2012年9月1日星期六

Everything You Need to Know About Ninja Culture and Buying Swords Online

There are lots of people who are fond of Japanese culture. Perhaps you have been two apartments and houses with swords hanging on the walls. Indeed, Japanese swords are magnificent. In general, Japanese culture is incredibly interesting. There are many fans of Japanese swords and culture in the U.S. and Europe. Actually, it's not problematic to find interesting information about Japanese culture online. Moreover, there are auctions and online stores that sell various swords. It should be mentioned that kids love studying history of ninja. So, down the page are helpful tips on choosing swords and ninja clothes on the net.
As already said above, Japanese stuff attract lots of people from across the world. Thus, many online stores offer Japanese swords and clothes. Besides, folks sell unique swords at auctions. So, if you want to buy a genuine samurai sword, but have no experience and relevant knowledge, you have to be really careful, as there are lots of fakes and scammers in the market. Such swords can be extremely expensive, especially when it comes to ninja swords. There are risks of buying a fake sword for 500 $. That is why, before performing a transaction make sure this is not a fake. There are several ways to do that. Firstly, you should check reputation of the seller. There are lots of offers on Ebay. Look at the seller reputation. If this person sells genuine Japanese swords, he or she should have positive reviews. It is recommended to look for sellers from Japan. Secondly, if you want to buy a sword from a conventional store, you may ask for certificates, i.e. papers stating where the sword was produced. Alternatively, you may ask for professional assistance from antique experts.
As known, there are many forums and communities in social networks dedicated to Japanese culture. There you will find lots of people with the same passions. If you need advice you will get it. Besides, it is cool to communicate with people with identical hobbies. Such people organize offline meetings from time to time to share experience, have fun, exchange swords and clothes etc. So, joining such web sites is definitely an excellent idea for fans of the sword culture. Japanese culture is fascinating, as already said above. You will find plenty of books and websites on the net depicting its beauty. If you want to practice martial arts, you will definitely need additional information.
Please, visit our website if you lack knowledge on ninjutsu. You will find mind blowing articles and pictures on ninja. By the way, your kids will surely enjoy studying this culture. Be a brave warrior. As known, Japanese warriors are brave, fair and smart. Good luck!

The Many Different Types of Japanese Swords

Types of Japanese swords can be confusing when a new collector is looking to purchase different swords for their weaponry collection. There are several different sword types to choose, and they can all be very daunting in the beginning. However, once the collector begins to understand the differences between the Japanese swords, they will be able to identify them easily.

Japanese swords were traditionally used for fighting, and there are several different types of Japanese swords according to style, design, shape and size. The manufacturing techniques and level of skill behind the sword making will also determine the sword types. Traditionally all Japanese swords would be classified as Katana swords. However, these are also a class on their own, and Samurai Katana swords are very popular to own.

There are several varieties of the Katana available, and collectors and martial arts specialists will need to know the differences between the swords. The historic Katana has a curved, single edged blade and is traditionally held with two hands. The distinctive, long handle allows for a better grip as the blade is incredibly long. These sword types are associated with the Samurai soldiers of Feudal, which battled in the 15th century.

The Tachi Sword is slightly longer than the traditional Katana and is more curved in appearance. These types of Japanese swords would have been used by the warriors on horseback, who needed to draw their swords quickly. Although many novice collectors mistake this sword for the Samurai, the blades are made differently and have distinctive differences.

The Wakizashi sword has a traditional shoto blade, which measures on average between 30 and 60 centimeters. These sword types are very similar in style to the Katana; however, they are far shorter and are often used as a dagger. Warriors would carry both the Wakizashi and a Katana into battle allowing them to have two different weapons.
The Nodachi sword is one of the largest types of Japanese swords, and was the style which was chosen for the battle fields. They are very similar in appearance to the Tachi sword; however, they are far longer and sturdier in style and design. The distinct length of the Nodachi swords made them ideal for battling outside; however, they were often too long for combats indoors.

The Shin Gunto Sword types were the chosen weaponry of Japanese warriors, and were considered part of the uniform. The officers of the Imperial Japanese Army choose these types of Japanese swords to use in battle. The speed of the fights in Japan were incredibly quick, and the design of all of the different types of Japanese swords allowed for as much damage to be done to a person in a very short space of time.

Japanese Samurai Swords for Sale - Discover the Best One for You

If you're into sword accumulating, then at some point you'll have to think about adding an authentic samurai sword for your collection. They'll add a specific credibility plus mystique to your sword assortment.
When sword collecting might be a time consuming and quite highly-priced hobby, the possible payback both emotionally and monetarily may be immense.
Samurai swords initially came into prominence from the center ages among persons from the Orient. A samurai sword (when you have not viewed a person) commonly has a very sharp edge. They have been normally utilized in fight concerning warriors and even through war. These distinctive swords had been developed by craftsmen who employed forging and also warmth treating techniques to make these distinctive swords that may withstand intense stress in battle without having breaking even though becoming sharp adequate to inflict maximum damage to an enemy.
Forms of Samurai Swords
You will find normally 3 key kinds of these Japanese swords
Katana - they're likely probably the most common samurai swords about. They typically measure over 24 inches and even ended up the most common companion to a samurai warrior. One of the distinct functions with the katana sword is certainly its appear - which is actually curved, slim, single edged blade plus contains a long grip therefore you can hold it with both equally fingers. It is recognized meant for its sharpness so you must be rather mindful whenever you have an individual in your own possession.
Wakizashi - they are more compact than the katana and usually measure concerning 12 to 24 inches. It can be been claimed the Wakizashi ended up ordinarily worn with each other with all the katana by samurai warriors. The katana along with Wakizashi were companion swords employed by samurai warriors to monstrous impact in battle.

What You Need To Know Before Buying Swords Online

If you are an avid collector of samurai swords, then browsing the Internet is what you should do. I must warn you though, online shops have wide array of choices of medieval swords for sale, you might be overwhelmed with all the choices that you can choose from. However, if you are looking for authentic swords, then you must take precautionary measures in choosing which to buy. This is because not all swords and shields found online are authentic. Some of them are fake and are meant only for display purposes.
If you are on the lookout for ornamental wall designs, then will not have any problem looking for one. All you have to do is choose one which suits your taste and it's already mission accomplished. Aside from that, you don't have to spend more than US$50 in buying a wall design.
Distinguishing which sword for sale is authentic or not is really not that easy; this is most especially true for people who are just starting to collect such swords. Most people do not have enough knowledge about the difference between an ornamental swords and a sword which you can use to cut things with. In fact, most people think that there are no difference at all.
Being ignorant about such matters can be harmful for you. This is because you cannot use an ornamental sword during fights and sparring. Why? Well, this is because the ornamental swords can be easily broken and cut off. Once these happens, you may be placed in great danger. This very reason why collectors must have knowledge regarding this subject.
Sad as it may seem, most medieval swords up for sale in the Internet are all what collectors may regard as 'sword-like' objects. This means that these swords may seem authentic and strong but once you swing this in the air or use this to break a vase, nothing will happen. And to add insult to injury, the handle of the swords may break and the handle may shatter or worse, it will come flying off with so much speed that it can surely hurt anybody near you.
When looking for an authentic sword, the first thing that you should look in the seller's description are the words: battle ready or functional. But as we all know, not all sellers are honest. Most of them put such descriptions even if the sword they are selling is not really authentic.
To further help you with distinguishing the difference, here are the three most important things that you should know about authentic swords:
* The materials used in making real swords are HIGH CARBON STEEL and NOT STAINLESS STEEL.
* Real swords undergo proper heat treatment to make sure that the swords are not too brittle nor too soft.
* Real swords have 'full tang'. By full tang, we mean that the metal insert that is slided into the handle is forged as an integral part of the sword and not a separate part that is only welded afterwards.

Ancient Chinese Weapons and Armor

Similar to ancient Japanese Samurai swords like the katana, ancient Chinese swords like the Sanmei are works of art. Unlike their Japanese counterparts which are created purely for sword fighting, the Sanmei is supposed to be used in tandem with martial arts training. Wushu is the perfect example to this. Sword wielding is done in conjunction with movements of basic martial arts kicking, punching and for blocking.
Let's go into a little bit more detail about these Ancient Chinese weapons.
The Sanmei is composed of a hardened central layer with two softer steel layers on the outside. The softer steel provides the sword's resilience while the harder core carries the wicked sharp edge. Looking more closely at the blade, one sees the unique lines and fold marks left by the forging.
The Chinese sword fall into two categories, the Jian and Dao. The Jian is a single hand double edged straight sword. Grips for Jian swords were made of fluted hardwood. They were sometimes wrapped in ray skin or in cotton cord.
The Dao is a single edged curved sword longer and heavier than the Jian. It is often referred to as a Chinese broadsword or saber. Dao blades curve moderately and have a canted hilt, curving in the opposite direction to the blade. There is also a disc-shaped or S-shaped guard.
Chinese Sanmei metamorphosed for 2,500 years beginning with bronze then moving on to iron and then steel. At first, during the Han Dynasty, the weapon of choice for mounted cavalry was the Dao. Later on, the lighter Jian became the most commonly used infantry and cavalry sword because of its lightweight.
Like the history of Chinese swords, ancient Chinese armor also went through a metamorphosis. Early Shang Dynasty armor was light plated turtle shells tied together with cord. Later on, these were replaced with one-piece leather or bronze breastplates. In the 2nd Century B.C., plated wrought iron armor began to appear. These were laced together with leather and sometimes had overlapping leather plates as well.
During the period of the Ming Dynasty, light plated armor woven into leather and cloth fabrics became the norm since this did not hinder martial arts movements. It only covered the most important body parts vulnerable to injury. Trading with Arab and Persian neighbors introduced the Chinese to the European chainmail which was widely copied by many rich nobles, officials and military officers.