in my original post i mentioned the condition of the leather and sticthing as being un-altered. i assumed it obvious that the saya started out as a longer piece but I contend that the modifications are Japanese in origin . the first picture shows the saya was narrowed to accept the metal fitting but this modification of the wood HAD to be done before the leather was installed . the second picture shows uninterrupted and typical Japanese leather and stitching that runs the length of the saya. in the 40 plus years that I've been addicted to this hobby I have seen a ton of "bubba" work as have we all, some worse than others but always detectable . even under magnification I can detect no western workmanship in these pictures. the leather has not been altered . I do not know why this piece has mixed fittings and I obviously could have installed matching fittings before bringing it before this group but I did not because that would have been dishonest. we all I am sure have seen some odd things that came out of the arsenals towards the end of the war. I ran into a second gen kanemoto waki in sand cast mounts with canvas under the ito . I think these mounts fall into that group of oddities ….. all comments about april fools jokes and cutting sandwiches aside.... please, I came to this forum to share and learn not to be entertainment for the masses