Why katanas are the coolest sword in the world

[Mystery Penguin]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNiX_l-HEGM[/ame]

and not JUST because its made in Japan

 

[maiella]

That was truely amazing!

 

[Frank Booth]

Even more amazing, a true katana will cut through at least 5 human bodies. Here is a good documentary on making a Japanese sword.

http://video.pbs.org/video/1150578495/

 

[Carmine]

/Froths at mouth at the glorification of stupid katanas...

Besides that isn't even that impressive, the mythbusters did this on an axehead with a musket

Im sure a claymore, gladius, short sword, cinqueda etc. could do the exact same thing. Its not because of the sharpness its the speed of the bullet. Bullets at such a high velocity break up when they hit water, let alone metal.

And yeah Frank Booth, it can cut through five human bodies, if you tie them down and remove all their clothes... It is a sword made for killing unarmored untrained peasants. It wasn't even used much. Go figure.

 

[Spitfire'd]

You take that sword, I'll take a shotgun. Let's see what happens...

(knowing me I'd still get beat somehow)

 

[3vlNomad]

And yeah Frank Booth, it can cut through five human bodies, if you tie them down and remove all their clothes... It is a sword made for killing unarmored untrained peasants. It wasn't even used much. Go figure.

It wasn't even used much? Try nearly 400 years until the Meiji Restoration when Japan started Westernizing their military forces, but most notably after their victory of the Boshin War and defeat of Saigo Takamori, after which the way of the Samurai was no longer needed.

The Katana was made for war, designed specifically to penetrate the armor the Japanese had at the time and inflict death in a single movement.

 

[Carmine]

It wasn't even used much? Try nearly 400 years until the Meiji Restoration when Japan started Westernizing their military forces, but most notably after their victory of the Boshin War and defeat of Saigo Takamori, after which the way of the Samurai was no longer needed.

The Katana was made for war, designed specifically to penetrate the armor the Japanese had at the time and inflict death in a single movement.

Very few samurai were trained in use of the katana, most used spears or bows. Sure it was used, but not in large numbers. The only reason it was used for 400 years is because feudal Japan had a unreasonable fear of change. By the way of the Samurai no longer being needed you mean becoming incredibly obsolete right?

Yeah I agree, it was made for war. Against militia forces wearing leather/wood armor. The death in one movement thing? That is because prolonging the battle would mean banging swords together, which would damage their valuable katanas with their brittle (comparatively to a superior sword) edges.

My point? It isn't that impressive, it can cut through skin oooooh, so can a sharpened rock.

 

[Frank Booth]

Carmine stop being wrong. The sword has seen plenty of battle. Also you have no idea what a samurai is, so don't talk about that. Some of the roman swords would not really pass the bullet test since they were not meant for slicing but for stabbing.

The test of a sword after it was finished was to see through how many bodies it would cut in one movement. Five bodies was the highest rating, and the best swords would do that. You actually think that a piece of cotton is going to stop that kind of force per area? And the edges are brittle? Get real dude, no other sword can stand up to the Japanese sword.

 

[Facey]

1. Fighting in the threads = unnecessary.

No need to bash on people who love this weapon. I don't believe he was looking for a fight in posting this thread.

In other news:
Neat thread. This weapon is still rather glorious in nature, perfect for what it is, especially if you have ever seen one made live XD that was awesome. The balance and shear force is still unmatched by most handmade weaponry of its time.

Good vids/Good info.

 

[Legit^]

That was impressive.

 

[Cut Chem!st]

Sharp edge + fast moving bullet, that's obviously what it is going to do.

 

[XXzz-Trauma-zzXX]

Why is it Japanese people can come up with all the cool stuff?

 

[Full Grizzly]

Nice, did they test it with other weapons too ? or just with this pistol? Because that pistol isn't strong or anything.. still impressive though, don't get me wrong. But if it could like deflect a bullet from a dessert eagle then I'd be even more impressed.

Thanks for sharing!

 

[Full Grizzly]

Why is it Japanese people can come up with all the cool stuff?

Good question

I think it's their tradition. The western culture isn't that old compared to the Japanese culture, this might have something to do with it, I'm not sure so don't get mad at me if I'm wrong

 

[Mystery Penguin]

Good question

I think it's their tradition. The western culture isn't that old compared to the Japanese culture, this might have something to do with it, I'm not sure so don't get mad at me if I'm wrong

its called imagination

 

[Full Grizzly]

Ahwell...

 

[Carmine]

Carmine stop being wrong. The sword has seen plenty of battle. Also you have no idea what a samurai is, so don't talk about that. Some of the roman swords would not really pass the bullet test since they were not meant for slicing but for stabbing.

The test of a sword after it was finished was to see through how many bodies it would cut in one movement. Five bodies was the highest rating, and the best swords would do that. You actually think that a piece of cotton is going to stop that kind of force per area? And the edges are brittle? Get real dude, no other sword can stand up to the Japanese sword.

I think I have quite a good idea about what a samurai is. I am quoting the ARMA (Association for Renaissance Martial Arts) director here "the average samurai was not an expert swordsman, perhaps only 5% or so were its been suggested."

Yes the gladius was meant for stabbing, not slicing, but do you know what you are talking about? Have you seen one? It still has sharp edges. The katana here isn't cutting the bullet, it is acting as a wedge that separates the bullet when the bullet hits, nothing more. Also considering the bullet is probably soft lead or copper it isn't very impressive that a steel wedge would separate it.


Of course it would cut through cotton, it would cut through wood, sure as hell wont cut through chain mail. My point was that it was being tested against tied up prisoners, not that cloth would stop it.

Here is where you lose every bit of credibility saying that no other sword can stand up to a katana. The quality of iron in japan is total crap, filled to the brim with carbon. Before you even mention folding, they only had to do that because of how bad their metal was. If you actually knew something about the katana instead of just going off its mythical properties from your anime or something you would know it was strong on the blunt side, but because of the folding process which was used to take out the carbon, the cutting edge was very hard but also brittle in comparison to a regular old sword. In addition if a katana is hit on the broad side very hard it will break, and sure, there were five body blades, but how common do you really think those were? The best katanas were used by daimyos. A samurai in a lower position would have to make do with a worse katana. Dont even try to tell me a quality made Zweihander couldn't cut through five bodies just as well if not better than a Katana.

Katanas bend, they are easily damaged and have to be treated very well. The katana was more of a dueling weapon than a practical warfare weapon. A lot of work had to be put in to a katana, it was a time extensive process and the materials to make a katana were expensive. A katana is more a status symbol that needs to be babied. A European sword still needs maintenance to get the most out of it, but it will last much longer under battlefield conditions than a katana. If I had to compare one European sword to a katana it would be the rapier, not very suited to the battlefield, but still a deadly weapon.

Now if you want to know what most of the samurai were using...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naginata

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yari

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yumi

 

[Captain Canuck]

High carbon steel is extremely hard allowing it to hold a sharper edge, however it is also much more brittle and prone to shatter under impact. Steel with a low carbon content is much more malleable and able to absorb impacts without breaking but becoming blunt much more quickly.

The Japanese were able to produce both high carbon and low carbon steel, as a katana is constructed with an extremely hard, high content steel for the outer part of the blade and a very low carbon steel for the inner core of the blade. This allowed for an extremely hard blade which could hold a sharper edge but could also withstand combat without shattering.

IMHO the katana is a marvel of engineering.

 

[Angstrom]

Scythes are just a weapon in fantasies, but i still prefer them... to death.

 

[FreakingHell]

The katana here isn't cutting the bullet, it is acting as a wedge that separates the bullet when the bullet hits, nothing more. Also considering the bullet is probably soft lead or copper it isn't very impressive that a steel wedge would separate it.

QFT

Katanas are still pretty cool in my book though.