Tsuba weight and sword balance.
Hello everyone,
I'm in the process of designing my new Nosyudo iaito and I'm a little stuck on the choice of tsuba in regards of its weight and how it'll affect the overall balance.
For context, my current iaito is a Nosyudo Chuuden of 2.45 shaku with a thick blade and an 85g tsuba, so heavy and tip-heavy. The reason I designed it that way is that back then I had gotten used to a loaner sword from my sensei that had a very similar balance and I didn't want to veer too far from it, which worked pretty well for the 2+ years I've been using it.
I was always planning to eventually get a lighter one, however I recently developed a work related injury (tennis elbow and deltoid strain), which prompted me to get it sooner than anticipated.
I want my new sword to be overall lighter and more evenly balanced. I liked the feel of my current one, the forward momentum is nice and it's not too hefty for my muscle mass, but my injury and the awareness that I'm starting to age made me more aware of long term effects and I'd like to keep practicing for as long as I can
I was thinking to keep the same length (2.45) but with the standard thickness blade and a tsuba around 100g, which by my estimate should bring the overall weight down by 135g (or ~15%) with less forward momentum impacting my arms and shoulders.
Am I on the right track would you say? I already talked about it with my sensei and I'm going to ask Nosyudo directly, but I'd like a third opinion as well.
Cheers.