Kingston Arms Restock

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And the new Landsknecht Katzbalger

When it comes to quality replicas of historical European Swords, Kingston Arms has made quite a splash in the entry to mid level market. With swords designed by none other than the legendary Angus Trim himself, these blades have an emphasis on proper balance, handling and construction and considering almost all their swords are priced just above or just below $300 makes them, offer some remarkable value for money.

As such, we are very pleased to advise that we have restocked two of their most popular models – the Oakeshott Type XIV Arming Sword and the more recent addition, the beautiful yet utilitarian Renaissance Side Sword

PLUS, we also added a new model to the line up – the brutal side arm of the fearsome German mercenary Landsknechts, half mad and fearless warriors for hire whose appearance on the battlefield could and often did turn the tide of the conflict – the Katzbalger.

If you are not familiar with who they were and what they did, this brief video provides at least a rough outline:

Anyway, while the pike was their primary melee weapon the Katzbalger (cat skinner!) was their ultimate backup. Stout, powerful and capable of generating enough force to break the haft of an enemy pikeman it’s a powerful cutter and is for the most part quite historically accurate in appearance and handling (though modern steel being as good as it is, it is actually probably considerably BETTER than the originals)..

Normal price for this new sword is $369.99 but we are offering it for just $289.99 with FREE SHIPPING. Stock is limited so if you are looking to add something very cool and unique to your collection, grab one while they are still available.

KINGSTON ARMS KATZBALGER

Project X Japanese – Behind the Scenes & Updates

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The first 10 of 20 orders for the trial run of Project X Japanese – Custom Options have just been completed and are about the leave the forge with the final 10 swords not all that far behind.

In the meantime, I requested a few pictures of the master smiths and master polisher at work on these authentic Soshu Kitae laminated and differentially hardened blades to give you a bit of a behind the scenes look at what goes into making these swords as special as they are.

First up, a couple of nice shots of the initial fusion of the 5 panels of steel – correct placement of each type of steel is critical and it is a complex procedure that ONLY a Master Smith can actually pull off and is why this type of lamination is so rare and (relatively) expensive.

Once the 5 panels are properly forge welded together its hammer time – all done the old fashioned way, with not a power tool in sight – just two master smiths working together in unison to stretch out the steel.

Once the Master Smiths have finished forging and shaping the blade, it is then handed over to another certified Master – the polisher (whose apprenticeship is actually LONGER than that of a smith!).

Here the polisher spends one FULL day on each blade, getting to know it intimately as he smooths and sharpens the blade for optimal cutting performance.

One of the hardest parts of polishing a Katana is the kissaki (the tip), which takes almost as much time to polish as the rest of the blade due to its complex contours. The effort required to polish this small part of the blade is so great it is the reason why so many entry level hand made swords have nothing more than a rough counter-polish.

Naturally, this traditional method of polishing creates the highly desirable ‘geometric yokote’ – that is to say a definite and clearly defined line where the body of the blade transitions to the tip.

From there, these stunning blades are mounted up in the customers choice of premium fittings (full rayskin wrap, hishigami silk ito, you name it – no shortcuts or inferior components are used whatsoever).

Honestly, with all the blood, sweat, tears and skill that goes into each blade its only because we trim down our margins so much that a sword like this can be made available for $1000 – its easily worth DOUBLE the price if not even a bit more, as the first 20 people who were fortunate enough to get in on the first round offering are soon about to find out first hand..

To find out when the next round of offerings is available, and get access to exclusive deals and special upgrades, be sure to sign up to the exclusive Project X newsletter.

In the meantime, you can see the various base designs offered for the first round and perhaps start thinking about how YOU might decide to customize one for yourself if you are fortunate enough to be in a position to be able to afford one of these truly droolworthy swords..

Project X Japanese

Awesome Specials From Ryujin

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Not one but THREE awesome deals from our friends at Ryujin. First up, the return of the limited edition and extremely popular Mother of Pearl Saya on the classic bo-hi or no-hi Ryujin T10 blades.

Mother of Pearl Saya Option – Just $229.99

The price, the same as it was last time, an absolutely insane price of just $229.99 (normally the saya alone would cost between $75 to $125 extra – in this case, it is basically FREE!)

The second offering is a new one – like the Mother of Pearl, the saya in question was too expensive to offer on our usual line up. But with too many in stock they need to clear: black lacquer, black rattan wrap reinforcement and a genuine buffalo horn kurikata..

Rattan Wrapped Buffalo Horn Kurikata Musashi/Bamboo – $199.99

And the price?

Just $199.99 right HERE!!

Yeah, that’s pretty crazy.. But how about $60 off the O-Katana, now just $209.99 and STILL with the free bonus items..!

The O-Katana, totally insane deal at $209.99

THAT is what I call a stock clearance sale..!

All of this and more can be found here in the HOT SPECIALS section of our site – grab them while you can for the sale ends either when the stock runs out or the end of the month, whichever comes first (and with these deals, I have a feeling that at least one of them will go from overstock to no stock well before the end of the month, so best get in while the getting is good).

Dragon King Hana T10 Katana on Special at $269.99 with FREE SHIPPING

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The ‘Hana’ Katana by Dragon King is for the sword collector who likes clean, simple lines, traditional fittings without any of the ‘bling’ and a well balanced sword with nothing that really stands out, but rather keeps it all as simple and practical as possible.

That said, it does have several stand out features such as the silver colored menuki, habaki and buffalo horn kurikata as well as a textured saya that hides fingerprints and minimizes the appearance of any scratches or bumps that may occur during its lifetime.

And the genuine hamon of the classic T10 blade is very clearly defined – making for a very traditional looking classic Katana.

The MSRP on this sword is $519 – which is what I would call ‘reasonable’ but at that price, there are better choices. At our everyday low price of $329.99 – its great value for money and well worth a serious look.

But from now until the end of the month and while stocks last you can pick it up for just $269.99 with FREE SHIPPING and well, if it wasn’t on your radar before it certainly should be now..!

Click here for all the details

One heck of a good deal on some new training accessories..

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BUY ONE GET ONE FREE!

As you know (or should know!) one of the things that make SBG different than other sword sellers out there is we only sell real swords. This means we don’t sell anywhere near as many swords as other vendors who stack their shelves with mostly wallhangers or wallhangers being falsely marketed as functional swords..

So when we were offered an exceptional deal on some really high quality polypropylene Bokken (training swords, usually made of wood as Bokken literally means ‘wood sword’) we had to pass on the savings to you guys by offering them in our accessories section – after all – there is no way anyone could confuse a heavy truncheon like sword for a steel blade (at least I hope not.. I am sure I will get at least one email asking how to draw the blade out! Lol).

Each Bokken (one a full length Katana, and the other a shorter Ko Katana) has a high level of attention to detail, with simulated ito wrap (and even menuki for a realistic grip) and comes with two interchangeable tsuba fixed in place with a tight fitted habaki (so you can also take them off entirely if you like).

But from now until the 10th of June, when you buy one you get another one FREE – either two Katana, two Ko Katana or one of each, the choice is yours!

To get started, simply select the sword of your choice, add it to the cart, click the green rewards button to select your second free sword and your done!

A couple of common questions

Question: Are these swords suitable for sparring?

Answer: Yes, but unless you want to get knocked out or break some bones, it is recommended to use minimal force and lots of control.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yP9MmzyTIg

Question: Are they truly indestructible?

Answer: Side by side tests reveal that they take minimal to no damage on hard tests that crack or severely deform wooden bokken. However, their one weakness is that a well made Katana can slice them in half with a perfectly timed blow, while it usually takes 3-4 strikes against a wooden one.