PK - Hanwei's Latest Generation of Practical Katana

In this review of Hanwei's new line of PK (Practical Katana) by a man who certainly knows a thing or two about Japanese swords, Marc Ridgeway (yes, the infamous M.K. Ridgeway who brought the Masahiro Bamboo Katana to the attention of production Katana enthusiasts all over the world), you'll find that we are not just taking a look at the latest developments in this line of swords...

This review goes a lot further than that.

Because it's not only a review, it's also a beginners introduction to the often baffling array of Japanese sword terminology surrounding the Katana. Not to mention a real resource for anyone wishing to learn how to customize a blade on a shoestring budget...

So sit back and enjoy this informative and educational review about this new line of literally razor sharp Katana by Paul Chen of the Hanwei Forge.

Practical Elite Katana

The new version Practical Elite Katana by Hanwei

One of the great Cinderella stories of recent sword releases is Hanwei, specifically the practical series. Recent competion from other affordable, functional swords caused some of the industry giants to back up and reassess. Most were left with two choices...drop prices, or step it up.

Hanwei chose to step it up.

The old version of the PK was a sliver of a blade, with a nonremovable tsuka. This was bad news for any who wish to dress up the sword. Hanwei released their new line of swords last year, which included a reworked PK, with a better polish, a nice sugata (shape), gunome hamon and a removable tsuka.

The PK is pictured here, as I recieved it, it is the third sword down, pictured with two Masahiro Bamboo and a Hanwei Wind and Thunder.

TOP TO BOTTOM: Two (discontinued) Masahiro Bamboo, The New Practical Katana Elite, Wind and Thunder

For a comparison of the the new PK with the old PK check out this page on Mike Femal Sensei's site... http://nihonzashi.com/ComparePracticals.htm

Here's the stats:

AESTHETICS

The sugata (blade shape) is shinogi zukuri (the most common katana shape) with chu kissaki (medium sized tip).

Fuchigashira (handle fittings) are plain steel, and the tsuba (hand guard) is a plain maru gata (round) with kogatana ana (holes for fitting companion knives). All are nicely blackened.

The classic PK Tsuba - function over form

The kashira is detracted from by the fake shitodome (the bit where the handle wrap slips into the end cap) cast into it.

The tsuka ito (handle wrap) is a synthetic suede and the samegawa (rayskin) is synthetic as well. Although the diamonds are too wide, the maki (wrap) is tight and even, however for most more experienced sword users, this tsukagawa must go.

Fortunately the tsuka is now removable to make the new PK an easy platform for customization. Mine was immediately re-done...and the result is a beautiful and personalized sword. More on this later.

"The polish is impeccable..."

With a high mirror shine on the shinogi-ji (flat part of the blade near the spine), a great satin finish on the ji (part of the blade closest to the edge) that really brings out the natural grain of the steel, and a nicely presented hamon (wavy temper line).

HANDLING CHARACTERISTICS

At 2.3 lbs with a balance point of 4.5 inches, this is the quickest, best handling production sword I've seen.

It flows effortlessly through kata, and direction and momentum changes are fluid.

Simply put, this sword handles more like nihonto than any production sword I've held (yes heresy, I know).

CUTTING AND DURABILITY

This sword has a wide mihaba and thin kasane (see illustration). This is commonly known as Kotetsu geometry, and is very popular for cutting swords.

Combining this geometry with an absense of hira-niku ('meat') makes this a very sharp sword indeed.

"In fact, this sword is the sharpest thing I've ever owned, short of a razor blade. Just stupid, stupid sharp..."

This comes with a price, however. Sharp = thin, and thin = fragile. This sword sails through soft targets.

An empty (dry) freestanding water bottle cut side to side is launched by most swords, with the PK elite, it falls softly into two pieces.

One has to be very careful as to ones targets, however. There are two dings, and two chips in my blade from bottle mouths.

Ridiculously sharp, and perfect for traditional cutting of tatami - but the sharpness makes it vulnerable to chipping on very hard targets such as thick plastic, etc.

This sword is simply too sharp to handle any abuse...

CONCLUSION

The PK is extremely upgraded from it's previous version. It is well made, attractive and functional, and should serve well as either a display sword or a light cutting sword.

The PK is also a great base for customization. I mentioned earlier I would elaborate on that.

Kult of Athena sells the PK here, for the low price of $159.99.

Tsuka-ito can be found on ebay , or at various sites like shadowofleaves.com. Samegawa can also be found there, at Fred Lohman's site, and at implora.com. Scraps can often be purchased at implora for incredible prices: http://implora.com/searchpelt.asp

You should be able to purchase the same and ito to rewrap your tsuka for $50 -$70 . With a little work, you can have a truly unique and attractive sword for under $300.

There are several referances for doing tsukamaki, and anyone can succeed with a little practice.

One tutorial is here
http://www.blacksmithing.org/nihonto/

The all time classic is Thomas Buck's
http://pages.prodigy.net/tlbuck/tsuka/tsuka.htm

The very best and comprehensive tutorial I've ever seen is from a PDF file, which my friend Tommy Gilliam nicely transferred here: http://gilliamgraphics.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=44

Now if you still don't feel; capable, for a little more money, you can have someone do it for you.

Some of the pros are very costly with extremely long wait times, but there are craftsmen offering GREAT service at GREAT prices with quick turnaround time; you just have to know where to look.

I am pleased to recommend three:

Aaron Justice:
http://homepage.mac.com/aaronjustice/Menu10.html

Paul Loatman:
http://www.geocities.com/sanbonsugicustoms/TsukaMaki.html

Tommy Gilliam:
http://okinawaoutpost.com/

For $260 - $350 you can have a nice, personalized sword that looks like a much more expensive one.

Thanks for reading.

PROS

• Traditional Differentially hardened blade

• Extremely high level of polish

• RAZOR sharp (exceptional for cutting soft targets)

• Exceptional Handling characteristics - very light and fast

• Great platform for customization

• Cheap looking plastic imitation rayskin

• Unattractive synthetic suede ito wrap with overly large diamonds

• The blade is too sharp for its own good and chips relatively easily on non-standard targets

WHERE TO BUY

As mentioned by Mark in the review, the new Practical Elite Katana is available here at Kult of Athena for US$159.99 - the absolute lowest price on the internet.

So if a fast handling, 3' razor blade of a Katana is something you desire (with its attendent strengths and weaknesses) - the Practical Elite would be right up your alley...!