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Sword work is one of the core trainings of the booth. And since ancient times, for practicing chopping movements and positions with weapons, it has been used bokken- a wooden sword designed to repeat the main characteristics (size, shape and weight) of a real sword ( shinken). Over time, the attitude towards martial arts changed, giving priority to practical benefits to internal development, and the type of training sword acquired standard, unified parameters. This kind of unification did not at all benefit the development of real skills, but it greatly simplified technological process mass production bokken. About the same, how to independently make a training sword from wood (or other materials) and will be discussed below.

First, you need to understand what you want to get in the end, and for what purposes you need it: a sword for practicing forms, for bloody sparring, for an honorable hoisting on the wall, etc. If you are going to study at a formal school where teaching is expected kenjutsu in any form, try to find out in advance what the requirements for weapons will be. If a appearance or strict compliance with regulations are fundamental - then seriously consider purchasing a factory tool - a smoothly turned wooden weapon, a practical plastic representative cold steel or bamboo shinai. Fortunately, they are now sold in almost any weapon or sporting goods store, and real master cabinetmakers are ready to provide their services everywhere.

If for you at the moment the priority is to create a training sword as an applied tool that does not require great skill, excessive time and money, but repeats the simulated weapon in its main characteristics, then you can try to make it yourself.

Dimensions . The traditional bokken has the following dimensions:

Daito(larger of the twin swords - acts as katana, tachi) - length about 102 cm, tsuka (handle) about 24 cm.
Shoto(smaller - wakizashi, kodati) - length 55 cm, handle 14 cm.

If you wish to do ninja something, do not forget that no one will give you the exact dimensions - these weapons were either made to order individually (or even independently), or someone else's blades were used. As a rule, the length of a ninja is usually taken as an average between daito and seto - the length is about 70-80 cm, the handle is about 20.

Material . The most heartbreaking moment. If you want to get a tool for working out racks, a cut cardboard box is enough for you. If you would like your bokuto had a solid weight and definitely resembled a real weapon, then you have to take care of high-quality material. Classic wood. For sparring the best varieties trees are dogwood, oak (better - Japanese white), hornbeam, acacia, boxwood. It is better to bypass any pine, birch and alder. Oreshin - too, although the author's hazel boken survived a couple of years of active clashes with swords made of textolite, duralumin and press plywood. Textolite is also a way out, although it is more relevant for role-playing than for BI (because it is hard, painful and not authentic in any eye).

Instruments . Best of all - a workshop with a full set of electrical equipment - a jigsaw, a grinder. You may also need a hacksaw, planer, vice, knife, stationery for marking, sandpaper and files. Optionally - varnish and brush.

blank . For the layman the best choice to search for the source, I will wander for a couple of hours through the forest and look for a sufficient thickness of boughs with a natural bend, closest to Japanese swords. Creating an artificial bend will not lead to anything good, hundreds of broken bokutos of this kind around the world - the best of that proof. If there is no forest nearby, then buying a bar or board in a building materials store is inevitable. The bar, of course, will have to be taken a little larger in size than the planned end result.

So, the process itself :

Dry the stored bough, it is better to do this in a dark, ventilated room, away from sources of temperature changes (batteries, refrigerators). In the case of timber, drying is not needed.
Mark the workpiece - apply the shape of the future blade with a pencil. Ideally, you can borrow ready-made bokken and make markup based on it. If you are making wood chokuto(straight sword), then there will be even fewer problems - a ruler and a tape measure will help you.
Carefully saw off / cut off pieces of material that are extra long, leaving about half a centimeter of margin for grinding.

Begin to plan or grinder the warhead of the blade, forming the "blade". Remember that the shape and thickness of the bokken varies even in modern schools. The back side of the blade should be flat (if possible), with clearly defined edges. But if they don’t exist, it’s okay, you are not making a museum exhibit.

Kashima-boken Aikiken Yagyu-boken

Having finished forming the blade, proceed to the processing of the handle - the correct handle should have an oval in cross section, passing into the blade either smoothly or through a ledge (rudimentary guard).
The lower part of the hilt should simply be "cut", but the tip of the blade (kissaki) can have several shapes: a simple oblique cut, a rounded end, or a slightly oiled "chisel" cut - all three options are "classic" shapes for bokuto.

Iwama Shinto, Yagyu, Kenjutsu Aiki, Katori

Having formed the blade and handle as a whole, you can start grinding - emery or a file will help with this. Remember that the cleaner bokuto, the less splinters, abrasions and scratches on you yourself will be in the future. So don't ignore this item!
To keep your bokuto from rotting, I recommend covering it with stain or varnish. However, if this is your first time making a wooden sword, don't rush into it, don't do potentially unnecessary work without checking your copy for strength.

This knowledge is necessary for the customer when ordering a katana, for a master when making a katana, and for anyone who goes deep into the topic of the perfect Japanese melee weapons - katana.

Here we will consider one of the elements of this weapon, namely katana handle device.

General name of the handle: tsuka.

And so let's get started:

Tsuka- katana handle

Kasira- pommel. Rather, even a cover that has a decorative and practical purpose. Kasira- completes the handle with a metal cover and has a hole for passing the tape, which is used when braiding the handle.

Same– stingray skin, the traditional material for covering the wooden handle of a katana. Expensive material.

Ho- wooden lining of the handle of the katana.

- a decorative element used to decorate the hilt of a katana.

Hole and pin used to hold the hilt of a katana.

- this is the base of the blade on which the elements of the handle are mounted.

– fastening and decorative sleeve of the handle, together with the cashier, keeps the wooden lining of the handle assembled.

Metal washers have both a decorative and a practical function. Only two pieces are installed on both sides of the tsuba.

Unlike the European sword, the Japanese sword has the function of protecting the hand when struck with a tsuba, it was the last thing.

- fastening sleeve, the main task is to create a tight connection between the blade and the scabbard.

Not marked on the image. But it is equally important to specify an element such as:

Tsuka-ito- tape with which the handle is wrapped.

Now, we know the terminology. And we understand what the handle of the Japanese katana consists of. Now, using this knowledge, we can make out what is the stylization of the handle of the katan manufactured by the Zbroevy Falvarak workshop.

For example, let's take one of the previously made katanas:

The handle of the katana workshop "Zbroevy falvarak"

As you can see we do non-detachable handle, but at the same time, we retain a significant number of characteristic elements of the original katana handle .

Menuki, fuchi, sepa is brass casting.

Tsuka-ito - leather band, which is no less typical for katana.

Same- regular skin.

Is absent: mekugi and habuki.

Here is a photo of a standard set for a katana handle, the Zbroevy Falvarak workshop (there is no menuki, but it is also included in the set)

Standard set for the handle of a katana, workshop "Zbroevy falvarak"

Generally, this is a high level of style. However, we strive for more.

But by default, our handle looks like this .

Japanese swords and other weapons have become a hobby for many people. You can make your own katana using this guide.

In the photo you can see all the materials and tools that you will need during work.

First you need to make a blade. To do this, take a metal plate 1 meter long and 7 cm wide. The thickness of the metal should be at least 5 mm. Coat the plate with spray varnish and let it dry.

Using a grinder with a cutting disc, give the desired shape to the katana blade. Then use an abrasive disc to polish the metal. Also remove the wavy edge around the edges of the blade.

When the shape of the blade is perfect, cover it again with paint and varnish, and also let it dry. Draw a line in the center of the blade.

Using an abrasive grinding wheel, grind down the cutting edges.

Do the same on the other side. The end of the blade should end up about 1mm thick. Please note that the blade should be perfectly straight, without hooks and waviness.

From the rest of the metal, you can make a guard of any shape.

Then you need to make a guard (tsuba), a scabbard (saya) and a handle (tsuka). To determine the shape of the guard, attach the finished blade to the metal. Paint the finished guard with the appropriate paint.

Now sketch out the handle. When doing this, consider the thickness of the guard. Do not forget that the sketch will be located in a mirror position.

Via milling machine cut out the desired shape from the wood.

Mark those parts of the handle that will connect its two parts.

Once the two parts of the handle are ready, place the blade between them and secure the guard.

When making the sheath, consider the length and thickness of the blade.

Smoothly sand both parts of the scabbard and glue them together.

You have three pieces of katana.

Now you should polish the blade with sandpaper.

Then you can cover the blade with wax.

Then you need to make an artificial coating of the blade.

Now grind the edge of the blade.

Rub the entire blade to avoid rust.

Now glue all the parts of the katana together.

Cover wooden surfaces soft matte varnish.

Glossy varnish can also be covered.

Similarly, you can make other knives and swords.

We present our achievements in video fencing on katana, machete knife. After watching our films, you may discover some new aspects of history, weapons, culture. This section presents the techniques of fencing, the technique of their implementation, the technique of movement during execution. Knife fight videos of developments in techniques and techniques - will please anyone who is seriously involved in knife fighting. We pay a lot of attention to technique, all our lessons are designed so that you can see not just a quick execution of techniques, but understand how this technique is performed. Therefore, the display is often performed in a slightly slowed down format, which does not negate, of course, its fast execution during running time. Separately, there are sparrings - a video of a knife fight. Here you can see the real application of the techniques shown earlier in other videos.

Small feature films related to weapons, the history of samurai, the manufacture of samurai swords, traditions, old photographs and much more stand apart. We sincerely hope you enjoy these films.

Another aspect of our knife fighting videos is the testing of punches and weapons on real flesh - on pieces of meat - on pork knuckles, pig bokeh. This is necessary in order to understand HOW a particular weapon strikes, what passes and what does not, and often common myths are dispelled during such testing. We do not want to become like Discovery or Cold Steel, not at all, but we like their format and we have adopted it for ourselves.

We sincerely hope that our videos of knife fighting, katana and machete tricks will not disappoint you and you will find something useful for yourself in them.

DIY katana sharpening

Sharpening a katana with your own hands is not as difficult as it might seem.

In ancient times in Japan, there were special craftsmen who sharpened water stones for weeks. There were always very few such masters, and the services were insanely expensive. Not only the cutting edge itself was processed, but the blade itself was polished - all this was part of the understanding of sharpening a katana. Today, sharpening is understood as processing only the cutting edge of the blade and bringing it to a razor-sharp state.

Contrary to popular belief, this is quite easy to do today and at home with your own hands. The standard cost of a single blade sharpening is from 1500 rubles. But what can you do yourself at home - how to sharpen the blade so as not to spoil it? Well, firstly, you need to understand why you are sharpening your katana. For chopping rice straw makiwara is one thing, for chopping let's put not too thick tree trunks - this is another thing, for chopping all sorts of meat items such as sausages - this is somewhat third.

We will carry out a real sharpening of a katana at home with our own hands.

A Chinese katana was taken as a weapon, hardness up to 52 - 54 units, monosteel, spring, nothing unusual, a fairly cheap sample.
For sharpening, a musat, a fiscars-type grinding device with rotating stones, and a bottle of oil were taken.

First, from the blade - a completely working one, with which they had just chopped in a multitude plastic bottles with the help of musat, all small roughness and burrs are removed.
Then, a fiscars-type grinding device sharpens the knurling of the cutting edge of the katana.

The result is checked on a sheet of paper. Generally one pass for normal paper cutting and razor sharp not enough and therefore the blade is lubricated with oil and again rolled to the sharpening devices.
Slowly, a katana blade can be sharpened in three to five steps.

As you can see from the video, a sharpened katana cuts paper like a razor.

Evgenia Smirnova

To send light into the depths of the human heart - this is the purpose of the artist

This question is asked by many parents of mischievous boys. All the guys play different games. role-playing games or emulate their favorite cartoon ninja characters. There are many toys, swords, laser weapons on store shelves, but it is much more pleasant for a son to receive a gift that mom or dad made with their own hands.

How to make paper katana - diagrams with photos

This process is not at all difficult, the main thing is to start. With step by step instructions everyone will figure out how to make a katana out of paper. Attract a child so that he does not get bored at this time, or prepare a pleasant surprise for him in the evening. You can make a Japanese sword with your own hands from plain paper, cardboard, or use the origami technique.

DIY paper katana using origami technique

If you are wondering how to make an origami sword out of paper, follow the instructions:

Take half of a regular landscape sheet. It is advisable to use colored paper light shades.
Prepare more similar parts of the sheets, but already dark in color - this will be the hilt and sheath of the katana. Attach the resulting blade to one, mark the length of the future handle and separate the dark-colored sheet.
Make most of the scabbard. Bend the edge that will be located at the tip inward, the opposite, on the contrary, outward.
Wrap the blade in a dark sheet, fix the sheath with glue.
The remaining small leaf is the handle. Insert its edges into the slot of the blade, wrap it. In order to understand in practice how to make a sword out of paper and please your child, it's time to glue the two halves of the finished Japanese sword.

How to make a sword out of cardboard

To prepare a pleasant surprise for your son or husband, you need to know how to make a katana out of paper. For this you will need:

cardboard (you can use ordinary boxes);
PVA glue);
knife (clerical);
glue (carpentry);
paint different colors- silver, black, red, blue.

If you still have no idea how to make a sword out of cardboard, you should know that it should be at least 60 cm long. This should be taken into account when calculating the size of parts. Toy weapons, just like in Japan, are easy to make:

From cardboard, you need to cut five rectangles 50-70 millimeters wide. When doing this, consider how the wavy stripes are located on the material. On two of them they should be located vertically, on three - horizontally. Next, you need to stack them on top of each other, starting with those with stripes in the vertical direction.
Glue the pieces together. For a stronger connection, place the workpiece under heavy object(then the sword will become dense, like a block of wood).
When the blank dries, you need to draw a drawing in the form of a weapon and cut it out of cardboard.
Lubricate the sidewalls with glue (carpentry), where the corrugation is visible. It is better to pour it in two layers, and then let it dry for about 10-12 hours.
The last step before the paper katana is ready is painting. We cover the blade with silver paint, make the handle black, paint over the invented pattern on it with the remaining colors.
If desired, coat the blade with clay and sand before painting - then the sword will be even denser.

DIY samurai weapon made of paper - Deadpool's katana

Before you make a paper sword, you need to prepare:

cardboard;
compass;
marker (black);
paper tubes (two thick, two thinner);
scissors;
braid.

The easiest way to make a katana out of paper:

We make 3 circles on cardboard, one equal to the diameter of the smallest tube, the second to the diameter of the other. The last circle will be 1-1.5 cm larger than the second. We cut off the excess cardboard, cut out a small circle with a clerical knife.
We flatten the smaller tubes, we get two rectangular plates, fasten them with tape. This will be the blade. We perform similar actions with large tubes that will serve as a sheath.
We make the tip of the blade: draw what it will be, and cut it off, glue it with tape.
We put two tubes inside the blade, giving volume.
To make the katana look like steel, we wrap the blade with foil several times, fix it with clerical glue or tape.
We make a handle: we fix the main tube on which it will hold with glue. The plate, which will serve as a tsuba, is painted with a black marker. We wrap the tube-handle with tape, fix the edges with tape. We dress the tsuba, then the handle.
We paint over the sheath over the entire surface with a bright black marker.

Evgenia Smirnova

To send light into the depths of the human heart - this is the purpose of the artist

Content

This question is asked by many parents of mischievous boys. All the guys play various role-playing games or imitate their favorite ninja characters from the animated series. There are many toys, swords, laser weapons on store shelves, but it is much more pleasant for a son to receive a gift that mom or dad made with their own hands.

How to make paper katana - diagrams with photos

This process is not at all difficult, the main thing is to start. With step-by-step instructions, everyone will figure out how to make a katana out of paper. Attract a child so that he does not get bored at this time, or prepare a pleasant surprise for him in the evening. You can make a Japanese sword with your own hands from plain paper, cardboard, or use the origami technique.

DIY paper katana using origami technique

If you are wondering how to make an origami sword out of paper, follow the instructions:

Take half of a regular landscape sheet. It is advisable to use colored paper of light shades.
Prepare more similar parts of the sheets, but already dark in color - this will be the hilt and sheath of the katana. Attach the resulting blade to one, mark the length of the future handle and separate the dark-colored sheet.
Make most of the scabbard. Bend the edge that will be located at the tip inward, the opposite, on the contrary, outward.
Wrap the blade in a dark sheet, fix the sheath with glue.
The remaining small leaf is the handle. Insert its edges into the slot of the blade, wrap it. In order to understand in practice how to make a sword out of paper and please your child, it's time to glue the two halves of the finished Japanese sword.

How to make a sword out of cardboard

To prepare a pleasant surprise for your son or husband, you need to know how to make a katana out of paper. For this you will need:

cardboard (you can use ordinary boxes);
PVA glue);
knife (clerical);
glue (carpentry);
paint of different colors - silver, black, red, blue.

From cardboard, you need to cut five rectangles 50-70 millimeters wide. When doing this, consider how the wavy stripes are located on the material. On two of them they should be located vertically, on three - horizontally. Next, you need to stack them on top of each other, starting with those with stripes in the vertical direction.
Glue the pieces together. For a stronger connection, it is worth putting the workpiece under a heavy object (then the sword will become dense, like a wooden block).
When the blank dries, you need to draw a drawing in the form of a weapon and cut it out of cardboard.
Lubricate the sidewalls with glue (carpentry), where the corrugation is visible. It is better to pour it in two layers, and then let it dry for about 10-12 hours.
The last step before the paper katana is ready is painting. We cover the blade with silver paint, make the handle black, paint over the invented pattern on it with the remaining colors.
If desired, coat the blade with clay and sand before painting - then the sword will be even denser.

DIY samurai weapon made of paper - Deadpool's katana

Before you make a paper sword, you need to prepare:

cardboard;
compass;
marker (black);
paper tubes (two thick, two thinner);
scissors;
braid.

The easiest way to make a katana out of paper:

We make 3 circles on cardboard, one equal to the diameter of the smallest tube, the second to the diameter of the other. The last circle will be 1-1.5 cm larger than the second. We cut off the excess cardboard, cut out a small circle with a clerical knife.
We flatten the smaller tubes, we get two rectangular plates, fasten them with tape. This will be the blade. We perform similar actions with large tubes that will serve as a sheath.
We make the tip of the blade: draw what it will be, and cut it off, glue it with tape.
We put two tubes inside the blade, giving volume.
To make the katana look like steel, we wrap the blade with foil several times, fix it with clerical glue or tape.
We make a handle: we fix the main tube on which it will hold with glue. The plate, which will serve as a tsuba, is painted with a black marker. We wrap the tube-handle with tape, fix the edges with tape. We dress the tsuba, then the handle.
We paint over the sheath over the entire surface with a bright black marker.

Hello dear kenshi!

Today I would like to tell you how to make a handle yourself ( tsuka) for katana ( iaito, shinken). I was prompted to prepare this review by the need to restore my old iaito, which, for a number of reasons, lacked a handle. Making a handle to order in Russia or Japan is quite expensive and takes a lot of time and resources. So I decided to save time and money, plus check out the place where the hands grow from. 😂😂😂

In this review, I will tell you how to carve a wooden handle and prepare it for winding ( tsukamaki), which I will talk about in the next review.

Any budoka dealing iaido or battodo at least once faced with a situation where the handle katana for one reason or another fell into disrepair. Usually handle katana has two flaws - tsukamaki(winding tsukaito) and the shank attachment point katana. If rewind tsukaito- this is not quite a difficult and costly task that anyone can handle, all you need is a new cord and skill. Then with a loose shank, things are more complicated. Depending on the situation (if there is no critical damage to the integrity of the handle), this problem can also be solved by mixing sawdust with wood glue and pouring it into the hole for the shank. After that, you will need to insert the shank itself into the hole with the substance so that the substance fills all the extra cavities, and pull it out before it sticks tightly. However, this method does not always work. If the handle is cracked due to a dangling shank, then for your own safety and the safety of others, such a handle must be replaced.

Well, either someone wanted to have a front or vice versa “working” handle, then this review will also be useful for making it. And how to do it right - will be discussed further. 😏

To get started, you will need katana(unassembled). Part koshirae for tsuka, namely: habaki, seppa(2 pcs.), tsuba, footy and kashira .

The last two positions are very important, since the handle is usually machined under footy and kashira certain size. The choice of material depends on this, and specifically - its dimensions.

Of the tools you will need: a vice, a clamp, a hacksaw, a set of files and sandpaper of different grain sizes, chisel(if you have a wood cutter, this will make the task easier), a knife, a diamond sharpener (you will need to sharpen the chisel in the process, because a dull chisel is a pain!), mallet, a set of rulers, a marker and epoxy glue.

For the preparation of the handle, it is best to use hardwood. You can use the "traditional" tree - magnolia or paulownia, however, they are quite difficult to find in Russia, and the prices bite. If the origin of your handle does not matter to you, then the most common and affordable option is Russian oak. There are several online stores that offer craft bars of various lengths and widths for sale. On average, prices range from ₽500.00 to ₽1,500.00 per bar. Personally, I saved money and used the remains of solid Italian oak parquet as a blank. 😎

N.B. A parquet board or any other puff wood is not suitable as a blank! And, probably, it is not worth mentioning that the tree must be dry!

So everything necessary materials and we have the tools. We proceed directly to the process of manufacturing the handle. Estimated production time is two days.

Before that, we need to determine the size of the handle. Dimensions are an individual thing. I can only offer to measure your "working" tsuka which is convenient to use.

I'll tell you with my own example. The length of my tsuka(together with footy and kashira) — 280 mm. Width at widest point (together with tsukaito) — 45 mm. Thickness (together with tsukaito) — 25 mm. Length tsukamaki(between footy and kashira) — 260 mm. Width tsukaito — 8 mm.

N.B. Here you need to be very careful! Since, depending on the material (cotton or silk) and tension, as well as the method of winding, the cord can be of different widths, and the number of steps (diamonds) that can be wound on the handle between futi and kashira, as well as space for the bottom node. So that there are no gaps and the knot “fits”, I advise you to look at how your “working” handle is wound, and estimate (taking into account the material) how long the handle will be required.

Having decided on the final dimensions of the future handle, we now need to determine the dimensions of the workpiece. Of course, the wooden handle itself is under samegawa(stingray skin) and tsukamaki much smaller sizes, which I indicated (except for the length). But, it seems to me, you should not take the workpiece completely back to back, since working with solid wood requires a certain level of skill. Therefore, in the absence of it, production flaws often occur (somewhere they planed too much). If you take the workpiece slightly larger than the dimensions of the handle assembly, then in case of errors there will be more room for maneuver.

For my handle, I took two bars as a blank, each of which is long ~300 mm, height ~50 mm, width ~25 mm(see photo above).

Now you need to choose the most even sides (this will be needed later). Collecting katana for measurements. Tightly put on the shank habaki, seppu, tsuba and then another seppu. We place the assembled structure on one of the bars (see photo below) in the center. Draw as accurately as possible with a marker. Since usually the shank katana not quite flat, wide on one side and narrow on the other, then on the other bar we do the same mirror(turning katana). This is important, when we glue the blanks, we should get a hole for a specific shank.

N.B. I circled the shank with a thick marker (see photo above), I will cut a cavity for it inside this line. It is very important that the shank fits perfectly in the cut, otherwise it will dangle. The depth of the hole is not very important, since then it can be removed with a file.

We take a chisel in our hands and begin to plan out the groove for the shank. Make sure that at one end the gutter should be deeper than at the other. Constantly check the depth and width by applying the shank. In the end, the shank should fit perfectly into the gutter and not “walk” in it.

The end of the gutter can be made 3-5 mm longer than the length of the shank. This is necessary in case you will be adjusting the futi by grinding down the top of the handle so that the shank does not stick out of it too much when assembled and you do not have to use spacers.

N.B. I specifically do not show in the photo that it is necessary to drill holes for the mekugi, since in my case I will make a new hole (mekugi-ana) during the final assembly. If you are satisfied with the existing hole for the mekugi, then before gluing it is necessary to drill a hole in each half of the future handle. Please note that on the shank it goes at an angle. Accordingly, first mark with a drill with a smaller diameter, and after gluing it will be possible to drill to size.

When both shank grooves are ready, clamp them together in a vise to check how the shank sits in this hole.

Slide the shank in and out of the workpiece. If he enters tightly enough, but at the same time without any extra effort, and if he does not walk, then you can proceed to the next stage. If it does not enter to the end, then you should still grind the excess. If the shank walks a little, then this problem can be solved by gluing the workpiece.

The next step is preparing for gluing. Earlier I indicated that it is necessary to select the most even parts of the workpiece. This will shorten our work with the file. Now you need to first grind both halves of the future handle with a file, and then with sandpaper so that they fit evenly and tightly against each other.

So, both halves are perfectly in contact with each other. Now we are ready for gluing. I had experience gluing the handle with special wood glue. However, I think epoxy is stronger and more durable, and most importantly, easier to use. I used epoxy glue in a special package (like a syringe), which, when pressed, immediately mixes the components, giving out the substance we need at the exit.

N.B. Unfortunately, according to the instructions, we were given 5 minutes for the next stage, so there was no time for photos. Remove the koshirae from the katana in advance!

We take a "syringe" with glue and squeeze out the line " U» around the liner groove. Do not squeeze too much glue into this place, as the excess will flow inside. The part remaining below the gutter is smeared with glue abundantly.

Carefully insert the shank into the half smeared with glue, then cover with the other half.

We strongly clamp this structure in a vice in the area of \u200b\u200bthe beginning of the gutter. The end of the workpiece is strongly compressed with a clamp. We have approximately 5 minutes to pull out the shank.

Now back to the moment "if your shank is walking". After we clamped the glued workpiece in a vice, some of the glue fell into the groove for the shank. This is fine! To avoid backlash in the future, do not immediately pull out the shank for at least a minute. When you feel that it is pulled out with difficulty, pull it out halfway and insert it back. Repeat this procedure several times within the allotted minutes. Now all the extra cavities are filled with epoxy glue. When it hardens, the shank play will disappear.

N.B. The shank must be cleaned immediately!

We leave our design to dry according to the instructions for 8 hours. This is quite enough for the workpiece to stick together “tightly”. 👌

So eight hours have passed. Our workpiece is securely seated and ready for further processing.

As you can see in the photo above, in fact, our workpiece is a bar. This bar needs to be given an oval shape. We have an axial line - this is the line for gluing the halves. it should be adhered to. We begin to grind all sides evenly, but not too much (see photo below).

In my experience, it will be more convenient to decide on the form if you attach footy to the top of the handle.

And circle footy marker. In further processing of the workpiece, it is worth adhering to this form.

At this stage, it is necessary to determine the direction of the handle, as well as adjust footy. Therefore, with the help of a chisel and a file, we grind the rim under footy.

After we fit footy and mount katana on the handle, it will be easier for us to decide on the direction where to remove excess wood.

Now the handle begins to emerge from the workpiece. It's time to think about the shape of the future tsuka. It can be straight from start to finish; it can be wider at the beginning and narrower at the end; it can be tapered in the middle, like an hourglass (I personally prefer this shape). Having decided on the form, we should outline this form on the workpiece. In the photo below you can see a slight bend at the top of the handle. Having done the same from below, we get the shape we need.

The handle should not be thicker (wider) than the edge footy and kashira. Since stripes will be located on the sides in the future samegawa, and then tsukamaki. All this will give us the thickness we need, so feel free to cut off all the excess.

N.B. Tsukamaki should be on par with futi and kashira!

Before moving on to finishing the handle, we need to place kashira at the end of the handle. Fitting the tip of the handle kashira. At kashira there are two holes for the final node tsukamaki. However, these openings are currently unavailable. Our job is to make them accessible. To do this, we need a round file and a little patience. Clamp the handle vertically in a vise. We put on kashira on her. We mark the place for the hole on both sides. And we make a hole, as shown in the photo below.

As a result, we should get something like this (see photo below), when kashira put on the handle.

Having collected footy and kashira, we bring our handle with a file and sandpaper to finishing. It is imperative that the sides of the handle are flat enough to accommodate samegawa.

As a result, we got tsuka according to our sizes for our katana, which is ready for finishing winding ( tsukamaki), which I will tell you in the next review.

Stay tuned! 😎

This review (text and photos) was prepared by Bragin Andrey Evgenievich, specially for Moscow kendo and iaido club Shogun.

Today we will learn how to make a wooden samurai sword katana (bokken) at home with our own hands.

How to make a wooden katana at home

The bokken is used for practicing samurai swordsmanship, and it will also be a great decoration for your room.

So let's get started. If you intend to use our product for training, then it is better to choose hardwoods for the workpiece - oak, beech, hornbeam.

On the beam, draw with a pencil an approximate outline of our future katana. Let's start with the handle - we process the place under it along the contour with a file or planer.
Next, in the same way, we give a contour to the blade, removing the extra tree to the lines that we have drawn.
Next, with a file, we give a rounded shape to the tip of the blade and smooth the corners of the handle, giving it an oval contour in the cross section, remove the bumps with sandpaper and make it smooth.
We also smooth the blade with sandpaper so that it is flat, with effort leading the sandpaper along the entire length of the blade.

It remains to make a tsuba - the guard of a samurai sword. We draw the outline of the tsuba on a sheet of plywood, cut it out with a jigsaw. The dimensions of the center hole can be determined by placing a blank guard against the handle and making marks where the edges should be. We connect the marks along the ruler with a pencil, make a hole with a drill and cut out the center of the tsuba with a jigsaw, round the edges so that they fit the handle along the radius, put the tsuba on our katana, fix it, for example, with superglue.

Photo scheme for making a katana

Making a samurai sword from wood video

So we made with our own hands in ordinary home conditions the likeness of a samurai sword made of wood. After it is done, it is advisable to impregnate it with wood resin or varnish. The video provides instructions for making this product, after watching it, even a beginner can make a bokken.

Genre of the article - Japanese weapons

Katana crafting is divided into a large number of stages and can take several months. First, steel pieces of the tamahagane grade are placed next to each other, covered with a clay solution and covered with ash. This allows you to remove slag from the steel, which during melting will be removed from the metal and will be absorbed by the clay and

ash. Next, the metal pieces are heated to combine them. After that, hammer forging takes place: the created rod is flattened and folded, then again flattened and folded again - thus, the number of layers is doubled (with 10 folding, 1024 layers are obtained, with 20 - 1048576) As a result, carbon is evenly located in the rod, which allows make sure that the strength of the blade is the same over the entire surface.

Katana manufacturing technology

Then, softer steel must be placed in the workpiece so that the blade does not break under severe dynamic loads. During forging, which takes several days, the workpiece lengthens and by joining strips with different hardness, the structure of the blade and its original shape are formed. Next, a series of liquid clay is applied - to prevent oxidation and overheating. A pattern is formed on the cutting edge - the jamon hardening line.

This line becomes visible during the polishing of the sword. Jamon is a hallmark of a master; it is possible to find out from it who created the katana. Then the sword is hardened: it is heated to a temperature of approximately 840-850 ° C and immediately cooled, as a result of which the katana takes on extraordinary hardness. In addition, during the hardening process, the blade bends on its own, while the magnitude and shape of the deflection are specific and depend on the cooling method. Then the blade is given a finished look, sharpened and polished using stones of different grain sizes. Moreover, the master strives to achieve completely flat surfaces and clear angles of the faces between the planes. Sometimes on parts of the katana that have not been hardened, a decorative engraving is created, usually on the theme of Buddhism. After polishing and decorating the handle, the katana can be used.