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Ok just my 2 cents. I have been into collecting military stuff, US, German,And Japanese, since I was 10 years old. I am 69 years old now. What I have always found over all those years is that the high class- high priced items revolve in a small circle. Even the price of those items fluctuate but they seem to fluctuate the least. Next you find the middle of the road items ( with no disrespect to anyone ) where most people seem to float. This area is the area of Great items at Great prices that most of us can afford and appreciate. This section seems to take the greatest hit when things around change. It seems to be the first section to see increases when times are good and the first section to see the decreases when times turn bad. The last area that we find is the entry level, lower condition- lower desirable items that ALL can afford. This area never seems to fluctuate. EVERYONE can afford to be in this area. When times are tuff we all justify a little stash just to go out and keep us in the circle and we can always find something in this area to take home. I think at this time we are in that down turn of the second-center section. A few years ago that same section was seeing a Great upward movement. I learned over all these years to BUY THE BEST THAT I COULD AFFORD, TO BUY WHAT I ENJOY AND WHAT MAKES ME HAPPY And it has worked well for me. I have sold items over the years for less than I paid BUT the look on the new owners face, having just spent all the money they had more than made up for my loss. Enjoy what you have, buy the best that you can afford and don’t sweat the ones that got away. I always take the time to enjoy the ones that I can’t afford and consider myself lucky to have been given that opportunity. Getting into Japanese Swords was the best thing that I ever did as the people that you meet, NO MATTER WHAT AREA THEY REVOLVE IN are ALWAYS willing to spend time with you and share what they know. Thank you to ALL HERE ON THE FORUM that have helped me along this journey, to the late Bob Elder from the Orlando Show that was always there for me, to Martin from Pa ,to Jim from Fla. and to Ray and Mark MikeR

All Gone.

Hi Everyone New member here I was lucky enough to find this beautiful Tsuba and Brian advised me to snatch it while it was available. This is my first Tsuba and I am hoping to build a collection. I know it to be Bushu School Tsuba (thanks Brian) but I was wandering if anyone here could help me with further information? Or if someone could point me in the direction of good reading material, where I could learn more about these types of Tsuba (google is surprisingly sparse with details o maybe I am not using the correct words/terms to search) I would really like to translate what is written on it and know it's approximate age. Any other information or leads would be highly appreciated. I am currently combing through all the posts on this site attempting to learn about everything discussed. Many thanks in advance Best regards Greg

More than a year later, the restoration of the kabuto is finished. First we made a study about it, under the supervision of Nishioka sensei, the No 1 restorer in Japan. After a couple of inquiring months, the work started. The soft metal work was restored by Nishioka’s student R. Soanes. Then urushi and odoshi was taken care of by Zenon Vandamme here in Belgium. I was lucky to find perfect matching kuwagata. Here is the result, with a lot of respect for this 15th century relic.

First day of the show is on the books. It was well attended and looked like there wasn't an empty booth space to be had. I walked in there with a wandering eye and curious hands which I mostly scolded and kept in my pocket. Behind my eye and hands was a main drive/focus...my Unicorn Cinderella quest. I had a type 98 koshirae with sharksin saya (purchased on NMB) and wanted to find it a blade. I would mention this quest and mostly told "Good luck" and I'd take the well wishes. I knew it would be tough, but if it was to be done; this was the place. I walked booth to booth with my tsunagi with a few potentials coming and going. Hours later I had about given up while at the same time never yet losing faith. Then at the end of an aisle it happened.... I came across a Tadakuni Nidai with Hozon papers for an affordable price. I laid the tsunagi over it...huh...this might work. I tell the dealer my quest and the potential of his blade so he says, "Well lets try". I ask him do it because god forbid anything happen. He takes the blade out of shirasaya and it just happened to fit perfectly into the seppa, perfectly into the tsuba, perfectly into the tsuka...but could the mekugi ana honestly linenup as well? I heard the magic words..."they line up perfectly!". I responded "No way, you might have found my Cinderella! Now if it's a perfect fit I feel like I can't even try to haggle!" The seller then said, "ha, I'll take $100 off". Class act.... Then of course is the last and final piece...the saya. He picks up the blade perfectly mounted in my tsuka and slowly...slowly...starts to slide it in. Only the penitant blade shall pass. He continues...so far so good....and then the Cinderella moment...it fit perfectly including the habaki. Tight, nestled and safe. Lastly, it really could use one extra seppa to really snug things up. Went to Grey and Mark's table digging into Mark's tacklebox of seppa, gunto etc...parts. found the perfect seppa that lines up perfectly with the other seppa and locking mechanism. We were all systems go. No pumpkin. The only thing off was that the tsunagi was about an inch and some change longer. So Cinderella Tadakuni was a bit shorter than she could have been. This I will allow. That blade was my entire haul this year and couldn't be happier. I'm not the first to have this happen, nor will I be the last but thank you Chicago Sword Show 2022. Honorable Mentions that I Almost Bought: 1. Signed tanto early 1800s with a Fuji design in hamon...but no sun/moon. 2. Signed Gendaito (Kanesomething?) by a WW2 era smith in shirasaya who made the hada look like soundwaves all the way down the blade. Was told it was an old "forgotten or secret" (i forget the adjective used) technique only done/known by a few smiths. There were more details about the blade but I lost them in the fog. It really was quite beautiful besides its flaws but walked away without it for a few reasons. Picture collage below of seperate sword in shirasaya becoming one with the type 98 koshirae.

I couldn't help but think, when I saw the title, that he was the chap next to the Lone Ranger.....

Hi Ian, As the gap is so large- assuming the the mekugi ana line up- my guess is the saya has a piece of horn on it and the tsuka has lost the piece originally fitted to it- taking up the space. I have seen shirasaya where there was only one piece of horn/ perspex- maybe the piece from the tsuka only is missing. Pic of the saya will confirm. Cheers

As promised, Thomas. Shigetsugu Saku(?)

A very nice (and hard to find) General grade Kyu Gunto tassel in excellent condition. Please see photos for condition. $1100USD

Very high quality gendaito by Kawashima Tadayoshi in shingunto koshirae. Bright gunome-midare hamon in nie-deki. Ko-itame jihada. Well preserved koshirae, though it is missing the ishizuke. There is a kamon on the kabutogane which still has ita gold color and is the crest associated with the Fujiwara clan. This is an extremely nice gendai which remains in very good polish. Tadayoshi founded the Kawashima school and I have attached a lineage below. $3,000 (plus shipping and PayPal)

https://www.rockislandauction.com/riac-blog/samurai-gun-colt-revolving-rifle?utm_source=Rock+Island+Auction+News&utm_campaign=dc6f23748a-2022_4_22_+2+Winchesters%2C+2+Stories&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_1f4b8db853-dc6f23748a-149001157

Word of warning, this joker just graduated from dumba** university with honors: https://www.ebay.com/itm/394043571623?hash=item5bbed3bda7:g:YF4AAOSwTOtiZEY1 "This piece is all original! NOT A REPRODUCTION! Even though these Type 95 Shin Gunto's are machine made, they are of the highest quality, especially versions 1 & 2!! There are multiple documented instances where a Japanese officer took their Katana and cut the barrel of a US machine gun in half! You can understand how this is possible after feeling how light yet strong these works of art are!"

One of the guys was starting a document for that purpose. Can't remember who that was. Love the claim that someone had sliced a rifle barrel in two with a Type 95! Maybe it was a Fake M-1!!!

I could edit that, but then your post wouldn't make sense anymore

Much thanks! I also just found the recommended reading page on this site🤦‍♂️

Reduced to 800USD. Something of interest are these photos showing senior officers wearing Kyu Gunto knots on their Type 94 in dress uniform.

Congratulations David and congratulations to the new owners. They got a Great Deal. Since my first sword I always wanted to own a Generals Tassel but was always a day late or a dollar short. This time it was the dollar short. They were all beautiful and a Very Great Deal MikeR

It's not. Not even close. Aside from the fact that an official "Kamikaze dirk" doesn't exist. But this is not even a proper tanto, sorry. At best, a mix of parts put together by a hobbyist. The saya looks like the sawn off end of a saya. Tsuka also looks cut off a longer one. Blade is way off. Avoid shinogi zukuri tanto! Horimono is tourist quality at best. A souvenir knife. If it's even Japanese...

No.1 sold.

I agree, but that said, if the blade really is a WW2 aviators dagger, it's worth money!

Lucky boys. I wish you a nice time.

I am seeing what appears to be a mish-mash of parts paired with a 'kamekaze' knife: an inexpensive mass-produced blade for Japanese aviators. But I would wait on more educated opinions on what you might have. I could be very incorrect.

Normally, if the tsuka of that shirasaya is made for that blade, then yes, the gap ought to be closed.. But in this case, I wonder if that's not the case... forcing it may split the tsuka, and then you'll have a bigger problem than you started with! I'd say if the blade fits securely in the saya, then its not a huge issue. Just means the wood has swollen or the tsuka wasn't made for the blade.

Yeah, I'm a little paranoid about ebay these days...I've heard too many friends having issues with customs and I had to quit selling overseas during Covid due to ever-changing restrictions. It's not very seller friendly at all anymore. Selling here, using Paypal seems a good way to go. I'll ponder how best to ship it, think over the advice you all have provided and come up with a price. Many thanks for all the help as I felt like a jerk last time I posted it for sale...this time I think I'm a little more educated and more likely to set a price that's more reasonable. I just want a fair price and a happy buyer and the good karma that comes with it. Thank you all for your time and assistance, John

I would like to thank all of you for your help, I've learned a lot about this sword and Japanese swords in general from you and I really appreciate it.

No. 3 sold

The fittings are often called the "Type 3", but it was really a contingency variant of the Type 98 Japanese officer sword. Used by officers of any rank. You can read about them here: Rebutting the "Type 3" label Unveiling the Rinji-seishiki Sword

Tamahagane is made from iron sand.

So I'll write it hard when the others didn't have the courage. Any investment in this low level is a waste of money. So if for any reason you decide to throw away money, then only R. Soanes in UK , the others are useless.

Hello Colin, Your sword was almost assuredly made by the Michitoshi (道俊) on Fujishiro's shintō index p422. He is the only Michitoshi using that particular kanji combination (in Fujishiro, anyway). I believe this corresponds with Hawley's Michitoshi MIC70. Fujishiro dates him from Ansei (1854) while Hawley's dates him from Bunkyu (1861), so, a negligible discrepancy. I don't know what the dark streaks are in your blade either, but they are not bo-utsuri. I wouldn't be too worried about it. It doesn't look like its any kind of fatal flaw. I'm not sure if the smith intended for those streaks to show up, or if that's just how the end product looked. Regarding the other name (the person who ordered the tantō); the first character of the name includes the component 山 (yama) on the top. There aren't a lot of kanji that use this component on the top, and of those that do, very few of them are appropriate for a name. Maybe it is 巌 (巌邦 = Yoshikuni)? Anyway, its not something super obvious otherwise Moriyama-san (aka the poster called "Nobody") would have mentioned it. I'm a bit skeptical you we could ever find the identity of this person. Fujiwara is a common name. I think even in the mid 1800s it would have been a fairly common name. One thing to note is that the lacquer scabbard contains the name "Fujii" (藤井) inside of a circle, in the form of a family crest.

Hi guys, Mark and I just took in a bunch of swords new to the market and a couple dozen kodogu also. If you're going to be here at the show be sure to stop by our tables for a peek. Going to be a very active show, I think. Grey

Hi, you can look on the sites, who sells iaito: https://tozandoshop.com/collections/sword-racks/products/hayaki-daisho-sword-rack-1?variant=39630283636869 or https://www.seidoshop.com/collections/katanakake-stand or https://www.sinonome-Japan.com/en/katana-stand/57-iaito-shunkei.html (oh sorry this one is out of stock) i would suggest to look at a local shop, who makes handmade wooden weapons for martial arts, they often also have stands hope this helps regards Oliver

How many fingers does the dragon have

That's a fake, right?

Anti-roll mechanism.