Hi All,
I have been doing quite a bit of research on the best way to package a nihonto to insure no damage to the blade or saya and allow the people at customs to inspect it without causing damage or difficulty in repacking.
Here is an interesting idea I came across from David Hofhine and although it discusses shipping bare blades, it seems like a great idea for any blade:
Special steps must be taken when shipping a bare blade, but it can be done very safely and reliably. A bare blade will also give you a smaller and lighter package that will cost less to ship and be less likely to be bent. To ship just the blade, take the blade out of the mounting and wrap it in paper such as newspaper to prevent it from being scuffed or finger printed. The next step is to mount the blade onto a wooden board that is longer then the overall length of the blade. A common 1"x2" to 1"x4" works very well. Drill a hole in the board and put a heavy wire (at least 12 gauge solid) or heavy rope or similar through the hole in the board and the hole in the tang. THIS IS ESSENTIAL FOR SHIPPING AN UNMOUNTED BLADE! Further strap the blade onto the board with LOTS of heavy strapping tape. If you ship a bare blade without strapping it down like this the tip will crash into the end of the package and be damaged and possibly cause injury!!! Strapping the blade down like this protects it from the worst forms of shipping damage. It will keep the blade from poking through the end of the packing. It will also prevent the blade from being bent if the package is crushed. Attached is a picture of what this looks like.
Also, has anyone had any experience shipping with carpet tubes?
Thanks all for sharing your experience and wisdom!
Mark