Tell me, /k/: 1. What's the best katana money can buy. 2.

Cold Steel. It's nothing personal.

>>31459193
Ignore this fucking idiot: >>31459210 and read everything at this web site:
http://www.sword-buyers-guide.com/

>>31459193
*teleports behind u*

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>>31460289
Bow to your Sensei!

>>31459193
The sword is only half the equation, you also need a very classy and sophisticated fedora.

I don't know about the first question but the best deal in katana is definitely the Hanwei Practical Katana

I myself commissioned a genuine katana in Japan for 2,400,000 Yen (that's about $20,000) and have been practicing with it for almost 2 years now. I can even cut slabs of solid steel with my katana.

Japanese smiths spend years working on a single katana and fold it up to a million times to produce the finest blades known to mankind.

Katanas are thrice as sharp as European swords and thrice as hard for that matter too. Anything a longsword can cut through, a katana can cut through better. I'm pretty sure a katana could easily bisect a knight wearing full plate with a simple vertical slash.

Ever wonder why medieval Europe never bothered conquering Japan? That's right, they were too scared to fight the disciplined Samurai and their katanas of destruction. Even in World War II, American soldiers targeted the men with the katanas first because their killing power was feared and respected.

>>31462314
Goddammit /tg/ we TALKED ABOUT THIS.

>>31459193
>What's the best katana money can buy.
Probably something hamdforged by a master blacksmith or one of Japan's traditional swordsmiths that do everything the traditional way. Be prepared to drop at the very least $10k

>What's the best katana for a reasonable price.
Probably something from budk because katanas are shitty swords. Buy a longsword.

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>>31462329
6 million folds

>>31459193
You are forgetting the inverse autisim paradox associated with katana's.

The nicer the one you own is, the more autistic you are percieved to be.

>>31459193

>What's the best katana money can buy.

A gladius.

I want this sword http://www.albion-swords.com/swords/johnsson/sword-museum-cluny.htm , though I can't afford it right now. Am I falling for a meme sword? You can use it both one handed and two handed. It is effective against both armor and unarmored opponents. Is it a jack of all trades but a master of none?

>>31462314
Japanese pig iron is shit. A dulled and pitted claymore would shatter a brand new katana, every time.

>>31462953
A lot of people tend to forget 2 things:
1: they had to fold and forge-weld their shit because of low quality metal
2: samurai were primarily ARCHERS (cavalry archers to be exact). The sword was more of a badge of rank than a weapon they used regularly.

Kind of like how in this era of 2,000 meter machinegun engagements and on demand JDAM and hellfire strikes officers still get issued pistols.

The reality is that 99.9% of people issued handguns on today's battlefield will never use them. Katana's were like that.

>>31462928
It looks like a decent cutter but definitely more thrust oriented. By the time that sword came into existence armor has evolved to far to be really penetrated. It would definitely work on an unarmed opponent. I wouldn't really consider any weapon a "meme" weapon. Albion is supposedly really good, but I'm a poorfag and can't afford one so I wouldn't really know.

>>31459193
Why do you even want a good katana? they're fucking useless for anything other than looking cool on a wall.

Using a katana just makes you look autistic unless you're some random japanese dude who happens to be extremely good at cutting to the point where he can actually cut a bullet that's coming right at him.

It's called a gun. It shoots fat mini katanas at weeabos like you

>>31462953
>I dont know anything about metal: The post

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i like modernized shit better. a thick ass slab of carbon steel made with modern tools is better than any bullshit some gook with a oven can make.

>>31463446
Oversimplified. Saying it's better cuz muh modern tools doesn't mean anything. You can make a katana with modern tools, and people often do it.

>>31459193
Seriously, spergs and autists aside, it is actullay a very nice sword, like most. The design, and i guess also real traditional manufacturing (muh 6million folds) is pretty interesting.

Shame it became an over rated, cheap repro hunk of shit in the modern day. I blame TV.

>>31463600
To be fair, it's currently underrated, the overrating was ridiculous, caused a backlash that swung the view of the sword in the other direction so hard it's now once again ridiculous, just negatively.

It went from a mythical blade that can cut steel and is used by the truly pure of mind, to a hunk of shaped pig iron that shatters instantly the minute it hits anything remotely more tough than a human.

Both views are buttfucking stupid.

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>>31463446
You say that yet the vast majority of katanas on the market aren't made from modern tools and modern steel.

Just because it doesn't look like some weapon out of metal gear rising doesn't mean it's not made of modern stuff

This looks much more like a traditional katana than yours, but it's still made from modern steel - specifically 1095/1060 and 1045

Or there's their dojo pro series, which is a similar design but made out of just 1060 and through hardened rather than differentially hardened.

>>31463674
The fuck is up with that hamon lol.

>>31463712
Shitty picture or possibly a factory second sent out to be destroyed.

The ronin elite blades are among the better production stuff out there. Not the best, but excellent

>>31463754
Well, I meant, which fake method was used. If the blade isn't deferentially hardened the hamon was added later, it's not exact enough to be laser etched, wonder if it was acid or just grinding.

>>31459193
>Pro-tip: Don't
If you absolutely must have a melee weapon that isn't a bayonet, buy something that doesn't scream "I'm autistic". Buy something like an Estwing Camper's axe. Not only is it one solid piece of forged steel, it has the weight and size of an actual battle axe and with none of the societal implications of being a fag who owns a Katana.

>>31463783
Also you might actually be able to use the Estwing axe for something other than something to hold on to while a dindu shoots you in the face with his Hi-point.

>>31463783
>Must have
Why can't someone buy something because they want one?

Do you call people stupid for owning multiple handguns because they only need whatever thing you think is a must have?

>>31459193
>1. What's the best katana money can buy.
an arming sword
>2. What's the best katana for a reasonable price.
see above

>>31463632
Yeah, that does sound about right to be honest. In my opinion, like guns, swords are only as good as the person who wields them. The katana is just unlucky with the fanbase and views it got dealt.

>>31463774
The elite lines are deferentially hardened and polished via water stones

>>31463824
A handgun has a practical application. Even if you're carrying a .25 ACP, you at least have some realistic situation in which you could potentially use it. A katana doesn't have that. There aren't many situations in which a katana is actually useful, and the situations that you might use one, there are better options. A katana is a total meme as a weapon. If OP wants to get one to hang on his wall or to go Larping with, that's fine. However, as a weapon a katana is a piece of shit.

>>31463865
All swords are inferior weapons now, that's why we moved on, he wants one for any number of fun reasons.

Are you anti fun or what?

>>31463865
He wants a certain thing for his own reasons, and defending himself or his home was never brought up.

Should we only buy things that are the most "practical"? Better throw away any milsurp you have because it's a meme gun and you should buy an AR instead

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>>31462314

That's it. I'm sick of all this "Masterwork Bastard Sword" bullshit that's going on in the d20 system right now. Katanas deserve much better than that. Much, much better than that.

I should know what I'm talking about. I myself commissioned a genuine katana in Japan for 2,400,000 Yen (that's about $20,000) and have been practicing with it for almost 2 years now. I can even cut slabs of solid steel with my katana.

Japanese smiths spend years working on a single katana and fold it up to a million times to produce the finest blades known to mankind.

Katanas are thrice as sharp as European swords and thrice as hard for that matter too. Anything a longsword can cut through, a katana can cut through better. I'm pretty sure a katana could easily bisect a knight wearing full plate with a simple vertical slash.

Ever wonder why medieval Europe never bothered conquering Japan? That's right, they were too scared to fight the disciplined Samurai and their katanas of destruction. Even in World War II, American soldiers targeted the men with the katanas first because their killing power was feared and respected.

So what am I saying? Katanas are simply the best sword that the world has ever seen, and thus, require better stats in the d20 system. Here is the stat block I propose for Katanas:

(One-Handed Exotic Weapon)
1d12 Damage
19-20 x4 Crit
+2 to hit and damage
Counts as Masterwork

(Two-Handed Exotic Weapon)
2d10 Damage
17-20 x4 Crit
+5 to hit and damage
Counts as Masterwork

Now that seems a lot more representative of the cutting power of Katanas in real life, don't you think?

tl;dr = Katanas need to do more damage in d20, see my new stat block.

It is illegal for them to export real katanas from Japan. If you want a real one you can try to pick up a consignment kai gunto but I have a feeling you would just ruin one. You can try looking at Paul Chen (does he still make them?) or find a local smith.

>>31464234
Is that how you make a kopis?

>>31463426
Awwww look it's upset that no one respects its anime blade

>>31459193
Im partial to the Hanwei Lion Dog. Or Bugei Old Pine Sword.

>>31466315
They don't export swords by guys who make the topgrade shit since they are national treasures or whatever.

As long as you follow the rules, there are serious restrictions on importing or exporting swords from Japan.

>>31466176
>attempting to shhitpost by reposting your own comment

2/10

>>31466443
>there are no serious restrictions on importing or exporting swords from Japan.
Fixed, hate it when 4chan eats words.

>>31459193
Walter Sorrells?

>>31466442
I'm partial to women

>>31459193
You better do martial arts, otherwise you're autistic.

I have European swords, but I do HEMA and own guns.

>>31463044
>they had to fold and forge-weld their shit because of low quality metal
As opposed every single civilization who also had to fold and forge-weld their shit?

>>31459193
all fucking weebs must fucking die

>>31466423
>still doesnt know anything about metal so tries to claim the other side is weaboo
lol

>>31467272
Europe folded iron back in the migration period. By the medieval period metalworking was good enough to not require this.
I'm not knocking Jap swordsmithing, since it's pretty cool and innovative that they came up with the same solution as us to low quality and quantity iron.

if money is no object, depends on your style. if peaceful warrior who only helps then Masamun. If more bloody warrior and violent a Muramasa sword is best for the style. Originals will cost you in the thousands tho.

For practical new ones just a colt steel is fine for daily use (its the one I use)

>>31467299
Better leave 4chan then huh?

>>31467330
Tripfag go and never come back.

>>31467330
>weeb-tier "sword personalities"
Fuck off weeb

>>31467351
pi$$ off lumploaf get some knowledge then come back to me those who study the way are inlightened sorry you never study a thing in you're life!

>>31467381
Epic trolle buddy

>>31467549
pi$$ off bub

>>31462314
Masterwork Bastard Sword

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>>31459193
http://www.angelswords.com
He's one of the only true blacksmith left in the world he literally forges his own steel to make for his blade and stand by them to the end of his days. They ate not cheap but damn are they amazing. Pic related. This was one of their throw away side projects

>>31459193
Best is called "Grosse Messer"
Old Japanese term for superior steel sword

Best is called Crissaegrim but good luck finding one, you will spend many hours in the library for that research.

>>31459193

What do you actually plan to use it for? It makes a big difference as to what to look for if you want an art piece (made in the traditional way) or something you want to actually be able to use as a chopper (where a modern, differentially hardened piece in 5160 may serve you better).

dragons head kitana s the one i would get it is pretty much what the highlanders used and some of the best swords made, folded 1000 times like finding a 747 in the stone age.

>>31467315

Bull and Shit.

It is true that Europe had superior iron ore, but that only means working it into something useful was faster. Japan had very little iron ore to begin with, so all of it was precious and refining it was labor intensive. The reason iron was folded and welded was purely to homogenize the material and remove excess carbon and other impurities. Folding steel has little to no effect on steel's microstructure.

The entire shape and design of katanas is reminiscent of the fact that iron was precious; making as effective and strong weapon as possible using as little raw material as possible. The revered status of katana as a superior weapon to other swords is borne of the ritualistic nature of japanese smithwork, symbolism and philosophy. Which admittably makes it an art on a deeper level that makes the idea of a sword more appealing and enticing, but not empirically better.

The status of katanas and the entire japanese sword cultism was born in the late 19th century shortly following the Meiji-restoration to uplift nationalism and patriotism and most of all to lift the image of a warrior to a pedestal to make enlisting into the military more inviting. (a fun anedote: a major reason why many peasants enlisted to the imperial army were bayonets. In the 19th century, bayonets were long and swordlike, and since swords were status icons, commoners saw enlisting as a way to raise their social status)

>>31468761
pi$$ off weebo

>>31468846

So, wait, debunking myths about katanas with actual, historical data is being a weeb?

>>31468946
jap worshipping weeeeeeeeeb go watch another anime

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what do you consider a "reasonable price", OP?

To some people, a $200 sword is "reasonable". for some, $20,000 is reasonable.

The best you can buy is likely Ono Yosimitsu's work, he's been considered very likely to be classed as a "living national treasure". His swords go for between 30,000 and 50,000 dollars.

Japanese swords are expensive - they've done a brilliant job in limiting supply while also making demand grow - and profited greatly from it.

>>31468946
>So, wait, debunking myths about katanas with actual, historical data is being a weeb?


reading, and reading comprehension are too difficult for some people to get.

hence drooling idiots who think that just because you called bullshit and didnt read any more than that, you're some frothing fanboy.

they cant help it. they're fucking mongoloid idiots.

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>>31468972

Um. Okay. Can't but fold under your insurmountable rhetoric.

Got any recommendations? Cartoons with little girls are not exactly my forté.

>>31468761
I can't tell what tf you're referring to about my post.
Do you love Nip swords or prefer Euro?
I didn't say either is better, but I prefer European swords since I practice HEMA, and I acknowledged that in the Migration period in Europe smiths folded iron blades and forge welded on steel edges in some cases.

>>31469070
european smiths were also folding the steel into the 18th century.

piled construction, multiple steels, fell out of use in the 11th C, but folding continued all the way into the industrial era.

>>31469104
Huh, I always thought folding steel drifted out of use as the Medieval period came in, just looked it up and I was wrong.

The more you know

>>31467961
There are shitloads of blacksmiths. There's one down the street from me that makes his own billets just in this pissant city. He won one of the Forged in Fire episodes.

>>31469070

The fact that forge welding was done only up to the migration period. There were other decarburization methods used too(and recarburization, oddly enough), but forge welding was the #1 method to homogenize and decarburize iron until the Bessemer process was invented in the mid-19th century.

HEMA is the shit, man. What do you practice?
I do I.33 and Armizare. Katanas are neat, but I don't know how to use one.

>>31469104
Yes and yes.

>>31469121
Just one type of folding, replaced by another.

later periods, the sword was (usually) a homogeneous steel source, but it could still have inclusions, so drawing out and folding 2-3 times served to minimise the risk of failures. just not the complex folding and twisting and welding together of earlier eras, or the japanese welding and different hardness materials.

>>31469163
I study Fiore too
Just got my blunt longsword from Péter Regenyei last week, already put some nice dents in it.

>>31469214

Hah, I've got a Regenyei feder on the mail currently. Can't wait to get it all nice and beat up.

Did you order a nice custom one or just a run of the mill feder?

>>31469233
It is a blunt standard longsword, and it isn't custom as in I specified the measurements, but he gives you options for the standard ones.
The group I'm with uses blunts rather than feders, as they think feders are gay.

>>31469257

Well, a sword analogue is a sword analogue. I got a feder for cheap, and my group is nonpartial in waster preference.

How long have you fenced?

>>31462314
That was not entertaining.

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>>31469355
March I think?
Maybe Feb, I'm not sure when exactly I started.
It's the group Matt Easton initially started studying Fiore with before he went and did his own thing, so I'm surprised he likes feders so much.

>pic related, the sword before training yesterday

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>>31469414
>and after

>>31459193
Budget option ~ $300 ish:
Decent spring steel models with good reputation e.g. Cheness 9620, Hanwei Raptor etc.

Practical option $1000+:
Higher end Tool steel, e.g. upper end of Hanwei (specialty steel and L6 models), Martialartswords (korean L6) etc.
Customization possible when going towards $2000 (custom length etc.).

From a performance perspective this is the maximum you'd need to spend.

Art option $5000 - $100000:
Find a renowned smith that will make a sword exactly to your liking, this can be made form modern materials or purely traditional ...

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>>31469414

Neat. I really dig the guard. You've been doing Fiore longer than I, I literally started two weeks ago. I.33 a little longer, a year or so.

Pic related is my baby, still on it's way. Should be arriving this week.

Gomenasai, my name is Ken-Sama.

I’m a 27 year old American Otaku (Anime fan for you gaijins). I draw Anime and Manga on my tablet, and spend my days perfecting my art and playing superior Japanese games. (Disgaea, Final Fantasy, Persona series)

I train with my Katana every day, this superior weapon can cut clean through steel because it is folded over a thousand times, and is vastly superior to any other weapon on earth. I earned my sword license two years ago, and I have been getting better every day.

I speak Japanese fluently, both Kanji and the Osaka dialect, and I write fluently as well. I know everything about Japanese history and their bushido code, which I follow 100%

When I get my Japanese visa, I am moving to Tokyo to attend a prestigious High School to learn more about their magnificent culture. I hope I can become an animator for Studio Ghibli or a game designer!

I own several kimonos, which I wear around town. I want to get used to wearing them before I move to Japan, so I can fit in easier. I bow to my elders and seniors and speak Japanese as often as I can, but rarely does anyone manage to respond.

Wish me luck in Japan!

>>31469478
Regenyei's stuff have really good reviews all around. When I come around to buying a sharp I'll probably order from him. The wait times are a bastard though, I ordered mine at the beginning of May and got it last week

>>31469521

I've heard mixed reviews of Regenyei's actual killy swords. Affordable yes, but most people have recommended buying Cervenka or Lutel.

Dreaming of buying an Albion Fiore some fine day...

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>>31469646
Yeah, but I like that his stuff is handmade.
Albions will be perfect as they are made using precision tools, but I think slight blemishes give a weapon character.

>the sword after a couple of minutes using a sharpening stone to blunt the burring/taking a small bit of steel off.

>>31462314
t. Ken-sama