Mike Noel

Gents Dore and Reese an auction house in the uk has an auction of swords and fittings on the 15th of November there are over 100 pieces for sale. Even if you are not in the market to buy anything you could do worse than spend a pleasant hour looking at the items for sale. This link will take you to the auction the swords and fittings start at lot 701 https://auctions.doreandrees.com/catalogue/81A7582615F99A2E3774098876CAACFC/AD74375B82A358E6EEF0CE537DEF266D/fine-Japanese-art-including-the-eva-aubrey-sweet-collect/ Regards Mike

Thanks guys I managed to get 3 of the 5 correct but better than when I started Mike

Hi Guys Could anybody give me a translation of this Mei Thanks in advance Mike

Thank you guys I am improving at reading Mei but nowhere near to your standard Kindest regards Mike

Hi Guys Could somebody help with a translation of the mei on this sword please Regards Mike

Thanks for the information it is a big help I was reading Taka as two separate characters. I saw the Ta / Da character as being written twice with one being bigger than the other. Every day is a school day for me with these characters. Thanks again Mike

Hi Guys Could somebody translate the attached signature for me I am particularly stumped on the second and third characters Any and all help much appreciated Regards Mike

Thanks Ray that is the closest I have come to getting one right it gives me hope

Hi Guys Could somebody help with translating the attached I think after much head scratching and page turning that it says Bi Zen Kami Suke Kuni. But it may say made in Taiwan could somebody please help Regards Mike

Thanks for that

Hi Guys Could somebody check my homework please. Does this mei read Suke Sada Regards Mike

Hi Conway I will not be bidding for the sword I wondered if the smith was highly regarded or if a sprat had been set to catch a mackerel The Kabuto gane has a mon attached, 2 mekugi ana in the nakago which might lead you to believe that there may be an ancestral blade in the scabbard and worth a punt I have attached a photo of the Kabuto gane

Thank you I shall do a little digging

Gents I am curious about the quality of this smiths work. The sword is for sale at auction the handle comes off but the blade is stuck in the scabbard the koshirae is military and quite corroded with some pieces missing. There is a good chance the blade once removed from the scabbard will be beyond repair.despite having 2 mekugi ana the mei seems to be what I have seen described on this website as Chippy and indicative of the blade being oil quenched so maybe a WW11 smith. So far the bidding is up to about 400GBP and looks like it will go higher before the sword is sold. Unless it is a particularly good smith I wonder if this is a ruse to lure in the unwary having been buying swords at auction for some time now I am definitely cynical Would somebody be so kind as to translate the Mei and any thoughts on the above would be greatly received Regards to you all Mike

Thanks for that, annoyingly I cannot see how you read the Mei that way but happily bow to your knowledge. It is early days for me trying to read kanji I will add the translation to my growing list of references to help in the future. Thanks again Regards Mike

Gents Could anybody help me to translate the attached. I think the sword is probably a second world war Katana. I cannot find any armoury marks on the tang. . I think the first character is Ryo but the rest are beyond my ability. Grateful for any help Regards Mike

Like everything else it is only worth what you can get for it. The sword is for sale at auction and is in a tired state in need of some love and care if I can get it for a reasonable price I will take it on. The points you make are valid and appreciated If I get the sword I will post some pictures of as found and hopefully some a few months later when the various pieces come back and I can decide if it was money well spent or otherwise. This picture gives a feel for the sword certainly not past the point of no return. The kisaki looks damaged in this picture but in others it looks undamaged hopefully a trick of the light

Thanks for the reply Mark I am starting to think that the signature may be Gemei as the sword does not appear to have the age to go with the smith

Hi Guys My attempts at reading Mei continue I think the attached reads Kado Kuni I am sure about the first not so sure about the second. What I can see of the hamon it is tight suguha the sword is not mine yet I am thinking of buying it. any thought greatly received

I will most likely send it to les Stewart in Glasgow

Hi Jean Really appreciate the translation I am trying to get to grips with reading some Kanji but could not match this signature to any reference I have early days though. Photos as requested but would like to say that loose rust coming off of of the nakago has to be removed before you can make a handle it took an hour of patient effort to remove the habaki which would not have come off if the nakago was left as found. The blade is as found and will get sent away for a polish. The sword has a 2 piece habaki and is 21.75 inches overall length the nagasa is 17.75 inches Regards Mike

Hi Guys I recently bought a tired old Wakazashi at auction. Removing the handle was a challenge as rust was holding it firmly in place when I eventually got it off it was obvious that the blade had been shortened at some time in its history, on removing some of the bigger pieces of rust from the nakago I was pleased to find a signature, can anybody help to translate it. The hamon looks pretty wild and compared to the nakago the rust staining on the blade is only superficial so well worth getting it polished while I make a new handle might even try my hand at a Jabaraito wrap. Regards Mike

Thats a big help guys thanks

Gents After all of the good advice I received from an earlier post on how to translate Mei I have given this a good go and am mostly stumped. I am confident that the 5th character is Mitsu and I think that the 7th Character is Yuki. to be told I am wrong would not surprise me. The sword in question is a Gunto sword I have attached a photo of the Mei and a photo of what I think is an arsenal or inspection stamp. A translation of the Mei would be greatly received and even a stroke count for the Kanji would help as I find I cannot accurately count strokes.

Hi Guys I thought I would share with you a sword I bought recently. I did not pay very much for it at all My thoughts are the blade is to new to be authentic plus the angle grinder marks on the tang.The fuller in the blade has faint but regular tool marks for its full length on both sides similar to the sort of thing a bull nosed mill would leave. The scabbard just does not seem to be right or feel right weight wise the Kojiri? with the numbers and arsenal stamp is slightly thinner than other Gunto swords in my collection. The brazing holding the number stamped Kojiri? in place is still reasonably bright The numbers and Kanji stamped into the Habaki also raise questions The inside of the backstrap has been recently filed to accommodate the handle which appears to be wrapped in genuine Same at least it does not melt Overall it looks the part the hand guard has the 10 petal blossoms 2 in one section and one in the other to make it military as opposed to police issue. The blade is well shaped, hardened, sharp and has a good balance If as I suspect it is a wrong un what I find hard to understand is the amount of effort that has gone into producing something that is not worth a lot of money as in low hundreds as opposed to thousands. Comments and thoughts greatly received IMG_6796.mov