Kiipu

Nick & Kiipu would like to acknowledge the contributions of Trystan, AKA BANGBANGSAN. Without his input and assistance, the above would not have been possible.

The Relationship Between Nakano Shōten and Manshū Tōken By Nick Komiya In 1937, KK Nakano Shōten 株式会社･中野商店 [Nakano Shop Co., Ltd.] established a sword manufacturing factory in Shinkyō 新京 [Hsinking] (currently Changchun 长春) and became the exclusive manufacturer of swords for the Manchurian Police. This later became Manshū Tōken KK 満州刀剣株式会社 [Manchuria Sword Co., Ltd.], but the capital investment and personnel continued to be from Nakano Shōten, making it a sister company of Nakano in every way. Manshū Tōken was initially an outpost of Nakano, but with 150,000 Yen of paid in capital, eventually became an independent company. They continued to monopolize the production of Manchurian Police swords. By 1942, Manshū Tōken operated 2 factories and may soon build a third in response to growing demand for their police swords. The President was Nakano Yōzō 中野･要藏, also President of Nakano Shōten. KK Nakano Shōten 株式會社･中野商店 Nakano Shop Co., Ltd. Manshū Tōken KK 満州刀劍株式會社 Manchuria Sword Co., Ltd.

Based upon the sword linked to below, I would say the fittings were that of Nan-Man Army Arsenal. These fittings were introduced by Nan-Man Army Arsenal starting in the spring of 1944. As to why an older Mantetsu blade was fitted out as a Type 100 variant, I have no idea. WWII Japanese Sword

I think I see numbers on a Takamasa 高正 posted by Shamsy back in 2020. Maybe the same as the one Bruce lists as 267? last ditch naval rinji?, Post #8

昭和十七年五月吉日　A lucky day in May 1942. I know of another one that was sold in Japan that had a fullered blade. It is anchor stamped and dated 昭和十七年八月日 [a day in August 1942]. http://kako.nipponto.co.jp/swords/KT124416.htm

And one of these days you need to clue me in on what a panet is, as in "lonely panet."

Yikes! The sampling is small and asking someone to take apart a perfectly fine copper-handled Type 95 is never a good idea unless the reward is greater than the looseness that follows! To summarize though, the following can be said about non-standard Type 95 numbers. 1. Pattern 1 swords with hand carved numbers on the tang that range from serial number 109 to 4042. See the posts above and only two known so far. 2. Pattern 1 swords with the ホ prefixed numbers in the 5,000 to 6,000 range. See the thread Another copper NCO. 3. Jinsen Pattern 7 & 8 swords with a tang serial number. I am aware of three so far: 260 (Pattern 8), 1285 (refitted as a Type 100), and 1551 (Pattern 7). It is unknown if the 300,000 range also has these tang numbers as I am unaware of one being disassembled yet. Hoping Bruce will have a go at one soon! 4. Pattern 5 swords that have no serial numbers on the blade; but, are serialized on the scabbard throat. This discussion is intermixed within the thread Questions about "late war", NCO swords. 5. Sometimes letters and numbers were added by returning allied servicemen. This was usually in the form of their initials, name, rank, or service number.

Well then, I will start calling it Chinese-American food and I really like my Belgian-American waffles too. Bon appétit everyone!

Rob, it just occurred to me, that your sword 4042 could be the very same sword that is depicted in the thread linked to below. If this is the case, what is the the thickness of the brass crossguard, either 9 or 11 millimeters? Type 95 seppa early Pattern with Brass tsuba

I have been having some problems with accessing that site with the link you provided. After talking to Trystan about it, I found that I needed the www. prefix for reasons unknown. Maybe @Brian can explain this. This only started recently and it could be something to do with the Firefox browser or one of the plugins I am using. http://www.ohmura-study.net/900.html The website that I like the most is actually the one put together by @Rich S. It is still by far the best English language online resource for the gendaitō era. Thanks Rich! www.japaneseswordindex.com

The blades were inspected at the swordsmith's forge and then sent to Tōkyō 1st Arsenal. Upon arrival, I believe they were then serialized without regard to the production date. For this reason, the dates can and will be out of sequence to the serial numbers. Some swordsmiths worked a great distance away from the arsenal and thus the inspector would arrive at a much later date than say a swordsmith who worked closer to the arsenal. Bottom line, go by the serial number first and then make sure the date is reasonably close to the other surrounding RJT blades.

To give credit where credit is due, I was aware of the markings on Stegel's sword from past correspondence and that was what prompted me to think the markings on Rob's sword were numbers. However, I could not come out and state as such as the information was conveyed by private message. It is as we say in the US, Stegel's story to tell. And finally, the number could be any of the ones suggested above.

Nice sword and ditto what Stegel and Rob said above. As you are in the States, start with Dawson's book first. A beginner only needs 1 or 2 books to get started with military swords, either F&G and/or Dawson's. Dawson, Jim. Swords of Imperial Japan, 1868–1945. Cyclopedia ed. Newnan, Ga.: Stenger-Scott Publishing, 2007. ISBN 978-0-9719127-2-4.

Trystan, it is an English language thing. The problem is how can a "Japanese sword" be made in China and still be called a Japanese sword. The English language can be a bugbear at times as I imagine you are well aware of by now!

Actually, it is a three digit serial number. The third digit can be partially seen above the shinobi to the left. The shinobi was probably drilled by the fitting shop and it took out the third digit. Some Niigata Prefecture RJT blades did not use the encircled 松 stamp and this is one of them. Niigata Prefecture Timeline 615 Akitaka January 1943. 松819 Akihisa March 1943. 86? Kiyokatsu March 1943. 松1080 Munetoshi May 1943.

Found you another one to compare to. ☆　濃州兼久作 = ☆ Nōshū Kanehisa saku. 昭和十八年四月 = April 1943. Type 3 1944 Pattern Shin Gunto Sword Pictorial: Show us your Type 3, Post #49

Cross-Reference Bruce Pennington the name is Kikuhide

A Seki swordsmith that I do not see listed in the guild list or in Sesko's book. I found another Kanemasa though with a 関 stamp. Takehito

Rob, what is the serial number of the blade that this marking is coming from? Are there any other markings on the tang? In regards to the nakago marking, I think it could be the number 十五? You will need to rotate the picture around 90 degrees to see it though.

@BANGBANGSAN may have identified the maker of that sword in another thread. Japanese Swords Made In China During World War II, Post #3

@Shamsy Probably not relevant to the above but the thickness of the large seppa was changed in 1938 when the crossguard was made thinner. Short Development History of Type 95 Gunto, Post #91 @Bruce Pennington I assume the handguard is 11 millimeters (mm) thick and not 9 mm thick?

Mal Cox has updated his digital book on the swordsmiths of Kaga Province 加賀国, which is now part of modern day Ishikawa Prefecture 石川県. This book will be of interest to both Nihontō & gendaitō collectors. Cox, Malcolm E. Kaga no Kuni: Swordsmiths 加賀國. Updated. 2022. 224 pages. Kaga No Kuni: Swordsmiths

The picture is kinda deceiving from the UK auction site as it does look like a large seppa. However, I learned from Stegel to download all the pictures for future reference. (For you old buzzards, right click on the picture and a menu will appear with the "Save Image As..." option.) When the image was enlarged, a small seppa was clearly visible. Going back to your original question, several "copper" handled swords have the small & large seppa reversed. In every case, they were either reworked or tampered with. For example, Detective Chief Inspector Stegel unearthed this copper that was "enhanced" for resale. Note the seppa position in the first photograph. copper-handle NCO sword questions, Post #18 FYI, this was not something I was aware of until you brought it up.

The large seppa 大切羽 is between the scabbard 𩋡 and crossguard 鍔. The small seppa 小切羽 is between the crossguard 鍔 and ferrule 柄環. The reason for the large seppa is that it butts up against the scabbard and needs to make full contact with it. If you use the small seppa, it will leave a gap where the latch 駐爪 passes through. This is the arrangement used on the Patterns 1 & 2. As for the other patterns, I will let someone else comment on that.

Me thinks Rob has good eyes! The seppa on 4735東 are reversed in the photographs above and one seppa is small and the other is large. As this sword was reworked at some point in time, the reversal could have happened at this time. However, at a later date someone corrected the order and the small seppa 小切羽 was moved to the back of the crossguard while the large seppa 大切羽 was moved to the front of the crossguard. Copper type 95 sword knot: Real or replica?