Handmade Sword Samurai Katana Sword, Battle Ready, Hand Forged, 1045 Carbon Steel, Heat Tempered, Full Tang, Sharp, Wooden Scabbard

This is the very first sword that I’ve ordered from Handmade Sword… but it will not be the last. This is a gorgeous katana. A real work of art. When I first saw this sword on the site, it kind of called out to me. In Bushido (the way of the warrior), the sword is an extension of the samurai, it is often referred to as his soul, because the way a samurai treats his blade and the way he wields it in battle is so reflective of his philosophy toward life. This katana just lured me in with its style and design. I named it Mahōtsukai which is Japanese for Spellcaster. It seemed apropos since this katana did cast a spell on me.

The blade wasn’t at all sharp when it arrived, and did not pass the paper test, and I ran it along the palm of my hand to no effect, but I’m okay it being unsharpened, as I don’t intend to use it for cutting. (My plan for it is to display it, first and foremost, but to also use it for iaito and practicing my katas.) I may sharpen it at a later date. The damascus on the blade was also very subtle, almost faint, and that was a little too bad. These are the only two reasons that this sword did not receive a five from me.

The ito was wrapped tightly, the tsuba was fit perfectly and was not at all loose, and the tsuka just feels good in one’s hand. A true sword should fit into your hand, you should not have to adapt to it, and it should feel balanced and like a natural extension of your body, and this did so, perfectly.

As for the aesthetics of the sword, the saya is just lovely with what are either plum blossoms or cherry blossoms. The colour scheme of brown and gold is very elegant and classical, which makes the sword ideal for display.

I love this sword already and intend to buy others from Handmade Sword as I am able.

Sword shipped on time and in a carefully packed container. I am happy with the sword, for the price i feel it is a good value for what you get. My expectations may have been higher than they should have been. The fit and finish of all non-blade materials is great. The blade is exactly how it is described, however the hamon is quite subdued and will take quite a bit of polishing to get it to stand out more. The hamon being the reason i paid a little more for a ‘clay tempered’ blade. The overall polish on the blade is only ok…when you look close you can see that a little more time could have been spent. A classic katana’s polish should be so that there are no visible scratches ( from the file and grind process). This has them, a little extra polishing of my own should take care of it. If you are looking for a descent – good katana….this is it. I would buy again.

Solid Katana! I’ve dealt with a few Katanas and this one was a surprise. Cheap ones feel light, have cheap paint, nothing fits right, and have a lot of blade wiggle and they just feel like a toy. This even before I took it out of the box felt heavy. After opening it and holding it I was just blown away. Feels Nice, the blade was very sharp and the quality of all the metal finishings are perfect. obviously, this isn’t an expensive katana but the detail of what I got from the picture was better than I expected. Highly suggest this for a gift or personal collections. Even if you just want something to swing around.

Damascus is almost invisible which is very sad, but this sword is built like a rock. I have trained with it for almost a year now and not a single part is loose in the slightest bit. I even accidentally dropped it on some concrete and it feel tip down and bounced a few times. I thought for sure that it was broken in some way. Nope. I picked it back up and not a single loose piece and the very tip of the blade was barely dented. Such a small dent on the tip that anyone I show the sword to never even notices it. That is amazing in itself being dropped in the worst possible way and landing tip down, on concrete, and then bouncing, and almost zero visible damage or loose pieces. The wrap on the tsuka (handle we call it here in ‘murica) is one of the best I have ever seen, and I have collected over 20 swords much more expensive then this one. The wrapping is just PERFECT. It is actually my most favorite thing about the sword considering the Damascus is nearly impossible to see. Overall, it is a great sword for practice as it will hold up to some beating, and very it is very pretty. The Yokote?(I might be spelling that wrong) feels fake and it likely is. It is not as sharp as they make it sound. Also, I must say the Saya (sheath, scabbard) is ONLY for show. It is absolutely terrible. Definitely one of those generic “fits all” saya. If I could choose one improvement it would be to make the Damascus stand out more. I honestly can’t even tell if it is fully folded steel. I can only really see the “waves” of the Damascus on the Hamon and near the tip of the blade. However, if you let someone else see it they will likely not even notice it is folded steel, and if you tell them they will be extremely skeptical. So if it is purely for show it would be an okay sword, as long as you don’t mind the nearly invisible Damascus. For practicing I would highly recommend it. Fairly balanced as well.

Definitely exceeded my expectations. Very nice solid package. Fittings are simple but very nice quality. A fantastic value. I have purchased 2 for the dojo. Planning to order a couple more including the stainless iaito.

This is my first Katana, and i must say its well made and has really good balance and weighs just over 2lbs. The quality of craftsmanship is excellent and i’d recommend this as a starter Katana for anyone who’s interested in collecting or training with it. Out of the package the sharpness of the blade isn’t great, but it will definitely cut fruit and the packaging it comes in without too much effort. Trying to cut other objects such as aluminum cans or 2 liter plastic bottles was a no go straight out of the box, so If you do purchase this blade i’d look into buying a whetstone as well to sharpen it if you want this blade to really shine.