Layered titanium alloy katana blade

Mecha

Mecha

Titanium Bladesmith
Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
Joined
Dec 27, 2013
Messages
10,013
Hello all,

I've avoided making a katana blade for various reasons, but someone to whom I couldn't say "no" asked for one a while back. This is the result: the first multi-alloy titanium sword! Lots was learned making this "shobu zukuri" (diamond section) style blade.

Laminated or otherwise layered titanium alloy blades, with a visible layers, is a huge and exciting advancement in the titanium sword pursuit. Not only is it aesthetically pleasing and provides massive new artistic possibilities, the layers can be chosen to increase the performance of these blades even further (but not drastically so). It will also allow the use of new alloys, and expands the sword models and shapes that can be fashioned.

This sword blade is 28" not including the tang, and weighs 11.3 ounces as pictured. It is distally-tapered in thickness, but gently so. The spine is springy, tough 6al4v, with a hardened BT23 titanium alloy blade edge. The "hamon" is a vanadium-rich ti alloy for contrast. I wanted it to have a zero edge like a real katana, but opted for a very small secondary bevel.

It was hard to take a good photo, but they show the gist and are pretty accurate to real life.

Thanks for looking! :]

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...aaaaaand youtube video!

 
Well done Sam

You really have my attention buddy

Now it’s needs full mountings and a hard Saya

Call Mirabile for pointers

Really excellent and I should cut with it :)
 
JParanee said:
Well done Sam

You really have my attention buddy

Now it’s needs full mountings and a hard Saya

Call Mirabile for pointers

Really excellent and I should cut with it :)
Click to expand...

Thankee, JParanee! The deal with this one was, the guy is supposed to send it to the pros for a hilt and saya, I was just to make the blade (but will make the habaki whether he likes it or not, it should to be bronze not copper due to the small, sharp tang shoulders). If he doesn't like it and wants a different one, then another will be made for him, and I'll seek professional help for the mountings on this one LOL!

The next one will be better as lots was learned making this one, but this is the first of its kind and that means something I think.

Would you like to stick it in the Diskin booth case for display at Blade? I can stuff it in a tube and send it out.
 
That's insanely cool, and very well executed! That center vanadium rich Ti layer really gives a great hamon effect, especially in the top photo where it kind of looks like small ice crystals, or maybe tiny wispy flames is a better way to describe it lol. Beautiful job on keeping the shinogi parallel and crisp, too, I always love the aggressiveness the tip has when it runs straight through it. I'm curious, do you happen to know the Rockwell hardness of the Ti for the edge side?

Beautiful work! I really think you're blazing a trial here :thumbsup::thumbsup:


~Paul
My Youtube Channel
... (Just some older videos of some knives I've made in the past)
 
BenR.T. said:
Incredibly cool project. Can't wait to see it finished out.
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Thanks much, BenR.T. No telling what the mountings will look like yet, but of course I'm thinking black. :D



coldsteelburns said:
That's insanely cool, and very well executed! That center vanadium rich Ti layer really gives a great hamon effect, especially in the top photo where it kind of looks like small ice crystals, or maybe tiny wispy flames is a better way to describe it lol. Beautiful job on keeping the shinogi parallel and crisp, too, I always love the aggressiveness the tip has when it runs straight through it. I'm curious, do you happen to know the Rockwell hardness of the Ti for the edge side?

Beautiful work! I really think you're blazing a trial here :thumbsup::thumbsup:


~Paul
My Youtube Channel
... (Just some older videos of some knives I've made in the past)
Click to expand...

Glad you like it! :) I think my hardness tester is reading high. There is a general idea of the hardness, but will likely have a much more accurate results soon. The important part for titanium is the crystalline phase the alloy is in, which is easy to tell without a hardness test.
 
Dawkind said:
‘One small step for Man, a giant leap for Mankind’ :cool:

Man, that’s extremely cool...an apogee of your work. :D
Click to expand...


Glad you like. It really is a step into the ultimate form for titanium swords. I mean it's not really going to do anything a full titanium-niobium blade won't do, but it looks cool. Never underestimate the power of something just being cool, I say. All of this R&D and such really takes it out of ya, in every way; thank goodness that part is over. Now comes the good stuff, where the techniques and the look get refined, and the multi-alloy blades just get better.
 
This katana is mind blowing! I’m hoping we get to see it in action in a future video.
So freaking cool!
 
WOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOW!!!!! Please tell me this will be at BLADE!
 
Will it work harden like your other blades? Looks awesome either way! Glad you're taking the time to share. Thanks!
 
Mecha... super cool and LOOKS great. I love Japanese style knives and swords, and your's is fantastic.

Cheers
Paul
 
Seth Green said:
Will it work harden like your other blades? Looks awesome either way! Glad you're taking the time to share. Thanks!
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Ty! The stuff on the edge of this sword, the BT23, I don't think it really work hardens like some of the others, at least not after heat treatment.
 
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