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Iron Tsuba

Ancient Sword Making - How They Made Swords In The Medieval Days

Someone who makes Swords is called a Swordsmith or a Bladesmith or sometimes even a "Smith" for short. An Armorer is a close trade but this is someone who specializes in making either replica or authentic protective armor. A Blacksmith is someone who specifically just produces various types of blades. Armorers and Swordsmiths still operate today, however, they have a very targeted clientele.

Ancient Sword Making has been around for centuries, and in the medieval and renaissance era have been manufactured out of a wide variety of various materials and using a plethora of techniques. There are a lot of different methods people use for evaluating a particular sword, however, there are 4 primary methods which are:

1.) How Hard is the Sword?
2.) How Strong is it?
3.) Is it Flexible and will it bend back after it bows?
4.) It is Balanced (verses being awkward)

A good sword should be about 18-26 inches in length. It also needs to be strong and flexible enough to absorb a great deal of impact at any point on the blade and not break in the process. Balance is important because it allows the user to wield it. Take note however that many swords are unbalanced on purpose, however the above is just a general rule.

Ancient Sword Making can be broken down into 3 steps:

1.) Forming (forging) the weapon
2.) Heat Treating the weapon
3.) Finishing Touches

Forging is the process of making metal plyable, so it can be worked with and shaped. The metal is heated red hot first. Then a Swordsmith will usually hammer, or use an anvil to produce the shape they are looking for. Sometimes fuller tools are used as well, which is a set of tools used just for this purpose.

Heating is done by a process called tempering, which is a 4 step challenging process used to prepare the metal for forging. Ancient Sword Making materials used were steel, iron, bronze as well as copper. Nowdays other materials are used.

Next they will sharpen the sword with a metal file or similar instrument. The final step in the process of Sword Making is the finishing process. This involves the process of decorating the sword blade or preparing the guards, tsuba or pommel if applicable. There is a steep learning curve involved in this, and isn't something one would just jump into. If you are serious about this, the best way to learn would be to find a good Swordsmith, work with them on some projects and get some mentoring.

About the Author

Let Brian Garvin & Jeff West teach you more about the Katana Sword and Ancient Sword Making on our Colinzi website today.

Silver Spiral Dragon Tsuba Katana $58 Silver spiral dragon tsuba katana extras 39.75 inch. This premium sword has a silver dragon theme throughout. A silver dragon 's as the hilt and each end of the piece includes a silver dragon end cap. Each silver dragon is different they have their own unique char'eristics. Excellent detail this sword includes a black snakeskin styleamp;#160;handle and a hard black scabbard with a high gloss black finish with silver molded 'work 'achments and gold cord wrappings. This is one of the very best swords we have ever offered. This sword is solid and heavy. The blade is made from the much desired steel. What especially puts this sword over the top are the 7.875 inch stiletto and the 7.5 inch knife that fit neatly into the scabbard. Features include: steel blade overall length: 39.75 inches hand guard width: 3.375 inches handle: 10.75 x 1.625 inches blade length: 27.125 inches stiletto length: 7.875 inches knife length: 7.5 inches silver molded 'work 'achments and gold cord wrappings black snakeskinamp;nbsp;styleamp;nbsp;handle hard black scabbard with a high gloss black finish...

Katana with Red Dragon Tsuba and Scabbard 40 inch $45.07 Embrace the power of the dragon with this incredible weapon The Red Dragon Katana features dragon styling on the scabbard and tsuba. The handle is composed of imitation fish skin. In addition to its incredible design the sword also features a 28 inch blade.Features include:28 inch bladeDragon Style Scabbard and Tsuba10.5 inch Handle composed of Imitation Fish SkinDimensions: 3 x 3 x 41.5 inches

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