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I would pass. It would be 1550s generation, but I personally don't like the nakago.

Thinking about bidding on this wakizashi which the seller says is signed Soushu Masahiro. I would just like to get a second opinion on it and see what others think of it and could possibly determine which generation masahiro forged it.

Mekugi it is. Thread title edited too.

I really love the shape of the blade.

Can anyone id the sword smith?

Still available - and open for reasonable offers ;)!

70+ Started in 1985

The tagane-ato punches would suggest it isn't cast Iron - looks like some ten-zogan on a couple of the fan faces, seven lobes seems like a rare design lots of eight and six lobes - I wonder why seven seems uncommon?

The small chain around the guard looks to me to be a watch chain, personal belongings of the officer

Dear Geraint, Thank you. For what they're worth, these are the photos from the auction. (And yes, that weird, 'woven', sageo is coming straight off!) Personally, I prefer blades in shirasaya but I can get one made for this easily enough. The koshirae looks modern but the habaki is very good quality; two piece and gold foil wrapped.

I used fine paint brushes serrating the upper tips off. Not bamboo, but it worked as well.

Hello Hoshi, In retrospect, you are probably right and this person is outside Japan, hoping to take advantage of those without easy access to the Japanese auction sites. If so, they are at least clever enough to word their statement of 'integrity and philosophy' with a smattering of grammatical errors and odd syntax, similar what you would expect from a native Japanese. Regarding buying from YJP, I will sometimes take a chance, especially with tsuba - but never eBay. Yes, I've been burned a couple of times but I've also had success; the Suruga no Kami Kunimasa blade of mine which just passed Tokuho was from Yahoo Auctions. It had an old NBTHK green paper, which is also a widely perceived warning sign but I trusted my own judgement and, on this occasion, it paid off. One word of advice about Japanese auctions, avoid the dealers with dozens of swords each week. Go for private individuals who might be selling off grandpa's 'old stuff' or the 'Ma and Pa' antique shops out in the sticks. They usually don't mess about with swords to make them look 'more saleable' and only look to make a fair profit. Thanks again, for pitching in on the conversation!

In relation to my earlier comment I realise I might not have been clear enough. I was suggesting the tsuba was made from a cast mold and was made of iron, not necessarily that cast-iron was used. The use of a mold would suggest (in my opinion) that this tsuba is not that old, likely late 19th or even early 20th century (Meiji, Taisho). Then again I am going off a single picture, so I could be wrong.

Forest, you can always use a bamboo chopstick cut to fit. I think your spelling is a little off "Mekugi" 目釘 You can also get metal antique screw through ones https://www.jauce.com/auction/x1193511145 https://www.jauce.com/auction/v1193029774 some are very decorative https://www.jauce.com/auction/u1192803948 https://www.jauce.com/auction/b1191697412

I don't remember seeing this one at Choshuya. Strong piece. Do we see twisted rope inlay any earlier than the 3rd gen in any of the earlier Higo schools? While I know the Kamiyoshi artists did this well, I cannot recall the earliest I have seen it in the older Higo schools. Just getting back from the NC mountains and catching up on a lot of posts that I have missed.

Hello, Just wondering where You people get Your Mekugi pins for the tsuka? Took apart my Hanwei Katana tonight for the 1st time and and unfortunately one of the Mekugi was impossible to take out. So I drilled it out instead of taking a chance at damaging something else. Thanks,

I'm probably going to pull this for now. Had a few inquiries and a few very lowball offers. Fortunately the need to sell financially is a bit lessened for me right now.

Blade is a long-signature Sukesada with nengo and gold-foiled two-piece habaki, in hitatsura, with TH:

Not Omori level waves, but still, a pretty handsome package:

So, I think I found another bargain on eBay that I purchased. Price was $85 U.S. ($100 including shipping and taxes). Just saying if you search for bargains on eBay, you can sometimes find them! Pictures attached.

Hi, "Based in Japan" - very unlikely. You are probably dealing here with an associate of the infamous '100M $ tachi' swindler which you can look up on this board. No Japanese dealer in his right mind would put such a banner as visual identity for a sword shop. Even if you got it at the auction hammer price, trust me - you dodged a bullet. Avoid Ebay, avoid YJP. You will get burned. Your best bet to find a decent entry level sword is to buy from a reputable dealer on this board. Best, Hoshi