Grey Doffin

The other of Mr. Nakahara's opinions that some might consider radical is that no great swords should be o-suriage. No one ever would have shortened a sword from an important smith to the point where the mei was lost and therefore any o-suriage sword with kin zogan mei or paper to someone important is questionable. Grey

Depending on who are chosen to make the koshirae and its parts and how good they are, $10K may not be unreasonable. There is, of course, a much less expensive route to the same or an even better end: buy an antique Samurai sword in fine koshorae. And when the time comes to sell, if you have chosen wisely no money will be lost. Grey

To answer the question about the mune and kissaki repair, refer to the picture below. 2 drawings of the same sword with a broken kissaki: the blue is the hamon and boshi and the red is 2 different ways to do the repair. In example 1 the kissaki only is reshaped. What originally was a chu-cissaki remains a chu-kissaki but the boshi runs off the edge of the kissaki. In example 2 the kissaki is reshaped and the mune is brought down also. The kissaki becomes an ikubi or ko-kissaki, the boshi doesn't run off the edge and the kaeri (return of the boshi down the mune) is lost. This is what Mr. Nakahara is referring to. Grey

To elaborate even further: Not knowing who the swordsmith will be, I can't speculate on how much the sword will cost but all the rest of the work, if done right, will probably be at least $10,000 and could be significantly more, depending on the artists chosen. If done less than right, well... what's the point?. When the time comes to sell, and it will, either for you or your heirs, you'll be lucky to recoup $3,000 plus whatever value the blade carries. Not saying you shouldn't do this; if money is no object have at it. But you need to understand up front what you're up against. Grey

Bill & Natalya Green are in charge. The show's website hasn't been updated yet; once it has, if i remember, I'll post a link here. Grey

Hi guys, It is official: March 5th (5:00 PM for dealer setup) or March 6 through the 8th, 2020 at the Westin Atlanta Airport hotel in Atlanta, GA. Let's all of us plan on attending and keep the winter show running and strong. Grey

I think this dates to the time after WWII during the occupation, and that it was made to sell to a westerner. It isn't Nihonto, just a piece of steel with some carving. Grey

Kokuho Token Zufu (here it is on my site): http://www.japaneseswordbooksandtsuba.com/store/books/b877-kokuho-token-zufu-dr-homma was published before the war and therefore should be an excellent source for large, high quality photos of many if not all of the missing Kokuho. Grey

I told Barry what I had heard and when I have confirmation I will post it here; should be soon. Grey

Hi Luca, Chic Sukashi: Akasaka Tsuba. To my knowledge there has never been a translation. Grey

Hi Leon, Unfortunately I have to agree with Peter. The horimono is very poorly done (no offense Chris; you are welcome to your opinion) and the patina on the nakago looks to be wiped on, not developed over time. This could be something that was made post WWII to sell to a westerner. The kesho yasurime on the nakago also point to late production. Grey

Hi Logan, I agree with Ray; send it to Bob Benson for an appraisal. Pictures posted here might work a bit but only in hand appraisal means anything. I'm in Duluth, if that helps, but Bob knows more than I do. Grey

Hi, name please, Army Shingunto with a handle that has come unwrapped, signed Kanenori. I'll leave it to others with more knowledge of war swords to supply the model number and discuss the tassel. Grey

Hi Guys, John Eliyas, who edits the Newsletter for JSS/US, is in need of articles for our next issue. If you have something you'd care to share we'd be most appreciative. Doesn't matter if it isn't the most scholarly writing; if it interests you it will interest others. He can be reached: eliyasj at comcast.net Thanks, Grey

Hi Phil, The Seki arsenal stamp and Noshu no Ju Tsukako Kanemasa Kin Saku (respectfully made). Grey

Hi guys, I just lowered the prices on 17 sets of menuki. You'll find them at the top of my Tsuba & Kodogu page; have a peek please. http://www.japaneseswordbooksandtsuba.com/store/Tsuba-&-Kodogu Thanks, Grey

Here is a tsuba I sold a few years ago. http://www.japaneseswordbooksandtsuba.com/store/tsuba-%26-kodogu/t107-naughty-iron-tsuba Grey

Masamune made many meito, few of which are signed. Grey

Exaggerated, unnatural curvature is one of the tells for retemper. I have seen more than a few blades that probably started life in late Koto or early shinto, that were caught in a fire, and before the retempering they were ground/polished to have a small kissaki; the subsequent strong sori along with the ko-kissaki are meant to fool the unsuspecting into thinking the sword is much earlier. My best guess is this is one of those swords. Grey

Hi George, If the sword is worthy of a polish it deserves a properly trained polisher. The one you have chosen doesn't qualify; sorry. You could send it to Bob Benson in Hawaii to see if he recommends a polish. Grey

You can replace the peg with a whittled chopstick, preferably one of close grained bamboo and not softwood. Grey

The shorter blade, the wakizashi, is almost certainly older than WWII or even the 20th century. A picture of the nakago (tang) will help with identification. Grey

Hi Michael, You need to replace the peg and don't wait to do it. The peg locks the blade in the handle and without it the blade can come loose and break its tip, either in the bottom of the scabbard or on the floor. Grey

Hi guys, I spoke with Markus at the show in San Francisco. We will try hard to get the next volume out by the end of the year. Grey

Hi RayM, Bob Benson in Honolulu is a properly trained polisher; he can advise and take care of restoration for you. He will be at the show in San Francisco this weekend or you'll find him linked at the top of this page (look for Bushido). Grey