FOR THE DISCERNING WEAPONS ENTHUSIAST

Over the years, my purchasing of martial arts weaponry has dropped off to pretty much nil since I have settled on a handful of favorite pieces, some of which have been with me for over twenty years. There are a couple of pairs of nunchaku that have sentimental value as well as possession an "action" that feels like they are a part of me, and the other items left in my armory include a variety of bamboo and wooden practice swords, a sword-cane, a South American blade that's more of a machete than a sword, a couple of sticks for Kali/Escrima, two lovely rattan poles that are lightweight, therefore facilitating speed and flexible enough to allow the user to slap an opponent across the gob with the flick of a wrist.

But these days I am inclined to start collecting again, especially now that I've found CAS/Hanwei, a high-end weaponry company that manufactures beautiful replicas of items from around the world,replicas that can be take the punishment of actual competition and are actually sharp.

The two items that top my wish list are this beautiful Japanese yari, basically a straight spear and long a mainstay among the samurai foot soldiers:

But the pole arm that really gets me going is this orgasmically lovely naginata, favored by warrior monks and samurai women who guarded castles, these brutal motherfuckers lopped the legs off of both man and horse alike:

But my acquisition of these beauties will have to wait for the foreseeable future; the yari costs $479, and the naginata tantalizes me at the hefty sum of $699, and as I intend to go to the San Diego Comicon this year, these "toys" will have to wait.

But then again, Christmas and my birthday are both looming, so go to http://casiberia.com/ and spend shitloads of cash on my beige ass!!!