A bit excessive...

[Squidders]

I was around a friend’s house the other day and saw a neighbour hacking away at a bush and some other general garden shrubs with something that took me by surprise…

A samurai sword… I HAD to go over and have a look and looking at the blade, it was a 1914 officer’s sword. He’d been using it and lending it to friends for their gardening for a little over 20 years and although the handle was completely ruined, the blade was perfect and still held a perfect edge. He said that he did clean it once in a while but has never sharpened it.

It had the glorious looking temper line running down it and it made me think. Why isn’t anyone making a bushcraft knife using steel folded into clay and dirt and tempering in this way? Yes the knife may cost a hell of a lot but it would keep a fantastic edge.

Then I got to thinking about other types of steel and ceramics… If the recipe has been right for all this time, why move on to these newer materials and techniques?

Joe
__________________
Confused as usual... fear the day I have knowledge

 

[Simon]

:wave:

did this sword have Hada (evidence of folded layers) or just a temper line? The officers swords were often not folded steel from that time, if they were folded then they were often much older swords that were handed down through families with newer furniture

 

[Squidders]

Ok, It looked like it was and i'm no expert or there now to check so I did a little looking online and found:

http://www.ncjsc.org/hada-1.html

And from what I remember, the look of the blade is very similar to the example of Masame at the top... although a little more "weathered".

p.s. that knife looks stunning... can you tell me more about it?

 

[Simon]

The Masame is the most copied for reproduction fakes so I would be wary although if you say that he has had it for over 20 years then that narrows it down as the repro market has exploded in recent years with the internet.

Do you know anything about the history prior to his ownership? It would be great if you could get some pics up and we could get a better idea.

You can find more about that knife by going to the british blades website and looking for "The MushyBushy"

as an answer to this

Why isn’t anyone making a bushcraft knife using steel folded into clay and dirt and tempering in this way?

The likes of the common bushcraft knives are stock removed with simple grinds, as such they can be relatively mass produced ..... customs are much harder to come by and are often forged to shape with more complex edges and finishes ... I think when people choose a knife for bushcraft, they are looking for something they can abuse and easily maintain so good solid basic simplicity is the requirement.

 

[Squidders]

Simon,

I did ask him and he said he got it from a boot sale.

I'll try and get some pics next time I visit my friend.

Joe

 

[Simon]

pictures of the kisaki (point), hada ... and if you can get the tsuka (handle) off .. CAREFULLY!!! :yikes: .. see if there is a signature on the tang

then we can take the pictures over to the nihonto forum on sword forums and get some opinions

 

[OldJimbo]

"Then I got to thinking about other types of steel and ceramics… If the recipe has been right for all this time, why move on to these newer materials and techniques?"

For those people who want to use a blade that is differentially tempered with a hamon line, then it doesn't have to be a huge expense. The cheapest plain steel blades from Valiant can be etched to show the differential hardening that was done with clay. The more expensive "pamor" blades are laminated steel.
http://www.valiantco.com/
Well made kuks are much the same except that they are zone hardened with plain water instead of a clay process. Mine have held up extemely well too.

Yep, these tools work. I'm years behind with writing about them, but anyone interested can start here. there should be enough reading for a while:
http://www.oldjimbo.com/survival/valiant1.html