Possible old Tachi

[Utopianarian]

It is very difficult to see but looks like very tiny little streaks of highly reflective silver occasionally in the Hada and Hamon some areas have tiny crescent shaped areas of Hamon doubled just over the top edge of the Hamon that repeat. Some bright tiny silver specs of I guess nie but highly reflective in a few spots but not much

[Utopianarian]

I will check that out. Thank you Alex

[Tom Darling]

The bohi beyond the yokote is typical koto period.

 

 

 

Tom D.

[Utopianarian]

Yes. It is hard to tell though if the Kissaki was ground down or reshaped. My eyes and experience isn’t much or it may be my imagination but it appears like there is a Boshi with a maru that doesn’t run off the blade. I’m sure an experienced polisher might be able to tell

[Utopianarian]

The groove does advance well into the Kissaki but not sure with the Kissaki being so small if that was intended or not

[Utopianarian]

Or something to do with the style at that time it was made

[Utopianarian]

I think to my own disadvantage is if you want to believe something is there you will look and find anything to believe it. Could be I have an overactive imagination and too hopeful

[Utopianarian]

I flip back and forth over the last week or so. One day I think money pit not worth it. Then I get hopeful with imagination and reading too much about masterworks which I can’t in reality afford

[tbonesullivan]

Is it normal for the Bo-hi to extend all the way through the Nakago like that?  Or is that just a sign that the sword was shortened?   I've seen some swords where the bo-hi goes into the Nakago, but not off the end like that.

 

I have seen an older sword with the Bo-Hi extending into the kissaki, though I don't know if it was attributed correctly.

[Utopianarian]

Yes the Bohi runs off the Nakago because it was greatly shortened. I can even see a faint Hamon that keeps running into Nakago then obscured by rust and oxidation confirming that it was shortened from the bottom

[Utopianarian]

I have another blade that has been shortened with Hamon running into Nakago and it is tricky because the end of the Nakago was nicely redone which if you don’t look close enough looks ubu or not shortened

[Ray Singer]

If you really want to pursue this further, a simple answer can be found by sending for a madoake (window polish of one or more small sections). I suggest starting by reaching out to Bob Benson for an in-hand evaluation (togishi.com).

[Utopianarian]

Thank you Ray, I think I will send it to him and hope for the best

[Alex A]

Make sure there are no cracks, took some bashes.

 

Comes across a bit strange maybe that someones just had a go at polishing one side.

 

Just a thought, good luck

[Rivkin]

George, as much as polishing adventure sounds interesting, an honest and cynical advice is not to embark on it for an unsigned daito unless you are dead certain its Heian to Nambokucho, with maybe Oei Bizen being an exception.

The prices of unsigned swords from other periods are not that great. It saves time for a dealer who sees hundreds of unpolished swords - unsigned post-Nambokucho? Financially not worth the effort. Signed - evaluate the signature and then make the decision.

Simple rules which are sufficient to function reasonably well in this business.

 

Plus the chances that the polish will not reveal new problems is not that great. Finally, the chance that it will come out as a great sword - very small.

 

Its better to bite the bullet and buy a really attractive sword in polish where you can see a lot of things.

 

Kirill R.

[tbonesullivan]

As someone who deals a lot with collectibles, I'd have to agree. Unless it has some incredible Koshirae or provenance, it's better to leave it as is, and let it go. This was a sword that saw use, which unfortunately has not left it in the best condition for any type of collecting purposes. If it didn't have those nicks, I'd say think about it, but with those, the amount of the blade that would need to be removed is not small.

 

I see it all the time with musical instruments. At least those have an inherent "use", so even sinking a lot of money into a basket-case has a potential Return on Investment. For that sword? I don't think so.

[Tom Darling]

I echo the same prudent sentiment as Kirill and David, been there, done it! Peace.

 

 

Tom D.

[Alex A]

Is it normal for the Bo-hi to extend all the way through the Nakago like that? 

 

Yes, many ubu swords have bo-hi that that extend the full length of the nakago, not that im saying this sword is ubu.

 

I also agree with Kirill,can be tricky though.

 

Sometimes we do stuff from the heart, and not from the mind.

 

This isn't a sword for a top polisher.

 

Best.

[Utopianarian]

I am still am on a list for David Hofhine from a little less than 2 years ago maybe I should have him look at the sword and see what he thinks. If it is later than Nanbokucho and not worth it especially due to potential fire damage and the large fukure or large area that may need umagane on the non polished side. I did send him pics in the past and he did say it does appear to look like an early blade and he may be able to remove some of the nicks if I wish to preserve most of the sword otherwise it would be a tired if he removed all of the nicks it would be a tired sword that would greatly depreciate value. As far as that area that would need umegane he said if I wished to pursue that would require work of a skilled sword smith. It does puzzle me why somebody would just decide to polish half of the sword then stop. It doesn’t look like a bubba job though where it was sand blasted with a belt sander. It looks like the geometry and lines are there. It does have a lot of niku or meat in the center that kind of rounds out to the edge. Maybe they were just looking to see what the potential was then decided it wasn’t worth it after a amateur polish job. Maybe chemicals were used or an attempt to remove rust and some of the patina off the Nakago hoping to find a signature. I would think if it was in a fire would affect the Hamon to some degree which at least on the polished side appears like the Hamon is all there.

[Utopianarian]

The small chance that it works out and the polish reveals something surprising like an Ichimonji I would pursue umegane.

[Utopianarian]

Another pic

[Utopianarian]

Appears like most of the activity in the Hamon is in the monouchi area

[Ray Singer]

Looks interesting, I would strongly recommend against having restored stateside. Have it evaluated and, if it is worth restoring, have the work fully done by a licensed togishi in Japan.

[Utopianarian]

Ray that does sound like the best cost effective way to go about it. The thing that baffles me is I keep looking at the shape and it sort of does have an atypical shape depending on the angle and how it was cut maybe has an effect as well. The pics have a hard time for some reason of the sori appearance in pics. What do you think if it was in fire with the state of the Nakago fire versus somebody treating the Nakago with chemical trying to peel off layers of patina and rust trying to reveal a signature that wasn’t there. I would think if in a fire would also deplete or erase or greatly deform Hamon to some degree. Have you ever seen in your experience something that might explain what might be the case with this sword

[Ray Singer]

George, I am not comfortable assessing by photos and description only. An in-hand inspection by someone like Benson is the best approach.

[Utopianarian]

Yes that does make sense thank you Ray

[Tom Darling]

Hi George,

 

Give us a heads up of Benson"s inspection opinion. Peace.

 

 

Tom D.

[Alex A]

Hi George,

 

Give us a heads up of Benson"s inspection opinion. Peace.

 

 

Tom D.

 

Yes, please do as it would be interesting to know more about this blade and how to make the best of it.

 

You have the fact there appears to be little at the Hamachi, large nicks that cant be removed without removing half the hamon which is already thin, a thin Kasane, the chance of hagire and Bo-hi that already shows an opening. Cleaning up the bo-hi is a risky task, as there is a chance it will show more openings.

 

Bare in mind the cost of what you potentially spend v what you have in return. Old blades with faults, some of us will put up with, but there are many that wont, Just something to bare in mind if you ever want to sell.

 

Saying all that, id be curious too, look forward to seeing what the polisher makes of it.

[Utopianarian]

I will definitely keep you all informed of how things turn out. Also to note the yusurime or file marks on the Nakago appear like a pattern called Sen Suki which are irregular vertical traces created by a sen which is something similar to a plane used in shaving iron. This pattern was also used on pre-koto swords and early koto blades. It looks revealed where some of the patina has flaked off