For the instructors here: what swords do you usually have your students use for battoh-waza and for tameshigiri practices, and at taikai? Which do you personally use? Which longswords and shortswords do you prefer most?
You tested your diarrhea with 440 grade steel? I won't bother asking anything more. Although the number's not that badly off. 440 pieces is what trolls on this forum should be in. Now vanish like a ninja.
Since when do we compete in Taikai? Unfortunately, most members of arts do not train sufficiently enough in sword arts to cut enough or efficiently for competition. But in regards to the topic, the only time we cut is when my father and I bring in shinken and tatami to cut.
Ok can you be a bit more specific in your questions. Are you asking which brand of shinken etc ? And when you ask "which longswords and shortswords" again is this a brand question? I have a number of contemporary shinken and steel iaito from manufacturers outside of Japan and found them for be good cutters for their money.
If you got the fact that by me saying 440 as a joke (hence the smiley face) you would have known that I was playing on words. obviously you did not get it. Back to sarcasm lesson 101 for you.
Well, I left it vague in that regard so I could hear all the instructors' personal thoughts on the matter. As far as brands or specific models (or, for that matter, specific swordsmiths) go, I'd certainly be interested (brands/models of shinken or iaito that you use, and what you recommend to your students). Alternately, if any of all y'all view the question more of a sword-type thing (the leader of the Boojies, if I remember correctly, has in the past attempted to resurrect and teach techniques using the tachi and tsurugi, while the Jinenkan lead instructor appears to practice some sort of nodachi waza), or what your favorite sword dimensions were, or whatever else. Regrettably, you may have. I've apparently got a penchant for writing threads which, despite having no invectives nor any inflammatory subject matter, seem to rapidly get spammed by people who don't always have much in the way of good stuff to offer the forum. Don't know. All I can say is that in my experience, work with metal swords (especially tameshigiri) wasn't common, but hardly rare. I've found it to be a seminar thing, not a everyday class thing. Never done or seen cutting in competition, no. I've generally found tameshigiri or iai waza to be done at seminars, however--that's not remotely out of the ordinary. And back to the remedial class in Relevance for you. I was hoping for serious answers from instructors. There's more than enough crap information out there.
Spooky said:- Assuming by "batto" you mean actual cutting practice using shinken etc, then my class doesn't practice it at all. However, as an individual, I practice approximately twice a month.
Ahh! Funny enough, we spent a whole class on it just last week. As a rule though we use bokken with plastic saya. Students who can demonstrate a certain level of competence are allowed to use iaito/mogito if they own them (only three of us do). I'm the only one who owns a shinken but I never use it for iai practice because I recognise my limits and I'm not prepared to lose fingers prematurely for the sake of realistic training.
Me personally? I use my Kukishin Ryu iaito, bought from the Honbu in 2001. One of my students (Rhian) also has one. Sarah uses a very nice iaito which she bought in London a few years back, from the Japan Centre when they used to stock imported budo equipment. I forget the name though, sorry.
Did I mention I have a Kukishin Ryu iaito from the Honbu at all? Looking back, I wish I'd bought the others while I had the chance but too late now. Oh well.
Interesting; I didn't know that they sold their own weapons. Do they sell both the long and short iaito? What do you usually recommend to your students? I don't know how many dojos do that or when they do. I can verify that several do, however, and it is the instructors of those who do whose thoughts I am hoping to hear here.