Alex A

A new house move dictates the sale of a few very good tsuba, this one is a real beauty. 7.4 X 7.1 X 0.5CM at the seppa-dai. School?, im not sure, so wont state one. It has had a few knowledgeable folk scratching their heads Date?, I would say around 1700, but ive had other opinions stating earlier and later. Looks to be Shakudo One for Shinsa maybe, although not something ive ever felt necessary, just enjoyed it for what it is. Sales page from when I bought it, Currans pics/description may help better than mine. Will try and add more if requested. http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/23939-black-wave-deeply-carved-kinko-tsuba/?hl=%2Bwave+%2Btsuba Will guarantee any new owner will not be disappointed, a stunner, love the way the design travels around the rim. SOLD

Hello James, Commision the sword, then the fittings to fit the sword. (best they have the sword in hand) Bare in mind that posting swords around can sometimes be a worry, with shipping and customs etc..

Sounds like a plan, so god dam old school it might just work Cheers, il do that.

Hi Peter, Thats what i did, filled in the form and sent back all the relevent info and proof. I then recieved a reply saying they would send a refund, but thats where it ended. Ive contacted the number on the back of the letter which when you call says "this number is unavailable". Ive contacted numbers ive found online which send me around in circles. People replying saying this this is not the right number, then give me numbers I have already rang. Ive called Coventry hub four times, been told border force dont take calls, then after becoming slightly annoyed ive been given another number. When i called it a recorded voice on the other side gives details of enquiries they wont reply to (different to my enquiry), so i left a reply, and then i get no reply. Seriously, ive never known anything like it, just glad we are not talking a larger refund. One of the other things that bugs me. If you get over charged by border force, you have to pay it up front anyway to receive the parcel (then possibly.go through all this nonsense afterwards) Brian, cheers, i remember that page now.

Hello, might well be.

Was just reading .gov page, thought this was interesting 1.5 Which antiques are eligible for VAT on a reduced value?These are: antiques of an age exceeding 100 years including items of numismatic interest provided they are not part of any collection or a collector’s piece

Hi Grev, 97060000 for antiques over 100 years

Same here Chris, Arthur C Clarke couldn't work it out.

Cheers Ian. Makes perfect sense to print off all the details at the beginning and have everything at hand, rather than trying to pull everything together months later, as I had to. The least amount of time your valuables hang about in one of those places, the better.

Thought i best share a few, in the hope it might save someone hassles. 1) Dont ever forget to state the customs tariff and "over 100 years old" (outside EU). My fault, must have had my head in the clouds that day and asked the sender just to put "antique iron sword guard". Anyways, Customs are on the ball and charge me full wack but on receiving the package, I fill a form in online and get a letter saying they will issue a refund within a month. That was May and I wont bore you with the details, just been going around in circles on and off ever since. Speaking to border force is akin to trying to contact the men in black, Coventry hub cant put you through as apparently they don't take calls Ive tried every phone number linked with them on google, just get number unavailable. No luck with any emails either. I give up twice and now im back for more, all this for £38 2) A first ever, customs held a sword and wanted to see proof of price paid. Fair enough I thought, but they could have left out the jargon about it possibly being crushed Think on

Hi Bob, Difficult to make out much of the jigane in pics, but if Mino, leaning more towards Edo, rather than Koto Looks dense, and im thinking you wont see masame, Would sort that active rust out, think I see some in the bo-hi too.

On a good note, they do seem to come across old interesting koshirae, and other items. Further along, there is a sword listed as odachi which appears to hit nearer the mark.

Edit, thought best to just leave it at, wish polishing was better here. In the interest of preservation.

Yeh, was thinking the write-up was a little optimistic.

Briefly looking at this sword, cant help a wondering why there are not more mekugi-ana, ? Also, suriage appears not too old. 2nd sword down on the Japanese page. listed as "odachi" http://www.thelanesarmoury.co.uk/shop.php

Yes, please do as it would be interesting to know more about this blade and how to make the best of it. You have the fact there appears to be little at the Hamachi, large nicks that cant be removed without removing half the hamon which is already thin, a thin Kasane, the chance of hagire and Bo-hi that already shows an opening. Cleaning up the bo-hi is a risky task, as there is a chance it will show more openings. Bare in mind the cost of what you potentially spend v what you have in return. Old blades with faults, some of us will put up with, but there are many that wont, Just something to bare in mind if you ever want to sell. Saying all that, id be curious too, look forward to seeing what the polisher makes of it.

Also, think the fact that its ubu/mumei and of that age, think one day it might start to bug you.

Yes, many ubu swords have bo-hi that that extend the full length of the nakago, not that im saying this sword is ubu. I also agree with Kirill,can be tricky though. Sometimes we do stuff from the heart, and not from the mind. This isn't a sword for a top polisher. Best.

Make sure there are no cracks, took some bashes. Comes across a bit strange maybe that someones just had a go at polishing one side. Just a thought, good luck

I would get an opinion by someone in hand and take it from there, Maybe there is a experienced polisher out there that can give an opinion and possibly do something with it, without hitting you with too much of an hefty bill. Good luck.

Not much left in the blade, judging by whats left at the Hamachi and the Kasane. Pity about those nicks in the edge, last thing it needs. Can you make out hada or any hamon left?, I cant tell. As mentioned, might well be an early blade, if so, what to do?

I once found it difficult to capture a blades true sori in a pic, came across exagerated, more like a banana 2.86cm does not sound too epic curvature. Get someone to take a look at it, in hand.

Thanks Shannon, appreciate you taking the time to share your findings, very interesting.

What i like about this particular blade is that both sides of the hamon stand out as excellent Often with chogi, one side of the blade is far better or more interesting than the other side or there are parts of the hamon that go rather dull in places. Great sword. Never really read much about blades being better on one side than the other, might be a decent topic.

Always like to see good Sukekane (and others) Choji. Like looking into a fire. Very nice, http://www.sword-auction.jp/en/content/as19312-刀%EF%BC%9A備州長船住横山祐包明治ニニ年二月日友成五十八代孫-katana-bishu-osafune-ju-yokoyama-sukekane