Would anyone be interested in a titanium Katana?

FriskyDingo

FriskyDingo

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I have a piece of titanium just large enough to make a katana out of. We're talking a 32 inch blade in terms of length, meant for two hands. I'm thinking of doing traditional fittings on the sword. Does this sound like an appealing concept?
 
FriskyDingo said:
I have a piece of titanium just large enough to make a katana out of. We're talking a 32 inch blade in terms of length, meant for two hands. I'm thinking of doing traditional fittings on the sword. Does this sound like an appealing concept?
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Not really....it is likely to bend severely, if not the body, than the edge.

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
Forgot to mention, tungston coating on the edge. BTW, Ti has 20% spring in it, more than a normal steel katana.
 
FriskyDingo said:
I'm using quarter inch stock. Think you can bend it?
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Maybe....the tortional factors wrt cutting large, heavy and tough targets are substantial.

I would be interested in seeing if your TC edge would cut cleanly like a zero edge steel bladed katana....if not, it is relatively useless for a traditional Japanese style cutter.

Someone might find it interesting.

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
IMHO titanium is not a suitable sword material

hell it doesn't even make a good knife
 
Maybe if you laminate it to a 3/8" steel bar and grind the titanium away. :D

Part of the reason a sword actually works for cutting and blocking is its mass. Think about trying to block someone swinging a baseball bat at your head with a wiffle ball bat. No matter how rigid, springy, or high-tech that wiffle ball bat is, you're still going to get clocked in the brainpan.
 
if used for a training sword (iaito) it could work..
as for a cutting sword i´m pretty sure it will fail.

/Roger
 
dsvirsky said:
It's been done by Warren Thomas. Check out his website for a 25" version.
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That is a carbon fiber/titanium laminate sword, unless you are referring to another design, and even LESS useful, imo, than a solid titanium sword.

I don't bet I could bend that one real easily, but I COULD beat the living crap out of it fairly quickly...if you want to buy it for me.:D

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
Well I'm going to make one for myself just to prove it can be done, regardless lol. I'm more curious than anything, using quarter inch stock I think it's more than adequate, and I'll be tungsten rocklinizing the edge.
 
hello Frisky Dingo titanium is a bad metal for blades, you can't heat treat it and its to flexible, but its very good for folder parts.
i recommend you to use spring steels ( from 1070 to 1085). and if you want to be more traditional you can forge weld it until 15 times and than make the blade out of it.
 
FriskyDingo said:
Well I'm going to make one for myself just to prove it can be done, regardless lol. I'm more curious than anything, using quarter inch stock I think it's more than adequate, and I'll be tungsten rocklinizing the edge.
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Anything can be done.

According to other posts, you are out of a job, so you have time, and obviously, inclination.

You asked if anyone would be interested in it....and the response was fairly negative.

If you want someone to test it, myself or BlueJaunte are formally qualified.

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
Ed Fowler's article in the last Blade extolled the virtues of a carbidized titanium blade. He was amazed by the performance and even went so far as to say that it was the most significant step toward cutting performance he'd seen in decades.

If you are worried about strength and flexibility, I would say that you just engineer it to deal with those issues. Make it thicker than normal, and wider to get the bevels narrow. The blade could probably be 10% or more larger than a comparably weighted steel version.

Not only is titanium lighter than steel, it also has a seriously phat fatigue life. Very difficult to bend titanium, it's very resilient.

It can also be tig welded, which could open opportunities for ultra strong handle attachment.

If you are worried about the surface getting marred and stress risers forming, plate it with titanium nitride.

I think that it is a cool idea, and titanium is getting pretty cheap and accessible now. No longer 'top secret'.

Carbidized titanium blades are going to be THE NEXT BIG THING. Stock up on them Warren Thomases, that man is ahead of his time.
 
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