Right now we have about a month to go before batch 41 of the SBG Custom Katana is due. And the good news is that the forge has ALMOST completed this batch and (fingers crossed) if everything goes smoothly completing the last few swords and customs does not mess us around too much this time, there is a reasonable chance that this time we may be on track for delivery on or even slightly ahead of schedule.. (though I may regret saying that! As I said, fingers crossed).

I have just sent out an email update to all the people who are waiting on this batch, but in the meantime will share a couple of cool pics with you from the forge showing the swords in various stages of completion.

The two swords one down from the top with black leather and rayskin saya are a Daisho set, and each one of the blades here have either complex Kobuse or Sanmai laminations, which is GREAT news as these are the ones that take the longest to make..!

The saya are not yet completely dry on some of them due to seasonal rains in Longquan – and so curing the wood is taking longer than usual and slowing the whole thing down. And the one right at the bottom is awaiting its ito wrap – so excuse the sword nudity..!

Since everything is going relatively smoothly, batch 42 should also be on time to take new orders once the swords are all shipped and the forge are busy twiddling their thumbs. So will update you on that again in due course..!

• Paul

Just a very quick note, Batch 41 of the SBG Custom Katana officially closed off a few minutes ago and we will be spending the next couple of days confirming each order and making sure that all the details are correct and accommodate any last minute changes before we send the batch over to the forge to bring all the great new designs to life..

In the meantime, as the SBG Custom Katana will not be available to order again until at least mid September, we have temporarily moved the Custom Katana sales page HERE to the archives section.

We will post the occasional update here and email our customers with progress reports as the forge works away. In the meantime, thanks for your orders and talk again soon..!

Subscribers to our store newsletter already know, but just a heads up for everyone else – batch 41 of the official SBG Custom Katana opened up on the 26th of May and we are already taking our first orders.

The swords should be completed and shipping out by mid to late September 2017 and the order period for this batch closes on the 15th of June, so if you have been waiting for a chance to order – well, here it is!

It has been almost a year since we have offered the custom Katana – so the demand has certainly been building over the last year – so don’t miss out, we have moved heaven and earth to keep the price at $429.99 and added some popular new optional extras such as SanMai and Kobuse laminations, and a selection of hard to source Koshirae sets.

So what need more I say – check it out here

It has been nearly a year since we last took orders on the official SBG Custom Katana 3.0 series – and despite running on increasingly thin profit margins, and experiencing many unexpected and lengthy delays – due to popular demand we are retooling this line which we have been running for the last 9-10 years and preparing to give it another run..

This pending batch, batch 41, is a critical turning point for this line. If we cannot reach our lofty goal of as close as possible to zero errors, zero QC fails and completed as close as possible to the 90 day turnaround time we aim for with this batch, this could quite possibly be the last batch we ever make..

The forge are aware of how strict we need to be this time around. And to meet our customer demands, we also added a few additional optional extras to create an even more authentic, truly personalized sword..

NEW OPTIONS

The first optional extras have to do with the construction of the blade itself. The standard SBG Custom Katana 3.0 is a Maru Blade, that is to say the blade is made from one type of steel (T10 tool steel) with the option to have it folded 6-7 times for a traditional look and attractive hada.

But we have added two additional lamination options – SanMai and Kobuse laminations – to create the most authentic blade ever (plus, you can combine the laminated blade with folding to get it as close as possible to the forging methods used to make a real Nihonto at just a fraction of the price you would expect to pay for a complete package like this)..

As you can see, the standard blade is made from a billet of pure T10 Tool Steel, while the SanMai is T10 sandwiched between two layers of ever so slightly softer 1095 carbon steel to create a stiff, forceful cutting blade with attractive lamination lines and the Kobuse has a soft core of iron enveloped on both sides of the cutting edge by a T10 tool steel Jacket.

The Kobuse lamination is perhaps the most practical of the two choices we offer, with the softer core acting as a shock absorber to further increase overall durability, while the SanMai is more visually striking – especially when combined with folding and the clay tempered hamon that each and every sword comes with as standard..

Clay Tempered with real hamon, real SanMai Lamination and Folding for the most traditional look

In addition to these optional extras on the blade, due to popular demand we were able to secure a limited supply of 4 extremely popular premium quality Koshirae sets – including the classic ‘Hobgoblin’, the Torakami configuration and more – available for an additional $25.

The only thing remaining now is a final price confirmation and check with the forge – as the base cost of all components has increased dramatically in the last few years. But more so, the cost of shipping (which we absorb – shipping is FREE to anywhere in North America/Canada) – as well as the cost of inspecting, repackaging and reshipping each sword – has skyrocketed to the point where the special base price of $429.99 may not even be enough to break even.. (In all honesty, the base price should be closer to $600 to cover costs if something goes wrong and to pay for all the time that goes into each order)..

But we will do our best to bring it back at the old price, or as close to it as humanly possible, because I consider the SBG Custom Katana to be something of a service to the sword community.. It is not a sword that sells enough pieces to be a threat to any other sword manufacturer, but it has been fine tuned over the years to offer the absolute best bang for your buck blade possible if you have the patience to wait it out..

So stay tuned folks, I know that many people have been waiting a LOOONG time for this line to come back, and to those of you who have been patiently waiting for your chance, it is just around the corner..

– Paul