It went out with more of a whimper than a bang – rather fitting for the ‘year of the rat’..
Complicated by the spread of the Coronavirus, despite the heaviest discounts EVER seen on Forge Direct Chinese, the sale was a bit of a flop.
As such, we will confer with the smiths, our partners and our associates in this project and see about re-releasing some of these specials later in the year when all the Coronavirus panic has subsided.
But in the meantime we have one final special offer – an EXTENSION of the sale on the two most iconic, and most affordable, entry level Master Smith swords – the Classic Peony Jian and the Cloud Dragon Dao respectively.
Classic Peony Jian
Cloud Dragon Dao
While both of these are made by different forges (the Classic Peony is made by Master Michael Ye, while the Cloud Dragon is made by the Baojian Forge) each is an excellent example of the two main types of historical Chinese Swords and represent the pinnacle of each design accordingly,
Price for these is usually a very reasonable $599.99 – but with the 25% off sale extended until the end of February on these two, they are available for a crazy low price of just $449.99 SHIPPED
Don’t miss out, click on the images above for the full product description and to get yours before the special discounted rate disappears for good.
It is THAT time of year again – when the weather is perfect for sword making, and the Master Smiths and their assistants return from the long Chinese New Year holiday refreshed and ready to do their best work of the year..
But it is not only the best time of year to have swords made – with the Chinese New Year Mega-Sale pricing on all Forge Direct Chinese Swords – now is your chance to get the best sword at the BEST PRICE!
From today until midnight EST the 7th of February EVERY Forge Direct Sword is available at a whopping 25 to 40% off the usual price! PLUS in addition to these specials, we are also taking this opportunity to introduce 5 new swords to the line up by the Baojian Forge – starting with.
The Red Copper Ruyi Jian – a stunning folded and differentially hardened blade in sleek red copper hand made fittings. Normally $1795 but available with the Mega Sale discount of 40% making it just $1077.
Next up, also with the 40% Mega-sale discount, the powerful Two Handed Gem Dao, an ornately decorated folded steel blade, differentially hardened to cut with enough force to match a Japanese Katana. Also normally $1795 but down to $1077 with the 40% discount.
Bargain hunters will love the second Dao in the line up, the extremely affordable entry level Master Smith Dao – the $599.99 Cloud Dragon Dao, now just $449.99 all inclusive with the standard 25% CNY special discount price..
And who can go past the simple beauty of the Warring States Brass Dragon Han Sword with its clean lines and unique, viciously effective cutting and thrusting blade that was centuries ahead of every other sword of the era – priced to sell at not $1,300 but just $975 until the 7th of February..
And last but certainly not least, how about the ornately decorated Spring Flower Yi-Dao, one of those extremely popular Tang Dynasty swords that were exported to Japan and Korea and were the very blueprint upon which the first Katana were based upon. Truly a sword of special historical significance and a bargain down from $1350 to $1012.50 for the sales duration.
Naturally this is just the tip of the iceberg – now there is a record number of Chinese swords, daggers and even a boar killing spear available at Forge Direct Chinese, a total of 30 other designs to consider!
But whatever you do, don’t miss out. This special deal is an annual event, and if you miss it, you will have a long wait until these kind of prices come around again..
Plus Some Sneak Peaks at what is planned for the first couple of months…
Hey everyone,
Thanks for bearing with us while we took some time off during the holidays. As of today we are officially back to work, though personally I am still in transit back and there might be some minor delays with personal correspondence until the end of the week as there is a ton of stuff to catch up with, and as you will see in this blog post, a ton of new projects and ideas that need to be addressed..
So in the meantime, we are pleased to advise that the 5% coupon code will remain active until the 17th of January!
Simply click the coupon code to automatically add it to any and all products in your cart.
CONDITIONS: Please note that this coupon MUST be used at the time of purchase to qualify. It cannot be retroactively applied to an order, so please ensure you double check it has been applied BEFORE you pay for your order. The coupon code will become inactive at midnight the 17th of January 2020.
What is planned for Jan-Feb 2020..
A sneak peak…
First off, January is the lunar new year – and so as it has become something of a tradition over the previous years, stay tuned for the CHINESE NEW YEAR MEGA-SALE on Forge Direct Chinese..
But another HUGE new project planned that will dominate the early part of 2020 (and continue to expand and grow over the course of the whole year) is related to my current trip to Japan – our first offering of genuine ANTIQUE and GENDAITO Nihonto (Katana made in Japan!).
More on this will be released on the blog, social media and our various newsletters over the course of the coming days and weeks, but in the meantme, here are a few sneak previews..
First off, the Japanese Sword Smith who has made all of this possible as we took a stroll around the Masumida-jinja Shrine in Aichi province, a relatively short distance from his forge on the outskirts of Seki City.
Yours truly inspecting one of the many Nihonto antique swords that we will be making availble to collectors and enthuisiasts over the following weeks right here at the SBG sword store (and yes, it is hard to disguise my feeling of AWE looking at these blades, almost all of which are several hundred years old..)
And just a sneak peak at two of the actual antiques that we will be offering at the most reasonable price possible.. (though naturally, being the real deal – they will be more than most swords we usually offer at SBG, but as always, sold with the fairest and best margins we can muster to give collectors the world over a fighting chance to own one).
Naturally this ‘working holiday’ was extremely educational, and I will be doing my best to share what I learned with all of you as many questions I had about Japanese swords were clarified, and I have necer seen or handled as many genuine antiques at one time as I have during this incredibly eye opening trip.
So I hope that you will all bear with me over the coming days as I catch up and prepare to share everything I have learned and everything that we can offer you!
If you have been thinking about buying one of the beautiful traditional Chinese swords from Forge Direct, you may wish to hold off a little bit..
During Chinese New Year, the entire country pretty much grinds to a halt for a one full month – no shipping, no sword production – nothing. But when they come back from the long holiday, the Master Smiths come back re-energized, the weather is perfect for sword making – AND it’s during this time we collate as many orders for them as possible by negotiating and offering steep discounts (typically around 25%!) on each and every sword in Forge Direct Chinese.
But with the new Baojian forge now on board, even MORE swords will be joining the line up. So here is a sneak preview of some of the swords that may well be joining the line up for the mega-sale..
A really thick bladed Ming Dynasty DaoAnother Dao, this one a classic willow leaf styleWarring States Period Two Handed SwordA truly beautiful Kiangxi Horse Killing DaoA beautiful example of a Octagonal blade profile late period JianA highly ornate Tang DaoA much simpler, more common Tang DaoAnother beautiful Ming Dynasty JianOne of the meanest, coolest looking Warring States swords I have seen.. (this one is my personal favorite)And a simple looking but beautiful two hander
Hope this whets your appetite for what is to come..! In the meantime, we still have a few more days left on the Yue Maiden Sword with a massive 50% discount (expires on the 18th) – so unless it’s the Yue maiden calling you (as this is the best price it will EVER be listed for) – then keep your eye’s open for the mega-sale starting in mid to late January 2020.
Last Call: 50% discount on the Yue Maiden
The Yue Maiden – Down from $900 to $450 – but only for two more days..
A beautiful sword with a beautiful, if fanciful backstory, I was personally surprised that when we offered the Yue Maiden Sword by the Baojian Forge at a 25% discount we had no takers..
Click on the pics for higher resolution images.
(More high resolution pics available here in a Facebook Album)
So after talking it over with the forge, we decided to offer it at the absolute best price possible to get the word out about this stunning design and the Forge in general (basically, to use a marketing term, as a ‘loss leader’ – we don’t make any money from it, but we get the word out about the quality of these swords and the forge in general).
A Fascinating Backstory
The Yue Maiden is a famous character from Chinese Wuxia – a genre of storytelling with martial arts heros, the most well known in the West perhaps the movie ‘Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon’.
Originally penned by Hong Kong by Louis Cha for the Ming Pao Evening Supplement, the tale was first serialized in the 1970s and was later adapted into a movie in 1986 called “Super Swordslady”.
https://youtu.be/x0I9Vbgy4Mo
Set during the wars between the rival Kingdoms of Yue and Wu over 2500 years ago, the central character Aqing is a seemingly simple Shepard herder who has a curious secret friend, a mysterious white Gibbon, who in the course of play fighting and sparring with her, teaches her sword fighting skills above and beyond a mere mortal..
Discovered by a loyal advisor to the King of Yue, and learning of her skills, she recruits him to train the trainers – and pass on her secrets to the Yue army – and with her sword fighting methods now in their arsenal, the Yue go on to win many a victory against the Wu Kingdom.
But as with all good stories, there is a twist – the young Aqing falls in love with the royal advisor, and becomes insanely jealous when she discovers he is married to the most beautiful woman in all of China, Xi Shi (pictured left), who is rescued and re-united with the advisor after a recent victory against the Wu who had been keeping her prisoner.
Furious, the ‘Super Swordlady’ confronts the helpless young woman – thrusting her blade towards her, but catching herself before delivering the fatal blow..
Yet her internal energy was such that it continued to travel through the sword and caused the advisors beautiful wife to recoil in pain, but upon her face an expression “so beautiful that it will take away the soul of any man who looks upon her” – and Aqing is left sad and alone, yet at the same time, a celebrated hero famous among her people but heartbroken until the end of her days..
While the 1970s version of the story is the most well known, it is actually much older – where she is known not as Aqing but as Yuenü, Aliao and simply the maiden of the Southern Forest.
In the mythological version, she was first trained in swordmanship and archery by her father – but again encounters the white gibbon, this time in the form on an old man, who teaches her the deepest secrets of swordsmanship by combining Yin and Yang to produce Chi energy that no mortal fighter is able to contend with..
With a beautiful blade, intriguing backstory and now a truly amazing price – let’s see if anyone changes their mind about this blade.. The special price of $450 is available until the 18th of December. For all the details, click below:
