b.hennick

SHUDDER never have never will.

I have a maple leaf shaped stamp that I put so that I know how to align the two parts of the box. It also lets me know which is the top and which is the bottom. I agree that "historical boxes " are best left alone.

I would point out that the original image that I posted is life size when printed on 4'X8' The newer files are wider than 4 ft and so either needs a larger 6'X8' banner or smaller images that will no longer be life size. There is little detail of the hamon in my image but the point is shape, not hamon.

Amazing work! Congratulations Kev.

Interesting approach. Left to right is a good change. To me, the important thing is that when printed you have the actual size of all blades. Being able to take a sword up to the banner and compare shape and size with the samples provided is what I was looking for. I notice that yours does not have the identifying label to indicate the period of manufacture. I would miss that. A friend did a chart where he lined up the original mekugi ana of all the blades in his chart. All were signed and dated examples. Of course, he did not cover the who range of dates but it was interesting none the less.

Markus Sesko used a chart showing the changes in the shape of blades over time in a presentation. I asked him if he knew the dimensions of the blades and if I could use his file to make a banner. He agreed to let me use the file and provided the length of cutting edge of one of the blades.With the help of my son-in-law, we arrived at a printable, life-size banner 4' X 8'. I ordered one for our sword club's use from Vistaprint and received it today. Two of my club members have also ordered a banner. The banner is printed on vinyl for indoor use. When I purchased mine they offered a 25% discount, when ordering for club members we were able to get a 40% discount. The list price in Canada is $96. The one for the club cost about $75 delivered. The ones the club members cost about $57. They currently offer 25% off with CATCH THEIR EYE discount code. Here are the links: link to jpg file https://mega.nz/#!tWIziaIL!GFstrj7tSiOT0IQin7qdDVdzmP4SfIcmXVkWMHYY2ow link to PDF https://mega.nz/#!cH411bIJ!hwEdHs_VFGKbfkEggiVwo4L0PB1ypw6B5mnxyBEXknQ

This reminds me of the old days when the JSSUS used to provide members with a membership list with names and addresses. I would contact a member in a city that I was going to visit and arrange to meet them and see their collection. Then people started to worry about robberies and the list was no longer mailed.

For those of you who missed the Chicago show here is a link to photos I took of Stuart Broms' tsuba collection. Stuart was kind enough to provide for a hands-on display and to allow me to post a link to my photos of his tsuba. Here is one sample to entice you to click the link. Here is the link: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/hapm43jtokvphjl/AAA0rYMmAyo-lqZ4oMi4rTvLa?dl=0

Ted Tenold does the best packing job that I have seen. I was embarrassed by the job that I did when compared to the one he did. His box was larger than the sword and koshirae. The box was filled with solid dense foam. Cutouts were made to fit the blade and koshirae. The blade was wrapped in Saran wrap or similar material and then placed in the shirasaya and that was placed in a bag. The koshirae had bubble wrap then a bag. Both sword and koshirae fit into separate cutout sections. the box. The box was heavy duty cardboard. The box was taped shut. I might have missed something. Impressive! In contrast to that, I received a yari from a member here where the tang was sticking out of the package - a mailing tube. I think that bare blades should be wrapped in saran wrap then taped to a piece of wood longer than the blade. This prevents the blade from going through the box/tube/triangle. I have received books where the box split and half the books were lost. Although the books were insured, the insurance denied the claim because not all the books disappeared. Grey Doffin has posted a warning to never ship tsuba in the box that they are shown in. He has a photo of the triangular piece where the tsuba rests has come off and the nail that holds the tsuba in place has scratched the tsuba. Do not skimp on packaging. The person receiving the package will appreciate the efforts made to ensure a successful delivery. When you receive a well-packed item let the shipper know. Regards, Barry Hennick

Amazing work!

Ron is always ready to share his treasures - including some famous ones. People don't say it enough - "Thank yo Ron". See you in Chicago.

Welcome, Dave!

Welcome, Rene. Ray is a good person to deal with. You are off to a good start. You need to get some books and start reading them. Check our FAQ for a list.

I called ahead to the recommended company to give them the flight and arrival time. Once in the airport, I called them again and they told me where to mee t the cab and the cab number. The system works well. If you see another collector you can share a cab.

Flint?

Ken, contact someone who tunes or repairs pianos. I can buy then at 10 pieces for $20.

A quick check on Shoshin web-site where they list titles I found that there were about 40 Koto smiths, over 800 Shinto smiths and 60+ Shinshinto smiths with titles. If you are a Koto collector the title doesn't mean much as there are so few and most great smiths did not have one. If you are Shinto collector most of them seem to have a title and so not so significant. For many years I collected Hizen smiths and many had titles. The title had no affect on what I bought. The work was the important thing.

I think that it is a larger rock.

Easter eBook Super Sale III by Markus Sesko I just started, like last year and the year before, an Easter eBook Super Sale where ALL of my eBooks are reduced by 50%! This offer will be valid for until the day after Easter Monday (4/18) so you have enough time to decide what you want. So fill up all your tablets (or PC´s) with all the important Nihonto and Tosogu reference material you need four your studies! Once again, it goes directly via me (i.e. I'm not going to manually change all the prices on Lulu.com and then change them back when the sale is over). I provide a list of all my eBooks below, showing the regular and the reduced prices. I also linked them so that you can check what the description says but again, DO NOT buy over there at Lulu.com this time. Get in touch with me via "markus.sesko@gmail.com" and pay me directly, either by PayPal using the very same email address or by credit card, using the donate button at the very bottom of this page and I'm going to send you over the eBook. And anyway, if you gave a question, just drop me a mail. So grab this chance to fill up your laptops/tablets/phones with all references you need. Thank you for your attention! Akasaka Tanko Roku ..... $8.90 - $4.50 Encyclopedia of Japanese Swords ..... $24.90 - $12.50 Geneaogies and Schools of Japanese Swordsmiths ..... $19.90 - $10 Genealogies of Japanese Toso Kinko Artists ..... $19,90 - $10 Identifying Japanese Cursive Script ..... $14.90 - $7.50 Identifying Japanese Seal Script ..... $14.90 - $7.50 Japan's Most Important Sword Fittings ..... $14.90 - $7.50 Jukken ..... $14.90 - $7.50 Kano Natsuo I ..... $59.90 - $30 Kano Natsuo II ..... $59.90 - $30 Kantei Reference Book - Hamon & Boshi ..... $19.90 - $10 Koshirae - Japanese Sword Mountings ..... $19.90 - $10 Koshirae Taikan ..... $59.90 - $30 Koto Kantei Zenshu ..... $89.90 - $45 Koto Meikan ..... $39.90 - $20 Legends and Stories Around the Japanese Sword ..... $9.90 - $5 Legends and Stories Around the Japanese Sword 2 ..... $9.90 - $5 Masamune ..... $29.90 - $15 Masters of Keicho Shinto ..... $19.90 - $10 Nihon-koto-shi ..... $29.90 - $15 Nihon-shinto-shi ..... $29.90 - $15 Nihon-shinshinto-shi ..... $29.90 - $15 Shinshinto Meikan ..... $29.90 - $15 Shinto Meikan ..... $29.90 - $15 Shinto Shinshinto Kantei Zenshu ..... $89.90 - $45 Signatures of Japanese Sword Fittings Artists ..... $89.90 - $45 Soken Kinko Zufu ..... $9.90 - $5 Swordsmiths of Japan ..... $89.90 - $45 Tameshigiri ..... $29.90 - $15 The Honami Family ..... $19.90 - $10 The Japanese Toso Kinko Schools ..... $24.90 - $12.50 German Titles: Die Honami Familie ..... $19.90 - $10 Geschichten rund ums japanische Schwert ..... $9.90 - $5 Geschichten rund ums japanische Schwert 2 ..... $9.90 - $5 Koto Kantei Zenshu ..... $89.90 - $45 Nihon-shinto-shi ..... $29.90 - $15 Nihon-shinshinto-shi ..... $29.90 - $15 Shinto Shinshinto Kantei Zenshu ..... $89.90 - $45 I highly recommended this source of translated work and compilations supplemented with great research.

The JSSUS web-site is back up in full operation, There is a new link to our latest issue with three 3 PDF files that were too large to print. The issue is close to being mailed. Big thanks you to my tech support - son-in-law - Jeff Stainsby!

it's "my Bad" I was working to add something to the homepage and things got messed up. I will be getting some assistance tomorrow evening and hopefully, things will get fixed.

There is a big difference between Goto Ichijyo School and Ichijyo. That is like... Soshu School and Masamune I don't think that it is the work of Ichijyo.

Thanks for the help!

Hello: :I am having some difficulty with this mei. Assistance appreciated. I see Masa, almost Nobu and Saku.

Thanks, Randy!