How not to upset a mate

[Dale Russell]

G'Day all , yep , i don't know how i'm gonna do this , good mate of mine just rang me , telling me he just brought a Katana, thinking he'd just won lotto he said he'd sent me an e-mail with details wanting me to look & tell him " ow lucky he was ta get it so " cheap " ( his words , not mine )
What i'm needin' is some HELP , you blokes who pound out swords will know rubbish from " real " .. this " ain't real , you know it , i know it , but ow am i ta tell me mate it's " rubbish " ?

HANDMADE DAMASCUS STEEL JAPAN KATANA/SWORD SHARPBLADE - eBay Japanese, Swords, Knives, Swords, Collectables. (end time 01-Oct-08 23:17:08 AEST)


Dale Russell

P.S & yes he's asked me to make him a sword & no i'm not gonna ( not stuff i do )

[Ratel10mm]

Get him to join www.britishblades & put it up asking for opinions, as you're not an expert.

It's clearly not a Katana imo, since I've never seen one with visible forge welds like that.
However, he may have got lucky with what it actually is?
And if it is decent steel & HT'd, I'd say he has got a bargain since I doubt any of us could produce that for the price he's paid.

[JAFO]

Just tell him your so excited that you want him to try it out. Ask him to put an edge on it and take a few wacks at a small log or cut some hanging rope or do something similar. He'll get the message all by himself.

[JPH]

Hello:

Actually if this is HT'd right, they aren't all that bad. I have handled a lot of the Chitana ("Chinese Katana) and what you get for the $$$ is very decent. I even own one myself out of curiosity more than anything....and the HT is descent, so are the mounts. Actually the mounts are beautfully done.


As for seeing the "pattern" in the steel..on the Japanese style stuff I make I WANT to see the Hada....if the blade is in a traditional "full polish" you will only see very subtle patterning but the Hamon will "pop" out at you more than in a more visible patterning....

If he is happy with it...that's great...like I said for the ones I have seen and the amount that they sell for...the tsuka parts alone are worth more than that....and you get a fully made sword...I know I can't even come close to meeting that price..I have more than that in the samegawa and menuki...

JPH

[ThomasPowers]

Don't forget to factor in the shipping cost, as I see it this swords real price is $110, $50 for the sword, $57 for shipping and $3 for insurance.

As it was not sold as being an antique he bought it eyes open.

Over at swordforum.com on the nihonto page there is a link to how to identify chitanas that are misrepresented as nihonto.

[Bentiron1946]

Let it be. Let him be as happy as he wants to be. Now it is up to him to burst his own bubble in time. It isn't your job to do it for him. If it is truly a bad blade he will find out and if not then for a hundred or so dollars he did OK and leave it at that.

[Finnr]

Main thing is that your mate is happy with his new toy.
Finnr

[Dale Russell]

Thanks all , he rang me today ( collected it from post office ) he's got another coming in next week as well .

Not being a sword " geak " i couldn't coment on it ( & sorry ta all you sword lovers out there for calling you a " geak " )


Dale Russell

[Bentiron1946]

Well I guess you get to listen to him tell you of the glory of his blade for a whole longer. We are all a bit geeky about something or other so don't worry about it.

[Phantom23]

Dale,

I wonder steels were used in the "handmade damascus steel"?

I make a few knives and I would struggle to get the materials together for the $110. (steel, ray skin etc).

Like the bunnies...........

Stewart