Iaitō
Japanese modern metal practice sword
The iaitō (居合刀) is a modern metal practice sword, without a cutting edge, used primarily for practicing iaido, a form of Japanese swordsmanship.
Other Japanese swords
A real (sharp) katana is called a shinken (真剣, lit., real sword). In contrast to shinken, iaitō have no cutting edge and are designed for iai/battō practice and are usually unsuited for sword-to-sword contact. These should not be confused with imitation swords primarily made for decorative reasons, which are generally unsafe for martial arts practice.
Materials and manufacture
Most iaitō are made of an aluminium-zinc alloy which is cheaper and lighter than steel. This use of alloy and a blunt edge also circumvents Japanese legal restrictions on the manufacture of swords made of ferrous metals. As such, Japanese-made iaitō are intended as practice weapons and are not suited for any type of contact. The best alloy blades are rather faithful reproductions of real swords with authentic weight and shape along with similarly high-quality finish and fittings. Iaitō may even have a mock hamon (刃文, lit., blade pattern, the temper line of a tempered steel blade). The average weight for a real katana (打刀) is generally 1,200 g (42 oz) without the scabbard while a typical alloy iaitō is roughly 820 g (29 oz).
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