Shawk66

Ozzy Do you have anymore small screws for Kai guntu

Thanks for all the input. Went to my family Optometrist's office and all the eye glass screws were quite small. She told me that such eye-ware screws having been running much smaller in the last decade or so, so none came close to fitting. Found some screws that somewhat fit at Lowes, but they had large hex heads that would not be easy to grind down. Below is what I am looking for. Ozzy-Samurai, do you have such spare screws to sell from your koshirae sets? See Picture Thanks again for everyone's help John Shawkins

Hello All Looking for some advice on where to find replacement screws for ishizuke (Chape-tip) (model 44-blackish color), need one screw here, and one for Kuchi-Gane (throat) have no ideas where to even start as far as size etc (maybe .5MM???) Also need a couple of screws for am early war shin-gunto (the type with open cast patina covered Tsuba and the fairly standard OD green Saya. Any ideas on where to look? Thanks

Thanks Mark, Bruce, et al, Bruce, yep! Small world..I live at the base of Cheyenne Mountain Air Station-Broodmoor Blufs), we need to get together and talk about sharp pointy things. I am a retired Army Helo guy and now teach at Fountain-Fort Carson High School. Matter fact one of my students, who is also the JV Place Kicker, is a red- headed kid named Pennington...any relation? I was pretty sure that the type 98 was authentic, It has been in my folks basement since the early 50s, and when my late uncle was over back in the 60-70s, he would pull it out, (we begged him to do so)-he had given it as a trophy to my dad. He never said much about the sword-other than it was not very good at stopping armored vehicles. He was a T-SGT in the Army's 708 Amphibious Tank BN in support of the 4th MARDIV, and took the sword when Saipan capitulated. About 10 years ago my brother scrubbed it down with a kitchen sponge and mineral oils so he could use it for a school play-well at least he did not take a grinder to it! He was the one who mailed it out to me here in Colorado a few months back because my mom had just about given it away to one of the fellows on the moving truck that was packing her house out. My brother figured, and rightfully so, that regardless of actual value, the gunto held immense sentimental value for me. Sorry for the blathering...The type 98 got my fired up, I am just curious about its "bobtai"l tang end. So, since then I ran out and bought a 2nd unmounted "Kai-Gunto" at a gun-show in New mexico for $95 plus tax. The seller said it was pretty beat up and all it came with was the blade and the brass hamachi (sp?). I provided attachments for both the 98 and the unmounted bare blade. I highlighted the tang text with non-toxic white water based paint for so the marking would stand out. Seller told me it probably was a manufacturing date. As I said before there were no marking on the 98. Anyway, back to my original questions, why is the 98's tang so "bobed", and it does not look like it was just hacked off. Then on the other blade (with the brass hamachi) that was my"impulse gun show buy", I was just curious to see if it is in fact a "Kai Gunto". I did not see any anchor arsenal stamps, but there is a small "boxy" stamp on the upper part of the somewhat rusted tang, that, forgive my poor analogy, but under close examination, this mark looks like a little mini-transformer character head. it roughly shaped liked an inverted pyramid, with a straight line at the bottom. The blade is not stainless, as I understand so Kai guntos were, but the blade seems like it is in good shape-I was thinking about trying to remount it in naval fittings at some point. (in the images, the type 98 is lain out with some of its mounting kit. The "Kai" is the one with the large white marks) If more images would help let me know. Thanks all

Hello All, Well, I guess I am another one of the inheritors, I picked up a Gunto last month while cleaning my Moms estate, both in a box that said give/throw away! My mom (age 94) said it was just junk that my uncle had brought back after VJ. I think it is a type 98 (or so my wobbly research would indicate) with all mounting etc. My brother painted the saya (arghhhh) to dress up as soldier in a school play. I never really noticed it, but regardless of value, my uncle did take the sword on Saipan, while serving as an Army tank crew commander. I then got the fever and bought a second unmounted blade at a local Gun show, probably just got hit by a Chinese stealth weapon, as I guess it is their intent to subvert and remove all the joy for imperialist new collectors. There is picture attached which I think is the Type 98 gunto no marking on nakago, and the tang seems like it was either cut or intentionally made short. Conversely, my gun-show unmounted blade seems noticeably heavier, and noticeably thicker right at the top notch point. The owner said the unmounted blade might have been Naval, but he was not for sure. I realize the script maybe important and tell me meeeahh, the sword is worth nothing or maybe something, I will get that checked later. If it turns out to be of little of no value I hope to make it into a restoration project anyway. Hence the following questions: My most immediate question is why the nakago (tang) lengths (measured from base of Habaki to the tip of tang) are so different? The one taken from my mother's home measures about 14 cm and the gun show 100 dollar wonder measurements from base of Habaki to tail is just under 20cm. Was there a standard tang length? My mounted Gunto has an almost straight cut at the end of the tang, and the blade itself has some what of a gentle curve, whilst the unmounted one has a pronounced long skinny tapper to it tang? Lastly are all meguki whole locations somewhat different?