Why a Katana is Considered to be the Best Sword
The katana is popularly known globally as an excellent sword with an unmatched level of versatility and strength.
The Katanas have their origin in feudal Japan and it has been around for many years. Since that time, the katana has increasingly become more popular despite the emergence of other swords.
Now, you may be wondering why many people like the katana sword. This page explains why a katana is considered to be the best sword.
The cutting edge
You should note that the katana has the perfect blade length, meaning it’s not usually too short or too long. The moderate length of this sword allowed the samurai warriors to wield it easily and even utilize it for various scenarios.
The key difference between a katana sword and other Japanese swords is the way the samurai warriors wore them. The katana is unique as it was the only sword that the Japanese warriors wore with the cutting edge up.
They realized that wearing this sword in this way made sheathing and unsheathing easier.
The production process
It was methodical and painstakingly hard to produce a traditional Japanese katana. You can find some mass-produced and cheap swords that are rolled out of the factories in a few hours, but it takes a few months to produce a traditional katana sword.
Some studies suggest that it takes an average of about six months to make a single katana.
One of the reasons why a traditional Japanese katana is considered to be the world’s best sword is simply because they are forged utilizing differential heat treatment.
This process involves heating and cooling the spine of the sword and edge at different rates. As a result of this, it creates a more flexible spine and stronger edge.
That said, the traditional Japanese katana usually has the right composition of metals. In the past, the bladesmithing craft in Japan swords and other weapons with blades were made with basic low-carbon steel.
But swordsmiths later discovered that using carbon to their blades led to a stronger blade. As a result, this gave rise to Tamahagane steel, which is a high-carbon steel that was utilized to produce traditional Japanese swords, such as a katana sword.
It’s worth mentioning that the katana has been a famous samurai sword for many years. This is why it’s commonly called a samurai sword.
You can easily recognize a katana sword by its distinctive appearance, which is a single-edged and curved blade that comes with a long grip to allow your hands to hold it.
There is no specific size for this sword, but most of the katanas tend to have a length that is between 60 and 80 cm.
As explained earlier, the katana used to be worn with its edge facing upwards to allow a swordsman to draw and cut their target in two pieces with one stroke.