Its difficult however for the average martial artist to afford a real samurai sword because authentic samurai swords can cost thousands and thousands of dollars. It's also difficult to know the the sword you may be looking at on Ebay or on a classified ad is an authentic samurai sword. There are many cheap imitations that may look great hanging on the dojo wall, but are are downright dangerous to consider practicing with due to the danger of them coming to pieces in your hands.

The link to the website given here is for an Australian who really knows about buying japanese samurai swords and is willing to exchange his knowledge and experience with other first time buyers. He talks about the pitfalls of buying japanese samurai swords on Ebay and helps you get the facts you need to purchase a reasonably priced japanese samurai sword that you can actually practice with.