CurtisR

Good thoght John - I will PM him unless he reads and gives thumbs up or down . Curtis R.

Gentlemen, Prior to posting the pics here, I thought I'd ask permission....it's not a sword, but on a "Meatball" flag. My Sensei and I have different views as to it being his real signature - I've looked at many variations of the General's writing over his years, and to me it seem to be legit. My Sensei says that the second writing (appearing to be prayers, etc. written by the later owner) are less sophisticated and I agree. It also makes mention of him (Gen. Tojo) being "writing of Shirei Chokan which basically means Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleet (Navy) and Tojo was Army." I feel perhaps he was awarding it to a Naval person, and could do so as he was over ALL of the military at that time. JMHO. May I post photos here to see what others might think as well? If the Moderators are o.k. with it, then I'll do so. Many thanks, Curtis R.

Doh - the link was broken...here's a good one to it. Apologies. C. http://www.bonhams.com/auctions/21404/#r1=184&m1=1

Greetings all, Bonhams is having a pretty awesome auction thet (I believe) is currently open for bids. Although it's not *strictly swords/tanto, it seems to have some very nice blades in with it, as well as http://kodoguhttp://www.bonhams.com/auctions/21404/#r1=184&m1=1 I hope this may benefit some, or at least provide some eye-candy! :D Regards, Curtis R.

Sorry - trying the link again... http://www.artfixdaily.com/artwire/rele ... nhams-new-

Very nice Chris (IMH & novice opinion) - just shows me that sometimes there ARE nice values on eBay, still to be found. Ahhhh....if only I could hit the lotto :D . Curtis R. Then I could afford this: http://www.artfixdaily.com/artwire/release/9089-13th-century-samurai-swords-could-sell-for-200000-at-bonhams-new-

May I suggest John Tirado in Pennsylvania? He is a traditionally trained sayashi and has done two shirasaya for me, as well as one habaki. ALL are beautiful, and his prices are very reasonable if the sword deserves it. He does have a wait-time but it's because he's exacting, uses top-notch materials and has several projects going at once, especially before Shinsa. The last blade I had done took 3 days from sending to delivery. I've spoken with him (unfortunately have not met him as yet), and he's a true gentleman as well . His website may still be down (sayashi.com) but if you need his telephone #, please message me. Cheers, Curtis R.

Thank you Moriyama-san! She will be very pleased to know this. I will pass it on, and I can see the kanji after you showed it without the "flair" in the writing. Best Regards, Curtis R.

Hopefully the image will post this time. Sorry all! Curtis R.

Sorry Dennis - I will try to have her take a better photo or two. That may explain some of my own confusion :D .

Dear Malcolm, The first tameshigiri vid was AWESOME! I'm wondering if perhaps the Iaijutsu forms were incorporated into the dance forms (remind me very much of Kabuki) to keep the heat off during the reformation/modernization times? Maybe a combination of Shinto Ryu (koryu) with kabuki to "throw off attention"? Regardless, I'd like to know more about the Sensei for whom the blade was made...still researching. I can speak for one thing...the blade is well forged although shorter at nagasa, and is a pleasure to hold. No nie at all, either that I can find. I plan to play with Jean's formula in the next week or so and hope to post some pics that do it justice. Still in awe of Mr. Tirado's Habaki - so subtle but powerful. I can see how one can easily catch the "multi-thousand $$ bug" :lol: Cheers and wishing all a good week, Curtis R. Denver, CO USA

Thank you Malco - sadly I'm Working on this fine Sunday evening, but am looking forward to viewing the links in the late night. Incidentally the link you posted to Shinto Ryu was the one I'd found.,.thinking of asking my Sensei to email them if I can find an email address lol - ill post more as I find it. Thank you again! Curtis R.

And thank you Malcolm! I've found only one site in Japan which mentions "God Sword Flow" - the links will help immensely! I do find it pretty 'cool' that it was comissioned for or by a Sensei in the art....gives it more of a personal touch , I'd love to have the blade polished, but based on what I've read here it would probably out-value the sword. My plans are to preserve it as-is, unless I win the lotto. Should be any day now............ :D Again, many thanks to all ~ Curtis R.

Thank you Jean - I'll try to play with my lighting a bit more over my vacation...I do have a soft box, tripd, etc also, so I'll try the angles....regardless, they will turn out better!! Curtis R.

Just a few more. Again, I apologize for the flair-out. C.

Greetings all - As promised, my Nihonto is Shirasaya by Mr. Tirado AND the habaki by Mr. Tirado as well, made from .999 silver. I've yet to perfect shooting blades, etc. w/out flare-out from the flash but am playing with it. The pics do not do it justice! The mei reads: "岡田吉弘 : Yoshihiro Okado (made for) 師範: Teacher 武道 : Martial Arts 神刀流 : God Sword Flow" & "year Showa 13 so 1938.... Akihiro Saku (is made by Akihiro) " The nagasa is only 26" approx., but is finely balanced. The smith was from Tokyo and has very nice hamon and nie. Best Regards, Curtis R/

Perhaps some might remember I'd been struggling with an acquaintance here in Denver...lots of nice blades but wouldn't give them up for anything (other than out of line prices). Well, I'm happy to announce that not only was I able to purchase a decentKatana from him (after a lot of arm-pulling) but just received it back in Shirasaya crafted by Mr. John Tirado. He also sold one other blade before we parted ways so perhaps he may be willing to let go of others. If anyone's interested I'll gladly give his info. to enquire via MP. Pics will be posted under this one later this evening..... Curtis R.

A lady-friend of mine had this tea set passed down to her by her mother (The are Japanese dating back to the Tokugawa clan era) and sent this photo to me to attempt to translate. I'm having a tough time, as it seems to be written in more of a Shodo script than in Kanji and I know shodo can be notoriously hard to read. I can't even point out a possible date (which I've become decent at). Any help or hints would be much appreciated! Also, is this script given a certain "name" or "Type"? Many thanks in advance, Curtis R.

Thanks Brian! I'm not sure why, but he did come up on "Ricecracker" a few months back. That's why I love this board - the "pro's knows!" Cheers, Curtis

I've seen him on the show a couple of times as well - very professional and knowledgeable; if you visit his website (Ricecracker.com) he has some great information there as well. Curtis R.

Brian, I completely agree ( and was able to say - in my head - "good Lord, really??"). My cheness cutter for Tamishigiri is FAR higher quality that this thing, but thought it would be worthy of posting just for others to repeat the thoughts in my head. Craigslist is good for a laugh once in a while (and good for finding stolen merchandise on, BTW)... End of post - I apologize for any "mucking of the board" ~~ Curtis R.

I will look for this Martin! always looking to expand my knowledge. I believe Veli has the translation exactly correct though .... Curtis R.

Perhaps my eyes deceive me, but this was offered on a local "for sale" site...I asked for photos of the entire blade (supposedly a tanto) but only got these two... Now, being fairly new to collecting/evaluating, my eyes saw the following: 1. The nakago had been shortened, poorly, and significantly. 2, It appears to me that the blade was cut off, then re-forged onto the 'older' nakago - poorly. 3. Although I haven't even bothered to translate the mei, it appears sloppy and fake. 4. The nakago appears to have been cleaned after the welding process, and NO file marks or other indicators of the smith/school on the nakago. 5. In all of my research books, nowhere do I find a "V" shape & suspect no smith would let this out of his shop. Finally, the edge (mimi?) of the nakago has serious waves in it, not to mention the crudely shaped areas near the nakago. I mentioned these in my return email....no reply (imagine that)...just thought I'd like to know others' comments if they see fit. cheers, Curtis R. Curtis R.

I completely agree with Mr. Bowen! Curtis R.

My apologies gentlemen! I did not mean to lead this in a conflicting direction and merely wanted to let those who've taught me so much have a look at what they might wish to own (which I'd still do if I could afford it :D ). In the end, it's still a very nice Nihonto by a good smith, with good papers - it is a part of history and I hope it ends up with a good owner, and not a criminal which it can be seized from. Personally, I really like it and will be watching the auction to see where it lands --- if anyone bids, best of luck! Curtis R.