Also known by his nakago-mei as Masa Mitsu, Francis is a rare and unique individual. Francis has been working on swords and bladed weapons of all types since 1969. Although he is best known as one of the few classically trained American swordsmiths who was taught the traditional process for making a Japanese sword, Francis has also worked extensively on swords from around the world. Visit the History page for more information.

Francis was trained in the traditional art of Japanese swordmaking by Nakajima Muneyoshi. According to Francis, Nakajima was an amazing craftsman who was incredibly knowledgeable, very demanding, and a perfectionist. Francis spent seven years as an apprentice learning under Nakajima Sensei, five of which included the extremely difficult art of togi, or polishing. Francis is known internationally for his polishing skills and is considered one of the premier polishers in the United States. Nakajima had more than one apprentice, but only Francis was taught fully in all of the skills that his teacher had to pass down.

Francis is currently alive and well and working on swords at his workshop in Northern California. He has extensively studied the metallurgy of Japanese swords and is now able to reproduce just about any historical or modern construction method desired. He takes custom orders and occasionally will make a sword to his own taste as time allows. Francis is a firm believer that the sword is a tool, first and foremost, but that it can also be a work of art which represents the heart and soul of the swordsmith.

If you would like to meet Francis Boyd and see his work please visit him at one of the following annual events. He attends the Southern California Blade show held in February, and the San Francisco Token Kai held in August.