FAQ Do you sharpen swords made by other manufacturers? I do offer to sharpen swords provided they are at least properly made reproductions. For example, stainless steel movie swords are not accepted. What kind of steel is used? For most European blades I use 250A53, a tough medium carbon spring steel. For special western blades I will sometimes use O1 upon request. Non folded Japanese blades are made of 1055 and 1070 medium carbon steel. The special patternwelded migration era and viking age blades as well as folded Japanese type blades are made of steel that I refine myself and then combine to produce the required carbon content. Can guards and pommels be made to look like authentic period pieces regarding the subtle inclusions often seen in old iron? Some people prefer the appearance of slightly contaminated wrought iron to that of perfectly clean and homogenous mild steel. I do manufacture my own iron stock for those special cases to give fittings a more period look. Can you restore damaged swords by other manufacturers? I do receive swords in need of repair once in a while, mostly for grip replacement or bent tangs etc.. This I will offer to do provided the sword is not "made in ___" stainless steel or such. Will you make a scabbard for my sword even if the sword was made by someone else? Yes I will make a scabbard for you. Will you be able to make cheap iron swords for my children at low affordable price? Unfortunately the workload and time needed to finish other projects I can not afford to spend time on iron toys. Besides, it's not safe to have children running around with iron clubs. So in short, no. Do you restore antique swords? It really depends on the sword in question, but most of the time I'll be happy to help if pictures of the "patient" can be provided or enough background information as to the state it's in. I do not offer any restoration on actual Nihonto though as I'm not qualified in that area. Do you sell bare European blades? Most of the time no, but upon special request I will be able to supply a bare blade. If I want a blade rehilted, will you make new hilt furniture for a rapier etc.? Yes. What fuel is used in the forge? Charcoal is used mostly when forging blades and refining and folding steel as it provides a clean environment without sulphur and phosphorus contamination. When working on pommels, guards etc. anthracite is normally used. Where do I find the prices of the swords? A guide regarding pricing can be found on the Price Guide page Why the long waiting period for the folded Japanese styled blades? Besides the fact that it takes time to refine each billet (for the average long blade I must refine and later combine four billets) not all blades survive the quench. This means that for each blade ordered I might make up to three actual blades at a time from which the best will be selected. Can I choose the type of grain and hamon for my sword? Regarding hamon, the non-folded blades can be made with the hamon of your choice. As for the folded blades, there are a few choices but due to the fact that not all hamon and grain types are compatible (I normally work with itame and masame or the two combined and the hamon is normally chosen to complement the grain. Eg. for masame grained blades I will use suguba with ashi or hoso-suguba, with itame I will use choji and midare etc.) Tanto and large kogatana blades allow for a lot more play regarding choice and in those cases even ayasugi and mokume and hitatsura can be employed depending on your choice. Will you be able to make me a billet from which I can forge my own blade? I do manufacture billets for people who want to forge their own blades. This includes prefabricated honsanmai and kobuse blocks with the iron rod still attached.