Grey Doffin

According to Fuller & Gregory, this smith was active during WWII. If there is a small stamp above the signature in the tang, there would be no doubt. This most likely is a non-traditionally made (made of tool steel by a partially trained at best smith during the war) sword; not earlier. Here is a link to a care & etiquette brochure that will tell you how to preserve the sword: http://www.nbthk-ab.org/Etiquette.htm Grey

Hi Larry, Bob Benson in Hawaii is classically trained in polish or he can arrange for polish in Japan. He also can get the sword in and out of Japan and arrange for paper. Grey

Hi Mark, Best advice I can give you is go slow. Beginners always want to rush into everything: polish, restoration of the mounts, papering, and more. If you 1st take time to learn something your sword will still be there (nothing needs to be done right now) and you'll be better pleased with what you have done if it is done from knowledge (safer for the sword this way also). Grey

Hi ?, The signature is Bishu Osafume Sukesada and the date is, I think, Kyoroku Gannen Hachi gatsu Hi (a day in August of 1528, and I'm not sure about the gan part of gannen (1st year) so it may not be that year exactly). Here is a care & etiquette brochure you need to read: http://www.nbthk-ab.org/Etiquette.htm Grey

Hi, name please, Here is a care and etiquette brochure. http://www.nbthk-ab.org/Etiquette.htm Grey

Hi Tom, Here is a link to a care and etiquette page; you should read it carefully. http://www.nbthk-ab.org/Etiquette.htm If the peg is rotten it needs to be replaced so don't worry about damaging it; get it out. The care & etiquette should help you get the handle off. If it is too stuck to move, 1st check for a 2nd peg further down the handle and then try placing a small block of soft wood next to the habaki (collar) and butting against the seppa (washer). Gently tap on the block with a hammer till the handle pops loose. Get us clear pictures of each side of the nakago (tang). Care & etiquette will help you replace the handle and insert a new pin. Grey

Hi Bruce, Geraint is 100% correct; this sword is 100% wrong. It is a relatively early fake and easy to spot. There are many more recent fakes that are a lot closer to the real thing and until you know a lot more than you do now you should resist the urge to buy a sword and study. Online study is fine but nothing is better than in hand, which you can do at any of the sword shows in the US (see the calendar on my website). Think about getting some good books and reading them twice. The more you know before you buy a sword, the happier you will be with your purchase. Grey

Hi guys, I just finished listing 5 fuchi kashira and 19 pair of menuki to my site; you will find them on my tsuba and kodogu page here: http://www.japaneseswordbooksandtsuba.com/store/Tsuba-&-Kodogu And more great stuff to come. Thanks, Grey

To clarify a bit. The rest of the mune is burnished with a hard steel needle during polish, giving it a gloss finish. The area you refer to is left unburnished so the kaeri (return) of the boshi can be seen; it would be invisible under the burnish otherwise. Grey

The young guy in #4 is Bob benson's son, Nickolas I believe. He has begun the study of polishing. Grey

Hi Harry, While there is nothing wrong with commissioning new koshirae for your tanto, it will be very expensive if you do it right and when the time comes to sell (it will) you or your heirs will be lucky to get half what you put into it back. Alternately, you could buy an existing tanto koshirae with tsunagi (wooden filler blade) to display next to your tanto in its shira-saya. This route allows you to spend a lot less for the same quality or spend the same and get higher quality parts. Grey

I meant to add... A recent thread on NMB about sword shows and why they may be in decline included a post about how overwhelming they are for beginners: so many swords, so little information. Mark & I have written up short bios for the swords we will have on our tables. Ask to see them if anything we have interests you. Cheers, Grey

Hi guys, Mark & I will be taking possession of a collection: nicely mounted tanto & ko-wakizashi, tsuba, menuki, fuchi/kashira, and kogatana (in polish, some in shira-saya) just before the show. This will be on our tables, all of it available for the 1st time in years. Come by and have a look please (and sorry, I don't have a list). Also, since I drive to this show and can travel heavy, if there is a book from my site you'd like hand delivered let me know and I'll take it along. Thanks, Grey

It looks like someone has taken a Dremmel Tool to the blade to grind in a phony baloney Bonji, most likely to hide a serious flaw. It looks also like the kissaki has been chipped and reshaped; the boshi is barely hanging on. Unfortunate but the blade is likely toast (beyond redemption). Grey

Hi Georg, Nice find. Here is a care and etiquette brochure; you would be doing yourself and the sword a favor if you read it twice. http://www.nbthk-ab.org/Etiquette.htm Grey

Years ago I posted instructions for paper and masking tape bands that work very well as a temporary fix for a split saya, and that leave no trace when removed. They also do a great job of keeping the 2 halves of the saya properly aligned for regluing. If the alignment is off just a bit (easy to do) it will bug you forever. I place a few of the bands along the saya before wraping all of it (I use strips of a cotton sheet) to clamp. You'll find my post here: http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/1414-split-saya/?hl=%2Bmasking+%2Btape&do=findComment&comment=10764 Grey

My horror story is a dream I've had at least 3 times. I get home form a show with a sword I've spent gobs of money on, then to learn that it is a tsunagi (wooden filler blade) and (it gets better) it is made of plywood. Any other Nihonto nightmares out there? Grey

Hi Guys, Having trouble with these 2 mei; help will be appreciated. I'll have these for sale at Chicago but I don't yet have the menuki or pictures of the fronts. Thanks, Grey

Horn would be OK but not ideal; it would be obvious to anyone who knows Nihonto that the kashira is lost/has been replaced. Some orphan fuchi work well with horn kashira; I don't think this is one of them. Since there is slight chance of finding an orphan kashira to match, let me suggest replacing both with a different fuchi/kashira. I think this is the better option. Grey

Hi Andy, To answer your question: the sword is genuine, a real, traditionally made, antique Samurai sword. The signature may or may not be legitimate; forgeries of signatures of important and not so important swordsmiths are just as common as those found on old oil paintings. If your signature is correct the sword is worth more, probably quite a bit more than you have been offered; Jiro Taro Naokatsu was a well respected smith. If the signature is bogus the sword is less valuable but still may be worth more than the offer; we can't be sure about value based on only a few pictures. If you want to sell the sword you should take time to learn more. Shinsa, as mentioned above, may make sense for you if you live in The States (probably not given the offer in GBP). Alternately, you might be able to track down someone with knowledge and references on signatures who lives close and to whom you could show the sword so signature and work can be compared with what should be there if Naokatsu made the sword. Best of luck, Grey

Especially if you have no idea what you're bidding on. Grey

Hi Peter, Show us a picture please. Grey

Hi Gwyn, Don't know if it is smallish enough but I do have this one: http://www.japaneseswordbooksandtsuba.com/store/tsuba-%26-kodogu/h377-higo-jingo-sukashi-tsuba-holbrook Grey

Hi Ken, Buy it. It is real, probably late Edo or even Meiji koshirae, and worth the price even if the blade is poor quality. I doubt you'll lose money and may even make some if the blade is better than poor. But that's just my thoughts; others may know better. Grey

Enough already; you are making me blush. In my defense let me say that my work is made easy by all the great customers I have. Everyone has been so nice to deal with; how could I not return the favor. Thank you, Grey