Cheness SGC Wakizashi

by Scott Goodman
(Grant, Oklahoma, USA)

I can honestly say that the Cheness’ SGC series is utterly amazing. I decided one day to put both of my wakizashi’s to the test, the SGC from Cheness and the Practical Plus from Hanwei. I had just finished pruning some healthy pecan limbs (a softwood) that were approximately 3-4” thick. I honestly expected to damage both blades, but if it did…I wouldn’t have wanted them anyway. The Hanwei wakizashi wouldn’t quite make it thru the thicker limbs due to the lack of mass, however there was NO damage to the blade. I found that it would make the deepest cuts one handed simply to being able to have more velocity. The Cheness SGC wakizashi would make the cuts completely thru every time & wasn’t even challenging one handed. I did catch myself using improper form a couple times and it definitely showed on the depth of the cuts, they weren’t clean cuts or very deep depending on the sword used. All cuts were at an approximate 45 degree angle. Again, there was absolutely no damage to either sword, but if you are planning on doing some heavy cutting…the SGC series by Cheness is the way to go. My first complete set of modern swords was the Practical Plus Series by Hanwei, but my next purchase will be the SGC katana from Cheness. They are somewhat heavier, but the 9260 steel is amazing for any heavy cutting.

PLEASE, if you are reading this and own an older sword, DO NOT use it in an abusive test like I did in the above narrative. A modern sword like I used in testing can be easily replaced, the older ones cannot.