Bruce Pennington Posted August 21, 2017 Report Share Posted August 21, 2017 Three years ago, my dad passed away and I got his WWII Japanese officer sword. It was missing parts, so I've spent the last 3 years fixing it up, and have just had it polished. If you'll indulge me, I'd like to tell the story, as much as I have. It was made in Spring 1941, by the Mantetsu factory in Manchuria, and carrries the "Koa Issin" slogan. Don't know anything about it's path in the war, but by the look of the blade it did some duty in the field. My dad lied about his age (16 at the time) and joined the Marines in 1950. They kicked him out when Korea started, but he rejoined in 1956 and served 7 years and seperated as a Staff Sgt. Somewhere along that time, he picked up the Mantetsu. I wish I had asked him how he got it, but as a kid, it never occured to me. He did say that the missing parts were stolen buy guys "looking for jewels." When I got it in 2014, it was missing sarute, rank tassel, tsuba/seppa, semegane, ishizuke, and mekugi. I found a nice tsuba/seppa set from a Japanese seller online, and ordered the mekugi online. Then I found someone selling a tsuka that had the same cloth sarute, which I swapped out to Dad's tsuka. When looking for rank tassels, most Field grade tassels were in the $500 range where the Comapany grade tassels were around $150, so I decided Dad's mantetsu could be a Captain's sword! I later found a semegane. Had to file the inside of it to get it up the saya far enough! And the last piece, the ishizuke, came from another Mantetsu saya from The Ozzy Samurai on one of the forums. After a 2 year wait, my turn came up for the polish. I highly recommend David Hofhine. He did a fabulous job! I really debated about the polish. The blade was stained and scratched and showed that it had a bit of history. So I almost kept it that way. But in the end, it was Dad's and I wanted it to look top-notch, so I went ahead with it, and I'm glad I did. It's quite beautiful. Since I have difficult uploading pictures on this forum, with large enough data and size, I'm just going to link to the same post on Gunboards: http://forums.gunboards.com/showthread.php?828922-Dad-s-Mantetsu-Koa-Issin&p=7427746#post7427746 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vajo Posted August 21, 2017 Report Share Posted August 21, 2017 Howly cow Bruce, that blade looks fantastic!! The hole sword looks like it came from Ohmuras site. I think your father would be very proud about what you have done with his sword. Very, very nice. Hold it, it's a treasure. Best Regards Chris 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Posted August 21, 2017 Report Share Posted August 21, 2017 I tried to copy and paste but got a notice NOT allowed!! sad that forums cant share anywho, job well done Bruce, you did your dad proud! love the polish, looks like a Yasukuni blade now. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windy Posted August 21, 2017 Report Share Posted August 21, 2017 Cracking result Bruce. Your Dad would be proud. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwordGuyJoe Posted August 21, 2017 Report Share Posted August 21, 2017 I don't have permission to view the photos. I'm sure they're lovely and congrats on a project completed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Pennington Posted August 21, 2017 Author Report Share Posted August 21, 2017 Here's some of the key pictures: 6 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
celt72 Posted August 22, 2017 Report Share Posted August 22, 2017 It certainly turned out great Bruce! Well done! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greg F Posted August 22, 2017 Report Share Posted August 22, 2017 Well done and congratulations Bruce, your Dad would be very proud im sure. Thank for sharing this with us. Greg 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwordGuyJoe Posted August 22, 2017 Report Share Posted August 22, 2017 Looks great 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hastur Posted August 22, 2017 Report Share Posted August 22, 2017 A top notch job for a top notch sword for sure! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EdWolf Posted August 22, 2017 Report Share Posted August 22, 2017 Hi Bruce, Your sword turns out great! It’s a nice way to honor your dad. Regards, Ed 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PNSSHOGUN Posted August 22, 2017 Report Share Posted August 22, 2017 Very nice result, to be treasured in the family for many generations to come now. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IJASWORDS Posted August 22, 2017 Report Share Posted August 22, 2017 Great story, great sword, great result. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shamsy Posted August 22, 2017 Report Share Posted August 22, 2017 Hi Bruce, I think the restoration turned out to be well worth it. It's not always about the money; some things are worth doing because of what it represents to you. Cheers, Steve 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michaelr Posted August 23, 2017 Report Share Posted August 23, 2017 GREAT JOB Bruce. You should be very proud of what you have done, I am sure your dad is proud of the sword and OF YOU. MikeR 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul griff Posted August 23, 2017 Report Share Posted August 23, 2017 Well done Bruce,nice job a credit to you and your dad's history.. Regards, Paul.. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Posted August 25, 2017 Report Share Posted August 25, 2017 What a nice story Bruce. It was good of you to do this to honor your father and the sword. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Pennington Posted August 26, 2017 Author Report Share Posted August 26, 2017 Thanks for all the positive comments, guys! It was just exciting to have it completed and I wanted to share it all. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruno Posted August 27, 2017 Report Share Posted August 27, 2017 Hi Bruce Did you have a shirasaya made for the freshly polished blade? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Pennington Posted August 27, 2017 Author Report Share Posted August 27, 2017 Hi Bruce Did you have a shirasaya made for the freshly polished blade? Not yet, Bruno. Still saving up my fun money, but it's something I need to do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruno Posted August 28, 2017 Report Share Posted August 28, 2017 Not yet, Bruno. Still saving up my fun money, but it's something I need to do. Thanks Bruce. Aren't you afraid to store the blade inside the old gunto scabbard? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Pennington Posted August 28, 2017 Author Report Share Posted August 28, 2017 Thanks Bruce. Aren't you afraid to store the blade inside the old gunto scabbard? The liner is dry and smooth. I live in dry Colorado, and I keep the blade oiled. So, all said and done - very little risk. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruno Posted August 28, 2017 Report Share Posted August 28, 2017 The liner is dry and smooth. I live in dry Colorado, and I keep the blade oiled. So, all said and done - very little risk. I have also the project to have a shiage done on my Koa Ishhin but will start with a shirasaya done first. I have chosen Bob Benson to do the shiage polish. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Pennington Posted August 28, 2017 Author Report Share Posted August 28, 2017 Good idea! You'll love the result! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Pennington Posted December 7, 2023 Author Report Share Posted December 7, 2023 On 8/28/2017 at 12:55 PM, Bruno said: I have also the project to have a shiage done on my Koa Ishhin but will start with a shirasaya done first. I have chosen Bob Benson to do the shiage polish. Bruno, Read this old post, and wondering if you made any progress on this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruno Posted December 8, 2023 Report Share Posted December 8, 2023 Hi Bruce, I delayed this project. Eventually Woody Hall shall do the polish but he has a 60 swords back log, so it won't be polished tomorrow! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Pennington Posted December 8, 2023 Author Report Share Posted December 8, 2023 Yes. Don't know how many blades he can do per year. I waited 2 years in line to get mine done. So, here we sit until you update us! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruno Posted December 9, 2023 Report Share Posted December 9, 2023 11 hours ago, Bruce Pennington said: I waited 2 years in line to get mine done That 's about that also for me concerning another WW2 blade he has at the moment. I am a patient guy, not a problem for me to wait. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawn7 Posted December 13, 2023 Report Share Posted December 13, 2023 Hi Bruce! Really appreciate this story, and all the work you have done on Mantetsu. I have one I would like to get your opinion on. Should I start a new thread or add to an existing one? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Pennington Posted December 13, 2023 Author Report Share Posted December 13, 2023 9 hours ago, Shawn7 said: Should I start a new thread or add to an existing one? It’s more convenient for the Mantetsu study if you add it right here, thanks! Looking forward to it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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