Derek

Interesting article about implementing qualifications for sword appraisers. https://www.touken-matsumoto.jp/eng/blog/2017/04/06/contemplating-the-qualifications-for-sword-appraisers-april-1-2017 Although, it is dated April 1.... Is April Fools Day celebrated in Japan?

http://www.japaneseswordbooksandtsuba.com/store/books/b997-owari-and-yagyu-koshirae

Hi Michael, As I recall, Yagyu koshirae often exhibit reversed menuki placement.

As has been posted here many times, anything is possible, but anything other than the usual needs to be carefully considered. Kanemoto 1 shows no sanbonsugi. Kanemoto 2 (Magoroku 1) shows very irregular sanbonsugi. Regular patterns equal later generations. This must be one factor, along with appropriate sugata, boshi, and signature. If one of these is off, it probably is a later generation. But only shinsa will answer this question for sure, as there are exceptions. In my opinion, trying to find one-off examples can only lead you down the wrong path. Looking over your sword that you posted in another thread, I see a later generation, but it is worth shinsa to know for sure.

In case you missed it, please check out http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/16521-nihonto-oil-a-study-part-2/ Stephen, I still have a full bottle of camelia oil that I bought from Japan for the study, I would be glad to send it to you, if you like. Just PM me. FWIW, I only use Fujishiro Oil on my nihonto now.

Wow, that was fast! Thank you very much, Steve. Happy holidays to you and yours.

Good day, gentlemen. Hoping for a bit of assistance on this one. From a tsuba with nbthk paper. I can manage the rest, but this bit is way out of my league. Mumei tsuba, but that's it. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated. Cheers!

http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/16521-nihonto-oil-a-study-part-2/page-2 Includes instructions for ordering directly from Fujishiro San.

Fantastic, Markus. Thank you again for all of your hard work. The link to the hard copy did not work for me on my iOS, but did on my pc. Copy ordered, and coupon worked too, ty Peter!!!! $51.68 USD to my door!

A huge thank you to Joe and Chris, who had a fantastic display of Gendaito today. I am a koto guy, but they gave me a great hands-on overview with 20 blades. Well done gentlemen!

I will be there on Saturday.

http://www.aoijapan.com/how-to-make-leather-seppa

Markus, only speaking for myself here, but I don't care how long it takes. You have already given so much to our community, and I am very grateful for all the work you have done to this point. All the best.

I recommend Microdear. They are really nice. Something like: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Microdear-Microfiber-Deluxe-Cleaning-Cloth-PRO-CP-MDC-L-/331912013144?hash=item4d477f6558:g:qqYAAOSwRgJXjNCy

For polished blades, only a wipe with a microdear or other micro fiber should be fine. The next step up would be denatured alcohol, as close to 100 pct as you can find. I remember we had a conversation on here a while ago about the details. If I remember correctly, isopropyl has a lot more water than denatured. And there are many types of denatured concentrations, so check out the Msds facts online.

And NTHK will usually quote generation on their worksheet.

If the NBTHK feels a sword is Magoroku Kanemoto, they will add it in parenthesis.

Hi Gordon, Yes, part 2 continued. http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/16521-nihonto-oil-a-study-part-2/

Payment sent via Paypal. Thank you.

Thanks for all your time and effort.

One for me, please.

I had a great time at the show. It is always humbling to be around so many knowledgeable people. I shared some great stories and laughter with old friends, and met a few people that I have only known from here. There were a few really nice swords that I had the time to inspect closely in hand. It is such a great experience to closely inspect a hundred or more nihonto throughout the day. A special thank you to Mike, who was so patient, taking time to teach. His lesson on appraisal was educational and fun. How often does one get a chance to hold a tsuba made by Musashi himself? Thanks to him, and all the other gentlemen who made the event so enjoyable and educational.

Gentlemen, I went to the Field Museum in Chicago yesterday, to see the new exhibit of the Terracotta Army. Link here: https://www.fieldmuseum.org/discover/on-exhibit/warriors/ It was very interesting by itself, but I was really surprised to see this sword. We get so used to equating Chinese swords to junk on ebay, so it was a real treat to see an example of what lead to the eventual birth of nihonto. Bronze, with chrome plating from Qin Dynasty. (221-206 BC) Excavated in Pit 1 at the Army excavation site. Mods, feel free to move this to whatever section you feel appropriate.

Thank you for your kind words. Again, I am sorry for the poor photos, I lack the proper lens, time, and technique to capture how beautiful it turned out. Maybe I will just try a video.... Kunitaro San, thank you so much for your time and effort. I appreciate the way that you let us understand what the thought process is and vision that goes into a polish.

Hello all, I took a few photos of my Muramasa Katana back from polish in Japan, utilizing Kunitaro San's service. Master Koichi Eto did the entire polish himself, and I am thrilled with the results. http://www.geocities.jp/touken_kenmajo/english/eng-index.htm Please excuse the poor photography. Any faults you see are purely reflections caused by my technique. I will try and post more photos this week, as my work schedule is demanding at the moment. I will have the sword on display at my table at the Chicago show. Kunitaro san was a pleasure to deal with, professional, and very patient; a true gentleman. I have a few other swords that need polish, including another Muramasa, and I would definitely work with him again. Cheers, Derek