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Jon

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Everything posted by Jon

  1. Jon

    It arrived!

    cutting edge is a great book and can now be picked up in soft back for little money…not sure if it’s as good picture wise as the hard back editions ?
  2. Jon

    Is this a keeper?

    Yes I had that agreement with my wife..over that last two years we have negotiated to 6 blades..2 katana, 2 wakizashi and Two Tanto………
  3. Jon

    It arrived!

    Well done, nice first blade, very wise to purchase a signed blade in Polish. Did it come papered ?
  4. you do have a direct boarder with with the Russian state ( the Kaliningrad oblast)..of all the European states only Lithuanian, Latvia, Estonian, Finland, Norway, Poland and obviously Ukraine have this unfortunate pleasure… your problem is Japan is profoundly fanatical about its pacifism…and export of weapons is both legally and morally riddled with issues. I think you have a problem around the rules around export of weapons which can be found in the 2014 defence white paper, material 62 the key bits that relate to your issue are as follows: “Export of "weapons" requires permission from the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry according to the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Control Act (Act No. 228 of 1940) (Note) and the Export Trade Control Order (Cabinet Order No. 378 of 1949). (Note) Currently, the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Law.” Three principles for arms exports Prime Minister Sato, April 21, 1982, House of Representatives, Settlement Committee (Summary) Specifically, the government's operational policy regarding the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Control Act and the Export Trade Control Order clarifies that arms exports are not permitted in the following cases: 1) For communist countries 2) For countries where the distribution of weapons, etc. is prohibited by United Nations resolutions 3) For countries that are parties to international disputes or are at risk of such disputes. Government policy Regarding the export of "weapons," the government has always been cautious in dealing with the export of "weapons" in order to avoid aggravating international conflicts due to Japan's position as a peaceful nation, and will continue to do so in accordance with the following policy. shall be processed and its export shall not be facilitated. 1) Export of "weapons" is not permitted in areas covered by the Three Principles. Definition of weapon The term "weapon" is used in various laws and regulations, and its definition should be interpreted according to the purpose of each law, etc. 2) "Weapons" under the Self-Defense Forces Act refer to "firearms, explosives, swords, and other machines, instruments, devices, etc. whose purpose is to directly kill or injure people or destroy property as a means of armed struggle." Basically it could be that businesses in Japan have been advised somehow that “Poland” has been designated as a nation that could be in at risk of international dispute ( conflict)…..and so would come under principle 3…but….I suspect it’s not an official designation as Poland is Member of of NATO and bound to article five as are all members states..including almost every nation in Europe, Canada and the US..so if it was an official ban it would logically have to cover every NATO nation which is essentially the European continent and North American…and Japan has just entered a load of agreements around arms sales and shared development of weapons with the Uk and Italy.
  5. Amazing find and well done on preserving and restoring this amazing blade..what a brilliant story….
  6. Can we see some pictures of the rest of the blade for interest and a bit of back story if you have any ?
  7. As a fellow collector of coins and antiques who also got into Japanese art swords..I would say the following….you will probably want to turn on its head a lot of what you expect from your other collections. The key thing to remember is that unlike European weapons etc Japanese swords are essentially art in steel that also happens to be some of the best designed and constructed swords ever made.. but to be able to appreciate this art of steel you have have be able to see the character of the steel and the only way to do that is if the blade has been polished by an expert polisher…this is the profoundly different from everything you will be use to..to truly understand your sword and the steel it will need to have been polished, which is a destructive removal of layers of steel..so where as on an old coin you want the patina of age…a Japanese sword, to be studied and appreciate needs to be made to look like it has just been forged…only then can you see the steel..but the the tang is left to tell you it’s story and history. what this means is for your first blade always make sure it is in Polish…this is vital, don’t be tempted to buy anything that’s is dull or rusted with age..you will never be able to read that blade and understand it and getting a sword polished is a very expensive and time consuming business. For the beginner a papered blade is best as this tells you the blade is what the seller is telling you and it will give you the being of the story of that sword, you will know the signature is real, who the smith is, school, age etc…this will give you a baseline as you study the blade and steel..you can read about the smith and school..how the constructed their swords…come to understand how he made his blades and then see that in your own blade… so my honest advice would be to first get reference books and read…then look at the available blades in polish with a Hozen papers ( you don’t need to pay for any greater level) find a smith that has plenty written about them as this will give you something to really get your teeth into…. many will say find out what you like and the smiths you may want to collect before buying..but actually you cannot do that…your first steps are about understanding and studying a blade you own…later after a few blades have past your eyes you may get to a point of I like smith A or school b and I will collect their works…but for your first blade..find a modest smith or school with plenty of references materials out there…get a polished blade so you can see all their is to see in the steel and make sure it’s got a Hozen paper so you know exactly what you are studying. Of the three common blades..katana sized blades are the most popular and so most expensive…to be honest there is a reason…the proportions of a katana are probably the most appealing to the eye of all the types of Japanese blades….wakizashi are somewhat cheaper and although they don’t have the presence of a katana they are still great for study and are a cost effective way of collecting a specific school when you get to that point…..Tanto are small about the same price as a wakizashi but are constructed in a very different way..personally I would say any collection should have examples of all three..but for your first piece you cannot beat owning a katakana that is in Polish, signed with a Hozen paper.
  8. Jon

    eBay nihonto.

    That’s a pretty good piece of advice for a number of the eBay sellers, some of them have their own web sites on which they tend to sell without the 15% EBay take as a sellers fee.
  9. Hi no unfortunately my blade with the intractable rust is a koto blade that was in Polish..just had it polished 8 months ago…completely at a loss to be honest as to why it’s happened….it was regularly oiled with a good quality sawing machine oil….totally gutted…it’s the first time I’ve had a blade hit with out of control rust…I did have one blade that got stuck in customs for 3 months that ended up with a small spot…but cleaning with isopropyl and regular old managed that spot easily…..I also collect old western blades and may of those are rust feasts when I get them but always managed to stabilise the rust with tried and tested isolate from moisture and oxygen….this rust on the koto…completely different.
  10. I’m having a major issue controlling a rust patch on a polished blade and I’m not sure what to do…I have popped a dehumidifier in the room it’s in and got the humidity below 50% ( I don’t want to drop it below 40% or it may start cracking the Shirasaya)..it’s got a good Shirasaya, I have taken to re-oiling weekly..but the rust is seriously winning and I don’t know why…it’s corroding at a speed I’ve not really seen before…I’m going to have to do something or the blade is going to suffer major pitting and likely end up destroyed and not recoverable....any thoughts.
  11. Hi that’s not true, there are at last count I believe 122 blades that are considered “national treasures” ( Kokuho) cannot leave Japan unless via a specific loan agreement with a museum, there are also around A further 800 blades classed as Juyo-Bunkazai ( important cultural property ) that cannot be exported…but graded as TOKUBETSU JUYO TOKEN does not mean is a “national treasure” or important cultural property ( although it may be) as there are over a 1100 TOKUBETSU JUYO TOKEN blades and over 10,000 JUYO TOKEN blades.
  12. I cannot quite see if you have red rust on the blade, but I would make sure you keep it oiled with light machine oil.
  13. My own personal view is. 1) human judgement is imperfect and a sword could be dismissed as a Gimei when it is not, removal of the signature on limited human judgements amounts to cultural vandalism. 2) even if it is a Gimei there are many many faked works of art that become collectors peices and an important part of cultural history. Even the great Michaleangelo started his career by making fake sculptures..he would age them and sell them as antiques..no one knows how many of these existed or how many of these fakes were later destroyed before people realised what they had….there is only one confirmed micheangelo created fake antiquity and that was the one he got busted for. Han Van Meegeren is a faker who is considered a master in his own right ( as a creator of fakes) and his faked art is regularly placed in museums…Fakes are sometimes considered to be iconic and have considerable monetary and social value all on their own… 3) the Gimei therefore has its own place in history and the story of art swords and should be preserved not destroyed.
  14. Yes he does really great work.
  15. George, I can give you the details of a guy in the Uk who makes good Shirasaya…it will probably set you back three figures though. with this one it may just be keep the blade as it is…an interesting little piece to keep.
  16. In reality the price is going to what someone is willing to pay for each individual sword…there are going to be so many variables, local market conditions etc etc…also how you sell will make a difference….again depending on your local market or if your willing to take the risk of international postage etc. It’s supply and demand rite large…so if you have only one person wanting to buy it..they go for as cheap as you are willing to sell..if a few people want it they will compete for the price.
  17. I think there is a second bit of advice to go with that around not buying rusting out of Polish nihonto, unless your really able to spot the jems.. As not only is the rusting Nihonto not collectible and liable to not get a return when you try and sell, restoration is a big financial risk, but it’s not something you can use to take what you,ve read in a book and see the application in real life. The truth is books can only get you so far…you need polished blades in hand as a reference point. So I would turn the point around a bit and say when you have your basic book knowledge, start your collection with a modest, in Polish and papered blade..moving it along at the right time and then get a new blade to study…there should be no need to give advice around getting a blade polished for a new collector, the advice should be get a polished papered blade..when you are old and wise in the hobby start to rescue those gems that need polishing if that’s what gives you pleasure or buy polished gems without papers. There are always exceptions to the rule and one of those is the family heirloom, this was how I got into the hobby, getting an old wall hanger..it was a koto blade, but had a HAGIRE…there is was no real economic reason to get the blade polished other than it was in the family for 3 generations and it has real meaning to the family so polished it was….and it’s a lovely study piece even if it’s go that Fatal flaw as well as having meaning to the family.
  18. Just got this long awaited blade from Japan, I’ve been really looking forward to seeing this in hand and it was not a disappointment. Any thoughts, comments or if anyone has any good insights into shinano daijō fujiwara tadakuni or the school that would be great. I got this for what I consider a steel as well ( I do like a bargain).
  19. I see what you mean, there has been some serious rust going on by the looks of the pitting and it looks like someone has removed it with a belt sander…it’s a mess I will give you that.
  20. Hi John I would not write the blade off unless it has a specific fatal flaw or has had a skilled polisher confirm it cannot be saved…shinogi, Yokote can all be reshaped by a skilled polisher…it’s only dead if it’s got a fatal flaw or is just to tired for another Polish.
  21. You have a ranch, that’s just so very cool…as an avid watcher of Dallas I now have visions of southfork.
  22. Honestly for £4,000 I would be looking for an Ubu nakago ( not shortened)…..Especially for an EDO blade.
  23. Hi Alexi, unfortunately they all lead to being out of stock..there are a number of websites around the world where you can no pre order a copy, but no specific date as yet…so I suspect it’s coming out again soon…there are a serious number of book sellers trying to gouge on this book..there are copies for sale for 800+ dollars…I will just have to wait for the reprint… iIts odd how it works with books like this, one person Tries their arm then everyone is sticking them on for silly money…
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