk if you would call that custom. It is forged and 1060 steel but It is still a base design. Anything with a real hamon i have seen seems to be over 350$ atleast for a real hamon. the one in the link doesnt have a real hamon which I think is why its cheaper.
 
PirateSeulb said:
As I stated in a thread regarding "Hand Made" knives there is much to actually gain from a more production process the only real draw back to a production piece is that due to volume it is easier for QC to miss something and let it through.
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That is a good point
 
PirateSeulb said:
As I stated in a thread regarding "Hand Made" knives there is much to actually gain from a more production process the only real draw back to a production piece is that due to volume it is easier for QC to miss something and let it through.
Click to expand...
So anything on hanwei or satoswords is good? even their cheaper stuff?
 
Reptaronice1 said:
I bought this for 130$ https://www.etsy.com/listing/653485175/hand-forged-battle-ready-sword-1060-high but idk if you would call that custom. It is forged and 1060 steel but It is still a base design. Anything with a real hamon i have seen seems to be over 350$ atleast for a real hamon. the one in the link doesnt have a real hamon which I think is why its cheaper.
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This is not a custom sword. It likely has a welded rat tail tang and uneven (if any) heat treatment. Take it apart to see. Do not trust the words "battle ready" so readily.

Zieg
 
The Zieg said:
This is not a custom sword. It likely has a welded rat tail tang and uneven (if any) heat treatment. Take it apart to see. Do not trust the words "battle ready" so readily.

Zieg
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mine has not gotten here yet but i will check when it does. the forge got rly good reviews actually. so i hope its good
 
The Zieg said:
This is not a custom sword. It likely has a welded rat tail tang and uneven (if any) heat treatment. Take it apart to see. Do not trust the words "battle ready" so readily.

Zieg
Click to expand...
I read on sword buyers guide that they are reputable and offer a full refund policy and i have talked to their customer service and they are very quick to respond. so i guess we will see lol
 
Reptaronice1 said:
I read on sword buyers guide that they are reputable and offer a full refund policy and i have talked to their customer service and they are very quick to respond. so i guess we will see lol
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That forge does do some good work, but it's a case of quality levels. I think you watched the video a member posted from SBG's visit to the forge and you see the different ways they are constructed. So just remember that katanas are swords, not supernatural or sci fi miracles. They don't cut through armor, shields, other swords, rifle barrels, trees, and so forth. They pierce and slice humans. If you treat your sword with this respect, you will do well. And get some real face to face training from an instructor who is willing to answer your questions realistically.

Let us know how the sword looks and behaves when it arrives.

Zieg
 
The Zieg said:
That forge does do some good work, but it's a case of quality levels. I think you watched the video a member posted from SBG's visit to the forge and you see the different ways they are constructed. So just remember that katanas are swords, not supernatural or sci fi miracles. They don't cut through armor, shields, other swords, rifle barrels, trees, and so forth. They pierce and slice humans. If you treat your sword with this respect, you will do well. And get some real face to face training from an instructor who is willing to answer your questions realistically.

Let us know how the sword looks and behaves when it arrives.

Zieg
Click to expand...
Absolutely! I realize 100% it isnt for hitting trees or anything like that. I use it for light cutting of cardboard or jugs. Some people say they are affilited with ryanswords which i hear is a bad deal but idk if that just gossip. I will report back to you
 
horseclover said:
I would honestly be one of the last to suggest this but for a budding sam your eye Japanese happy pants type dude I would suggest reading all the threads here.
https://sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/board/57/japanese-swords

Every other thread, spend an hour reading here

https://www.japaneseswordindex.com/

Don't quit after reading the first page of threads, or links but I'll bet dimes to dollars, your enthusiasm is going to blunt your ability to learn the material. For $200, spend on exactly the sword that might speak the most loudly to you. Ignore any other parameter. That will truly be your first lesson.

The next sword will be much more appreciated.

Or, spend the summer reading. What I see time and again are the novice collectors writing a whole lot more than they are reading. So, go ahead and buy anything and then realize that either you are not to continue with the interest, or realize what a lesson that first sword offered.

Cheers
GC
Click to expand...

Great advice. Almost never followed... But great advice... :)
 
My interest for longer blades started before there was much available. Drawn at first to a lovely sterling silver fitted decorative decorative set, I dove into serious research via the net in 1996. A time when Bugei was but a spark and selling Howaed Clark spots and linking Michael Bell. Don't get me wrong, my Japanese interest went back much further in childhood in the 1950s and young adulthood by 1970. I had already absorbed a lot of history and watched numerous films before Shogun splashed tv. NOVA programming and more during the 1980s and the crew was looking for real swords back then. My first a Chinese jian. By the time I was about to spend a couple of grand with Michael Bell, my awareness of a growing Medieval and Renaissance sword market captured my early money.

At any rate, Stein's pages one of my first bookmarks in the 1990s and as discussion boards supplanted usenet, well, here we are.

There are both older beginners and young beginners. Some are more eager to simply have an object than learn anything about the background and even the swords themselves. Each year as schools let out for the summer, or during holidays, there are often a complete novice unable to slow down and learn/read. The only cure then to push for purchase after purchase.

Hey, I'm an addict too and did buy a single Hanwei Practical in 2003. More recently a straight T10 blade in shirasaya I may one day get mounted. I also have a WWI period Japanese military colonial sword that is more suited to my many dozens of European and American antiques. My reproduction phase of yearning for medieval and renaissance has never really stopped but knowing the three to four figures buys me another antique puts it in perspective for me. Twitching for the next 24hrs over a 250 years old hunting/gentleman sword for $300 shipped if no one else bids. $100 often netting me a pre US civil war militia sword, an apple, to my eye. Wait I already have a double handful of them.

So, my one generation 4 Hanwei Practical katana basic sword that was $130 delivered has been used in many hands at events. Stays sound and sharp and in great shape overall. It was a researched item and although the mid three figure Japanese style swords still tug at me, I also often toy with the listings of neglected antique bare blade and mounted all the way up to $3000 or so and that's peanuts for a nice sword.

In finishing this ramble, I go back to saying buy what most appeals and learn as you go, or research for months first and then buy something you will enjoy for life, rather than regret.

Cheers
GC
 
horseclover said:
My interest for longer blades started before there was much available. Drawn at first to a lovely sterling silver fitted decorative decorative set, I dove into serious research via the net in 1996. A time when Bugei was but a spark and selling Howaed Clark spots and linking Michael Bell. Don't get me wrong, my Japanese interest went back much further in childhood in the 1950s and young adulthood by 1970. I had already absorbed a lot of history and watched numerous films before Shogun splashed tv. NOVA programming and more during the 1980s and the crew was looking for real swords back then. My first a Chinese jian. By the time I was about to spend a couple of grand with Michael Bell, my awareness of a growing Medieval and Renaissance sword market captured my early money.

At any rate, Stein's pages one of my first bookmarks in the 1990s and as discussion boards supplanted usenet, well, here we are.

There are both older beginners and young beginners. Some are more eager to simply have an object than learn anything about the background and even the swords themselves. Each year as schools let out for the summer, or during holidays, there are often a complete novice unable to slow down and learn/read. The only cure then to push for purchase after purchase.

Hey, I'm an addict too and did buy a single Hanwei Practical in 2003. More recently a straight T10 blade in shirasaya I may one day get mounted. I also have a WWI period Japanese military colonial sword that is more suited to my many dozens of European and American antiques. My reproduction phase of yearning for medieval and renaissance has never really stopped but knowing the three to four figures buys me another antique puts it in perspective for me. Twitching for the next 24hrs over a 250 years old hunting/gentleman sword for $300 shipped if no one else bids. $100 often netting me a pre US civil war militia sword, an apple, to my eye. Wait I already have a double handful of them.

So, my one generation 4 Hanwei Practical katana basic sword that was $130 delivered has been used in many hands at events. Stays sound and sharp and in great shape overall. It was a researched item and although the mid three figure Japanese style swords still tug at me, I also often toy with the listings of neglected antique bare blade and mounted all the way up to $3000 or so and that's peanuts for a nice sword.

In finishing this ramble, I go back to saying buy what most appeals and learn as you go, or research for months first and then buy something you will enjoy for life, rather than regret.

Cheers
GC
Click to expand...


There are some real deals to be had on fantastic antique swords. Half a decade before making swords, I was drooling over a several hundred year old Chinese dao. Large and in good shape, unique, and with small Chinese zodiac figures carved into the blade. It was sold for $400, lol. Talk about a realm of swords where you really need to know your stuff to not get a fake! Maybe it was a fake...I'll never know because it never became mine.
 
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