Nito Shinai

Shinai for nito ryu.

Nito ryu requires 2 swords as we all know (Ni = 2 ; to = sword/katana)
I will briefly set an overview here regarding the distinctive shinai used in nito.

According to the regulations for shiai, those shinai must obtain the following measurements

Daito

max. 114 cm
min. 440 gr.(M) / 400 gr.(W)

Shoto

max. 62 cm
280-300 gr.(M) / 250-280 gr.(W)

This of course are the regulations for official shiai!

Lets have a look how they compare to a regular shinai:

In terms of size, the daito seems to be a normal 37 shinai, but don´t get fooled!
the tsuka on a normal 37 shinai would be way to thin for most of us, and the weight might be a bit to low!
So don´t just order a 37 and use it for nito!
The standard nito daito is more like shortened 39 shinai, so that the tsuka has the proper diameter.

Nito shinai are also avaiable with different tsuka stiles, normal round, fat round, oval......
(also for the shoto!)

For nito, I personally prefer an oval, slightly thicker tsuka for the daito, and a normal round one for the shoto.
This is of course just my own taste.


So, do I have to buy a set??

If you just want to try it out, probably not.
If you have an old shinai (even a broken one) laying around, it is pretty easy to build a "keiko shoto" like this one:

Top: bought  / bottom: self made

I call it "keiko shoto" because it might not fit exactly into the regulation limits (a bit too heavy and too thick at the kensaki).
So it would be fine to use for normal keiko, but maybe not in shiai...

For the daito there are 3 options:

1.
Just use a normal 39 shinai.
This will work, but it´s quite heavy an tiring to use for a whole keiko.

2.
Take an old 39 shinai, cut about 6 cm off of the tsuka (don´t forget to shorten the leather!) and presto, you´ve made your own daito.
(Yes, it is that easy!)

3.
This is the cheap-o-trick way.
Take a normal 39 shinai, and just grip it about 6-8 cm from tsukagashira like this:

Geometry wise, this comes pretty close to the handling of a normal nito daito.
Also, in nito it is anyway absolutely allowed to grab the tsuka wherever you want.
Even right at the tsuba "would" be no problem!

All this will work absolutely fine if you just want to try it out or train nito every now and then.


For serious shiai use, I highly recommend buying a dedicated nito set.
First of all, a normal set usually won´t cost more then a good/high quality normal shinai.
Second, a manufactured set will most likely fit withing all the regulations and won´t cause any trouble at the shinai check!
Same goes if you really want to stick to nito, the price of a set is worth it!


A word of wisdom regarding the tsuba!

The shoto hand will be mainly attacked for kote, so I´d advice for the biggest possible tsuba (ø9 cm).
This will give a bit of extra protection for the Kote.

As a counterpart to that, the Tsuba for the daito, should have the smallest possible diameter!
Due to the hand position in nito, there is little to no protection at all for the daito hand.
One might ask, if there is no protection from the daito tsuba, why even bother making a smaller one?
The answer is quite easy.
In nito we are wielding the sword just with one hand. This causes our sword to be very prone to being misguided on its cutting path.
With a large tsuba, the chance of getting glanced of is pretty high.

standard 8cm / large 10cm / small ~6cm

There is no minimum diameter a tsuba must have.
I recommend grinding it down to a diameter that is slightly larger than the tsubadome.
This should work fine.

Finally a quick *how to* for a self made nito set:

Daito:

Use a fine saw blade and cut of 6 cm from the tsuka at the bottom.
Now bevel/smooth the edges and -!this is important!- reinsert the small metal piece that sits inside the shinai grip!
You may have to make 4 new slits if it is to hard to just squeeze everything together.
After that, just shorten the tsukagawa according to the new grip length.
The overall shinai length must not exceed 114 cm!!


Shoto:

This one is a bit trickier than the daito.
To archive the length of 62 cm, we must not just take of the shinai tip, otherwise we´ll end up more with a club instead of a short shinai.

1.
 Locate the thickest node of the shinai.
From there, measure about 22 cm to the bottom, and cut of the tsuka at the marked line.
(Don´t forget the metal piece here either!)

2.
From the new tsuka, measure the said 62 cm to the new tip of the shinai and cut it of as well.

3.
Bevel/smooth out all edges, shorten your tsukagawa and assembly everything as usual.

Enjoy your new nito gear!
If there are any questions left, please feel free to ask ;)