Jack Xu34 2
Yellow Belt
Every fall a new student asks me the same question in different words: which sword should I buy. After years of answering it one person at a time, here is the whole answer in one place. Five numbers decide whether a tai chi jian works. The tassel, the scabbard wood, the fittings, all of that is decoration on top of five numbers.
One, the balance point. Rest the blade on one finger and find where it floats level, then measure from the guard. For forms work it belongs about 3 inches in front of the guard, a touch closer on short blades, a touch further on long ones. Check this first. Weight you can train. Balance you cannot fix.
Two, the weight. Between 1.2 and 1.6 pounds without the scabbard. Compare it to a bottle of water. A full 16 ounce bottle is almost exactly a pound, and your jian should feel closer to that than to a liter bottle.
Three, the length. Charts get you close, the ear test decides. Hold the sword along your forearm, arm relaxed, tip between the earlobe and the top of the ear. Between two sizes, go shorter.
Four, the flex. Floor press, not degrees. Tip on carpet, lean in, watch the bow, let off, and it returns perfectly straight. Ribbon fold means demo blade. No bend means stiff cutter. You want the middle one, and never a kink.
Five, the construction. Full tang, blunt tip, silent fittings. Wrap the blade in a towel and twist the handle. Nothing moves. Hold it by the blade and shake it next to your ear. No rattle.
Run all five the day the box arrives, inside the return window. A sword that fails one goes back, no sentiment.
The last thing I tell every student: the right sword disappears into your hand. If you are thinking about the steel five minutes into practice, a number is wrong, and now you know which ones to check.
Veterans, what is the sixth number you would add? And beginners, what did your first sword teach you the hard way?
One, the balance point. Rest the blade on one finger and find where it floats level, then measure from the guard. For forms work it belongs about 3 inches in front of the guard, a touch closer on short blades, a touch further on long ones. Check this first. Weight you can train. Balance you cannot fix.
Two, the weight. Between 1.2 and 1.6 pounds without the scabbard. Compare it to a bottle of water. A full 16 ounce bottle is almost exactly a pound, and your jian should feel closer to that than to a liter bottle.
Three, the length. Charts get you close, the ear test decides. Hold the sword along your forearm, arm relaxed, tip between the earlobe and the top of the ear. Between two sizes, go shorter.
Four, the flex. Floor press, not degrees. Tip on carpet, lean in, watch the bow, let off, and it returns perfectly straight. Ribbon fold means demo blade. No bend means stiff cutter. You want the middle one, and never a kink.
Five, the construction. Full tang, blunt tip, silent fittings. Wrap the blade in a towel and twist the handle. Nothing moves. Hold it by the blade and shake it next to your ear. No rattle.
Run all five the day the box arrives, inside the return window. A sword that fails one goes back, no sentiment.
The last thing I tell every student: the right sword disappears into your hand. If you are thinking about the steel five minutes into practice, a number is wrong, and now you know which ones to check.
Veterans, what is the sixth number you would add? And beginners, what did your first sword teach you the hard way?
