Purchasing HIgh Quality Katana

Hello I will be taking a tour of japan within the next year for approx. a month. also i have been collecting japanese weaponry for several years. the majority of them are antique brought over from japan over the years (freinds, Family, etc) and i have now decided that when i travel there I will be looking to add a authentic high quality battle ready katana to act a the pinnacle of my collection. Im sure you can agree that this is a suitable idea because the katana is japan's most well known weapon. Sorry for the long intro i just want everyone to know that this is very important to me and the work i have been through gathering information about the subject so my question to you fine folks is where in japan i can have this katana made for me? I am aware of the permits i need. All i need is a smith who will make this for me, price is of no concern either. Another smaler question is one of customs, how would i go about taking the blade back to my home country of canada? thank you all for reading i look forward to any and all responses. thank you for your time and have a great day Sayonara

-Ryan

I don't know alot about weaponry but this might help you.
When I first went to Japan I got a Katana for my husband, it cost just over $200 Canadian. My husband knows quite a bit about weaponry and he was really happy with it. This one I got in Kamakura, just beside the Buddha there is a store called "Souveniers of Japan" and they sell quite a bit of Japanese weaponry, some quite expensive as well. Like I said I don't know alot about this but my husband was very happy with the Katana I got him there.
There is also an authenic weapons shop I saw in Kyoto, if I remember correctly it was by Nijo Castle, if you are facing the main entrance you need to walk to your left and it's on the cornor across the street. This was a very expensive shop with weapons over $1000.
I'm sorry I can't help you with the customs though, but I hope my other information helps you.
Have a great time in Japan :-)

You need to contact: 1-the Canadian customs to ensure that you will not have a problem bring the Katana back. 2-The Japanese embassy in Ottawa or the Japanese consulate in your town re the export of a high quality katana and for names of good katana blacksmiths as you can't go to Japan and hope to find one on a main street. They often live in a remote place as they don't want to see hordes of tourists, and the better the smith, the longer you will have to wait for him to make you a katana.