Hanwei (Dalian Hanwei Metal Co. Ltd., Chinese: ) is a Chinese company manufacturing replica

sword A sword is an edged and bladed weapons, edged, bladed weapon intended for manual cutting or thrusting. Its blade, longer than a knife or dagger, is attached to a hilt and can be straight or curved. A thrusting sword tends to have a straighter ...

s and other types of medieval arms and armor. The company was founded in 1990 by Chen Chao-Po (陈朝波, Western name Paul Chen, born 1955Dalian Hanwei Blade Center Co., Ltd.
sell123.org (2014).了解汉威 (hanweimetal.com)
/ref>). The company produces replicas or reconstructions of

Japanese swords A is one of several types of traditionally made swords from Japan. Bronze swords were made as early as the Yayoi period (1,000 BC – 300 AD), though most people generally refer to the curved blades made from the Heian period (794–1185) to the ...

Chinese swords Historically, Chinese swords are classified into two types, the ''jian'' and the ''Dao (Chinese sword), dao''. A ''Jian'' is a straight, double-edged sword mainly used for stabbing; the term has been commonly translated into the English language ...

and European swords, besides various types shorter-bladed

dagger A dagger is a fighting knife with a very sharp point and usually one or two sharp edges, typically designed or capable of being used as a cutting or stabbing, thrusting weapon.State v. Martin, 633 S.W.2d 80 (Mo. 1982): This is the dictionary or ...

s, sidearms or combat knives, other historically inspired weapons such as

axes Axes, plural of ''axe'' and of ''axis'', may refer to * ''Axes'' (album), a 2005 rock album by the British band Electrelane * a possibly still empty plot (graphics) See also * Axis (disambiguation) An axis (: axes) may refer to: Mathematics ...

and

polearm A polearm or pole weapon is a close combat weapon in which the main fighting part of the weapon is fitted to the end of a long shaft, typically of wood, extending the user's effective range and striking power. Polearms are predominantly melee we ...

s, and reconstructions of historical

helmet A helmet is a form of protective gear worn to protect the head. More specifically, a helmet complements the skull in protecting the human brain. Ceremonial or symbolic helmets (e.g., a policeman's helmet in the United Kingdom) without protecti ...

s. Their production of Japanese swords (

katana A is a Japanese sword characterized by a curved, single-edged blade with a circular or squared guard and long grip to accommodate two hands. Developed later than the ''tachi'', it was used by samurai in feudal Japan and worn with the edge fa ...

s) ranges from inexpensive swords made from differentially hardened spring steel ("Practical" series) to more elaborate production methods approximating traditional hand-forged folded steel blades starting from powder steel. The "L6 Bainaite" series is produced based on L6 steel, by means of a heat treatment process resulting in blades exhibiting Bainite/

Martensite Martensite is a very hard form of steel crystalline structure. It is named after German metallurgist Adolf Martens. By analogy the term can also refer to any crystal structure that is formed by diffusionless transformation. Properties Mar ...

microstructures, a process pioneered by Howard Clark of ''Omimi'' and adopted by Hanwei from c. 2012.Sword Steel – a Complete guide (swordsofmight.com)L6 / Bainite Steel (archived from casiberia.com, December 2013)
Chen in 1987 founded Taiwan Chengfeng Trading Co., Ltd. for the importing of custom made swords. He founded the factory in

Dalian Dalian ( ) is a major sub-provincial port city in Liaoning province, People's Republic of China, and is Liaoning's second largest city (after the provincial capital Shenyang) and the third-most populous city of Northeast China (after Shenyang ...

in 1990. The company was officially registered in 1993, as Dalian Luwei Metal Co., Ltd. In 1996, the company based in

made reproductions of the collection of the

Liaoning Provincial Museum The Liaoning Provincial Museum ( Chinese: trad. , simp. ; ''Liáoníngshěng Bówùguǎn'') is a prominent museum of history and fine arts located in Shenyang, the capital of China's Liaoning province. History The institution wa ...

. Hanwei enjoys considerable success among hobbyists (e.g. practitioners of

Iaido , abbreviated , is a Japanese martial art that emphasizes being aware and capable of quickly drawing the sword and responding to sudden attacks.Christensen, Karen and Allen Guttmann et.al (2001) ''International Encyclopedia of Women and Sport ...

and of Western martial arts). Their Dalian facility is estimated as employing about 350 people.Paul Chen Hanwei Swords (sword-buyers-guide.com)
/ref> In March 2011, the Dalian factory was destroyed by fire, leading to a drop in production until the completion of a new facility in 2014. The son of Chen Chao-Po, Chen Jiangrong (Ron Chen), born 1981, learned sword making techniques at Dalian Hanwei Metal Co., Ltd. from 2003. In 2004, he studied traditional Japanese techniques with Yoshindo Yoshihara. In 2007, he reconstructed a production method for

Wootz steel Wootz steel is a crucible steel characterized by a pattern of bands and high carbon content. These bands are formed by sheets of microscopic carbides within a tempered martensite or pearlite matrix in higher-carbon steel, or by ferrite and pea ...

. Nowadays Ron Chen has a company in Taiwan, Sakae Forge. It specialises in making high quality custom swords. Hanwei utilizes a number of authorized dealers to reach Western consumers. Its official distributor in the United States is C.A.S. Iberia, Inc., a company based in Sale Creek, Tennessee.

References

External links

*http://www.hanweimetal.com/ *https://casiberia.com/resource/hanwei-a-brief-history/201 *https://www.samurai-katana-shop.nl/en/content/buy-paul-chen-hanwei-swords {{knives Swordsmiths Knife manufacturing companies Manufacturing companies based in Dalian Manufacturing companies established in 1990 Chinese brands Chinese companies established in 1990