Sharpening and polishing sword blades is a centuries-old tradition in Japan and the sharpness of a sword was of course vital to the samurai's survival.
Traditional Japanese polishing and sharpening of a sword blade
The corresponding processing of sword blades is a specialised profession in Japan. The Togishi, the Japanese master polisher, works on sword blades in an inimitable way after years of training and experience. When he takes on a blade, a process lasting several weeks begins in which the blade is continuously treated. The blade is repeatedly ground and polished with different grits until the desired result is achieved and the blade is visually perfect.
The challenge here is that no two Japanese blades are exactly the same and a high degree of experience and skill is required to work each blade correctly.
Sharpening the blade is only one part of the overall polishing process.
Grind high-quality blades yourself?
If you own a high-quality Japanese blade, a historical original or similar, you should only ever have it worked on by a suitably trained specialist as mentioned above. The price for this can be several thousand euros, but it is worth it if the blade has a corresponding value.
Sharpening blunt decorative swords?
If you have a purely decorative sword, you should not sharpen the blade. A decorative katana does not need a sharp blade. In addition, the design of a purely decorative sword ensures that you cannot cut anything with it without damaging the sword.
If you're not sure whether your samurai sword is a purely decorative piece, you can find a few points of reference in our article on Decorative katana. An important point would be if the sword does not have a Mekugi owns. Then it is most probably a decorative object.
Sharpening the katana yourself for practical use
Nowadays, samurai swords are relatively inexpensive for practical use. However, after a few cutting exercises, blades no longer have the sharpness they had at the beginning.
Getting such blades sharp again is a real challenge:
Professional refurbishment to Japanese standards costs many times the price of a new sword and is therefore out of the question.
If you want to do the sharpening yourself, you first need the appropriate whetstones. During the first attempts at sharpening, the blade surface is usually damaged or the blade is not sharpened to a suitable angle, which can irreparably damage the cutting edge during the next cutting exercises.
In addition, the surface of the blade is often scratched during the first attempts, which can only be repaired with an enormous amount of time.
Our sword grinding service
For all those who do not want to do it themselves, we offer an inexpensive sharpening service for modern sword blades from series production. Your sword will be processed and you will receive it back from us sharpened. A cutting phase is worked into the blade to simplify future sharpening.
The service only refers to sharpening the blade. There is no polishing or other surface treatment.
