Brian

Just search the NMB for mackstar, and you will see this is well covered Brian

Consolidating the second post about it....

I'm also hesitant to attempt any straightening work myself. Many of the bent blades I have seen also had a slight twist, which is not so easy to get out. Also, if the ha is bent as well as the mune, you risk a hagire when you bend it back. The hardened edge does not bend as easily as the mune, and hagire, wrinkles, shinae ware and other flaws are frequent side-effects of incorrect straightening. It is also extremely difficult to work out exactly where to have the pivot point and strighten it correctly. Often it will bend slightly lower or higher than where the bend is, and you get an "S" shaped bend instead. It isn't as easy as it sounds, and is really the work of someone who is a professional. Just my 2c. It will bring down the value of the sword. How much is debateable, although I would guess at 10-20% depending on how desireable the sword is. An s-shaped bend is worse than a normal bend, and probably means someone else tried to straighten it as some stage. Proceed with caution as usual. Brian

Hi all, I have just spent the past few days updating the links page above. There should be a popup on each link giving you the location and name of the person responsible for the site (Nice to know who you are dealing with) On the Japanese pages, I have tried to indicate if the site is in English or Japanese only and any other relevant info. This should be one of the most comprehensive Nihonto links pages on the internet. Please let me know if you come across any links that belong there, or any incorrect information or problems. Oneday I will try and sort them a bit better so that they are not so mixed Regards, Brian

Paul, A page about a new English release of Nihonto dvd's written entirely in Japanese? Sounds great though, I have been looking for good dvd's in English. Any chance of summing up the info for us? I would be very interested in getting a set. If this is one of your projects, then congrats Regards, Brian

My first wakizashi (which I bought from Darcy a long time ago) is a mumei waki with a mix of nashiji and o-mokume. As Curran stated, nashiji is hard to photograph. It is a very fine hada that, as they say, resembles the cut flesh of a pear. It is not muji hada (which is often also used to mean NO hada) and I think is very close to the Hizen konuka hada. Konuka is a slightly more coarse form of nashiji hada with less ji-nie. I would have to read through Connoiseurs to see which schools they attribute it to, but am sure someone will beat me to it. Brian

Murph, Can you post a pic of the mei and nakago? True wakizashi Shin Gunto are pretty scarce, and are called "pilot's wakizashi" usually. However those I have seen came with proper proportion metal saya. Yours looks like a wakizashi taken to war that was made before that, and it would be interesting to see if this was made long before the war, or otherwise. Most of the wakizashi we see in Gunto mounts are civilian swords taken to war, and I haven't seen one yet that was machine made. Interesting sword. Brian

Andreas, the simple truth is you are arguing against the Gunto mounts in your head, and defending the older koshirae...so that is what you really want to do in your subconscious. So go with your gut feel Anyone will tell you the money you spend now will be less noticeable down the line. We all overspend sometimes..but a year or 2 from now, it will be really insignificant. Brian

Andreas, That is a difficult question. Personally, I feel that maybe a WW2 Gendiato wasn't originally intended for a full professional polish (maybe just a wartime one) but to better appreciate it, we sometimes have it done. Maybe the sword was just pre-war, and wasn't going to go into Gunto fittings. There is no real way to know, so I think it is up to us to decide how we will best appreciate the sword. If you want to put it into older fittings (and it will not affect the blade at all) than i would go for it. What about a Koto that went to war? the Gunto fittings are part of its history. But so are old fittings. So we have to decide how we prefer to appreciate and preserve it. So your call as far as I am concerned. No, I don't think the sum of the parts will be what it is worth afterwards, but this game is seldom about money alone. You seem to indicate you have already purchased that koshirae (which I like) so I would consider spending the extra and having the work done. Otherwise what will you do with the koshirae you already own? Of course I really don't mind Gunto fittings either, and am not often tempted to put WW2 swords back into old fittings, so I don't think you will make a mistake whatever you decide. As we all know, we hardly ever see the original fittings the sword came with, so this is like saying that Edo fittings on a Koto are anachronistic? No wrong choice here IMHO. Regards, Brian

Hi Eire, (Please sign with a real name, thanks) Please could you post a pic of the whole nakago for us? Maybe just me, but it does seem signed unusually high up on the nakago? Brian

One post on the subject please http://www.militaria.co.za/nihontomessa ... php?t=1929 Brian

Carlo, I would have seen a slight possibility of the sword having been something huge as a ceremonial item or maybe nagamaki or other polearm made into a katana...except for the fact that it mentions he was mounted on horseback at the time, which makes it highly unlikely he had a sword of such great length in a scabbard. The simple act of drawing it while mounted would have been quite a task, as would wielding it. I would be looking at those measurements again, or perhaps putting it down to some form of exaggeration. Not to say there aren't always exceptions to every rule, and there may well have been weapons that don't fit into the neat categories we place them today. Without further info, I'm afraid it is impossible to tell for sure. Brian

Ed, Thanks very much for the review and pics. Looks like a great show, and I am truly jealous Is this considered the largest US show? Hope all the people who attended had a successful show. Good to see some of the Japanese dealers attending. Ah well..oneday I'll find the funds to attend and meet some of the members. Brian

How does he ask the monk anything without a head? :? :D I guess spirits are complete when roaming. lol Good story though. I would love to know what impliment my guy was carrying that he lost with his head. I know Milt would suggest a lightsaber that accidentally activated :lol: I guess me and Guan Yu have something in common. We are both looking for the missing head Brian

Thanks for that Mike...good to know there is at least a theory out there. I posted this because although I am 99% sure that that head is just lost or removed, I can't help but fail to find traces of where it was attached. Then again..the simplest explanation is usually the best, and I guess we are just talking about damage here. This is when we need Ford and a lesson in inlay Regards, Brian

Scott, Take a look at the How-to forum, there should be step by step instructions that should give you a few methods. Am sure one of them is compatible with the 80's :D Brian

This one came on a wakizashi I came across recently. On inspecting it closely, I was perplexed to find that the horseman has lost his head It's odd that I can't see marks where it once was, but it looks to have been removed cleanly. A real pity, as I like the horse. Perhaps something caught on an exposed edge and decapitated him? Maybe the inlay just fell off over time. Could it have been removed deliberately for some reason? Interested in any comments. It's a pity there is no legend of a Japanese headless horseman Brian PS - If anyone finds a tiny little mixed metal head lying around, you know where to send it :lol:

Yep..remember this is the signature a particular guy in the Goto school of work, and not a family as such. Gimei menuki mei aren't as common as on fuchi and tsuba maybe? Just a guess, but since they would be hidden from view, why fake the mei? I guess with a name like this though, gimei is always suspected, and the work here looks fairly nice, but maybe not top level work. That should be gold, and not brass if I am correct. The big question here is if you have one single menuki here, or a matching pair? If only one...hmmm. Not sure how desirable a single menuki is, no matter which artist made it. Brian

All, I have experienced some issues with the forum loading very slowly or not at all during the past 2 days. Have not been able to identify the issue, or if there is one at all. Could be a SA international lines issue, dial up problems or something else. I would like to ask if anyone has experienced issues with the pages loading very slowly or not at all the past few days? I need to determine the problem if there is one, so please post if you are experiencing any recent problems in this regard. Thanks, Brian

With the Showa stamp, blade 2 would almost certainly (with very rare exceptions) be partly machine made, and non-traditional. Blade 1 seems to have a stamp on upper left, but can't make it out. I suspect it will also be a non-traditional blade, but we need more info to make a better assumption. Regards, Brian

Yes, I agree with Rich that this one was made that way. Very unusual, and still striking. Looks to have been mounted too, so possibly made for a special occasion or during a time when the sword wasn't carried daily perhaps? Without a mimi, how difficult is an attribution on it to school? Brian

Ok, rotated the pics and re-uploaded to ensure you don't have to stand on your head to read them Brian

I am not 100% sure they do supply Namikawa, but they do supply many of the shops. Franky, with the genuine, helpful and polite service I receive from Namikawa, I am more than happy to deal with them. Brian

If you know the Highlander series...the phrase "There can be only one..." will ring a bell...and Nigel already has that stunt booked :lol: Sorry..English (at least first names) required in addition to any Katakana, Cyrillics or other foreign languages Btw..nice gear. Link us to a short video of the "action" if you have any. Brian

I think this is who you are looking for: http://www16.plala.or.jp/katana-iimura/ ... glish.html Not sure what grade stones they sell though. Namikawa will find you any grade you like if you ask them, they have lots of good stuff that is not on their site. Brian