The structure of the katana

Fan knives are all made up of 3 main parts, the body, the handle and the sheath, just like the usual knives.

The body is the main part of a knife and can be subdivided into the stem, the body, the blade and the back. The machining process of a fen knife is not very different from that of a normal knife. Take the copper door knife as an example, the beginning is to choose the material, and then the red furnace heated to more than 500 ℃, with a hammer manually knocked flat, after repeated forging, the excess impurities will be removed, after beating the shape of the knife, and then its surface polishing process, and then mounted on the wooden handle, after the edge sharpening will be semi-finished products, at the same time chiseling sheaths, eyelets, threading iron threads, carving flowers and paint color. After the final touches are made, a brand new katana is completed. The process is similar for other types of katana.

The hilt of the knife is chosen for its high hardness, small quality, not easy to crack and the stem of the pith is large (easy to combine with the stem of the knife), and most of the hinoki and camphor wood is chosen to make it. Fan knife handle is mostly thin in front of the back thick cylindrical, the end of the handle expanded ball-shaped, simple and practical appearance. The surface of the handle is engraved with a ring-shaped groove, and wrapped with copper wire or yarn, modern products also have nylon thread or umbrella rope wrapped around the handle, the purpose is to make the handle of the knife and the palm of the hand close to the use of the knife is not easy to slip off. Some utility knife, knife handle like the mainland southern firewood knife, directly with the iron sheet rolled and made and forged together with the end of the knife. The sheaths are also made of materials that are lightweight, easy to carve, and do not deform, and saltbush and neem are preferred.

Early Aboriginal knives were handmade, and due to the limitations of the equipment and process, most of the knives were a bit uneven, which was a mark left by the hammer, and the material was often not pure enough, and rusted quickly after use, which is why most of the early knives that have been preserved to this day are covered with rust pits. The steel used to make the early swords was purchased or exchanged with the Han Chinese in the plains. During the Japanese colonial period, due to the lack of steel, knives were even made using shrapnel left over from Allied bombings. Some craftsmen still retain the habit of using train shock absorbing steel plates to make knives, which are said to be strong and sharp enough to cut through iron wire without injury to the blade. Now, the materials used for making knives in Tongmen and other places are all finished industrial products purchased from the city, and their quality is no longer the same compared to that time. Especially in the form of tourist souvenirs appearing Fan knife, mostly with stainless steel and other materials to modern machinery and technology manufacturing, the hardness of the knife body is still good but lack of flexibility, often only ornamental value and not practical.

The earliest iron knives appeared in the 17th century, around the time of Zheng Chenggong's recapture of Taiwan. It was only from then on that interactions between the Alpine aborigines and the mainland began to become more frequent, with the introduction of iron tools and some advanced production techniques. This coincides with the aboriginal legend that the Fan knife was first obtained from Han blacksmiths. During the long-term production and living practices on the island, the Fan Knife has evolved continuously, and has been influenced by the cultures of Malay and the Lesser Ryukyu Islands, thus gradually forming some unique characteristics different from those of other nationalities' knives. The shape of the knife is distinctive, with a wide blade, an upturned tip, an obvious protrusion on the back of the knife near the grip, and obvious curvatures on the upper and lower sides of the knife. In addition, unlike other knives where the grip and back of the blade are generally parallel, there is an angle between the grip and the axis of the back of the blade, with the front of the blade slightly downward and the center of mass close to the front of the blade when gripped. These features make the katana more suited to chopping, and make it more natural to use. In addition, the front edge of the blade is positioned further down when slashing than is apparent to the eye, which often creates a false impression when fighting, similar to the design of the Nepalese machete.

The sheath of the Fanshu is even more unique. This rare single-sided sheath is made from a single piece of wood, with the sheath chamber fully exposed and several pairs of small holes and wires punched into the edges of the sheath on both sides to prevent the blade from falling out after insertion. The bottom of the sheath has two pairs of large holes, through which the cord passes in turn, ending in a knot at the closing groove, which is used to secure the sheath to the waist for easy carrying. Sheath of this unique design is because of Taiwan's own geography: a rainy island, single-sided sheath sheath is not easy to accumulate water, and there are two protrusions below the sheath, known as the drip angle, the rain can flow down; In addition, the temperature is low at high altitudes, the knife stained with animal fats and oils, easy to condense in the sheath is not easy to pull out, a single-sided sheath to avoid the problems in this regard.

Taiwan's aboriginal tribes specialize in traditional handicrafts, and all practical objects are at the same time handicrafts, and the fang knife is no exception, with wood carvings, clip-colored weavings, bead embellishments, embroidery and other crafts embodied in the decoration of the fang knife. North and central Taiya, Saixia, Bunun, Cao and other ethnic groups on the knife carving is relatively simple, mostly simple lines carved. The Atayal mostly have diagonal intersecting lines, parallel lines, and serrated lines, etc., and the engraved lines are painted black; the Bunun and Cao are used to engraving the sheaths of their knives and the backs of their bows with triangular notches or dots, which serve as a record of hunting at the same time. Southern Paiwan, Yamei and Rukai and other ethnic carving technology is relatively developed, especially the Paiwan carving for the most, including relief, relief or three-dimensional carving a variety of techniques, the pattern is mostly portraits, animals, and rope, diamond pattern, and so on, and the Yamei is known for the exquisite relief carving of the knife sheath.