nagamaki - Franco

Will cast another vote leaning towards being a muromachi piece. http://japantrip.tripod.com/Japan/osafune2.html

Any word on how the auction went? results link? Thank you in advance.

NBTHK sword care manual: http://www.jssus.org/articles/7.html Its not advisable to mess around with the mei

1) collect coins Seek guidance, read and study. Don't mistake temptation for opportunity. 2) attend sword meetings, shows/shinsa, read, study, learn and participate in kantei, repeat. 3) buy the sword (or fittings), not the paper (mei). 4) mistake temptation for opportunity 5)

When talking to Mr. Tschernega about selecting a habaki style using imaged examples, several times he was very quick to ID the individual habaki maker, including his teacher. These top artisans are just as much very serious students as they are craftsman.

Hello, for what its worth, this mon gives the "impression" it was added on.

While the jigane on some swords may have what is described as hadatatsu and it is to be expected , on other swords it is, well, not so good . Every sword must be researched and evaluated individually. Again, be very careful not apply things too literally.

http://www.nihontocraft.com/Ura_Nihon_no_Toko.html ........ more reading about "hadatatsu", 2nd paragraph down. This article makes the important distinction of defining 'rough hada' as in comparison. Often those unfamiliar with particular nihonto subjects take things much too literally. That is one reason it becomes important to study as many different kinds of swords as possible.

Hello, nihonto have a front side = omote, and backside = ura. As this is the case, the omote is "supposed" to be presented as the front. Exactly how each side turns out depends on the intentions, ability, and skill of the individual sword smith. As with many things associated with nihonto, there are the exceptions. Franco

Huh? Hmm, have i been missing something? Franco

Hello, You might attempt contacting Chris Bowen for more information regarding this smith. http://www.ejapaneseswords.com/ Franco

Hello Andrew, From the 5 main traditions and many time periods to choose from, which tradition(s), time period(s), school(s), smith(s) catch your fancy at this point? Why? Franco

Hello, That splitting/cut of the habaki, along with habaki looseness, occurs most often as a result of seating the tsuka back onto the nakago of the sword incorrectly, and just outright abuse. A well made habaki acts similar to a spring clip, and will not be in contact with the cutting edge. So it is actually protecting the hamachi. Franco

Hello, Recently made my first purchase from Mike Yamasaki, and everything went very well from start to finish. Very pleased. Franco

Hello, for what its worth, yes, very little, gardening experience suggests a bamboo lattice work, a garden trellis. Which might make sense of the flowering vine "growing" out of the corners. One attraction to tososgu is the close attention to the simple things in life they strongly suggest the samurai were always keenly in tuned with and appreciated. Franco

I bought the " set " from Walberg........... but I don't think it's the " mate ", very close but not original set. http://www.esnips.com/doc/f0f191f1-e4e8 ... ai-kashira milt the ronin Hey Milt, kashira is very interesting work, you have to get after Mark to find the mate Franco

Hello, Especially since this wakizashi is signed, Bungo's advice of submitting it for shinsa is very reasonable advice. In addition to having the mei validated, both NTHK organizations give a number rating. If the number, which represents a % based on quality of the individuals work, is 70 points or higher, it 'might validate' having the blade polished. One important question to have answered is; is this "Morimitsu's personal work" or is this "Morimitsu school work" ? There is the option of submitting the sword to the MN show (shinsa) by registered mail for a fee. The downside is it will be difficult to learn and ask questions if you're not there. Franco

The article linked below is a place to begin, and should give you a pretty good idea about materials used. http://www.nihon-kogeikai.com/TEBIKI-E/4.html Franco

Greetings, The situation with ware and similar flaws which appear inside the hamon, is that the hardened steel does not give the polisher the option of pushing surrounding metal into the area to fill in and masque the flaw. Franco

Greetings, Grab a tall drink before sitting down, this is one large collection With quite an assortment, some nice surprises, and probably a few attributions that require a little imagination Scroll down on the initial opening page/index to find where the tsuba begin, look for next in the upper right of the yellow box. Apologies if this link is a repeat. http://64.233.161.104/search?q=cache:vL7A8b89b7MJ:www.beloit.edu/~museum/wrightonline/exhibit6/vexid6.htm+bushu+tsuba&hl=en&gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=3 sorry, here's a direct link to the tsuba, scroll by using next in the upper portion of the yellow box http://www.beloit.edu/~museum/wrightonline/exhibit6/e60001b.htm Franco

Hello Brian, Where structure is concerned, it would not be a matter of weakness. As long as the habaki fit is correct and tight on the sword and against the tsuka (seppa, tsuba), there are no metal strength issues, beyond being already damaged in some manner. That is why all the softer metals are seen, even in solid form. More than likely brass would have been a selection based on availability, economics (vs. gold), and/or simple matter of taste. Regards, Franco

Greetings, This piece was clearly made as a kitchen utensil and it would be best to leave it as such. Franco

New Years greetings The "Nihonto Newsletter", by Albert Yamanaka, the complete set (January, 1968 - June, 1972), rearranged by Paul Allman. Unbound, four volume set with table of contents, 1,960 pages! http://www.ncjsc.org/pubs_4_sale.htm Albert Yamanaka was a polisher in the Honami tradition and a student of Honami Koson. Yes, Sa Yukihide kantei is described. Franco

Brian is on the west coast. No website, but you can find contact info thru http://www.JapaneseSword.com Franco

There are only 2 modern habaki makers that know how to make this pattern, Brian Tschernega and his teacher. regards, Franco