Thylacine

That seller has put up some 'iffy' swords in the past, I have a feeling he is a pawn broker in the USA! Stay away and save your money for something nice.

I saw this auction and realised that I knew of the seller, unfortunately. I have not seen this type of sword in local collections and from this seller I was not sure of its authenticity, what do the members think? http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/SUPERB-SCARC ... 9021wt_932 Seller is doing a good sales spiel, that always worries me.

Just a couple of things, that are different from mine. After looking at the sword in more detail (as much as I can via the net) I believe it is from China. Reasons; The serial number is upside down and wrong for such a low number (end of war swords (different type) had it like that, the font is wrong for the time (pre-1940?), the start and finish of the blood groove is poorly machined and seems too shallow, the Tsuba is a poor casting (made from a cast of a cast of...), the grip should be copper (to match the date range from the serial number), the blade seems bent and a arsenal type 95 blade would not bend like that, the makers mark and arsenal stamp on the ferrule are wrong, there should be an arsenal acceptance stamp between them, also there is no inspection acceptance stamp on the blade, there is something 'just' not right with the arsenal stamp on the ferrule (4 cannon balls) it is too big, the grip looks poorly cast and lacks traces of paint, The fittings (spacers) are poorly made, the sword latch is poorly executed and looks too new, the sword lacks any age and the shape of the blade is just not right (bottom third of sword).

Hi. This is a local auction and the sword is listed as a 1950's fake, did the fake arsenal type 95 swords start that early? http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/ws/eBayISAPI ... TQ:AU:1123 The seller purchased it from an estate sale, it had been in the estate for a number of years, so he assumed the provenance made it authentic, however it looks like a fairly modern fake. Could it really have been made back in the 1950's? T

Aside from the text not matching the image the seller has a mix of items and no sales history and it seems no reserve on his items or start price. I think micko has a right to be a bit sus.

Hi. I am in the process of looking for a Type 95 Guntō to replace some that were stolen a few years back, however there are a lot a fakes on e-Bay and some have been easy for me to spot and others... I may have passed over an original sword or two in the process of avoiding a fake. I saw this sword 290607775970 "WWII Japanese SAMURAI SHIN- GUNTO NCO SWORD NOT A COPY" and thought it was a fake but the bidding war has taken off. I still think it is a fake or more like a Frankenstein make up of a number of swords. So which is it? To me the scabbard (to which someone has added a rising sun flag) is from the Tōkyō 'Kokura' arsenal as are the ferrule markings, but the Guard and spacers are iron, so it should not have a copper ferrule. The swords serial number is low mid range and should not have an iron guard and I was wondering if it was low enough that it should have a copper hilt not aluminum? Then there is the machining of the blood groove at the tip of the blade, it looks more like the rounded machining found on swords from China than on the swords I previously owned. Also the groove seems to run too far towards the tip but then again the sword may have had the tip ground down to remove damage, So gentlemen, real, Frankenstein or fake. E 　

Hi all new member here and my first question. I was thinking of bidding on the sword listed but something seemed wrong to me, the scabbard is painted black and is supposed to be original, also the guard, all swords I have seen in that serial number range have the solid iron guard, as this sword was produced well into the war I expected to see a different guard. Lastly something about the end of the grip... http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/220844727975? ... 1423.l2649 I have chatted with the owner and he told me it was purchased in the 1970's from a 2nd hand store in Adelaide, so it has been in his possession for 30 plus years. I can usually spot a fake, but this one left me with doubts, it may be as simple as someone swapping the tsuba but it lust lacked that sense of age and ware that old military items have. E.

ols76 That sword was produced very late in the war, materials were low and production was rushed. It looks fine to me, did you notice that the serial number is upside down compared to earlier blades! To pick a fake from this time period, search for the sword on e-Bay and look at all the blades from China, they are fakes. Then look at the sword you intend on buying/bidding on. Look for the font used for the serial number, where and how the number is placed, look at the image to see if the sword is new and has been aged, rather than a sword that looks old. It is hard to fake real age on metal and wood. Look for the right fittings on the sword for the time. E