Pablo668

No idea how it would effect the metal, but meteorites also contain a much higher content of Iridium than anything from the earths crust. It's how they tell where Meteorites have come down in the past.

Thanks!

Thanks Lee Paul (I keep forgetting to sign my posts dammit!)

Yeah I have tried straightening it (very carefully and gently) in the past. The bend always comes back though. Yeah once I found out it was a real sword I stopped doing anything to/with it.

I did a cut with it once. It worked surprisingly well. I have several Boken. I feel much more comfortable using those to practice. Anyone in here know anything about transporting edged weapons from Australia to Japan (future reference). Looks like I have some studying to do.

Just a bit more about this sword. I got it when I was in my early twenties. I had a mate who was always wheeling and dealing, selling and trading stuff. Ended up doing well for himself. He knew I liked swords and turned up with this one. Asked me if it was real. Then as now I had no real idea, but I figured if it wasn't it was at least made by someone who knew what he/they was/were doing. I swapped a few things for it and it was mine. He said he'd got it legitimately but was always sketchy about how he got it. I had the thing for....ooh round about ten years, then I gave it to my cousin. He had it for close to ten more and just recently gave it back to me. He said he didn't want it around his place any more. Probably my imagination but it always had an odd.....feeling to it. Bad karma or whatever. I think that's why he gave it back. Feels fine now I have it back. Also, it has a bend in it just short of the middle. When you draw it and cut it pulls to one side. Is a bend generally a fatal flaw? Oh one more thing.....how does a blade like this get from Japan to Perth Western Australia. I could see how and why if it was shin gunto, but it's not.....

A friend of mine in Himeji studies Iaido and sword dancing.

So I took some pics of my sword a while back with my DSLR. I wasn't happy with them though and may well try again, I just don't have anything decent to use for lighting. But that's why I took so long to load them up. Anyhoo, peruse at your leisure and let me know anything you come up with. One guy who seems to know what he's on about (on another site) says it's real and possibly shinshinto. Paul

Thanks very much Morita-san. I'm currently working on better pictures. Good lighting is an issue...

Gotcha! Paul

Yeah yeah, I stopped as soon as my friends said it might be a real Katana. Pablo is fine. Or Paul....either or. Btw, I do have a dslr, I can try and take better or more detailed photos of the blade/fittings.

Bugger, ok ok. After taking these shots I may or may not have taken the worst rust off the blade with some very fine wet or dry. It's only after I showed the pics to some friends from Japan, and a couple here that I realised in might be authentic.....

So I thought I'd put some pictures up of my sword. I really don't know a lot about it, other than the Umetada mark on the fitting. The blade has no signature on it, and it's bent. I've tried getting the bend out, very carefully....but it eventually goes back. If I find out it's nothing special, not authentic, I'll fix it up myself. Value is kind of meaningless as I'm fond of this sword. I've had it for quite a while. So yeah, any information on this sword would be awesome.

Hello all, My name is Paul and I live in Perth Western Australia. I have lived in Japan on and off for about 5 years. I have a sword, this sword and I have a bit of history, it's recently come back into my possession. I'd like to put some pics up of it, not sure where to though. It is definitely Japanese as far as I and some friends can tell. It has a fitting on it, the kanji on the fitting says made by Umetada Ryukou. There is nothing on the Nakago (Tang?). I know this post is a tad brief and stilted, but the last time I posted the whole forum was migrated to new software.