Hello all.

I've been using a borrowed thin blade iaito for a while now. My sensei couldn't give me its measurements, but I weighed it at around 790g. Blade length is about 74cm.

My height is 173cm and my weight is 50kg, so that iaito is pretty comfortable for me to use (maybe even a tiny bit too light now, as my arms have been getting stronger).

I'm currently in the process of ordering a custom iaito from Nosyudo. I sent them my order form a few days ago where I picked a thin 2.45 shaku blade. All silver fittings. They haven't responded and nothing is finalized yet, but I'm now second guessing myself a little. While I do want my iaito to be lightweight, I'm not very keen on how thin blades look after. According to Nosyudo's size chart, a 2.45 shaku thick blade with all brass fittings and 100g tsuba could be anywhere between 880-940g. I already tried using a slightly longer (could be 2.50), thick blade iaito which was about 930g, and it was way too heavy for me while doing specific kata like kesagiri.

My question is, do you think it's realistic to get a thick blade iaito that's well below 850g? Maybe 850g is fine for me but I have no frame of reference. I'd forego the silver for brass to save weight, even if I prefer the look of silver.

Thank you in advance.

My hakama was getting on a bit (20+ years, though only worn for maybe 5 of them) and I noticed while it definitely had pleats at the top, they were barely noticeable past my knees.

So! New hakama, wooo, nice crisp pleats! My question is... how do I keep them that way? I have tried to fold it back with the pleats flat, though it all got a bit puzzle like trying to work out the order 😄. Do hakama generally keep their pleats unless you store them screwed up, or do I need to keep on top of keeping the pleats?

As I say, I lost the pleats somewhat on my first one, but god knows how it spent the last 20 years, I suspect not neatly folded. And... 20 years, hardly likely to be sharp creases anyway. But I'd like to keep these pleats as long as I can.

#To the people telling me to just get stitched pleats, thanks and I'll bear that in mind for next time, but I've got ones without said stitching atm so it's those I'm looking to preserve. Though good advice for other readers

I've been back to the item and they make a big deal about how the Tetron holds the pleats really easily, and I've watched a few videos and I'm happy I'm folding correctly, so I'll carry on and I'm sure have many years of happy pleats#

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.

I purchased a sword from Cheness years ago for cutting practice. I absolutely love it; but I am now in need of a second, and Cheness has gone or of business. Can anyone please recommend a good source for affordable spring steel swords for cutting?

Been practicing for a year and just wanted to ask this out of curiosity. It might be a stupid question, but I'd be interested in how both differ from each other, beyond the fact that iaito are unsharpened and are most of the time made from something else than steel.

Are there differences in construction - i.e. from how the blade is fit into the tsuka? Can iaitos be sharpened and just become actual swords - e.g. does the zinc alloy have such different properties to steel that sharpening them is not possible or dangerous?

Hello, I'm doing an international MBA program, and am working on my thesis for which I need some tips and guidance. The topic I wish to write on is niche but I'm still interested and am part of the community so interest is aligned, but I'm stuck on how to proceed and figure out the "so what?"

My supervisor also wants me to do a quantitative report but I'm not fully confident how.

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Topic:

Preservation and Adaptation: Iaido Education and Training Outcomes in Japan and the US

RQs:

How is the instruction and practice taught in Japan is different from the US?

What difference, if any, exists in the meaning of the martial art between the 2 countries?

How those 2 questions are linked and differ from both cultures?

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Keywords:

Iaido, cultural diffusion, cross cultural studies, psychology, OB, tourism(?)

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Discussions from relevant papers:

Themes that reflect contrasting instructor perspectives shaped by cultural context.

What trainees believe the true meaning of the martial art?

How people dynamics and culture differ?

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Methods:

in-depth interviews

cross sectional survey

Use semantic differential (no idea how)

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Background:

I have been training in the martial art "iaido" for about 2 years, one in America and one in Japan, and have seen the difference on teaching styles, ideals, meaning as a sport, and want to see how I can link this to my studies.

My supervisor has also suggested that this is more in line with marketing, which I think where "budo tourism" can also come into play, but I'm not sure what the end goal is, and the "so what?" aspect.

I think not many people know about iaido, and it is a dying culture so I think writing on how Japan can share this with the world is the main theme, and how local cultures improvise it it their own way? But that's about it

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Any and all help is appreciated, thanks

I work a weird job where I’m ALWAYS traveling, often a different city every night. Sometimes I can look ahead at work orders and reserve a room at a hotel in a location that’s ’central’ to where I’ll be working for a few weeks.

I’m very interested in training Asayama Ichiden Ryu, but have never trained swordsmanship of any style, and I imagine working with someone in person would be the best way to establish a foundation.

I’ve looked at the areas I’ll be working in for the next few months, and I’m seeing schools that offer Itto Tenshin Ryu, Shinkendo, and Tenshinsho Jigen Ryu..

Thoughts?

Thanks 🙏