jeremy

Found out his teacher was a man name Okubo who passed away about 10 years ago. Does anyone know of a smith by that name who passed away about then? Cheers, Jeremy

I recently acquired a sword made by this smith from gifu. can anyone give me any information about him such as his background, rank, who his teacher was etc?? I have tried googling with no luck in finding any information on him. Any info would be great. Kind regards, Jeremy Hagop

Found a good commentary by Keith Larman on bo-hi which I read a while back, thought Id post it here. "Then there's bo-hi. I'm not a fan from a performance standpoint . Think about what it's doing. If the blade has a low shinogi and a bo-hi, you're reducing weight creating an edge on the top of the bo-hi to grab target as the blade passes through. Then if the bo-hi is grooved deeply rather than smoothly and shallow , you've removed significant material from the cross section so a poorly angled cut should snap the blade. It reduces weight and reduces strength. On the other hand, tapering the shinogi ji to create a high shinogi can reduce weight similarly but without such a serious compromise of the lateral strength of the blade. And the high shinogi also reduces surface area at the same time. It seems to be a vastly better solution. And remember that bo-hi were usually done historically for a variety of reasons. The first was to have a way of cutting out weld flaws or other "boo-boos" that appeared on the surface. This could save a blade from the trash heap. The second reason for cutting in grooves was to "correct" an old poorly balanced sword. Both of these methods work given the motivation, but ultimately both reasons are fixing something after the fact. The final reason was purely for aesthetics. Some just like 'em. This is a personal taste issue -- but it can become a safety issue if the blade is being made for tameshigiri." Kind regards, Jeremy Hagop

Gdaye gentlemen, Today I received this special paperwork in the mail. It is a letter in Japanese and English for me to present to the customs officials it reads like this: "To Whom it may concern, Reason for import of Japanese sword This is to confirm that Mr Jeremy Hagop is carrying his Japanese sword into Japan for polishing by a polish master during his stay in Japan. His purpose of visit is to attend a special training and a Taikai event of Nakamura-ryu Battodo being held by Internation Battodo Federation on 23 Oct 2011. POlish master : Isamu Suzuki Suzuki Art swords 6-41 Midori Kani-Shi Gifu Pref. TEL: 090-1271-0110 We hereby affirm the above statement to be true and correct. For any enquiry, please contact to either Mr Nomura or Mr Shinbori. (Issuer of this letter) Name: International Batto-do federation President Tomoko Nakamura (address: 1-25-15 kami-sueyoshi tsurumi-ku Yokohama-shi Kanagawa - ken Personnel in charge: Tsutomu Ishikawa Tel: 080-3078-0039 e-mail: iwaharu-n@dolphin.ocn.ne.jp " Ive been told to take this letter with me along with my shinsakuto and present it at the airport, and should be allowed to take it in and out without too much hassles. Ill keep you all posted in October anyway. Kind regards, Jeremy Hagop

Hey Chris, The reason why our Senseis went through the painful procedure of attaining these "special" paperwork, was to avoid these hassles you mention. I was under the impression these papers were supposed to allow us to take our swords into Japan for the 2 weeks under the pretenses of restoration which is why our togishi had to help out to get this paperwork for us. Ive never done this before, only taken mogito to Japan, never a nihonto....Ill keep everyone posted here how it turns out... Kind regards, Jeremy

G'daye gentleman, In October I am traveling to Japan for our annual Batto-do taikai, and my sensei over there, who is Ishikawa sensei, has arranged with the authorities to allow me and my colleagues to bring our nihonto there to use for the two weeks for training and competition. What he has done is arranged for some papers to be sent to me in Australia from a togishi, for me to fill out, as though I am bringing the sword to Japan for polishing purposes. What I wanted to know is, when I have these papers, and get off at Osaka airport, will they require me to take off the tsuka for nakago viewing and hold my sword for some time, or just view these papers from the togishi and let me through without too much hassles? Kind regards, Jeremy

Thank you for helping me sir. Maybe the best thing to do would be to call them once I am there in Japan, and make an appointment to view the sword I am interested in. Thanks again, Jeremy Hagop

Thanks for all the helpful advice. If it is an online store only, does it mean my chances of viewing the sword in hand is quite slim then? I will have my batto-do instructor coming with me also, his Japanese is quite good, so I will not have a problem with communication once I'm there. Kind regards, Jeremy Hagop

Hi Chris, I sent the email in English. Cheers, Jeremy Hagop

A week ago I emailed e-sword.jp about a purchase inquiry. I am visiting Japan in October and would like to visit this store and look at the sword in hand before making any decisions. I havent heard back from the store owner, does anyone know whats the story with this shop/website owner? Can anyone please translate the store address in English so that I may visit in October. The address that is posted on their website is in Japanese and finding it hard to translate. Thanks for any assistance. Jeremy Hagop

The sword in question would be fine for iaido. Just make sure the fittings arent loose if/when you decide to purchase this sword. If you are planning on doing any cutting with this sword, please be very careful, as the bo-hi weakens the blade, and will be less forgiving on bad cuts than a blade without bo-hi. Also, email Tsuruta-san and ask him if this blade has any serious flaws. Other than what I have said, if the koshirae fits your taste, the length is suitable according to you and your instructor, there should be no reason why this sword wouldnt be appropriate for iaido. Kind regards, Jeremy Hagop

Hey Jamie, No problem mate. How close to the edge is this hada-kizu, out of interest? Kind regards, Jeremy Hagop

The shinsakuto I train with for my batto-do shizan cutting practise has a small hada-ware, about 1.5cm long in the nioi-guchi right in the mono-uchi part of the blade. I bought this sword with Ishikawa sensei and Tzuzuki sensei whilst in Japan in 2009 from a smith by the name of Ogawa Kanekuni in Seki. I have put this sword through at least 50 green bamboo poles and at least 100 wara, with no problem regarding the loose grain. Admittedly, my shinsakuto hasnt seen as much polishes as the antique tanto mentioned by the OP. So, not all hada ware are considered fatal by a users standpoint even if they are in the hamon. These things must be seen in hand to be able to make a clear judgement. Just my thoughts. :D Kind regards, Jeremy Hagop

Hi Dave, Im far from being an expert on the subject on nihonto in general, but I can speak from experience. In our curriculum of Japanese Sword Arts (Nakamura Ryu), I am involved in cutting targets on a regular basis. I have cut with many nihonto and Japanese -style swords, and have bent quite a few in my time. I can say from what I have seen, most of the time the mukade shinae will end up being on the shinogi-ji and extend through to the hira-ji sometimes. Sometimes,but not all the time, you will see the shinae on both sides of the blade where the sword was bent. But I havent seen a blade that has been bent with mukade shinae only on the hira-ji, its always had it in the shinogi-ji. Hope this helps. If anyone wants to add anything to what I have said or correct me if I am wrong, please feel free to do so. Kind regards, Jeremy Hagop

Thanks for the book advice. I'll see if I can pick one up soon. Kind regards, Jeremy Hagop

Thanks to everyone for taking the time to help me out. This additional information might be more helpful to identify what sword I am talking about. Length: 28-30inches Sori: Torii-zori between 1.5 -2cm Hamon suguha Jihada Ko-itame, some masame Motokasane: 7.5mm-8mm sakikasane 5mm Motohaba 34mm sakihaba 24mm Low shinogi with scant niku Does this make it easier to tell me what I am looking at? Thanks again, Jeremy Hagop

I havent got a picture, if i did i would most certainly post it. I am only asking as a question to learn from you guys. Would Hizento fit my criteria I listed? Kind regards, Jeremy hagop

yes, i realise that, but I am wanting to know if there were any smiths from any tradition/school which forged the blades that way originally. For example, i have hear shinshinto blades mostly have scant niku, but were they made that way, or are they only a product of overpolishing? Kind regards, Jeremy Hagop

Found on Kanbun Shinto swords and others period such early Kamakura late Nanbokucho and early Muromachi. Did the swords of these periods also have low shinogi with scant niku as well? Kind regards, Jeremy Hagop

For rare exceptions, all schools And what about the rest of the criteria I listed, if you dont mind? "with funbari, low shinogi and scant niku?" Kind regards, Jeremy Hagop

Sorry, maybe i used the wrong term with funbari, what i meant was where the sakihaba is narrower than the motohaba as opposed to the blade being the same width all the way to the tip. Kind regards, Jeremy Hagop

Can anyone please give me a list of some of the different schools/swordsmiths of the koto, shinto and shinshinto eras that made swords with funbari, low shinogi and scant niku? Kind regards, Jeremy Hagop Reply With Quote

Hi Jon, Thanks for that good reading. Unfortunately though, I was only able to view the writing that was written in English, but could not see any photographs. I will try finding some pics of Sadamoris swords online anyway. Thanks, Jeremy

Thanks for the answers guys. Does anyone have any photos or any links they can share to show me pictures of some healthy blades which have hoso suguha hamon? Doesnt matter from which period really, koto, shinto or even shinshinto? Kind regards, Jeremy Hagop

Were hoso-suguha originally created that way in the koto period, or is it a product of years of over polishing which has narrowed the hamon down? Such as in this picture: http://www.japaneseswordcollector.com/s ... /kane.html I guess what I am asking is that was this hamon once wider than it is now? And if so, is it possible to tell how much it has been narrowed down? Kind regards,. Jeremy Hagop