Samurai Swords
Posted: Sat May 12, 2007 19:22 -0700
Does anybody else OWN a daisho? I do. I wonder if Stan does.
Usagi Yojimbo DojoBoard
The Official Usagi Yojimbo Discussion Forum
https://www.usagiyojimbo.com/forum3/
Samurai Swords
https://www.usagiyojimbo.com/forum3/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=3005
Page 1 of 2
Posted: Sun May 13, 2007 8:33 -0700
Nope.
Posted: Sun May 13, 2007 8:59 -0700
Well, I'm not expecting many people to, because they seem kind of useless. I keep mine on the stand in my room for decoration.
Posted: Sun May 13, 2007 14:55 -0700
I have a katana, that I keep in the garage somewhere. It's an old blade that's been handled quite a bit so there are fingerprints on it, the lacing is undone, the sharkskin on the handle is ripped, and the handle is loose. I got it as a gift from an older friend before he passed away about 15 years ago.
I don't have a daisho, though.
I don't have a daisho, though.
Posted: Sun May 13, 2007 17:14 -0700
I have two iato, one a heavier blade, one a lighter blade for my iajutsu training. I usually take the lighter one to class, but will also train at home with the heavier one. They're both katana, and they don't match, so they're not daisho.
They have the same type of fittings a 'live blade' would have, in other words, not the nylon and fake sharkskin stuff seen on most replica and display blades sold in the USA. As mentioned, the blades are not 'live' edges, and are meant for repeated drawing practice. They're much better built than a display blade, but certainly would never hold up like a well-made live blade if you had to use them for real.
They have the same type of fittings a 'live blade' would have, in other words, not the nylon and fake sharkskin stuff seen on most replica and display blades sold in the USA. As mentioned, the blades are not 'live' edges, and are meant for repeated drawing practice. They're much better built than a display blade, but certainly would never hold up like a well-made live blade if you had to use them for real.
Posted: Sun May 13, 2007 19:05 -0700
I've got a daisho that I've had since I started reading UY and other japanese samurai-ninja-inspired comics. I started collecting all sorts of weaponry...shinobikatanas, tantos, tachi, jutte, nuchaku, sai, bo staffs, bokken, shuriken, and a nodachi, among other cool stuff. 
Posted: Sun May 13, 2007 19:43 -0700
My daisho was bought by my father in Japan in 1996, and I'm pretty sure it has real sharkskin on it. What is a shinobikatana? I'm assuming it's a kind of katana ninja used.
Posted: Sun May 13, 2007 19:49 -0700
Yes, a shinobikatana is a katana that ninjas used. It's blade is straight,not curved like a samurai's blade. Although the length of a shinobikatana varied, it was also typically shorter, enabling usage in tight locations. In the last issue, Usagi used one to kill Shizukiri.
Posted: Sun May 13, 2007 19:58 -0700
Isn't a shinobikatana more commonly referred to as a ninja-to?
MikeM
MikeM
Posted: Sun May 13, 2007 20:22 -0700
Yep, ninjatÅ or ninjaken. Wikipedia has an interesting mini-article on them. I was surprised by this paragraph:
Wikipedia wrote:Modern ninjato are often straight with a square tsuba (hand guard), but this is not historically accurate. According to the same book by Masaaki Hatsumi, the ninja ken was straight, but only in contrast to the average sword of the period which were much more curved. The ninja ken still had a slight curve to the sword. Hatsumi says that they were often straight bars of low-quality steel with an edge ground on to them. According to other sources, some of the sword being forged during the Tokugawa era also had blades with less curvature than others. This was also the period during which the mythology of the ninja grew as they were employed by the Shogun as secret police.
Posted: Sun May 13, 2007 20:45 -0700
Did all ninjato have a a wooden sheath that hid it, like the kind Chizu uses sometimes?
Posted: Mon May 14, 2007 8:37 -0700
My guess would be no...only if the ninja were working undercover (in a disguise) to conceal the weapon. Otherwise, they would have a tsuba. I think it largely depends on what type of job the ninja would be doing.
Posted: Mon May 14, 2007 12:56 -0700
It says that replicas that have a square tsuba are not accurate. Does that mean they were most commonly circle shaped?
Posted: Mon May 28, 2007 12:04 -0700
I own a daisho. The katana was around 600$ and the wakizashi around 300$. theere goes my college fund. just joking. i had to work for a for a few months to pay them off.
Posted: Sun Jul 29, 2007 22:10 -0700
I wouldnt mind daisho to display. i almsot took Iaido years and year ago but I never did. I wish I could learn Saijutsu though! 
haha I do got two pair of cheapo zai!
haha I do got two pair of cheapo zai!