Mark

or Sa

maybe it is mismatched? the numbers are an assembly number used to keep all the original parts for a sword together and avoid swapping parts

and members here have some nice swords for sale (as Brian noted Ray's are good) you could also check Grey's website http://www.japaneseswordbooksandtsuba.com/store/Swords he has a bunch of great swords, most papered already, for less than 8k. Grey is well known here and reliable. Not only is he in the U.S. he is in the same state as you so you can probably check them out in hand instead of buying internationally

it is a real Japanese sword not modern fake. That said it seems low quality (way the hi are cut, tsuba). I like the fuchi. probably bring a fair price at auction

shigekuni

Bizen Kuni shige _____ you can figure the last one (clue - same as 3rd kanji)

date looks like Showa 6th year 5th month

i will be in Pittsburgh 10/5-7 at a show, there will be other collectors there, happy to look if you bring them by

mid to late 1800's very late. type of thing made for sale to foreigners,

welcome. Is there a picture? BTW forum rules require posts be signed

i have had swords in shirasaya 200-300 years old that were fine and still worked.

i would pass on the forst sword at $450 second sword - Kunimori........ fair amount of info available on line, signature associated with Yasuhiro but many books say these swords were made with western steel and by students. Still there are militaria collectors who are interested

Am i missing something? I know this is related to swords maybe not fittings but It seems to say they offer refund but the exceptions seem to exempt ALL swords sold from refund Refund guarantee is not applicable to the followings: a sword with an “expert certificate”, but later it is regarded as a fake by another expert’s opinion, a sword with no “expert certificate” at the time of sales, so if it HAS a "paper" you can't return it, but if it DOES NOT have a paper you can't return it, so is there a return/refund policy?

Mr Miyano could not attend one of the Tampa shinsa (one before the last Tampa shinsa, forget the date)

i had a Yasukuni wakizashi some time back, can't recall seeing a Mantetsu

side latch is a plus but condition is rough. someone has painted the handle and scabbard,not sure if thet can be removed, the blade is badly pitted. It is real so someone will buy it but your price is more than i would ask for it in that condition

i attend all U.S. sword shows. I went to the ones in Baltimore and Philly that Bill G organized. Do you have an idea of time of the year? There are a lot of established events, sword shows and others, that many dealers may already be committed to so we need to know early to plan. I had attended shows in Houston, San Antonio and Dallas and would try another in TX

says Nankei Shigekuni made this........... not sure what you mean about "genuine". If you mean is it a genuine Japanese sword vs. a Chinese fake then yes. If you mean is it made by Shigekuni no one here is likely to say yes from that picture. The tang has been cleaned and that is a shame as it greatly reduces the value either way.

Yamato-Shizu

for those in the US here is a link if interested http://www.nbthk-ab.org/

membership dues are paid annually. I think membership is important. If there are a lot of foreign members i think the NBTHK would take note and be more likely to try and accommodate them. As it is why would they change? If 99% of members are Japanese why worry about other languages, why worry about writing info on shinsa results as members can just ask when they pick up their items? They are set up to deal with people in Japan, that is why you need an agent, you can't submit to them by mail. If we want them to change and cater to those in other countries i think they need to see us as a sizable block. If even 25% of members were foreign i think they would take note

I think your suggestions make sense. Not so sure about #3 if an item passes that sort of speaks for itself, hard to get them to explain why, even the NTHK(s) does not do that on their points sheet. But i agree with Paul also. Are you a member of the NBTHK? If so great, if not I recommend joining. Much better chance of addressing concerns as a member. A little while back the NBTHK-AB had a meeting for all members where concerns could be expressed to the Directors and they would take that back to the NBTHK in Japan. I recall the Directors where very interested in issues brought up and made notes. It seems to be in the best interest of the NBTHK to be open to members.

Kazunori or Ichinori probably the former. from Seki in Mino, i am sure you can look him up. Probably not traditionally made

if you are asking if the nakago of that sword is shown in his book then no, it goes from Munetoshi to Nagamitsu. If you mean is a smith bu that name referenced in any index etc in the boo then i would have to look through the back for a munetsugu

hard upside down but maybe Hankei a very famous maker from later 1600's