EdWolf

Thanks for all the positive feedback! Best regards, Ed

And some photos with the other Kai Gunto. Regards, Ed

As promised some higher quality pictures. Regards, Ed

Hi James, When putting the images next to each other it’s a pretty good match. Only the angle of the to pictures is slightly different. Hope this helps. Regards, Ed

Thanks Paul for the kind words. I will try to catch the beauty of the sword in some good pictures. In real it such a nice piece. Regards, Ed

This blade is made of some stainless steel, the structure of the steel is totally different when compared to a traditional made sword. I was a confused by the black spots and the absence of a stamp. As Bruce already mentioned “prior to 1940, the compliance with the requirement for stamps was a bit spotty”. Steve, thanks for mentioning that your blade had similar spots! I will post better quality pictures soon. I was too excited and could not wait to share this find. So, I used my phone for taking pictures. Thanks for all the replies! Regards, Ed

Hi Neil, I'm not sure if the blade is made of stainless steel. It looks stainless but I can't explain the black stains. My other Kai gunto is made of stainless steel and doesn't show the black stains. Regards, Ed

I will do a search. Thanks for your reply Stephen. Regards, Ed

Hi Bruce, there is indeed no navy arsenal stamp. I don't know if it is gendaito. Don't know how to determine. Best regards, Ed

and some more pictures. Best regards, Ed

Hi to all, Today, I have bought my second Kai Gunto sword. Marked Tenshozan tanrenjo saku, showa 15 nen 11 gatsu kichi (1940 November, a lucky day). It's in perfect condiction. Just to share my excitement. Here are the pictures. Hope you all like it. Feel free to comment. Best regards, Ed

Hi Stephen, that is a very nice Tsuba. What are the dimensions? Best regards, Ed

I’m with Peter and Chris. The blade does look much older. The two mekugi-ani doesn’t make sense when this piece is a ww2 example. Regards, Ed

Hi Rich, During my search for information I came by this site. A lot of useful information. Thanks for sharing. Regards, Ed

Thanks Piers for your explanation. Best regards, Ed

Hi John, After trying a few translations you start to recognize the more frequently used Kanji characters. I find it very satisfying to solve the little puzzles. Thanks again. Al the best, Ed

Hi John, Thanks for filling in the gaps. Very impressive! This was my first try. It's really fun to do. Thanks again. Best regards, Ed

Hi to all, Reading sword appreciation papers is one magic thing for me. To upgrade my skills I was practicing trying to read an example. But after a few hours searching the internet and reading books I still can’t figure out the boshi and the hamon part (only a small part). Can someone please help me? Thanks in advance. Best regards, Ed

Very impressive! Regards, Ed

Interesting document. Thanks for sharing! Regards, Ed

Thanks Chris!

This Gunto type 98 also with nice fittings is my latest addition. Regards, Ed

maybe sōshū ju norikuni 相州住憲國 ? Regards, Ed

I have experienced that removing paint with acetone works best with paint which is not to old. If the paint is applied more than say 20 - 30 years ago the results will be disappointing and the effect will be limited. Regards, Ed

Thanks again Marius. Your help is highly appreciated! Best regards, Ed