Mantis Katanas - Anybody heard of them?


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Mantis Katanas - Anybody heard of them?

by Jake Christie
(San Diego, CA.)

I have my eye on this ebay auction for four (4) katanas; two have black sayas (scabbard), the others have sayas with a gold "crackle" finish. The sageo on the katana with the gold saya is gold over a white tsuka; the other sword is the more tradional black sageo over a white tsuka. The seller claims these are "Mantis" swords made of 1018 steel, but the two display pieces are sitting on a Masahiro sword holder. It's one of those "no reserve, .99 cent" auctions and the guy is liquidating his stocks. The seller has a 100 percent rating. Any thoughts?

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Mantis Katanas - Anybody heard of them?

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May 22, 2009
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1018 steel?
by: beowulf

both the swords I bought from mantis are 1060 carbon steel !they are both dynasty forge swords and cost me about 250 bucks less than I would have paid from the manufacturer !dynasty offers the same swords in two different kinds of carbon steel ,with full temper ,or traditional clay tempered edge . they also offer the pieces in damascus or tamahagane with clay tempered edge !depends on what you want to pay !

May 22, 2009
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Mantis Swords
by: Ken Lively

I agree with the others Ebay can be evil I lost almost $500 dollars on a auction and the seller had a five star rating. Mantis has some really great weapons the really high end stuff is worth the money, after you faint from scrolling down to find the cost. Ha I'm kidding if you want Pro level swords at reasonable prices they are worth every penny! We buy some of their lower end sets and single swords just to have some spare parts, cause in my Dojo there is always one goofy guy who breaks something. And they look great and seem to hold up pretty well. Enjoy

May 18, 2008
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mantiss swords
by: beowulf

mantiss is a company based in maryland . they offer everything from entry level to high end japanese weapons and armor ! I`ve dealt with them and was very happy with their service , I purchased a dynast forge kogarasu maru at a very good price and it is well made and very functional ! unless the deaer you wrote of was from the state of maryland it isnt mantiss swords , dont buy from them ! look up the real company online and check out the products they offer !

Jan 29, 2008
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Rip Off
by: Anonymous

A rip off in my opinion, but then again, I may be wrong and it depends on what you expect for your dollar. I would not reccommend buying any swords on ebay unless you plan to do nothing more with them than use them as props. Ebay has become a breeding ground of cheap and dangerous knock offs, not that Masahiro swords are that great of quality to begin with. If you do buy one of these I reccommend saving yourself a trip to the hospital by NOT trying to cut with it.

Dec 30, 2007
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.99 auctions
by: Sal

Well, sometimes you will see these auctions on ebay.It mostly means that the seller is just using his/her account for a short period of time to sell of there merchandise. They will start off with 100% feedback, and then it will decrease over time if someone is not totally satisfied. That may be why they have that rating.

Regarding the swords however, They are rather nice practice and display swords, take them apart to see if there are any cracks in the tsuka or a welded-on tang. If so, do not use that sword. 1018 isn't very good steel, low carbon content means the absence of hardness. So, this steel will most likely break or take a permenant set.

All and all, they are very nice swords, they are meant for taking apart and practicing your maintenance skills essentially.

Hope this helped

Sal

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