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Bruce Pennington

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Posts posted by Bruce Pennington

  1. Came across this today (looking for something else!).  Seems to be very late war Type 98 fittings.  Peculiar because it's got a Showa-stamped Kanetsugu blade in it, which should put the manufacture date of the blade no later than 1942.  Of course there is a known 1945 blade with a Showa stamp, so this could be another.  It's not dated, so it could be either way.

     

    Back to the reason for the post.  It's got the featureless metal fittings and very thin tsuba.  There are many posts of these scattered all about the NMB, so I though I'd start a thread dedicated to the issue.

    Found HERE

     

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  2. On 2/2/2021 at 7:42 PM, IJASWORDS said:

    Thought I would post a three character (Ichihara) NAGAMITSU Saku, who regularly made swords for the Osaka Army Arsenal. His swords were rated very highly for their cutting ability. This has no date, but a very small mune stamp. 

    He signed his swords in 2 characters, and upto 10 characters. Debate has raged about which signature represent the best quality swords, and those that are "knockouts" for the war. This sword has an Itame haha, and a nice hamon with ko-gunome with ashi. It is in as found war time polish, and the detail doesn't photograph well.

    And Bruce, the fittings have heart shaped stamps, what can you tell me about this? 

    Nagamitsu (and Emura) swords are becoming quite popular with collectors, and are now being papered.  

    Neil,

    Sorry for detracting from this thread with my questions, but I assume this Nagamitsu blade has no date since you didn't post a photo?

     

    Also, and @PNSSHOGUN and any Type3/Rinji collectors - do I recall a discussion that the high-quality Rinji Seishiki fittings like this are seen in the last couple years of the war?  Would the high-quality fittings and the canvas same' push an estimated date for this blade into the '44-45 timeframe?  But even as I type this, I realize the blade could have been made before 1942 and re-mounted in '44-45 fittings.  But, then again, I may be wrong about the high-quality RS fittings being only late in the war.

     

    I'm trying to find blades made by RJT qualified smiths that aren't star-stamped to see if any are dated after 1942.  The total lack of stamps is evidence the blade was traditionally made.  But if the blade was made after 1942, by an RJT smith, and it's not stamped, then a case is being made that the Star stamp was used by RJT inspectors on RJT smith's blades that weren't traditionally made.  So far, I have only found non-star blades by RJT smiths on undated blades.  Which likely means they were made BEFORE 1942 and the RJT system.  A dated blade after 1942, and no star, would be evidence for the counter idea about the star.  But I haven't found any, and yours, if undated, continues to verify the current claims about star-stamped RJT blades being nihonto.

  3. On 3/7/2021 at 11:08 AM, Kiipu said:

    What is the height of the small 関 [Seki] stamp in millimeters?

    The only one I have is on the nakago mune, but it is 2.75mm.

     

    It would be nice to get someone with the small stamp on the side of the nakago to get a measurement.  I can't imagine that they are just as small, but maybe they are.

    • Thanks 1
  4. 9 hours ago, Shamsy said:

    I believe Bruce actually made one for himself by grinding a standard flathead?

    Must have been someone else.  Before I found out that they make tool tips like this, I used this:

    20180831_084743.jpg.6fca846f606cd9eeab1c5cd35ebba11c.jpg

     

    I also think this nut has been broken or ground down.  Clearly original to the war, though.  When I first saw his post, on another forum, I only saw the black screw head and thought it was modern.  Didn't realize they came in black.  Learned something new!

    • Like 2
  5. 2 hours ago, Karusk said:

    Im just trying to build my rep up a little here

    Karusk,

    That happens the more you learn and build a good reputation over time by making positive contributions to interesting discussions.  Guys get to know you.  That is a reputation, not a count under your avatar.  I made plenty of bozo mistakes as a rookie (and still do!), and have made the mistake of getting into arguments.  There are a lot of gruff, opinionated guys here (just what you might expect from a bunch of guys that study war).  Take things with a grain of salt.  Give grace to those who disagree.  State your case and leave it without any back-and-forth.  Your reputation will stand on how you "carry" yourself.

    • Like 1
  6. Good Morning guys!  Here's a fun one!

     

    John @PNSSHOGUN  sent me a link to a Buyee sale of a blade with the mei and date badly removed, but it still has the hotstamp.  The sale page describes the blade as a "1945 Koa Isshin by Mantetsu" HA!  I'm assuming they concluded that because the first kanji of the stamp is "Koa".  But we know, thanks to @mecox the stamp is of the Koa Token Sha, "a company founded by a group of retired servicemen to support the war effort.  It was the parent company of the Seki Nihon To Tan Ren Jo of which Amahide (Hideyoshi san) was president.  Amahide was also running Tan Ren Jo as a commercial operation.  [from Malcom Cox]"  I have only seen the stamp on a couple of blades, but they were both Amahide blades. 

     

    Here's the ad:

    https://buyee.jp/item/yahoo/auction/e504975921

     

    What I'm curious about is the meaning of some writing placed by the stamp:

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    I'll add some of the pics here for posterity, knowing the auction pages will someday go extinct:

     

    2095771036_Screenshot2021-03-17072403.thumb.jpg.36e41900509f52a8a191a6485960f069.jpg1970696996_Screenshot2021-03-17072525.thumb.jpg.51a226201bda7ac5a63038ae1f3c2769.jpg

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  7. 3 hours ago, tokashikibob said:

    So I just sold two type three's then this comes to the garage.   The type 3 would have looked good hanging off the hook.    Maybe Bruce P.  will send over a Nambu for the other side.   There were 12 rounds of nambu pistol rounds with it.

    Best regards,

      Bob

     

     

     

    Ha!  One of the Murphy's Laws of the Universe!

    But sorry, must be a case of mistaken identity as I only collect WWII gunto.  Love the looks of the Nambu, but never owned one.

  8. 1 hour ago, Gunto said:

    if it's possible

    Ha!  With gunto anything is possible!  I have seen a few with 2 holes in the blade, but only 1 on the tsuka, so this combination doesn't surprise me.  There are other guys here that know more about fittings than I do.  Maybe they can say whether that tsuka matches the saya.  They do seem to be different in appearance - tsuka parts glossy/shiny, saya parts dull?

    • Like 1
  9. Well, as the saying goes, "It has a face only a mother could love!" Ha!  Glad you enjoy your gunto.  Is it your first?  At first glance, it appears to be an old work-horse of a blade, re-fitted for a Gunzuko officer.  If all original from the war, the guy must have used a lower-end shop for the re-fit, as the habaki doesn't fit the blade.  Unusual.  Someone, post-war likely, has "polished" the tsuba and menuki too much and removed the original coloring.

     

    It is possible the blade was re-fitted by a dealer, post-war.  From the pictures (which may not be fair), the handle wrap looks unused - no hand-oils or wear on the back edge.  And the rayskin looks new.  Again, that may the lighting.

     

    When you get a chance, take one of the thick black seppa from the back and move to the front so there is an even number of matching seppa on each side.

     

    I apologize for sounding a bit negative.  I believe it all to be legit WWII stuff.  Whether it's been re-built post-war sort of doesn't really matter as blades were re-fitted many times in their lifetime.  And in reality, I could be wrong about the post-war theory. 

     

    Welcome to the World of WWII Gunto!

    • Like 1
  10. 2 hours ago, Clifford said:

    In the summer heat the paint melted and the sheet had to be "pulled" off or forcibly removed f

    Texas has some pretty hot summers, and with the green-house effect of an outdoor garage , whew!  I wouldn't store it in a garage at all.  Steel needs controlled humidity (42-7%, if memory serves me), or protection from it.  I live in Colorado, so I don't even have to worry about it, but your climate demands some maintenance to preserve your blade. 

     

    The links above will walk you through cleaning and oiling.  It should be done on some sort of regular basis (quarterly, semi-annually, etc).  I keep mine in their saya, standing up in a gun cabinet.  The Japanese keep them horizontally in drawer cabinets.  And there are a hundred other ways guys use.  Your blade looks good, so there's likely no rust inside the saya.  I've disassembled mine and cleaned with copper-wool due to rust and stains.   The wooden liners can hold rust and stains from having water inside during the war.

     

    Here is a thread discussing display ideas: Show us your Gunto Display

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