Brian

Hi Jim, welcome to the forum. That is a nice looking tanto there, I especially like the hi (groove) running through the tang. Wish it was in better polish so that we could see the hamon (temperline) but looks in good condition and quite healthy from what we can see. Btw..the image is just a size thing. If pics are over 800 wide, then to prevent the screen scrolling, it makes it a download link instead of showing directly. Regards, Brian

Hi Bob, and welcome to the forum. Feel free to ask any questions, share any pics or just stick around and you will soon find this a very addictive hobby. I just had to find 2 British Fairbairn Sykes daggers to trade with a guy for his wakizashi. Last one is on the way now finally, so hopefully the waki will be mine soon Brian

Hi, If we can keep this discussion unemotional, then I think it could be an informative and interesting one. Judging sori is one of the most important and also most difficult things to do in kantei. I know I battle with it, as it isn't something that can be measured exactly, and sometimes is just an overall impression you get. This is before we even get to o-suriage etc! Here are the pics, with a line added to assist a bit. I would be interested in comments too. Brian

You sure it isn't because they were so fragile that the Samurai were afraid they would break, and left them at home, rather taking their Rai/Hasebe etc sword into battle? :D :lol: :D Kidding! Brian

I think you did well. Nice looking sword, very active and interesting hamon, in polish with papers (yet another of the small organisations/dealers I think?) and showing nice hada. The photos are reasonably high res too, don't think you could have asked for more. All for just over $2K? Sounds like a good deal to me. Brian

Which paper is that? I can't think of a reason the seller would part with it on eBay instead of in Japan unless the papers were maybe unreliable (not fake..just maybe older) or there was a flaw or he just likes to gamble Glad you didn't post this one while it was running Mike, because there would definitely have been influential comments. You have to ask yourself why sell this online though, if it is indeed Inoue Shinkai. And new seller too, with no feedback. I guess with papers it would have been very tempting though. Wish Gordon would pop in and make a comment on this one Brian

Derek, Whether to polish or not is up to you. Likely you would not get back what you put into it, but it would be for yourself, and not for the value. Bungo swords (as Milt will tell you) are not the most sought after school, but they are still good swords that had good battle characteristics. It has age to it, and is genuine. You would have to get some quotes on restoration to see if it is affordable to you and worth it. Most times you don't recover the money you spent when you restored it if you sell later, but the pride of ownership and beauty you would see after a good job is worth far more Brian

Andreas, I will take every genuine NCO Gunto you can find for $100 each! The standard NCO swords are fetching around $500 on eBay every time. Off eBay, cheaper. They are NOT junk...just not traditionally made. They are militaria instead of Nihonto, and there are many collectors. As for the name..you can use any log in name, just sign the bottom of your posts with a real name, or add it to your profile. Brian

Sergio, I think you got a great deal there. Still looks fairly healthy, just needing a polish, but for what you paid there is no loss in a polish. Nice looking hamon and at least mumei can't be gimei Brian

Hi, Please sign all posts with a name and initial as per the rules, thanks. I guess we are going to need decent pics to assist, but how does this HQ tie in with the sword? Post some pics and I'm sure we will be glad to assist where possible. Sounds like there is a story behind it? Brian

Carlo, Currently phpBB doesn't have a save pm's feature unfortunately. I copy the text of each myself and save them as a word doc. Long process, but the best option for backing up before cleaning the inbox, outbox, and sent box (good thing to do regularly) The new version of phpBB3 (which will be released oneday ) has a new option of backing up pms, so we just have to wait for the final version so that I can upgrade the board. They don't have an estimated time of release yet though. Brian

Dirk, I have deliberately resisted the idea of forming a list of "good" and "bad" sellers as I believe this is a potential minefield that we should be wary of. What happens if someone has a bad experience with a "good" seller? Or if a non-recommended one changes his ways and offers a good deal? Too much that can go wrong with that, and it isn't really our responsibility to say who is recommended and who isn't. Most of the good ones and bad ones are already mentioned on the forum, and a simple search will pull up info on them. I think that is the best we can do. As it stands, there are some great sellers already on the forum, and listing all the guys who sell fakes is almost impossible, as they change names so frequently. Nope..there are just too many potential problems associated with that idea. Mariusz, Rich's page is already linked on this forum, and it does a great job. No need to have another one, as there are already good ones on Rich S's and Rich T's pages, and maybe when they have some time (which is a scarce commodity nowdays) they might update a bit. If someone does want to write a comprehensive guide oneday though, I would always welcome it to add to the articles and archives section. Brian

Slightly scary that they are getting better with the kissaki nowdays, and the acid etching looks less like damascus and more like a random grain that has been overcleaned with acid. The nakago is the give-away as Rich said. Also, as he mentioned, if in doubt..ask. Another good piece of advice is to study good swords, and the fakes will become apparent. Don't study fakes and assume the ones left over are real. Btw, judging by the language used here: "Except above countrys, other buyer want to order them, email me before you place your order" and others, I expect this is a Chinese seller using their name to try and fool ppl into believing it is a US seller. Brian

All, Does anyone have any contact info for Jim Dawson? I have a question about the book, and both emails on the main page bounce back to me. The book should be available in a few days if everything is on track. Brian

Great work Wim! That must have taken some time and dedication, and must have been a really educational experience. You are going to have to field off all the requests for it now :D I would suggest publishing it, but I think maybe there were copyright issues with the last attempt Brian

Rich, Just to make this a bit more interesting and confusing... The person who registered that site (you have already looked it up) is the same one that owns http://www.jp-sword.com This is the website of our friend Jinsoo Kim, but he has only popped in here twice to say he is putting up his website again, and then disappears. Some have had a few doubts it is Jinsoo, but being in Korea it is likely him. So at least you know who it probably is Brian

Oh my goodness! I am in love! :D You shouldn't have shown me that Stephen. wow. I would love one of those pistols, not even the most fancy ones...just a nice representative example. Are there many of the swords from this collection going on auction too? I will have to look at the catalog, but auctions like this are a far better bet for the buyers than Christies and Sothebys when it comes to possible bargains. Hmm..... Brian

Tom, I would expect that the presence of a showa stamp would count as one strike against it when importing. The blade would then have to convince them otherwise, but the stamp is definitely not a plus when trying to get them into Japan. As mentioned here, they can get in, but it can't be an obvious mass produced Showato, or it will be denied. This link by Guido Schiller is still the best write up on the subject: http://www.nihontokanjipages.com/japane ... _laws.html Brian

Well..since I am a gun collector and enthusiast, discussions and pics of antique tanegashima are more than welcome here. I am still after one myself, but they are big $'s. As long as any discussions stay around the art and historical aspect they will be fine. They are, afterall, a crucial part of the history of Japan and even the later developments of swordsmanship. Brian

Thanks for that Jean I am more than tired right now, and should have looked at the dates closer. Good summary. Brian

This isn't being compared to the WW2 factory mass produced swords...it is being compared with the late Koto warring period where swords were mass produced for battle with more emphasis on quantity than quality. Often termed "bundle swords" or Kazuuchimono. I'm not qualified to offer an opinion on it, but looks quite nice and healthy to me, and not all the swords during that period fit into the classification. There were some very good swords made during that time. I might point out that if the hada seems a bit coarse to you, then it will probably bug you for a long time, and you will never really be in love with that blade. If it doesn't draw you in and entice you at first, then you either have to learn to overlook that (hard to do) or wait for one that just calls to you. You have to like the blade..don't let others tell you what to see in it at the end of the day Regards, Brian

This is the question that keeps popping up everywhere, and always without a definitive answer. Popular opinion has always said that arsenal stamps mean the blade can't be traditionally made, but there keep popping up swords that are definitely forged and folded, that show nie and hataraki and a nice hada, and yet have a stamp on them I think there is one on one of the popular dealer's sites right now, just have to track it down. We also sometimes see swords on Aoi Arts website that have the stamp removed and they are licenced in Japan. So I guess the obvious answer is that although they are in the minority, Nihonto with arsenal stamps definitely do exist and can be found out there. Brian

Are they the same ones that were mentioned here? (See Guido's reply) http://militaria.co.za/nihontomessagebo ... .php?t=680 Brian

Dirk, Great article, even if a few of the points sound a bit like some of the fallacies we have heard. Some interesting points too. I just wanted to ask if the page has any references where they got the info from? Do they reference any Japanese books at all? Regards, Brian

Ok, let's see if I can address some of these issues. I had much better comments in my head throughout the day, but few of them lingered long enough for me to post them here. I took a long look at the other forums out there, who was participating, and who I wanted to appeal to mostly before laying down the forum guidelines. One of the hardest decisions to make was whether to allow eBay discussions or not. Quite frankly, eBay is here to stay. There is no getting around that. I think we would all be very surprised if we knew who some of the people are that browse online auctions. Maybe some of them make one careful purchase a year, after carefully identifying their "target" with prior experience, but you only have to have a look at some of the buyers and sellers to know that there are deals to be had if you know what to look for, and lots of mistakes to be made if you don't. Beginners have to start somewhere. Hopefully they don't start with eBay, or otherwise have the good sense to ask someone who knows, before they buy. That is one of the (lesser) aims here. The main aim is as stated above: To promote the study and preservation of Japanese swords and fittings. That overrules everything else. But if people are going to dabble on eBay, then there are very few (if any) other places they can come to before buying and making a mistake. This is even before we come to the pitfalls of fraud and online sellers with lesser ethics. If not here, then where? We were all beginners once, and many like me are still beginners. I still consider myself an absolute novice, and any tiny information I do have comes mainly from this forum, and the books I am clever enough to invest in. So I constantly look at this forum as something that I would have appreciated when i started out, and constantly learn from. Is it the ideal way to learn? Of course not. That comes from studying good swords in hand, and meeting with other collectors. But when those are not available, this is a good second bet. better than nothing at the very least. That all being said, is this forum focussed on absolute beginners and people looking to make a buck? I would like to think not. We have very experienced collectors here who still have time to share what they know, and hopefully still learn the occasional thing along the way. People who don't have to, but sit and translate for people who have a need, without any other reward besides a simple thanks. Others who browse the "For Sale" section and make a buck selling their excess goods without all the auction hassles. Others who pick up a bargain there before it goes to eBay. People like Rich S and Rich T who know all the pitfalls of running a forum like this first hand, and yet still come here and share what they can. Others who spent their lives dedicated to Nihonto, and yet still type a patient and rewarding reply to someone who is just starting out. There are also more advanced discussions to be found..some going into extreme detail of things I had no idea about. Y'know..even a quick look at the General Discussion and Nihonto section shows me a whole page of great discussions, and VERY few of them dealing with anything that isn't relevant. Yes, there is the occasional off-topic post or "financially based translation request, but I really don't see floods of them at all. Even some of the basic questions led to serious discussion about steel compositions, new smiths, school debates and so on. It is easy to pick out one post a week and say that the tone is deminishing or so on...but that is out of a 100 or so posts. We always note the negative and skip over the positive. In an ideal world, we get super-serious, discuss only serious subjects, all the NTHK and NBTHK panel members join, and we carry on as some online super society. But I have my doubts that would happen. Lots of the serious collectors would never participate no matter how this forum was run. Many are not online, and even more prefer face-to-face discussion. And then the newcommers would continue to buy junk on eBay, and once we are all dead, the next generation would have wonderful collections of Chinese junk. And so I try and offer some middle ground. I believe you can have a serious and on-topic forum as long as you narrow the field of interest, as Rich T has done. He has a wonderful forum, and it will continue that way as long as he controls it as well as he has. I highly recommend it for everyone to read regularly as I do. As for Nihonto forums...most have fallen away for the reasons far above. These things take a lot of time to run. If my boss knew how much time I spent online at work, I would be jobless. So comments about "this forum is going downhill" or "I am going to leave if so and so doesn't change" do hurt. Take a look at the Tosogu forum. I think it is a stunning success. Nowhere near as good as Rich's forum, but most of us sword guys read it daily and now have some knowledge where there was none. This is mainly due to 10 or so tosogu guys who answer questions, discuss topics and are not scared to repeat things that they regard as elementary by now. They make it work. If the advanced collectors leave, then that section goes down the tubes. That all being said (and I have rambled considerably) there is not a single post above that doesn't have a good and valid point. I want us to be able to discuss items without the sole purpose being for someone to sell it with an accurate description. I have addressed that before in a sticky, and I honestly don't see it happening frequently anymore. If noticed, you only have to notify me or Stephen and we will take action. I don't see too many fakes being posted with requests for verification anymore. Maybe we are getting somewhere? Yes, there are posts that are questionable, but are they really so frequent? I don't see it, if they are. I see a lot more interesting posts giving info on schools, displays, recent events, new finds and related items. No-one can predict when a "fluff post" is going to turn serious and some of them have turned into the most interesting threads of all. Yes, I do allow eBay discussions here. The reasons I think have been well expressed by now. But I do not encourage them or wish for them to dominate. If you need to ask something, or have a serious question, then by all means ask it. If you need to "check out" a seller, then so so, but try and not turn it into a "bash the seller" thread. The key should be "when necessary" and not "at any possible opportunity" should we discuss ebay. Given the fact that the previous posters do have a valid point, i am going to try and tighten up on the controls and steer eBbay discussions to the section mentioned in my previous post. Let's keep the discussions of eBay and online sale items and sellers in the appropriate section and leave the more serious discussions in their correct place. There are already rules in place for information requests that are profit based, and if anyone sees infringements, just notify me. You are welcome to ask about info on something you wish to sell, but at least let us know when you request it. Lastly, let's not pick out a few incidents and use that as a reason to leave. There are a few 1000 people weekly who gain from experienced posts, and maybe 5% of posts that tempt you to leave. For the sake of the beginners, novices and constantly learning more advanced collectors, please stick around everyone and rather be part of the solution than just pack up and leave. Oneday (hopefully far in the future) I would rather like to turn around and say I helped a few people learn about Nihonto than say I wasn't happy with things, and did the easy thing by leaving. We don't just owe it to the Nihonto world to preserve the swords and fittings for future generations...we owe it to them to pass on what we have learned. Otherwise we are nothing but selfish. Hope I haven't rambled too much. If you made it this far, you have more stamina than me I'll try and keep the ebay discussions in their place, if you all try and stick it out and help where you can. Regards, Brian