Sub-$300 Katana (2014 edition)

Knowledge is gleaned from usage....not the experience of others. Those are recommendations.

Because you don't know anything and are casting a wide net, I leave you to your fishing and a last piece of experience. I owned a top-of-the-line Cheness....provided to me by a fellow and senior dojo mate who is now a 5th dan in Kendo. I gave the sword away because I could not stand the fittings or the balance(it was blade heavy, and crap for nukitsuke)....don't ask the model because I don't remember and don't care. It was the best they offered 5 years ago.

$300.00 is nothing for a decent sword, many will pay that price just for a good tsuba, many more will pay that for a decent tsuka....good luck on your quest...be sure to tell us all how this sword rocks in cutting soda pop bottles and pool noodles or maybe even trees. I recommended the CAS Hanwei Raptor because it is a decent sword for anyone who doesn't know anything.

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
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Kohai999 said:
Knowledge is gleaned from usage....not the experience of others. Those are recommendations.

Because you don't know anything and are casting a wide net, I leave you to your fishing and a last piece of experience. I owned a top-of-the-line Cheness....provided to me by a fellow and senior dojo mate who is now a 5th dan in Kendo. I gave the sword away because I could not stand the fittings or the balance(it was blade heavy, and crap for nukitsuke)....don't ask the model because I don't remember and don't care. It was the best they offered 5 years ago.

$300.00 is nothing for a decent sword, many will pay that price just for a good tsuba, many more will pay that for a decent tsuka....good luck on your quest...be sure to tell us all how this sword rocks in cutting soda pop bottles and pool noodles or maybe even trees. I recommended the CAS Hanwei Raptor because it is a decent sword for anyone who doesn't know anything.

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
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Hey man, I appreciate it! Yah, I checked into said Raptor, and agree it is an excellent choice! Did you read my response to your comment previously in this same thread??? The only ones I found in stock were @ the $500 mark. I believe most manufacturers have excellent blades at a higher price point, but I am currently looking for that "entry-level" katana($300). I would appreciate it if you could point me in the direction of a $250-$300 recommendation. EXPERIENCE is gleaned from usage, KNOWLEDGE from information. Hence schooling, ie: college and whatnot. By communicating on these threads, I hope to gain said knowledge. No I don't have huge money to spend on my first katana. I'm just a poor folk. I agree the raptor would be a great katana for a dumbass like myself, but NONE found at this price point. I'm not trying to be offensive here, I apologize for you taking it that way. Thank you again for taking time to post. BTW - Our last names are strangely similar, says you reside in socal. I'm a bit of a mut(French/Dutch/Scottish/Irish/German), but my last name is "Garrison." I seen Garsson on your signature and wanted to mention it to you. I am also the IV, so we go back a little ways. Garrison is german, I can only assume the same for Garsson? I dunno, just thought it was neat. Thanks again, sir.
 
FWIW, I was able to find a few Raptors in stock for 332 or lower with free shipping. Google is your friend. Patience probably is too. Don't forget that dealspotting is prohibited on this site, however.
 
Scotty2Hotty said:
I seen Garsson on your signature and wanted to mention it to you. I am also the IV, so we go back a little ways. Garrison is german, I can only assume the same for Garsson? I dunno, just thought it was neat. Thanks again, sir.
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You can call me Steven.

Garsson is an American bastardization of Gershon. Anyone in the world with my last name as spelled is related to me. It is a Lithuanian name. I am half Litvak, and half Swedish.

Like I said, the prices on Raptor swords just dropped this week, so if you do have some patience, you can get one very close to your price point, and that would be my preference if I was in your shoes.

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
Kohai999 said:
You can call me Steven.

Garsson is an American bastardization of Gershon. Anyone in the world with my last name as spelled is related to me. It is a Lithuanian name. I am half Litvak, and half Swedish.

Like I said, the prices on Raptor swords just dropped this week, so if you do have some patience, you can get one very close to your price point, and that would be my preference if I was in your shoes.

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
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Very interesting heritage! I will keep looking, of course, as time is on my side with this one. I am in no hurry at all. I will most likely make a purchase sometime in june. And I will also keep an eye out for a raptor. Thank you Steven.
 
well Scotty, I have a Ronin model 18 headed my way and I also got a surprise katana to do a review on.
One of my custom pair of sai should be in, in a couple of days too. My Busse battle mistress should be here tomorrow. So this should be an interesting month.
 
By the way, who can you go through to get a proper Japanese shinken?
Anyone who knows a reliable source please let me know.
 
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Here are a pair of my sai
 
Greats news, my man! I'm excited for you. And... slightly jealous! HAHA I can't see your pic though... :( What is the "surprise" katana? Dude, I can't wait to hear what you think about the Ronin.
 
Ok, I won't keep it a surprise. I ordered a Sky jiro out of curiosity. It took forever to dig up some cutting vids with it but I figured it might be a good katana.
 
Either way I plan on collecting a few from each descent brand. I saw a video with James Williams cutting with them and they did really well.
 
Badass dude! You are a fuckin asset here! Need more people like you on here. Do you have it already, or is it on the way?
 
They're on their way. I'm hoping by Friday. Once I get enough of my old things sold, then I'd like to get a real high end katana, maybe one made of tamahagne.
 
Also, if you right click the pic I put up and save image you might be able to see it. I have a lot of trouble on this site myself, the pages don't always load and ect. I'm not sure what I need to do to get it to work better on my comp.
 
Naw man, nuthin. Too bad. Even w/out the pics though, I trust your word. Do you use photobucket? There is a thread on here somewhere for help with posting pics.
 
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