swords...

[Kellen_p8nt]

Hey everybody! (hi Dr. Nick)

I have money finally and im looking in to buying a few swords and other unique weaponry

M main question is. For stregth and cutting ability what is the best material for the blade to be made of?
Ive seen Carbon Steel, High Carbon Steel, 420 Stainless steel, 440 stainless steel, Spring Steel, and so on.


IM not really looking for a flexible blade.

The types of blades im looking at are these
Chinesse Broadsword
Pao DO
Naginata
To(strait blade ninja sword)
anything like these



im also looking into wooden practice swords and nunchaku



The reason i look at this is im interested in WUshu.


thanks for any help anyne can tell me

[1stdeadeye]

Are you planning on flying to Germany to defeat the Camo Samurai in the woods?

[Kellen_p8nt]

its an idea. [poor martial arts flick voice over] he is half samurai i am[/end]

[Sooky]

I can't really answer your question, but if you can't find your answer here you might want to ask this on the www.swordforum.com/ forums. I've been reading that forum quite a bit lately and they are very knowledgeable and have quite a few swordsmiths registered. There is also alot of info you come across dispelling the hype around swords (especially the katana) - I guess like an AO, but for swords. They also have a section on chinese swordsmanship. From what I understand though, stainless steal is only good if the sword is just going to hang on the wall...

I've been planning on taking up Iaido within a month or so. I tend to rush into things, so I've just been waiting a couple months to see if I stay interested in it. I am also very interested in studying western swordsmanship, and western martial arts but there is only one school in Canada (Calgary); there are quite a few practice groups in the US if your interested. http://www.thearma.org/

But doesn't the Wushu sword flex a lot? I'm not familiar with it, but from what I see it flexes all over the place - kinda cheesy IMO.

[brianlojeck]

But doesn't the Wushu sword flex a lot? I'm not familiar with it, but from what I see it flexes all over the place - kinda cheesy IMO.

it's to protect the blade in the event you don't strike directly on-center. Calvary swords to the same thing.

[Kellen_p8nt]

Thanks for the amazing links these will be of great benefit

Supposedly the WuShu blade does bend alot. But Id like to know the logic behind that because a flexible blade, unless lined up perfectly with its relative force, cannot make solid cuts.


Also I think you can do Wushu with just bout any weapon Pao do_to Butterflys...


WHat is the style you mentioned. Ive never heard of it before.



The major problem I have is all the places around where I live are martial arts places. And while I am looking into enrolling in the local Aikido school, most martial arts schools dont offer weapons training untill blackbelt level, if at all.


So im interested in finding some independent group training or train myself in any means possible.


so thankies

[Sooky]

The major problem I have is all the places around where I live are martial arts places. And while I am looking into enrolling in the local Aikido school, most martial arts schools dont offer weapons training untill blackbelt level, if at all.

So im interested in finding some independent group training or train myself in any means possible.

I know what you mean. I'm not really interested in the more popular martial arts myself, but for going straight onto swordplay I guess you would be looking at something like kendo or iaido (which I am considering, and is closest to the technique of the samurai from what I hear).

Other than that would be western swordsmanship. Though it is a lost art (from the time of the first use of firearms and canon) and is being rediscovered/recreated, that might be a little to much studying and slow going when you can just jump into an established swordform. However, the cool thing about rediscovering the western arts is that it is being done with surviving manuals from the time these techniques were actually being used! Whereas in the eastern arts it is a continuous evolution, and has changed over time (I don't know whether that is necessarily bad, though). I'm also trying to decide whether to study western arts instead - I guess maybe a bit of pride in my own heritage rather than anothers...

brianlojeck - thanks, I've only just begun to involve myself with swords and my knowledge is very limited. My only impression of Wushu is from videos I've downloaded. The guys jumped all over the place, swinging that bouncing sword around!

[brianlojeck]

Sooky writes:
>I know what you mean. I'm not really interested in the more popular martial arts myself,
>but for going straight onto swordplay I guess you would be looking at something like
>kendo or iaido (which I am considering, and is closest to the technique of the samurai from
>what I hear).

You could also look into the Phillipino arts. They kind of all get lumped together because they have some strong similarities, but they are fairly weapon-heavy (not just swords though)

> I guess maybe a bit of pride in my own heritage rather than anothers...

kind of hard to find schools, but from what I've seen it looks VERY cool, and it's nice to have an art from a country where being big and strong is appreciated. ;-)

>brianlojeck - thanks, I've only just begun to involve myself with swords and my knowledge
>is very limited. My only impression of Wushu is from videos I've downloaded. The guys
>jumped all over the place, swinging that bouncing sword around! [/QUOTE]

I'm no expert either (mostly studied Tomiki Aikido and Muay Thai), but I pick up a bit here and there. I suppose another reason for the flexibility of the blade would be that it's made VERY thin in order to be light enough for all that flipping and jumping around...

[tribalman]

The types of blades im looking at are these
Chinesse Broadsword
Pao DO
Naginata
To(strait blade ninja sword)

um......chinesse broadsword don't exist. the scotish use the broadsword and other european nations. chinesse never have. here is a site with tons of weaponry. http://www.weaponmasters.com/
they have practile swords, replicas, practice swords, etc..

[Kellen_p8nt]

no no no. I understand what your thinking.

The scotish/english broad sword (be it claymore or basket) is TWO-bladed the chinesse broadswords are one bladed.


I may be making a misstatment by calling it a broadsword, which to the best of my knowledge is what they call it. It closely resmbles the Chinese Saber on the SFi website.

http://swordforum.com/sfu/chinese/liuyedao-2.html

At least in the HIlt design

this is the commonly understood style chinese broadsword http://www.knightsedge.com/swords/ch...broadsword.htm

Ive also seen it asscoiated with areas somewhat west of china or in the Korean area. However, during the time periods I ehard these weponds took shape was when China was in control of those areas.

[Trick]

I for one don't understand why everyone digs the oriental style weapons so much. Gotta be the popularity of ninjas.

I'm more of a rapier/saber guy myself. Guess I just like to stick with the weapons of my ancestors.

[lord1234]

Mr Connery, the subject is S Words, not swords

[brianlojeck]

Mr Connery, the subject is S Words, not swords

I'm onto your game... I'll take The Rapists for 500!

Mr. Connery, that's "therapists".

[desslock]

This man reads from bloody q cards! Im the cock of the walk here Trabec!

Things you drink water out of.

What is a leather glove!

I love that stuff

[Hasty8]

I know what you mean. I'm not really interested in the more popular martial arts myself, but for going straight onto swordplay I guess you would be looking at something like kendo or iaido (which I am considering, and is closest to the technique of the samurai from what I hear).

Then you miss the inherent message of the martial arts in that the sword, dagger or bow is just the tool and that is it the weilder that is the true weapon. I've been studying the arts since I was twelve (I'm now 31) and while I am skilled in a wide variety of weapons it still all comes back to myself.

Other than that would be western swordsmanship. Though it is a lost art (from the time of the first use of firearms and canon) and is being rediscovered/recreated, that might be a little to much studying and slow going when you can just jump into an established swordform. However, the cool thing about rediscovering the western arts is that it is being done with surviving manuals from the time these techniques were actually being used! Whereas in the eastern arts it is a continuous evolution, and has changed over time (I don't know whether that is necessarily bad, though). I'm also trying to decide whether to study western arts instead - I guess maybe a bit of pride in my own heritage rather than anothers...

Ture and false. I happen to study Jeet Kune Do or JKD. I am in the fourth step away from Bruce which means that before he died Bruce trained and certified several people in JKD. My master learned from one of those four. This is probably the newest original form yet a lot of schools already have messed it up and teach it as a rigid and structured system which is the farthest from what Bruce had intended.

That being said, there are still schools that teach according to scrolls that are thousands of years old. Original forces such as tigerpaw and white crane Kung Fu have only a handful of moves. It's how you get to those moves that makes the system mutate.

Originally Posted by Kellen_p8nt[/b]The major problem I have is all the places around where I live are martial arts places. And while I am looking into enrolling in the local Aikido school, most martial arts schools dont offer weapons training untill blackbelt level, if at all.

So im interested in finding some independent group training or train myself in any means possible.

I ardently stress training yourself before you take weapons. In the most practical sense, do you honestly plan to walk around town with a sword? Of course not. The weapons training is actually to give you an understanding of the mechanics of how they work so that you can defend against them whether you are unarmed or armed with a different weapon.

As the maxim states "Until you walk a mile in a man's shoes you do knot know his journey."

Also, you say that you are interested in a "Wushu" blade? There is no such thing. There are a variety of bladed weapons that fit into the WUshu category. The two most popular are the Dao and the jian [a.k.a. Tai-Chi Blade]

An intereting thing to note here is that Wushu is possibly a derivative of Taijiquan or what is now today known as "tai-Chi". Taijiquan was, according to the Chen Wang Thing theory started by Chen Wang Thing sometime during his lifetime in 1600-1680. According to this theory, his grandson, Wu He Ching, started the Wushu form sometime in the 1800's.

Of course, there are a thousand different arguments as to whom actually started what form and I am of course noting someone else's research.