Cold Steel O Tanto choice?

Rich949 said:
I'm having a tough time deciding between the Cold Steel Emperor series o tanto or the Dragonfly o tanto. Can anybody sell me on one of these or give an opinion on which would look better on a display rack?

Edit: Does anybody know if they're both hand polished?

http://www.coldsteel.com/dragonflysword.html
http://www.coldsteel.com/japanimperial.html#
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They are BOTH high quality items from Cold Steel. My questions is: do you want something just to put up or do you want something to really use?
If want to use the hello out of it get the Dragonfly, but if you want to display it get the Emperor series. Do you have either the wakazashi or the katana? If so, I would want it to match this set.
On a side not have you looked at Hanwei? They have some good items. Just a thought.
 
I'm lookin for more of a showpiece, but at the same time I don't want to be losing any function as well. Hanweis are just a large, large tad out of my price range, would love to have them though. I'll probably be going with the Emperor series, but would just like to know what you guys think of the two series.
 
Hanwei makes a variety of items that are a little bigger or a little smaller than the o-tantos from cold steel, but are much less expensive and will look nicer.
1) Practical plus tanto. MSRP $199. 11" blade. Real hamon
SH2259.jpg

http://www.casiberia.com/prod_Detail.aspx?id=SH2259
2) Tori tanto. MSRP is a little higher than the cold steel at $599, but it'll be much nicer than the CS. Real hamon and very nice mounting.
SH6007KFT.jpg

http://www.casiberia.com/prod_Detail.aspx?id=SH6007KFT
3) Practical tanto. MSRP $115. Real hamon and nice mounting, although the ray skin is not real.
SH2254.jpg

http://www.casiberia.com/prod_Detail.aspx?id=SH2254
4) raptor tanto. MSRP $245. No hamon, but it is attractive overall.
SH2423.jpg

http://www.casiberia.com/prod_Detail.aspx?id=SH2423
5) You might even look at the cheness kissaki moroha tanto. It is an unusual geometry (kisssaki moroha zukuri, where it is double-edged near the tip), and the finish is very good. There is no hamon but it is very attractive. The steel is very good. The MSRP is well within your range at $149. 10.5" blade.
tanto_b.jpg

These will all fit your requirements just fine or better than the cold steel.

- Chris
http://www.chenessinc.com/tanto.htm
 
Considering there was recently a fire at the Hanwei factory. I wonder if the heat from the fire would affect any of the blades they had in the factory at the time and if they will be discarded or sold to the public ?
 
If you are going to use it, I recommend skipping both and going for their Warrior series. If it breaks, you save a few bucks. Personally, I like the Emperor best when it comes to looks. It has cooler engravings and I like the black.
 
I myself like the Tsuka with just the Same without the Ito Wrap. Much more traditional. Hi, new guy here!! Tom's the name..
 
Wonderful photos Hesparus. Thanks.

Rich949: I have some CS products that I like. However in Japanese style swords and knives I favor Hanwei. But just now I am also seeing and learning of some very nice work at Cheness.
 
Anyone know of any other 15inch blade length O Tanto's or Tanto's?

It would be used for informal cutting, not decoration!

Prefer a real one handed knife rather than a Wakazashi but anything in the 15 to 17inch blade length would be of interest?
 
There's not much of a difference between a 17" tanto and a 17" wakizashi. in fact I can't think of a reason why you would call a 17" blade a tanto. There's no bright line that separates a tanto from a wakizashi but a rule of thumb is that anything bigger than 12 or 13" is a wakizashi. Both are one handed.
 
Hesparus said:
in fact I can't think of a reason why you would call a 17" blade a tanto.
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I certainly did not do so in my post. I did ask:
b.c.molin said:
Anyone know of any other 15inch blade length O Tanto's or Tanto's?
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regarding the availability of a 15inch length blade?

Hesparus said:
There's no bright line that separates a tanto from a wakizashi but a rule of thumb is that anything bigger than 12 or 13" is a wakizashi. Both are one handed.
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Yes, both can be used one handed but the grip length of a Tanto appears to be more in keeping with that of a knife at under 6 inches whereas Wakizashi grips are usually longer.

I am after a short handled long bladed Tanto/O Tanto/Wakizashi if anyone knows or can recommend of one capable of being used for informal cutting rather than decoration.

Thank you for your input.
 
b.c.molin said:
I certainly did not do so in my post. I did ask: regarding the availability of a 15inch length blade?



Yes, both can be used one handed but the grip length of a Tanto appears to be more in keeping with that of a knife at under 6 inches whereas Wakizashi grips are usually longer.

I am after a short handled long bladed Tanto/O Tanto/Wakizashi if anyone knows or can recommend of one capable of being used for informal cutting rather than decoration.

Thank you for your input.
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If you can find one Rob Criswell made an excellent short waki... I have one and love it. It has a 15" blade and 8" tsuka. Very handy sized weapon.

To the OP, I just purchased a warrior O Tanto so I will report back on my opinions. I want to get a custom one made, but those run around a grand and I'm just too poor right now. This will make a good trainer for when I can afford a custom one.
 
Infi-del said:
If you can find one Rob Criswell made an excellent short waki... I have one and love it. It has a 15" blade and 8" tsuka. Very handy sized weapon.

...warrior O Tanto so I will report back on my opinions.
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Thank you for the information and will look forward to your impressions too. :thumbup:
 
Got my warrior O Tanto in and overall I'll give it good marks. The blade grind isn't what I'd call traditional by any means but it does have a nice convex grind. The edge is decent but with a quick trip to the belt grinder it will be hair popping sharp in about a minute. Fit an finish isn't as rough as I thought it would be... it looks nice when it arrives just not high polish. The fittings are really nice for such an affordable weapon. Usually I expect cheap plated aluminum or something. These fittings are of good quality. The ito is a little sloppy and cheap. I may soak it in resin later just to keep it from fraying and coming apart. The Saya is very basic... I suspect it will be a cracking hazard within a years time. But for now the sword does fit tightly in the saya. The saya has a metal but cap that matches the fuchi and kasira... that was an expected plus. I'll proabably wrap the saya in grip tape since it's slippery and will probably be prone to cracking one day. Wouldn't do that to a real piece... but then again I am going to do lots of things with this that I wouldn't with an actual traditional O Tanto. All in all they're wroth the price if you can find one for around $150.00 like I did. It's well balanced and will make a good trainer. The blade is sturdy and well shaped. I will say it's an excellent knife... it's a so so japanese sword replica. I wouldn't spring for the Imperial series. Seems like you're not getting a better weapon for the extra money.

After having handled this... that Chisa Katana is looking interesting to me. It's got specs that make it just about perfect for me.
 
I had a Chisa. Was not very impressed with its weight as it was very heavy. I also found that cold steel has some quality control issues with their swords as they can be a little hit or miss, but if you get a decent one it can be good.
 
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