What are your viewpoints on using Nihonto?

[Misconstrued]

As I'm not as experienced as most of you, how do you feel about using antique nihonto for training or cutting? Personally I'm against using antique blades for cutting and anything of the sort. Modern reproductions that are functional can be inexpensive and can do almost everything an antique blade can, and you wouldn't have to worry about chipping because it's a modern replica, which is replaceable, whereas antique swords are not.

[Bazza]

NYET.  NEIN,  IE, plain old NO!!

BaZZa.

[robinalexander]

What Bazza said.

 

With all due respect Jace, I just cant believe anyone even floats this question.

Rob

[Katsujinken]

[Bruce Pennington]

I own mostly WWI showato, and out of curiosity would love to slice something, even a watermelon, with them, but knowing that cutting edges loose steel every time they are used ..... I just can't do it.  So, with a nihonto, I'd doubly be reticent.

[Mark S.]

With all the things that could potentially go wrong during a cut and the chance to devalue or ruin something that can’t be replaced… what’s the upside?  

[Misconstrued]

I had seen a post on the internet about someone using an antique blade for training, I obviously said for them to use a modern reproduction, I'm glad to know I'm not alone!

[Geraint]

Dear Jace.

 

I coudn't find the emoji of wiping your hand across your face in relief but I think from all the responses you get the picture.

 

All the best.

[Baba Yaga]

A few decades ago in the U.S. Japanese Military Swords were considered for Tameshigiri.  The Art was so small I don't believe their was much damage done and now discourage . More damage is made when the kids find the old sword in the back of grandpas closet. 

[AntiquarianCat]

I still remember when I showed Mr. Benson that pre sengoku Bizen sword. The one with the nightmarishly bad horimono some bubba drilled in. Wasn’t worth a polish because of that but he tried to put a glass half full take on the news on it by saying at least “it’s good for martial arts”.

 

I don’t know if he meant it seriously or not (probably just his way of softening the blow to a rookie) but I couldn’t bring myself to scuff my sword any further. Japan might use swords like that for martial arts but in America we can buy faithful replica and spare antiques so that future generations may still have them.

 

I’m currently looking at Zsey, very well proportioned compared to most replica, even look good. That avoids the problem of many replica that are shaped or balanced wrong. If I ever go back to taking classes and need a shinken I will use a replica that comes close to cloning gendai and spare the nihonto. For me they’re just something to photograph and display.

[Rivkin]

Ask your Dojo sensei. That's whose opinion matters.

Don't do it the first year. Even simply collectors actually have a very fine motorics which you see in every person who handled thousands of blades. I used to have holes in walls and ceilings. Not a single one for the past 10+ years.

Yes, you can use Muromachi saiha, probably lower rank shinto swords like ugly-ish mumei Bungo. As long as its nothing important. If you actually behead people you can justify it that with worse swords the outcome and suffering are unpredictable.

 

[AntiquarianCat]

I wonder if Showa Japan followed some version of that logic. All the gunto I’ve seen either had gendai or mumei shinto/shinshinto blades. Perhaps they intentionally kept their treasure swords at home?

 

Or maybe I just have selection bias since I’ve only seen blades that belonged to junior officers and those being Heimin and low ranking samurai ancestry for the most part wouldn’t have treasure swords.

[Ken-Hawaii]

Buy a shinken from Cold Steel, & cut as often as you want. Mine has stayed straight & sharp, despite the many students who have used it to learn tameshigiri.