Does anyone know how to tell if a katana is meant for display?
- Thread starter Jmoney99
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Dracosfire83
Well-Known Member
If its made from stainless steel it most likely a display piece. Check it with a magnet. If it don't stick its defiantly for display.
cavx
Master Member
Not all display swords are made from stainless steel. The set I have are chromed brass, so they have real weight, but will not hold an edge even though they had been ground to one from the factory. And of course a magnet will not stick either. There are cheaper versions that have aluminum blades. The common tell tale sign of a display sword is the handle grip is made from textured plastic with the cloth wrapping. A real sword would have wood with shark or stingray skin under the cloth wraps.
ARKM
Sr Member
If the blade is polished to a mirror finish, it's probably chrome plated and as such, is for display only. Again, I said probably.
On a "real" katana, the hamon (temper line) should be uneven and not a perfectly repeating pattern.
some hamon are straight...
These are only indicators of whether or not the sword is a wall hanger or combat worthy, not 100% proof.
On a "real" katana, the hamon (temper line) should be uneven and not a perfectly repeating pattern.
some hamon are straight...
These are only indicators of whether or not the sword is a wall hanger or combat worthy, not 100% proof.
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I'm relatively new to this forum but I do have bit of experience on this topic. Post some pictures if you can. If you can pull the tsuka (handle) post pictures of the tang. There are some good resources online that will help you ID it if it is truly hand made. Pulling the tsuka isn't hard but you want to make sure you hammer out the mekugi (bamboo pegs) carefully and from the correct side. They are usually tapered to fit the mekugi ana (hole in the tang that secures the blade).
As noted above the Hamon can be a giveaway if it is a perfectly repeating pattern. Looking closely at the Tsuka can be a tell too, but it really only tells you about the tsuka. There is a lot of variation here. There are some modern swords meant for cutting that don't have the Samegawa (ray skin wrap), and some have nylon ito (cloth wrap). I've also seen swords with a very nice modern tsuka where the blade was for display only.
As noted above the Hamon can be a giveaway if it is a perfectly repeating pattern. Looking closely at the Tsuka can be a tell too, but it really only tells you about the tsuka. There is a lot of variation here. There are some modern swords meant for cutting that don't have the Samegawa (ray skin wrap), and some have nylon ito (cloth wrap). I've also seen swords with a very nice modern tsuka where the blade was for display only.
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