There is a lot that has been written about the myths and history of the Samurai Sword. Some of it is true and a lot of it is not. There are several good sites on the WEB that you can visit that carry good technical and historical information, so I will only deal with what I do and how I do it.

Steel: I use 1050 Carbon steel and a hi-lo carbon laminated mix of 1000 layers. These are simple spring steels that very closely approximate the carbon content and purity of the original Koto steel without the high cost of hand smelting and forge-folding. They are all clay-tempered and quenched in water. Never has one of my swords broken in use. Edge hardness is approx. 59 Rockwell and the spine is approx. 45 Rockwell. All tangs are drawn soft. My laminated steel adds approx. $500 to the cost of a long sword...less on shorter pieces. The laminated blades are much, much prettier, however, they are about the same quality and cutting ability as the 1050 steel.

Fittings: My fittings fall into two catagories...either copies of good originals that I borrow from collectors or originals of my own design. I cast all of my fittings myself in Copper, Silver, Gold, or a Chinese Gold...a gold substitute. Choose a style...like dragons...and I can match up a set in whatever metal you might want.

Woods: I use only the rarest of woods. On smaller knives and swords, I have a very large selection. For long swords, I have a much smaller choice because longer lengths of rare wood are harder to get. I have most of my spalts and burls stabilized with meth-methacrylate. I finish all my saya (sheaths) with cyano-acrylate. Its a much better product than lacquer and much more long-lived and repairable.

Handle: The tsuka or handle, is wood, covered in fancy grade rayskin and wrapped with real silk. All swords come with menuki. I have the silk wrap in many colors and can dye to match your color. I carry it in three different weights. There is also available for the first time in years, new leather weights and colors. There is even the old doeskin look. Leather is presentation grade...not for martial arts usage. Stick with silk for combat style usage. Tsuka can be had in most lengths...I usually do 4-3/8th" for a tanto, 6" to 7" for a waki, and 10" to 12" for a Katana. I'm not fond of the extra long tsuka being reccommended for the West Coast martial arts schools, but will make them any length for an extra fee. I do NOT sell wood or give away info as to where I buy mine.

Ordering: I require a 50% deposit upon ordering and my current waiting period is about 9 months for a long sword and less for a smaller piece. The remainder is due upon completion. There is also a small fee for shipping, insurance and a baggie. Check www.bladegallery.com and my "For Sale" page for immediately available items.

Pricing: Basically, I charge for time and materials plus an "art" value. Small tanto start at $900 and go to $2500 for a fully mounted tanto. Wakazashi start at $3000 and Katana start at $4000. Every sword is priced individually. Since all the swords on this site are already sold...I have started putting an approximate price for a similar piece beside the picture. I cannot make the exact same item...but I can make something similar.

Most of my swords are presentation grade...that is, they are made for collectors. They are highly polished and if used for cutting or hacking, it will stain and smear a very expensive polish. The polish can be restored but it's expensive! I spend a great deal of time and money on research, and I endeavor to make my swords as historically accurate as possible. The balance and weight are identical to the originals. Please do not ask me to make you a sword out of stainless or titanium or to look like some Japanese Anime cartoon sword. I make only historically accurate pieces.

WEB Site: This WEB site was built with a Macintosh G-4 2 gig megahertz, with Adobe GoLive 6, Adobe Photoshop 7, ProJPEG and many others.