Michaelr

Very nice blade and congratulations on being its caretaker. Welcome and thank you for sharing. Take good care of your blade and enjoy MikeR

I agree with Brian. I am a small time collector and fron what I can see I probably wouldn’t even be interested. Maybe if to were on a table at a show and I could see it in person and it was priced at around $200.00 I MIGHT consider it. It’s a shame the way it was treated, it may have been an interesting piece at one time. Just my opinion but I am only one person. As my wife always says “ there is a lid for every pot” MikeR

Michael, thank you for the follow up. To me both swords look to be in great condition. We All have a limit to our budgets and I have always found that when my budget is full, I don’t find anything that appeals to me BUT when my budget is at its lowest point I find a bunch of things to buy. Just my opinion as I love Navies, I would probably try and find a way to come up with the extra gingle and go for them. Again just my opinion, I feel that after you got them both home, took the other one apart and had some learning time with them you could always get all your money back and maybe even make a little profit. The best part would be having the two together to compare and learn as you are already seeing the differences. Been there/ done that, decisions/decisions. Please keep us informed if you become their caretaker. I look forward to the opinions of the other more knowledgeable members here as this is also a great learning opportunity. Good luck. MikeR

Michael, I would say go for it. I would if I had the opportunity. I think that $2000.00 for both is a Great Deal. If you have the money it would be foolish to leave one behind. If you don’t have the money and have to choose only one than go for the one that speaks to you. Good luck and let us know how it turns out. MikeR

Love it. Thank you for sharing. MikeR

Piers here are a couple pictures of the overall gun that you requested. The mark on the bottom of the barrel is 9 3/4” up from the Breech screw and is pointing toward the muzzle. I took a better look at the bottom of the barrel and there dosent appear to be any other marks. It is all smooth with some light rust. Also a couple pictures of the pan and vent hole. If you need anything else please let me know. Thank you for all your help. Mike

Thank you Piers. It looks like someone tried to remove the breech screw with no luck so I think I will leave it alone. I didn’t see anything else under the barrel but maybe I expected any other marks to be as clear as that one. What other pictures would be beneficial? Again as always thank you for your quick response and help. Mike

A couple I forgot

I recently picked up this matchlock from a friend. It is approximately 42” overall, with a 29 3/4” barrel and a bore of approximately .59”. I will post as many pictures as I can. The first picture of the single character is found on the underside of the barrel. The many pictures of top of the of the barrel show a gold Mon, above a large Kangi or symbol. The engraving on the barrel appears to be maybe a plumb tree with a couple dragon flies, with some silver and gold. The hammer is also pretty ornate. Inside the stock it appears to have 3-4 sets of characters. Any information would be greatly appreciated. Any discussion would also be appreciated. Thank you in advance and hope you enjoy. Mike

Wow That’s great Ray. Thank you very much. Having a bad episode of Vertigo but hope to see you in Orlando this coming weekend. MikeR

Thank you very much. This came in a very nice, higher end Shirasaya, with some horn trim and a solid silver habaki. I know it doesn’t make a wrong a right, just didn’t know about the Kamon. Other than that I love the blade. MikeR

Thank you both very much. Rae here are some pictures of the blade and both sides of the Nakago. Any help here with a translation would be greatly appreciated. Thank you. MikeR

Please correct me if I’m incorrect, this is what is referred to as a Kamon. It is on Omote side of a Wakashi. Does it look correct? Does it look real? Is it is what can you tell me about it. I can’t seem to find any information on this subject. Thank you in advance. MikeR

Thank you both very much for your help and information. MikeR

Thank you all in advance. Just picked this up with only a couple pictures of the Hamon, which I really like. Just received it and was surprised, very nice shirasaya, solid silver habaki, signed and dated. Also looks like a Kikumon. Is this correct? Could someone please translate it for me and let me know what they think about the signature also. Again thank you for all you imput and help. MikeR