Wielding a Nodachi

by Joel Rivera
(United States)

QUESTION: Have you ever wielded a nodachi before? The nodachi is much longer than an o-katana, having a blade length that could be around 50 inches. I wonder would be the exact weight of an amazing sword like that.

ANSWER: The sheer size of a 50" blade certainly makes wielding them a challenge. But surprisingly, most weigh around 4lbs - which certainly isn't as heavy as you would expect...

They are very cumbersome though (after all, they were a battlefield weapon, designed to be used primarily against mounted warriors - and their horses), though they are sometimes used to build additional strength in training so that when using a regular Katana, it feels like a toothpick... ;-)

Definitely very impressive swords though!

- Paul