Ronin Katana Dojo Pro Model #2 (Ochou)

Steel	1060 Carbon Steel
Weight	2lbs 9oz
Point of Balance	5.0"
Price Range	US$249 to $275

There is nothing fancy about the Dojo Pro Katana series. They are in essence pure functionality - but with an attention to detail on things that make a real difference - an attention to detail that is rarely seen at the sub US$300 price point (and indeed, is often lacking on swords twice this price!).

In this particular case, we will be taking a close look at model number 2, the Ochou (butterfly) Katana - though as the only differences between the six models of this series are in appearance, this review holds true to the other five models as well.

THE FITTINGS

The tsuka of the Dojo Pro Katana is one of the best I have seen, period!

Not only is it properly SHAPED to be as comfortable as ergonomic as possible, but it is tightly wrapped with real SILK ito. And I mean TIGHTLY wrapped, so tight that it barely moves - indeed, so tight that the diamonds are slightly uneven - but the philosophy behind Ronin is that it is better to have a sword with super tight ito that looks slightly uneven at the start than nice and even at the start and all over the floor a few hours of cutting later!

I should also mention that the Ito is wrapped in the traditional ALTERNATING style (in other words, they crisscross over themselves) which further reinforces the entire structure and helps prevent against unravelling or shifting (probably around about 90% of swords in this price range are not alternating, which is why many of them start to become loose and eventually need a rewrap)

Naturally as with almost all swords at this price range these days, it features real same (Ray skin) and a nice brass menuki (handle ornaments) which in this case is a bit hard to make out that looks like some kind of lion, or something similar to that...

Another thing that sets these swords apart from the competition is the use of iron in the fuchi and kashira, in other words the end caps that reinforce the tsuka assembly.

There are quite a few swords that use iron for the tsuba (hand guard) that tend to use a cheap alloy for the Fuchi and Kashira. Most of the time, this is no problem - however traditionalists insist that the Fuchi and Kashira should be made of brass at a minimum or iron, with iron being the ideal..

Essentially, when properly mounted, the use of iron issue is that even under the stresses of heavy cutting the tsuka will be able to withstand the impacts - and it's these kind of things that are basically invisible to the untrained eye, you considered essential to the professional, that you find the fine what the Ronin dojo Pro swords are all about...

Naturally, both the Fuchi and Kashira are very firmly mounted in place, and even after months of continuous use, are as tight as the day they first arrived.

Now as mentioned earlier the tsuba is made of solid iron (you can test all of these fittings yourself with a magnet, if the magnet sticks - it's iron) and in the case of this particular model is a Shikashi (cutout style) round tsuba that is an exact copy of an Edo era antique.

The tsuba is of course extremely solid, unlike alloy tsuba which can rather easily break (especially the more delicate looking ones).

Also note the use of high-quality brass seppa (spacers) instead of the cheap 'cog style' couple ones.

On the other side, you can see the brass habaki - and should note that is a much higher quality blade collar than what you normally see at this price point, but just as importantly, there are no gaps and is very carefully aligned.

When you had all of these things together you begin to see the attention to detail that I was talking about. All of the fittings are very high quality, and all of them combined means that the handle of the sword is easily the best I've seen on any sword under $300 price point.

This was no accident - as Ronin katana were insistent to the forge that these features are critical.

But of course as a great blade is let down by a poorly made handle, a great handle is not much without a great blade. And as you’ve had a sneak peak at the blade already, let's take a closer look..

THE BLADE

At first glance, the blade of the dojo Pro Katana looks simple. Perhaps overly simple.

It doesn't have a Hamon because it's a 1060 carbon steel monotempered cutter - and unlike most other monotempered cutters, they don't even bother with a fake one..

And I know some people like a false hamon, but personally I like its honesty. It's not pretending to be something it's not, and I can respect that.

But what is interesting is that in some of these sword (and it is complete luck of the draw) have what is called a 'ghost hamon', something that looks like a very faint hamon line, but is not really a true hamon.

It doesn't effect the swords one way or another structurally (you can see Marc Ridgeways tests where he used one with ghost hamon and one without and found no difference in performance or durability).

This one, like most of them, didn't.

What I REALLY respect about these blades is that they feel, for want of a better word, 'meaty' – and that is no accident either, as they are what are known as 'Dotanuki blades' – heavy duty and extremely durable 'Torso Cleavers' that were greatly feared for their terrifying cutting power.

As you can see, the blades have significant 'hira niku' (blade meat) – and are very thick and designed to cleave and slice heavy targets (and were, historically, used against ARMORED opponents with enough power to slice a man clean in half!) but also extremely sharp and well honed out of the box.

What's interesting is though that while these swords are certainly not ballerinas, they are definitely not clumsy. Indeed, I can't feel anything much different than any other solid bodied blade Katana when they are in action, except a subtle, more forceful feeling slice.

In short, it really feels like you would NOT want to get in front of this sword when it comes down. But despite this, weighing in at 2lbs 9oz with a point of balance around 5" from the tsuba, its far from unwieldy.

It comes down hard and fast, but flows very naturally from one move to the next.

The ONLY thing I can fault with these blades is that the finish is a little rough here and there. Nothing unacceptable, but just a little bit on the 'gritty'. However, as these are hand polished and are designed to be frequent use cutters, I find it is better to have a satiny finish than a mirror polish as you can’t see any of the inevitable scratches on it.

THE SAYA

You'd think will everything else being such high quality, the saya would be an afterthought. But you'd be wrong..

True enough, the saya of this particular model is fairly standard (especially compared to some of the other models in this series) with a simple, uniform black laquer. But unlike most other saya in this price range, it features real buffalo horn reinforcements to the mouth and the end cap, as well as the kuigata (knob where the sageo cord goes through) and fits the blade very nicely with no rattling.

The sageo cord itself is great quality – the kind of hard wearing thick sageo demanded by martial artists to tie the saya to a belt instead of the ususal shoelacey stuff.

My only complaint is that there seems to be some kind of waxy residue inside the saya that sometimes appears on the blade when it is drawn, but can be easily wiped off.

TEST CUTTING

Now I had this sword for several months before I did this review, getting used to it and using it to cut standard targets like tatami mats and water filled bottles and everything I put in front of it was easily separated into two clean halves with no dulling of the durable 1060 carbon steel blade.

But for this review, I decided it was necessary to test it out on as many different valid targets as possible. And while I liked the sword a lot for all of the reasons provided above, I LOVED it when I realized exactly what it could do..

For the first serious tests, I took the blade down to a grove of wild bamboo to do a little pruning.

Well, maybe a LOT of pruning - because after around half an hour of cutting around 100 or so lengths of fresh bamboo – not only were the cuts consistently VERY clean, but the edge showed no sign of dulling.

Here's a few highlights from that cutting session – note how easily it cuts multiple bamboo rods in one sweep:

VIDEO: Testing on Bamboo (and more)

But also note that final cut on the 5" sapling!

I've NEVER seen a Katana cut through a branch as thick as this one in one go, and these are TOUGH trees too (if you count the rings, it seems this tree is at least 6 or 7 years old).

This was impressive enough, and I could have easily have left it at that.

But curiosity had the better of me - I'd always found that these blades are real tatami killers. The combination of the Dotanuki style geometry, the swords optimized weight and balance and its hard wearing, frighteningly sharp edge meant that you could cut tatami mats until the cows come home without need for rehoning.

But how many mats could it slice through in one hit? After all, these are 'torso cutters' supposedly capable of cleaving an armored man clean in half with a single slice.

So to simulate this, I prepared the largest Tatami target I have cut to date - three FULL mats!

Now I can't be certain how closely this represents a human torso. But I can say that it would almost certainly be slightly tougher than a human neck (as a single full mat is supposedly as hard to cut as a naked human arm).

What I can say is - well, check the video and see for yourself..!

VIDEO: Testing on Tatami (1/2 mat and triple mat)

When you look at the mat and compare it to the sword, it is hard to comprehend how it just sails on through like it does without the tatami bunching up and slowing it down..

But clearly, it does – and by the end of these tests, I had a new found respect for this Katana.

This is a blade that you would most DEFINITELY want to take into battle!

CONCLUSION

To say I am impressed with what Ronin Katana has done with their Dojo Pro line of swords is a serious understatement.

When it comes to the quality of the components, they tick all the boxes – REGARDLESS of price point. The only thing I can fault is that the silk ito is so tight that it is not perfect diamonds.

And concerning the blade, its tough, its sharp, its exceptionally hard wearing and it CUTS like a heavyweight. Sure, the polish could be a little better, but does this bother me? Hardly!

I honestly have not been this impressed in a sword for a long time.

As far as I am concerned, Ronin Katana’s Dojo Pro swords set the standard for what a solid sub $300 Katana should be and are easily the best all round sub $300 cutters on the market today.

PROS

• High quality fittings with no shortcuts

• Iron Fuchi, Kashira and Tsuba

• Real Silk ito wrapped exceptionally tight and in the traditional alternating style

• Extremely durable and hard wearing blade

• AMAZING cutting power

• High quality saya with buffalo horn reinforcements and wearable sageo

• Will suit even the most demanding practitioners

CONS

• Ito diamonds are so tight they are not perfectly even

• Blade polish is a bit rough in places

• Some waxy residue in the saya

WHERE TO BUY

These swords are available from Chris at Ronin Katana for US$275 - which for swords of this quality with no shortcuts and every feature you could ask for in a solid dojo grade sword, is excellent value as it is.. But we are proud to offer them right here at the SBG Sword Store for just $264.99 with FREE shipping in the USA!