Just because a spring steel katana is sharp, don’t assume it’s going to cut well. Novices have been known to pick up what is actually an excellent sword, swing it at a target, have the edge bind or deflect, and toss the sword away in frustration.
As in all cases in life, it’s the person holding the tool who is at fault here, not the tool itself.
The bottom line is that there is a right way to swing a sword, and there are many wrong ways. This post contains 4 helpful tips that should have you slicing deeper through your targets, with less sticking, binding, and hand-shock.
Kill the Death Grip
Far too many people that pick up a sword, at least on the first go around, hold onto that thing for dear life.
And, to be fair, you should have a solid grip on the tsuka, but you don’t need to have it in a death grip.
Think of it like you’re holding a paintbrush, or a pen, or a fine instrument that requires more precise than brute strength. That’s what this is. Being more fluid in your grip will improve control.
Stagger Your Grip
Another thing you do not want is to have both hands bunched up together on the tsuka, whether you are up near the tsuba or near the end of the grip.
Your hands should have some significant space between them, because that is what creates the leverage that provides for maximal control.
Ideally, you should have your dominant hand up towards the tsuba, with your non-dominant hand further down towards the end of the tsuka.
Staggering your grips is what will allow you to take the greatest control over the point of the sword as well as the arc of the swing.
Focus on Edge Alignment
You’re also going to want to take pains to ensure that the edge strikes the target evenly, and in a straight line.
Even a slight angle of deflection might result in a glancing blow, or could cause the blade to stick or bind in the target. Contacting at an angle instead of perfectly edge-on can also damage the edge.
Worse, it could cause the blade to turn, resulting in the flat of the blade striking the target. This can cause serious damage to a sword – and though a spring steel katana is not likely to bend, this is still not something you want to do.
Master the Draw Cut
Lastly, and by far more importantly, you need to master the draw cut. The basic move here is to draw the edge through the target as you contact it rather than just impacting it with a small segment of the edge. That is highly inefficient.
Whether you swing from overhead, at an angle, or laterally, you want to draw the edge through the target by pulling your elbows in as the blade passes through it. You will notice that you can cut much more efficiently and pass cleanly through bigger, denser targets when you do so – rather than just batting the target around.
Where to Get a Spring Steel Katana?
Put together the 4 tips in this article and you should be cutting more effectively with your katana in no time. Just try it for yourself.
Now, if you’re here for a spring steel katana, or some other battle-ready Japanese sword like a real samurai sword, there is only one solid place to get it, and that is online at True Swords.
Visit their website for more information. You’ll find everything you wanted to know about swords, along with a ton of battle-ready, real sword patterns, on their website.
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