$200 Katana VS $2000 Katana - How to Spot a FAKE! 

Thanks for the mention.. I was wondering why I had a rather sudden influx of new viewers. The kami katana you have is a fun one too. It was one of the swords Hanwei/Paul Chen made that put in all the features.

did i search for this video? *no* do i own a katana? *no* do i intend to own one? *no* did i click the video and watched the whole thing, interested like i check out on the stuff above? *yes*

The only way I am accepting a katana is if a old Japanese blacksmith finds me and tells me the katanas legacy then he bestows it upon me because I am the chosen one

Sometime after ww2, my great-grandpa was walking through a subway in Tokyo and bought a real wakizashi, now we jest that it's the "family sword," even though our real ones were lost in the Meiji Restorations. It actually had imperfections from blood on it, so I know that a previous owner was not very careful about washing it off after combat, and that it did actually maim someone. It was interesting to get it appraised a few years ago.

Found your video after looking up how to tell if a katana is real. Had an old katana from my grandfather who was in WWII and wanted to see if it might be real or fake. No wave on the blade from the hardening, or anything ornamental. But after doing further research, turns out it's a type 98 Shin-Gunto produced in 1938. Was made in mass for the war and taken as trophies by allied forces during their fight in Japan. Your vid helped me not just give up hope after I saw the pattering of the ray skin like you mentioned and decided to continue looking into it. Thanks for the info!

Me who has no katana at 1AM and 2 finals tomorrow: "now this is a video for me"

‘If that doesn’t get you laid, I don’t know what will.’ Great line D

I recently got myself a $157 katana that is made out of T10 tool steel and is differentially hardened. It has a real hamon and the blade is pretty good. Has good crisp lines, good shape and geometry, especially for the price. However, the fittings and the handle are far from best quality. Cheap Chinese katanas can be used as project swords where you can practice your polishing skills on them, maybe re-wrap the handles to learn the art of tsukamaiki, and so on. But you should ALWAYS insect your sword very carefully before you start swinging it at targets. The Chinese like to cut corners big time - not a good thing when we are talking sharp objects.

Great video, like your style; minimal fluff, good information with added humor. Well done sir.

I feel like we just got flexed on way to much without realizing it

Fun Fact: If you buy a katana try buying a fedora too. It boost all stats by 70%.

Thank you for your honesty

Great video, thanks for sharing that information.

First they recommend me forge in fire Japanese blades special,now they recommend me this video...I think RU-vid is up to something.

Me who never intendes in buying a katana: INTERESTING

This was very insightful and informative !! I definitely will take this into consideration when purchasing my next sword

Excellent video! Thanks!

Me with 2 finals tomorrow: this is def more important Edit: the guy above me stole my comment let’s go bully him

"That one weird store at the mall that sells dragon statues." I've never heard a statement so true

An authentic Samurai sword, hand made in Japan (called a Shinken 真剣), can easily cost US$12,000 to $25,000 and up. Chinese made production level approximations are typically at least $1,000-$2,500 for something reasonably ‘traditional’.

That was a pretty good video! I really enjoyed watching it and I'm now gonna wait, until the moment I can finally tell some fun facts about katanas!

D is the real life anime protagonist that we all want to be.

god damnit D that intro was fucking hilarious

Thx that is some good info on how to tell what is a good and real sword I'll be sure to keep my eyes out on such good detail

Thank you very much for this info, now I know where to look.

If Dragons don't come out when I shout 'Ryujin wo ken wo kurae', it's definitely fake.

As soon as I heard the plastic I started laughing. There’s no way an actual bladesmith would cover their sword in plastic after putting so much blood and sweat into it. That’s how you know they didn’t even try.

This was surprisingly educational and informative

Great video!

"Whaddaya buyin?" Me: A katana please Merchant: "Oh sorry, this ain't Ghost of Tsushima"

How to spot a real one? Go in the attic and open the box that says, "Grandpa's War Stuff"... if there's a katana in there it's probably real.

I don't know why i needed to know this, but now I do and i'm subscribing

Subbed. Finally a video under 30min

If there’s one person I’d want to educate me on katanas, it would be D.

Me: "Finds stimulus check in my bank account and plan on saving it" RU-vid: *Recommends a video about thousand dollar katanas despite never having an interest in the subject*

that was the most epic intro to a video ever! thank you.

Thanks for links and video

How to spot a fake katana? EZ: the Mongol you just slashed is still alive

Great video.. this guy is sharp on his blade knowledge! 🔥

omg that "Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction" music at the intro. LOVE it and this video!

I don’t know why this is in my recommended. But now I know how to pick a good katana

Girlfriends father: what can you do that’s impressive Me: I can tell if a katana is real or not with out taking it out of the sheath Girlfriends father: don’t pull out tonight

No man u still deserve ton of views thank you for the site to buy one ily and your vids

Thank you for the lesson. Always wanted to own a katana to go with my other ancient weapons collection.. now I know what to look for.

I'm a happily married man with three kids but this guy's video got me thinking that I need to learn about katanas to be cool and to get laid. Like wtf

Great videos about swords. Ive been wanting a hand made Katana for a long time and I can afford one now but I had no way of knowing what is real quality vs fancy looking junk. They all say high carbon steel, hand made folded steel for $30-$100 ready for attacking water bottles. Then I see similar swords listed for $1500-$3000 and no way to know so the information about Paul Chen was really helpful and I ordered several swords from them. Ive bought so many cheap swords and weapons over the years that $599-$1000 was not that much and something that I could easily sell later. I wish they made more throwing weapons besides the darts.

This is the first video of you ive seen and i like you already

Hey I know I’m kinda late to the party but thanks for making this video. My dad gave me a katana when I was graduating high school and I’ve always wondered if it was legit or not. That was a decade ago and he’s no longer with us, but I inspected my katana just now and was pleasantly surprised that it’s actually a high quality sword. It’s kinda silly but it brightened that memory of him just a bit. Anyways I’m over sharing but wanted to let you know I appreciate the vid :)

This opening is amazing!!

I'm a big fan of Katanas. Very nice and educational. Thanks for sharing.

me who will probably never buy a katana: hmm interesting

And suddenly I realize the katana my grandfather gave me from his time in Japan is actually real and not a fake... 😳

The opening intro had me subscribe to this channel . 💯

Thanks for the vid appreciated

Nobody’s talking about that guy who nearly killed himself on TV with that katana😂😂

The CEO of Genji himself has blessed us again.

That intro was dope:D

Thank you for showing me the differences.

Everyone talking about the katana’s Me: “Amazon shipped it to him in a day?”

Katana bois: This $XXXXXX katana will easily let me slay anything! Miyamoto Musashi: "Let me find a random stick around here to slay this fool."

Lol, love the delivery of the info. Had me laughing fr

Good video 💪

"If that doesn't get you laid, I don't know what will" Don't do that. Don't give me hope.

Well that was more educational then the entirety of the America’s education system

Well this got me to subscribe and I don't even own a sword nor want one but this was very informative and interesting so thanks for teaching something new

I’m going to be buying an odaci soon so this video helps alot

Perfect now I just need to master total breathing concentration.

easier way to spot it fake one has - "Made in China" on it real one has - "Made in Japan"

I really want to see a comparation of Real Damascus Katan vs Traditional tamahagane katana. It would be interesting to see how much a katana forged in the style of masamune resists vs a damask of 1095x15N20

I was surprised when you mentioned the store in the mall that sells dragon statues. Those must be more common than I thought.

The weird store in the mall that sells dragon statues Lmao so true

Y'all bullied KoA into updating their website 😂😂

Just saw the intro and u already won my 👍

I feel honored to call myself a owner of the kami katana. I bought it 4-6 months ago and it really isnt meant to be a weapon ( my personal opinion) Its the most beatiful and most expensive katana i have in my collection but every penny was definitly worth it, nothing feels lazy or rushed, the people at Hanwei take their time and pays great attention to the traditions of the japanese sword, and i will make it into a family heirloom to my descendants if they want it. All in all 10/10

"Its not fair! He has a sword! All we have are these lousy machine guns!"

I'm filipino and my granddad had a katana, taken in world war II when Japan took over the Philippines. Too bad it was old and the blade almost broke off. This gives me great nostalgia feels.

Did you really steal the intro to beyond belief 🤣 thats awesome.

What do you think of the Cold steel Katanas? Great video!

me after watching demon slayer: i need a katana too EDIT: thanks for the 1k likes holy, power of da demon slayers 😌

I feel like this whole video is him just convincing himself the katana was worth 2k

This video was highly educational, as a some of a blacksmith I alwasy had a fascination with swords especially the katana my father would make. As a boy I would watch from the cracks in the door of his forge as he folded steel to make beautifully crafted blades. Thanks to this video I know every katana me and my dad ever forged together is authentic and that all the blades I own at home had real care put into them

The fact or fiction intro sent me on a nostalgic trip I didn't expect from a katana video, instant like

"Is your katana real or fake?" feels like everyone has a katana at home and I'm the dumb one who only has knives xD

"Yo Levi!" - Kenny Ackerman

You have no idea how helpful this was. As someone without the in depth knowledge, the most detrimental thing getting in the way of me making a purchase is the overwhelming flood of websites that come up as a result of a google search. And I can't help but feel that 90% of them are taking advantage of an uninformed buyers market (aka people just like me) knowing that they can make a quick buck, with minimal effort, off peoples ignorance.

Thanks!

It’s freaking 3am and I don’t know what I'm watching 😂😂

"you're wrong" "not this time" "it's a fake" "It's a total fabrication"

Tysm you deserve a sub

I had no idea I wanted to know so much about the Katana until this channel was pushed at me... A morning well spent, now to call those clients back ;)

Man I can’t wait to slay some demons with a 20 dollar katana

somehow this needs to be a series, the viewers have spoken

Kenjutsu student here, currently buying my first tamashigiri katana but have had wall hangers in the past, also buying an Iaito at the moment and I can absolutely tell you the type of steel makes a HUGE difference as does the tsukamaki, if it's not done properly it will literally start coming away during use, i'd recommend watching a few videos on how these swords are made as well as seeing how the grips are wrapped, they usually need little paper spacers to stop them unwrapping on the tsuka too, however the cheap ones really don't have this, my iaito I ordered turned out to be a fake and literally started unravelling during use, the hamon is SUCH a big giveaway, if it's too uniform and too perfect, it likely is, they not only acid etch but also wire brush a hamon on to fake blades, same with rayskin, if it looks too uniform it's moulded and fake. The other thing is to note the weight and where it balances, the cheap ones can be rat tail tang (google it) and held in with just a bolt so if the blade is very front heavy that's usually a sign of it, the iron tsuba is also there to balance the blade out. Failing that, go talk to an actual kenjutsu or iaido student or go study it, they'll steer you the right way for a real one, owning a katana is one thing but learning to use it to it's full potential is a totally different ballgame, i'm on the final part of my climb to shodan.

I'll probably buy one of these, if I do, I'll probably get the Ronin Katana Model 9 to start, this was really helpful!

Was not expecting this randomly recommended video to be so good, one of the best intros I’ve seen in a long time

Cool channel my friend ,))

Thanks for the lesson my knowledge of swords just doubled at least, fun and entertaining show awesome!

I love the editing💀

quiet kids: perfect.

What a perfect parody intro of Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction. So perfect that I hadn’t thought about that show in 10 years and still recognized the Johnathan Frakes impersonation!