Paul Chen Practical Katana

[satans.barber]

I quite fancy a sword

Unfotunately, I don't want to spend a fortune on one, but I've seen these Paul Chen swords mentioned in a few places.

This 'Paul Chen Practical Katana' here is only £135:

http://www.blades-uk.com/large_pic.php?product_id=106

...is this going to be completely crap for that sort of money, or are they quite a bargain? It's pretty no frills obviously, but it's sharp and pointy so it's good enough for me...

No point buying something that's going to fall to bits with a bit of use though, I'm not into false economy!

Thanks,

Ian.

 

[Charles Mahan]

Depends.

What do you want it for?

Do you intend to cut things with it?

Do you want it on the wall cause it looks cool?

Do you want it primarily for solo practice?

Are you prepared to put in the necessary time to keep it cleaned and oiled? (If you don't, it'll rust solid in suprisingly little time)

If you intend to use it, are you prepared to cut yourself periodically? It's gonna happen. Occasionally it's going to cut you badly. Doesn't matter how careful you are. Trust me.

How much are you likely to use it?

The answers to these questions will make it possible to give you a better answer.

 

[satans.barber]

Originally posted by Charles Mahan
Depends.

What do you want it for?

Just to have a go with, I've never owned one or held one, it'd be nice to see if I could work any of my kenpo techniques with one. Might be cool to try and learn some forms or techniques from books/web etc. and just see if I could do them. I might also like to strap it on, and creep about the house prentending to be a ninja from time to time... :rofl:

Do you intend to cut things with it?

Not regularly, but I wouln't be able to resist buying a water melon and hacking it in half! I guess mostly it would be practicing on air.

Do you want it on the wall cause it looks cool?

Might look cool presented somewhere when not in use, yeah, although I'd put it on a nice wooden stand rather than hang it.

Do you want it primarily for solo practice?

Yep (I don't know anyone else who owns one anyway! hehe).

Are you prepared to put in the necessary time to keep it cleaned and oiled? (If you don't, it'll rust solid in suprisingly little time)

Aren't they stainless steel? I'm used to keeping guns oiled and clean so it wouldn't bother me to do that, I'd quite enjoy it. I would have thought it wouldn't need doing too regularly though if just used on air would it?

If you intend to use it, are you prepared to cut yourself periodically? It's gonna happen. Occasionally it's going to cut you badly. Doesn't matter how careful you are. Trust me.

I've got all kinds of knives (I'm a bit of a blade obsessive, like many people in here I suspect!) and I've taken some pretty bad cuts before, so I wouldn't mind, as long as I don't poke my eye out or lose any sexual organs! hehe

How much are you likely to use it?

A moderate amount. Probably not daily, but they it wouldn't go for weeks without being touched either...

The answers to these questions will make it possible to give you a better answer. [/B]

Thanks,

Ian.

 

[Charles Mahan]

If you don't intend to cut anything thicker than say... fun noodles(you know those styrofoam pool toys) you shoudl probably consider looking into an iaito. They come down to a similar price range as the PK, but are made of a zinc aluminum alloy. They are not meant for cutting at all, but I have heard of people cutting fun noodles with them.

Why an Iaito?

They don't rust. They typically have better fittings in the same price range. Meaning the handle has a good wrap that won't come loose over time. The scabbard has a better laquer job. It looks more authentic. Iaito are usually better balanced, etc. Iaito are meant to be solo kata practice weapons. For that task, they are an excellent value. They aren't sharp so the odds of disabling yourself in a careless moment are very low.

If you just must have a sharp weapon, the PK is the absolute minimum you should consider. It is certainly better than the stainless wallhanger garbage. I'm relatively certain that the PK is NOT stainless steel. Stainless is a lousy metal to use for swords. Entirely too brittle. A sword that literally shatters on hard contact is unsafe for ANY use besides hanging on the wall. You might also think about the PK+ which is a slightly upgraded model, and worth every penny of the upgrades.

For more info on Iaito, checkout http://www.swordstore.com

 

[satans.barber]

Thanks for the info, that's a great help! The Practical+ one is £220, so a bit more than I wanted to spend, but I might save up and get one.

I know what you mean about the decorative ones, I've looked at a few and they're terrible! I would definitely only buy a functional weapon, not some cheap tat!

Ian.

 

[Charles Mahan]

Frankly, aside from not being sharp, the Iaito are far more functional than the PKs. The fittings are better, the balance is better, and the sayas fit a lot better.

 

[Blindside]

I quite fancy a sword

Does it have to be a katana?

If you want a medieval-type sword for cutting see:

http://www.countercut.com/

Just another option,

Lamont

 

[yilisifu]

I have a Paul Chen Practical + katana and I dearly love it. They are extremely well made and razor-sharp. I read reports of tests involving Chen's swords with some of the much more expensive blades available and Chen's blades held up wonderfully. They're less expensive because they're made in China but the craftmanship is extraordinary.
Other blades are made of virtually the same steel and process, but the higher price is due to the extra decorations on the tsuka and the tsuba. and saya.
If you want high quality, go for a Chen sword.

 

[satans.barber]

I notice on the Practical Plus katana that the handles comes off, somehow - what keeps it in place normally? I'd hate to swing the sword and the blade come flying out of the handle!

Ian.

 

[Blindside]

There is a pin (there might be two in the PPK) in the handle that goes through the tang. This is the traditional method of attachment for the katana.

 

[Charles Mahan]

You have to be able to remove the handle in order to replace it with a new one. That's part of long term sword maintenance. It is also necessary in order to give a blade a thorough cleaning occasionally. It's also a good idea to replace the handle on a PK+ if you intend to use the sword heavily, because the one's that come on them are simply inadequate for long term heavy use.


That's how the PK+ came about. The Tameshigiri crowd wanted to use them as cheap newbie weapons that wouldn't be that big a loss if someone bent it irreperably in a bad cut. The problem with the PK for the Tameshigiri folks is that the handle and it's wrap particularly are simply not suited to heavy use. So their solution was to have a good handle with a proper wrap made third party and replace it. Problem was the handle on the PK is glued to the steel(maybe epoxied, not sure). Then the hanwei forge began producing one with a proper removable handle so that the tameshigiri folks could have the replaced. They also improved the wrap job as well. That said, I still wouldn't want to train with one on any regular basis.

 

[satans.barber]

Very informative, thankyou!

I think one of those would suit me well, since it wouldn't be used for my primary art, rather something extra.

There's a couple on eBay for £150 (about $225) which doesn't seem like a bad price, not old ones either (with care kits too):

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3612387916&category=16044&rd=1

"Only three weeks old this sword is as new, never used for cutting. The Wife took one look at it and said 'that thing goes or I do!’ unfortunately I could not find a section on e-bay for my wife :O)" hehehehehe

Ian.

 

[yilisifu]

I train with my my Chen blade quite regularly. And I love it.

 

[islandtime]

Over on the swordforum.com either in general forums or JSA someone has a faq on Chen practical and prac+.
I think the Plus is worth the extra bucks.
If you do get a prac make sure you get the later model with the metal tsuba instead of the plastic.

Also there is a fine article on cutting down the tsuka for a little more control as it is a little on the long side.

I will try to find the link if you like and post it

Gene Gabel:asian: