Brian

Hi all, A friend asked me to have a go at these 2 mei. Without a handy camera, he chalked the signatures and photocopied them. Hopefully they are clear enough to work on. The first I think reads Bizen (no) kuni Osafune ju Sukesada? The other I haven't had enough time to go over. I think it ends in Taka, but don't have the rest. Anyone able to assist? Thanks, Brian

Pierre, I am pretty certain they are not using regular floor wax, and if they are, I think they should be strung up. Likely they are using "renaissance wax" which is commonly used in museums, although I am also not too confident about using it long term on Nihonto. But it is used worldwide by museums, so can't be too bad I hope. The traditional methods mentioned already have stood the test of hundreds of years though, and I see no reason to change them now. Google renaissance wax, and you will come up with lots of info on it. Hopefully that is what it is, and not floor wax Brian

Very cute and funny guys... But in the interests of keeping this a serious and dedicated study forum, I have to cut it short now. Let's keep on track please. I know it is getting to the end of the year and the mood is getting lighter, but we have some serious sword experts and visitors on board, and I don't want the tone going downhill. Thanks, Brian

IMHO, this blade (from what we can see) is not nearly in any state of polish where you can start to appreciate any visible boshi. It looks like it was rusted over, and has had a rough amateur polish job done to bring it to this state. Just my opinion from what I see, but there is way too much pitting and roughness to be in a state where the boshi will be nice and visible. The boshi is probably the hardest to polish, and doesn't show nicely unless the polish is done well. I can't make a determination if it is there from the pics. Brian

Congrats Alf! Brian

I split this from the original post, because it is a topic in itself. I found the following file in my Nihonto folder, and unfortunately do not remember where I got it. So hopefully the original poster will forgive me posting it, and has my thanks. If there are any copyright issues, please let me know and I'll pull it. But judging by the dates, it should be ok to share. Brian Urushi Lacquering .doc

Hi Guido, I would appreciate a summary if possible, as you know most of us here are still novices with little to no knowledge of Japanese language I thought Dr T's link I posted summed it up quite nicely, so hope everyone at least gave it a read. Will be glad to hear if there is anything to add to that in the above extract. There, I also found this great article by Guido simpy explaining how to convert those pesky shaku, sun, bu and rin to easy mm and cm. I had no idea it was so easy, and thanks for that. http://www2.una.edu/takeuchi/DrT_Jpn_Cu ... _chart.htm It's all about the number 303. Makes life a lot easier for me. Brian

Mark, I may be wrong here, but I think those definitions are more about the feel and look of the blade than based on actual strict physical dimensions. I have seen blades that have a nagasa of 35cm called o-tanto based on the appearance and mounts. I think it is probably an o-tanto, but post a pic and you will get more opinions. The terms are loose, and some will call it one thing, and some another. Is it hira-zukuri and what does the nakago look like? What koshirae? There is an article somewhere that goes more into this, but not sure where I read it. No easy answer, I think it has to go down to gut feel. Brian Edit to add: Here you go: http://www2.una.edu/takeuchi/DrT_Jpn_Cu ... of_wak.htm Excellent article by Dr T, who is a member here on the NMB and has a great website. Some very good reading there clarifying the confusion while pointing out how difficult it is to classify them

How long have I been collecting? Not nearly long enough :D If I had another 20 years of study behind me, I would be a bit more confident in this field. As it is, I am only into this for the past 7 years or so. So I am still a complete beginner. I was always a serious firearm and edged weapon collector with a reference library of a few 1000 books. Oneday I found myself with a newly acquired NCO shin gunto, and as always, went to my books to see what I had on Japanese swords and learn a bit more about it. Well..once I started reading, I was hooked. Everything else took a back seat, and I soon found myself looking for a forged blade. I skipped the "buy a fake on eBay" stage, and bought my first wakizashi from a very nice dealer overseas. The rest is history Brian

Wow...that is a brilliant article. I had missed that one before, and clears up a lot of the confusion regarding the use of "den" Can see how the attitudes towards this word differ in Japan compared to how we often see it. Thanks, Brian

Closest possible I was able to come to: Linstock They vary in shape. Could those side ends hold a fuse? http://www.nps.gov/history/museum/exhib ... stock.html http://images.google.co.za/images?hl=en ... a=N&tab=wi Brian (Edit to add: Just means signing your post at the end with an inital and surname, or first name and initial. )

Hi LS (Please sign posts with a name and initial as per the rules, thanks) Definitely not Japanese in origin. It may be Chinese, but I can't find anything similar in Chinese weaponry. The Chinese tiger fork is a trident, but not as ornate as this. I will take a look through Stones Glossary and see if I can find anything similar, but it may be Burmese, Nepalese etc etc. Your best bet would be to post on one of the ethnographic edged weapons forums such as http://forums.swordforum.com as they should have people who specialise in similar items. Interesting item, looks a bit ceremonial to me. Regards, Brian

Well..since we do have this one off topic thread running already, and it is a slow Sunday afternoon here... I know you mentioned a bit about the AF decision comming up on the yahoo group. How about filling us in here about what is going on? I know most here don't know, and sounds like quite a decision to make... Brian

I thought I was the despot? :? Did you demote me already?

Well...since there isn't a smiley for "gracious in victory" or "well done to the runners up" or "well played, opponents"... I think I'll just use this one: Or maybe this one.... Brian PS - Thanks to the French for being such great hosts. I hope our supporters were less trouble than the Brits.... (It's my forum, I can go off topic if i like)

Rich, Is there a different, larger book than "Japanese Sword Fittings from the Alexander Mosle Collection?" I thought that was the one, but it only has 170 fittings, and doesn't have a Nobuie in it. Must be a different larger catalog I guess. Brian

Darcy compiled this idea into a fantastic article for the last JSSUS newsletter for anyone who has access to it. Glad we sparked the idea Very nicely done. Brian

John, If I look closely, I can see guide lines that indicate there was an intention to carve another hi to match the other 2. Look to me like a work in progress, done afterwards. Maybe a project that remained unfinished for some reason. It is indeed quite odd Brian

Robert, I would suspect that most people who are displaying swords in koshirae either just have them on a sword stand on a table or shelf, or have a wall mounted stand that works the same way. Not too many options open to you I think? Brian

Chicken Sashimi! I googled it. Umm..er.... yeah. :? Too many pages. Seems it is done, and enjoyed. I musta missed that when I was there. Rich T...you have to try it for us when you get there next week. lol Brian

True John, However re-reading the original post, I think we all assume it is a shirasaya, and not a normal laquered saya. I think we need to clarify that before we suggest splitting a nicely finished saya. I made the same assumption Regards, Brian

Yep, that is a good idea. I have used a .22 one, and an air rifle one before (.177) Use a nylon brush, and you can wrap a cotton patch around the brush. Work gently and before you do it, give the brush a few hard tugs to make sure it is securely attached. You do not want the brush comming off at the bottom of the saya I had that happen to a junk gunto scabbard, and it caused very real problems. I don't think the saya is too contaminated, and I wouldn't go overboard though. Brian

Dr Stein's site is a very popular one, and very often exceeds the bandwidth allocation daily. However it is usually up a few hours later, so the best is to just keep trying and you will get in soon enough. There is also a mirror site here: http://www.geocities.com/alchemyst/nihonto.htm Regards, Brian

You 2 replied at the same time. :D Apparently 3-4 drops of oil is unanimous Grey said it all. Btw..don't use pure clove oil. The oil is just slightly clove scented, but we know what you meant Remy Brian

Henry, Firstly, I think you need to clarify that you mean oiling and not polishing. Unprofessional polishing is frowned upon officially by the forum, and I do not advocate any self-polishing here. However your situation is oiling and preserving, and not polishing hopefully. The provided oil and also light machine oil should work. If it is beading, then your blade has not been cleaned properly, and has a residue on it. You need to apply the uchiko properly or wipe with pure alchohol to remove the residue first to prevent the beading. Search the forum for "oiling nihonto" or "cleaning blade" and you will come up with a lot of info on this subject, including all the recommended oils etc. I would not recomend car wax. You do not know what the long term effects will be due to the additives. Just stick to the correct oil..making sure you clean it first properly, and solve the beading problem. Remember it is a very light coating of oil, I think you may be using too much. Also..consider one of the better quality cleaning sets. Some of the cheaper ones have bad quality oil and uchiko. Brian