I see these ads for katanas that say hand forged and folded katanas is that the real deal cause i want one?

Question

I see these ads for katanas that say hand forged and folded katanas is that the real deal cause i want one?

Answer 1

hand forged is generally how swords SHOULD be made. there is however a clear cut difference between hand forged and hand folded.

the "folding" process is to remove the impurities from the steel, japan had to fold its steel so many times because they had inferior steel quality to begin with and it took more to remove them.  the quality of the smith greatly affected this process.

today, with trading bieng more universal and machine rolled steel as an option to remove impurities in steel to a far more effective level than human elbow grease, you actually can have a better overall measure of steel today than back then.  thats of course IF someone puts the time into it. at best a human smith can hand fold steel (with tools not his hands) to the level of a good machine, but it may or may not be as consistant.

hand forged however IMO is pretty irreplaceable, as that is where a level of judgement comes in to play. judgement and design.  once you get into "machine" work, since we haven't invented humanoid robots to replace smiths yet, the only other option would be case hardened type of swords where the metal is essentially put into a "mold" and thats how the form is made, not by actually forging and quenching properly, just assembly line c**p.

for the whole ball of wax to be hand made, you are looking at a much higher cost, you can get a "real" katana that functions as a real sword and is essentially a real sword created with modern technology and human smith know how for cheaper than an all "traditionally" made sword.  people looking for the traditioally made sword are essentially paying more for the priveledge of saying it was traditionally made- that doesn't necessarily make it better, it might be, it might not. better to just look for a reputable swordsmith selling swords in your price range.  I would suggest you shoot for the $1000 ish range too as anything much less will carry more risk. (slightly more or less give or take $100 or $200 is a safe bet) if you dont' know what you are looking for it is better to slightly overpay than to risk wasting the entire amount on a piece of c**p.

helpfull links and interesting reading for you:

steels used in japanese swords:

http://swordforum.com/sfu/japanese/moder...

heat treatment:

http://swordforum.com/sfu/primer/heattre...

sword misconceptions:

http://swordforum.com/sfu/primer/thebest...

famous movie swords:

http://swordforum.com/sfu/primer/moviesw...

everyone's favorite video of what happens when you use a wallhanger (stainless steel).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1s0dRcdyi...

Answer 2

I would agree with Bluto on most of what he said.

The steel used in the traditional swordmaking process is called tomahagane. It's generally made from the melting of sand. As the material melts the metal sinks to the bottom. Roughly over 4 days of watching and tending to the fire the stove is broken down and the lump of steel is taken out.  Then peices of it are shipped to the swordsmith. The swordsmith then with his apprentice/s begins the forging process. The steel is folded to get rid of impurities. Judging by the condition of the hot metal the smith adds coal and bark to add carbon to the steel. That makes it more rigid and allows for a much sharper blade. There is much more to the process, but that's for you to research if you'd like to know.

Once the blade is done in the forge it is then shipped off to a polisher. This person sharpend and polishes the blade. While that is happening another person/group makes the scabbard, handle, hand-guard, and other ornaments. This process takes anywhere from 1 month to a year to complete.

That is why these pieces of art cost so much, to being priceless.

Otherwise there are machine made swords, where people work the metal with machine assistance. These swords are just ask good as far as workability, just not in the effort used to make them, as machines make things much easier.

I am moving and am unable to take my swords with me when I do. So I have to sell them, if you'd like I can send you some pictures of them.  They will be sold as a pair for $1000 neg. They are both of great quality and fully capable of cutting (tameshigiri).

Answer 3

If they are hand forged and folded, then yes, those will probably be the real deal.  You must also take into account the person doing the forging.  While I understand enough about the process that I could probably make one, it would not be of high quality like you would see from someone forging swords for 20+ years.

Answer 4

I would check to see if they offer a guarantee policy - 30 Days money back, etc.  

Some cutlery and weaponry that is called hand-forged isn't really hand forged - it may be machine hammered and machine ground, but can still be called "hand forged" because a person is moving them from machine to machine.  It depends on the company and country that the goods are coming from.  

India and China make some horrible swords that are called hand forged, so see where it is manufactured before you buy.  You need to know the quality of the hilt and sheath before you buy too.  If it is not fitted properly it will be useless and feel unstable in your hand.

Buyer beware.  There are a lot of ripoffs out there.

Good luck.